Anybody know anything about Gil Van Horn, his cartridges, his gunsmithing, contact info, or anything at all about The Master?

Gill,is rather reclusive and doesn't talk to just anyone. Ryan Breeding was taught personally by Gill Van Horn. I am fortunate to know one of Gill's friends and he talks with Gill rather frequently. I will ask if he is willing to give out a contact number and will ask any questions that you would like answered..........

jwp475,
Ryan Breeding claims he owes it all to Gil Van Horn, eh? On Ryan Breeding's web site he claims as much, and says that between the two of them there is "seventy years" of experience. How old is Gil?

Looking at the Ryan Breeding rifles, is like deja vu, they mirror the Gil Van Horn pieces I have seen in Rifle and Handloader over the last few decades.

Ryan says Gil is a renowned African hunter as well as Riflesmith Extraordinaire.

Reclusive, eh?

Breeding or Van Horn, Breeding or Van Horn ... who will I get to build my next rifle in 500 Mbogo?

I'll keep any contact info secret if necessary, but don't reckon I'll be holding my breath waiting on it. Thanks.

PS: Ask Gil if he has started working on his memoirs yet, and how many volumes will it be?

If he is a recluse, could we pry one volume out of him to list his wildcats, some load data and maybe a few pictures of some masterpiece rifles and dead animals and happy hunters?

Just wishin'.

I believe that Gill is 75 years old and has been on 25 Safari's

Shoot me an email at jwp13051@aol.com and I will put you in contact with my friend and he can answer your questions about Gill. I can only tell you what I have heard as I have never met Gill

WILL DO. Thanks.

cant wait for my ryan breeding rifle.

quote:

Originally posted by 700 nitro:
cant wait for my ryan breeding rifle.

700 Nitro,
Is that a synthetic stocked .505 Gibbs on a left-handed GMA action?

And how many down in the box?

For how many USD?

How long a wait?

How much will it weigh?

How long was that barrel?

If you don't mind me asking ...

Trivia: Mr. Van Horn is a staunch advocate of expanding bullets for cape buffalo.

let me see here

1.... 11,500 usd
2.....1 year.......i pushed up the date because the house i was renting out not the one i live in burnt to the ground kitchen fire. and i had to take care of a few thing but im back on track.

3....12.5 pounds. i asked for this weight.

4.....22" stainless left handed gma action.

5.....synthetic stock.


loads 600 grain solids at 2550 fps from that 22' tube.

3 down 1 in the pipe......i could pay 1000 extra to have 4 down but im not going to pay 1000 for a extra shot. if i cant kill it with four im already dead.

quote:

Originally posted by 500grains:
Trivia: Mr. Van Horn is a staunch advocate of expanding bullets for cape buffalo.

Me TOO!Bigger Holes fer sure!

Trivia- Gil had the 585 Van Horn 10 years
before Nyati and it was 3 inch case.
He had 500 Van Horn about same time, a 460
case with belt removed,good Rigby brass was
hard to get, our 500 Mbogo???
He had 460 Van Horn, like 460 A-Sq Short is now.
An inventive guy. Ed

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
Ask Gil if he has started working on his memoirs yet, and how many volumes will it be?

If he is a recluse, could we pry one volume out of him to list his wildcats, some load data and maybe a few pictures of some masterpiece rifles and dead animals and happy hunters?

Just wishin'.

Someone has to get the ball rolling! Letter RIP!!!

quote:

Originally posted by .366torque:


Someone has to get the ball rolling! Letter RIP!!!

Thanks guys, for all the interest.

I talked to Jack Huntington and he is a kind fellow who adores Old Gil. Jack would love to see some kind of Gil Van Horn compilation if Gil would cooperate.

BTW, I think Jack is one of the Huntingtons of fame:

www.huntingtons.com

Anybody placing orders there ask about the Gil Van Horn "Collection" whatever that might come to be some day.

I am hoping to see something shake out.

Another BTW, look up the .585 Van Horn Express in Ken Howell's _Custom Cartridges_, pge 423.

.6600" rim and .6608" head, and 3.000" long in the brass with a 40 degree shoulder, .6400" shoulder diameter, .6020" neck diameter, .5000" neck length.

This was designed before the .585 Nyati, and it sounds like Ross Seyfried got wind of it and bastardized the concept into the .585 Nyati.

It is from .577 NE brass with rim turned down and extractor groove cut.

Gil has always been on the cutting edge of societal evolution.

I am worried about Gil since he is still shooting his .620 and .700 Van Horns in bolt action rifles, the latter from 50 BMG brass maybe.

That cannot be good for his noggin. Let us pray.

When Ross made the Nyati he didn't know about
Gil's version. Gill didn't have the backing
of a big publishing company, like Ross,
with the reputation as the biggest
gun magazine of the time, who decided to
promote Ross and his cases.
Hence only a very few knew of Gil's 585.
I asked Ken and Ross years ago about it.
Ken knew, but most gunwriters don't have his
book, all of us nuts out here bought them up.
Ken's book came out after Nyati was born.
And of books I have that came out earlier --
"Wildcat Cart" and 'Big Bore Cart' - didn't
have it. Ed.

I have heard that Gil and Ross had a mutual acquaintance. This acquaintance got a sample of .585 Van Horn Express brass and showed it around. Soon Ross had his unoriginal idea for the .585 Nyati, a design inferior to the Van Horn.

RIP-That could be-- Who knows. So many
cartridge ideas got used by others after
the original guy did it. Like 470 Capstick
being done 50 years after it was the 475
OKH originally.In this example Art would have sold more if it was called OKH.In Nyati
developement Ross had the audience as
full time writer and Gill was an overworked
smith, who didn't have time to promote
a cartridge. But he did great work.
That counts a great deal also.Ed

Actually, the story I got from Ross at his place several years back; was that he had a client get a verrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry expensive double rifle "confiscated" trying to leave Africa, brought it in okay...took nearly six (IIRC) years to get it back, rather beat up. Ross vowed to not subject his expensive guns to the vagaries of a run-amuck customs dept. and figured that the best stopper he had used was a 577NE. Sooooo, he built one in a rimless form for a boltgun. Then he got carried away with velocity...unlike us genteel folks here on the forum who seek only to experience the gentle push of those Nitro cartridges in an affordable bolt action rifle (Ha!). Ross sold his ranch in Rogen, CO, several years ago and now owns and operates a private Elk hunting facility on his place over near LaGrande, Oregon.

Rich

PS: you cannot make a good living writing, as a general rule; but I got to meet everybody in the shooting industry at SHOT shows and seminars all over the country and made a lot of friends.

The real .585 bolt action story started almost 20 years ago with Gil Van Horn, and over 50 years of other waters have passed under the bridge too.

Ah, but for a Gil Van Horn history for posterity ...

RIP, you are right-on there. An autobiography would be just too sweet for words!

Rich