Anyone have any experience or advice on purchasing an older Jeffery bolt rifle? Any + or - to look for?

quote:

Originally posted by sevenmagltd.:
Anyone have any experience or advice on purchasing an older Jeffery bolt rifle? Any + or - to look for?

Do you mean made by Jeffery, or chambered in .404 Jeffery?

George

Westley Richards has a very nice take down in cal. .333 Jeffery by Jeffery and very fair priced IMHO.

http://www.westleyrichards.com/gun/used_guns_2_product.php?id=25848


Cheers,

André

here is a picture of Andre's bullet to be used in those "Jeffery" rifles with .510 caliber barrels.
Hey!, You can actually see the bore-riding nose contour on that bullet lying on its side!

quote:

Originally posted by JefferyDenmark:
Westley Richards has a very nice take down in cal. .333 Jeffery by Jeffery and very fair priced IMHO.

http://www.westleyrichards.com/gun/used_guns_2_product.php?id=25848


Cheers,

André

Yes nice rifle and it apears to be a take down.
Bill

Any original Jeffery is agreat buy. I have played with a original .416 Rigby on aM98 action and it would probably go for a meer 10K or so. Definately worth it though. Id jumpon one at that price if it ever comes my way.-Rob

George, I wanted any info on a Jeffery rifle. My son is wanting a bolt rifle and I came across one. Any pro's or con's, what to look for, etc. Any advice is appreciated.

Look for matching numbers and any signs of work on the rifle.
If re-worked the rifle might be less worth if the work is well made the rifle might hold its price.
If the Jeffery rifle is in a Jeffery calibre so called in-house calibre, that is a BIG plus. a .333 Jeffery by Jeffery is nice.
If the rifle is in a caliber where factory ammo is availablke that might also be a plus.
BIG bore calibers is always worth more the small bore especially if a magnum Mauser action has been used.
Take down is worth more then normal rifle, if quality is the same.
If thye rifle has vintage scope mount and scope that is also a plus even if the scope is not up to modern hunting standards.
Leather or canvas case is also a plus.

Condition and quality grade is of great importance. Nice wood is a plus, engraving is a plus.

Cheers,

André

Thanks Jeff, Not many rifles here in the States. I drug my feet on a Jeffery double rifle and let it get away but I would also like to have a bolt rifle. I will take your advice. Many thanks!

A Jefferys in .404 means dig deep into your billfold and pay out the kazoo, wait a year or two and double you money, better than the stock market..

Hi Atkinson,

A question, does a "Jeffery" pricing apply to a Manton Calcutta made .404? You just made me afraid to take my .404 back to the range!

joe manton was an importer his name is on many different oberndorf mauser and english built bolt rifles and double rifles might increase the value a little because the rifle actually been somewhere as for jeffery they have always been in the same catagorie as rigby ,westley,lancaster ,vickers,evans,gibbs,if it is made on a magnum lenght action it is always going to be a better put together rifle and command a premium, jeffery did use some military mauser actions when commercial oberndorfs werent avaliable rigby always used comm. actions at least until the end of ww2 then things for them as well as the trade changed with the oberndorf factory gone.
for the makers ive mentioned above rigby will bring in the most money second to holland which it seems no matter what they built it brings in big money ....paul

Thanks Paul, it's a magnum action mauser, fine paneled stock, unfortunately reblued and resighted at sometime, probably in the 1970s by my grandfather. Severely cutting the value.
LLS

rebluing is not such a bad thing if done right and dont think that it is severly devalueing it.many english rifles and shotguns were reblued because they were actually used although it is nice to have the original finish of course .depending on the rebluing job itself ,if it was done on a buffing wheel then it is going to be a lousy job , if it was just reblued without any buffing then it will be restored easily,
were it says joe manton is that engraved or is it silver letterd? and when you state resighted what has been done or added ?...paul

Sierra2,
Maney of the best rifles and shotguns used in England were rotinley sent back to the factory after hunting season to be cleaned and re finished. They didn’t think this was a big detractor over there. We in the US have become enamored with pristine “original†finish. I don’t think re doing the blue will be that big of a detractor on a Rigby as it would be on a Weatherbey. I am curious on what they did to the sights. Do you have a picture?
sevenmagltd.,
What caliber is the rifle you are looking at?
Bill

quote:

Maney of the best rifles and shotguns used in England were rotinley sent back to the factory after hunting season to be cleaned and re finished.

Absolutely! These things are tools, no more no less, when a tool needs "maintaining" or its anti-rust protective coating (blacking) renewing it would have been done. Although usually as that was done the barrel engraving would be also "renewed" and picked back up again.

And often, as in my case, awith my late father's 12 bore, shot gun would be restocked to suit another family member.

If the job is done well, don't worry. If it's done badly...

quote:

Originally posted by enfieldspares:
If the job is done well, don't worry. If it's done badly...

Correct, and that's the kicker. While the uniquely American Colt/Winchester psychosis doesn't apply to British guns, the quality of the work matters. Hopefully, the reblack wasn't done in the US. Paul is right, if it was, it was likely prepped on a wheel, and that can make proper restoration difficult and expensive.

With respect to breechloading arms, Manton of Calcutta isn't Joseph Manton as that business was defunct before the breechloader was invented. The connection to the London Mantons ended in 1846, and no Manton cartridge rifle will have Joe Manton's name on it. They'll usually be marked "Manton & Co, London & Calcutta".

Neither W. J. Jeffery & Co. nor Manton of Calcutta ever made any guns. All were "bought in" complete from other makers in Birmingham, although some Manton's came from European makers (look at the proof marks). That's why it's hard to generalize about these guns - both used a number of trade makers, and quality varied depending on the trade maker used. Like the Army & Navy guns, the quality of each gun must be judged individually.
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"Serious rifles have two barrels, everything else just burns gunpowder."