A few months ago I picked up a CZ 550 in .416 Rigby from a member here on AR. At first I planned on doing an AHR #2 upgrade to the rifle. But before I invested that money I wanted to do load development and put a few hundred rounds through the rifle and be sure it was a keeper. Well, it's a keeper. I have a very nice 400gr A-Frame load and a stellar 400gr North Fork softpoint load. But that's where the rub comes in.

As those of you who have done this upgrade know, it includes cutting the barrel to remove the front CZ sight. I get this, there are only two things I don't like about the gun, the trigger and the front sight. I plan on using a scope on the rifle, but I'd like to leave open sights as an option in the event of scope failure. Cutting the barrel is where my concern is. The NF load as mentioned is very accurate. Furthermore I love the balance of the rifle as is. In comparison to my M70, it doesn't have that forward heavy feel of the M70. But if I cut the barrel on the CZ, it may start to feel too light at the front.

So I guess my questions are if I cut the barrel say by two inches will that:

1. Adversely affect the accuracy of the load I've developed?
2. Significantly change the balance of the rifle?

Can the front sight be improved without cutting the barrel?

Thanks in advance for your replies.

i have the ahr #2 on a 375 H&H and 458 lott

they balance perfectly and the ahr sights are great and the gun looks great after wayne gets done with it

i have no idea of the impact on accuracy of cutting two or 2.5 inches of the barrel - i dont think it would be material for any hunting purposes

my 375h&H shoots great - it is my go to hunting rifle

i need to shoot the lott more - it is a great gun

I have a CZ in 416 Rigby that has some of the modifications you mention. I let Match Grade Arms do some work on it a few years back. They put one of their synthetic stocks on it which is nice but without telling me, reduced the magazine depth so that it only takes 3 down now (one of the great things about the CZ is 4 down on the Rigby).

Back to the point, I had 2 inches cut from the barrel and had it Pro Ported. I don't recommend having it ported but cutting the 2 inches certainly made it a nicer rifle to handle. It's hard to say how that will affect your accuracy. As far as loosing velocity, remember, it's a Rigby. A handloader's dream! If you are content with the standard 400gr at 2400fps, you will have no problem maintaining that with judicious handloads (if you follow what I'm saying ) after taking the 2" off the barrel.

I plan to have Wayne do some work on my rifle as well, namely the 3 position safety and new trigger as I had some issues with the stock trigger while on a Buffalo hunt in 06. My opinion is that the changes you mention will be well worth it.

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Williams:
I have a CZ in 416 Rigby that has some of the modifications you mention. I let Match Grade Arms do some work on it a few years back. They put one of their synthetic stocks on it which is nice but without telling me, reduced the magazine depth so that it only takes 3 down now (one of the great things about the CZ is 4 down on the Rigby).

Back to the point, I had 2 inches cut from the barrel and had it Pro Ported. I don't recommend having it ported but cutting the 2 inches certainly made it a nicer rifle to handle. It's hard to say how that will affect your accuracy. As far as loosing velocity, remember, it's a Rigby. A handloader's dream! If you are content with the standard 400gr at 2400fps, you will have no problem maintaining that with judicious handloads (if you follow what I'm saying ) after taking the 2" off the barrel.

I plan to have Wayne do some work on my rifle as well, namely the 3 position safety and new trigger as I had some issues with the stock trigger while on a Buffalo hunt in 06. My opinion is that the changes you mention will be well worth it.

Loading 103gr of H4831SC behind the 400gr NFs. For whatever it's worth my Swift loading manual says 99.5gr of H4831 will push a 400gr A-Frame at 2403fps in a 24" barrel. If that's accurate I would conservatively guess that 103gr with a NF in a 26" barrel is north of 2500fps.

I don't get too hung up on MV. If faster means more accurate, great. If slower means more accurate, then that's what I go with.

I know what you mean about the trigger. I've had rifles with triggers I didn't like but this one as is....well it really sucks. I understand having set triggers on a varmint/bench rifle, but on a DG rifle? Makes no sense to me. When not using the "set" feature, the creep is horrible. Perhaps this is fixable on the stock trigger?

As a novice mechanic working on my Harley, I've learned the hard way to not mess with something that's working and that makes me pause when considering cutting the barrel.

If you have super-tuned your loads for an optimal node, the loads will probably work great even after removing 2". (See Dan Newberry's Optimal Charge Weight)

With a Rigby you can check out higher accuracy nodes. Just keep your 400grainers well under 2700fps and your 350 grainers under 2900fps. I look for accuracy around 2800fps with 350grain so that in noon African sun the shots stay under 2900. (Actually, in the sun I've clocked some just over that, still with round primers and easy extraction. 2800fps is a good sub-max load. Just find what's accurate, anywhere between 2735 and 2835.)

I recently bought one of Wayne's rifles so this would be my take on things. When he cuts the barrel he will finish it with a beautiful recessed crown. Cutting the barrel is easy , finishing it is where the skill comes in. I wouldn't be surprised if it shoots even better.
My barrel is 22", I wouldn't want it any longer. Handles great! If MV is a concern it shouldn't take much tinkering to get to where you want to be, although the animal will likely not notice the difference. Sights are a personal taste. The one he uses are wicked fast and accurate. I like them so much I'm thinking of going to a scope as a backup. My last suggestion is just call the shop. Wayne will likely pick up the phone. He's great to deal with and treats you like a real person along with expert advice.

Wayne did a #3 on my CZ .416 Rigby. The wood is extraordinary and it shoots great. For $2995, you can't get a better deal on a DG rifle. I say go for it.

7mmnut,

I can't comment on accuracy yet, but I just got my 375 back from Wayne today and had the factory CZ barrel shortened to 23 inches. Balance is great, with a much more nimble feel to it. It's only two inches, which didn't sound like much, but the rifle looks and feels vastly shorter and easier to point. The crown that 4-5-0 mentioned that Wayne puts on the rifles is also really nice.

If you haven't sent the rifle off already, I'd vote go for it.

Wayne did a #1 CZ Upgrade on my 500 Jeffery. I considered it the best bang for the buck.