A half a dozen years or so ago I ran into someone with an early, mint Dakota 416 Rigby with a number of "options" who was rather anxious to sell it. So $2800 later I became the happy owner of said gun. All part of a longer term plan down the road to hunt buff in Africa. It shoots, feeds, etc., great but every time I shoot it I have "visions" of the stock letting go. What (and who) is the least intrusive method to add a second barrel lug? I am thinking a dovetail and/or screwed type install perhaps? Something that will not require a full reblue I hope? Views appreciated.

I would not worry about it in something as gentle as the .416 Rigby.
Dakota makes their 450 Dakota the same way.
They refuse to use barrel lugs because of accuracy deterioration possibility. Trickier accuracy results.
I have a 450 Dakota Magnum Mauser made by SIGARMS: no barrel lug.

You could also consider adding a hidden crossbolt behind the tang, in the grip, and make sure the visible crossbolts fore and aft of the magazine box are proper.

A fourth crossbolt (small diameter allthread like would be used behind the tang) is easily hidden behind the primary recoil lug of the action, buried in the epoxy bedding.

An axial grip rod can also be added.

And always pillar bed, with good glass bedding throughout.

I have several rifles I have done like this myself, especially if a laminated-wood stock, and even if they have barrel lugs or not.

If there is a secondary recoil lug on the barrel, I back that up with a hidden allthread crossbolt too, buried in epoxy bedding.

Or ... just shoot it until it cracks and then fix it as above, and it will be better than ever.

How many folks have had their Dakota Rifles of over 40-caliber crack a stock?
Dakota seems to pride itself on doing the bedding right to start with.
Hence, the cavalier attitude toward secondary recoil lugs on their 450 Dakota barrels.

What a great buy on a Dakota! But I'm not so brave as you regarding the add'l barrel lug. If it were mine I'd add one just to be sure. With my luck, shooting it until it let go would mean being in the middle of nowhere when it happens. Can't argue that the addition might not affect accuracy, but I'd bet if done right it'd still be more than acceptable as it was on my Sig .458 Lott. Personal preference and risk tolerance...

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
I would not worry about it in something as gentle as the .416 Rigby.
Dakota makes their 450 Dakota the same way.

+1
I would not worry about it either, I've had both the 416 Rigby and 450 Dakota in the Dakota line of rifles over the past 20 years and never had any issues.

I have 2 Dakota rifles in 416 Rigby and this is strange to me .Contact Ward Dobler and he shoud fix it .They gurantee their rifles.

I would lug it - AND have it properly bedded.

I have seen enough Dakotas with split stocks in back of the tang to think it's money well spent.

Forget the extra lug on the barrel...messing about adding it will do nothing but screw up the bluing and might screw up the barrel due to the welding heat tweaking the weld metal/barrel metal joint. I'm a welder and I know from long experience what happens in a weld joint...and it will DEFINITELY mess with the accuracy. Even an expert Tig man can't offset the weld bond problems.

A dovetailed lug "might" help depending on the thickness of the barrel and the thickness and depth of the dovetail, etc, at the point of the dovetail...BUT...the amount of available shear might not be enough plus loosing the strength of the steel at a point of high pressure...I WOULDN'T do anything like that as there are several less stressfull ways of mitigating the worry of stock splitting.

If you're concerned, add a threaded steel 1/4" rod or bolt down the middle of the grip and bed it in, steel epoxy bed the action and 2" or so of the barrel, plus add pillars.

Part of the recoil mitigation is the friction of the receiver and the stock wood...a slightly loose stock screw will allow the barrel/receiver to move with recoil and the tang to hit and split the grip unless the tang has relief.

Pillars allow a metal to metal "crush" and a much higher level of friction...bedding the recoil lug and a couple inches of the barrel adds to the friction grip plane.

You can add a 1/4" threaded bolt with a small "lug" on the end and milled and bedded into the OEM recoil lug and up the barrel channel 4" - 6"...and make sure there is a relief cutout behind the tang.

As long as the bedding is done right the 1/4" rod will transfer some of the recoil energy up into the forestock area...this is the only way I could repair a split laminated stock on my 416 Taylor in a Savage Laminated stock.

I also boxed in the blind mag with steel "plates" of 0.020" shim material, front, both sides and bottom of the mag well...and stuck a 375 H&H barrel on the Savage receiver and put the 416 T barrel on a Ruger tang action and into a synthetic stock. No more problems.

The net effect is the recoil energy is spread throughout the stock wood, the pillars and the extra bedding area and not just onto the recoil receiving area of the stock in front of the magazine cutout.

All my rifles from 375 cal up have steel rods in the grip and a steel rod attached to the recoil lug with a "lug" on the front end of the rod, running up the barrel channel and steel bedded in and 2" of the barrel also bedded...and I DON'T use laminated stocks with the heavy calibers...solid walnut is my choice.

There are all kinds of reasons why some stocks split and some don't in heavy recoiling rifle...

If you're concerned, send it to Dakota to be evaluated and adjusted FIRST...they can apply any mods you and they deem necessary.

Luck