... of ALL double rifles I'd like to own if I had tons o' money:

*SxS*
4 Bore Muzzle Loader by Colin Stolzer
577 NE by Bailey Bradshaw
577 BPE by H&H 19th Century Vintage
499 HE by B.B (Thanks to Ed Hubel for a great cartridge)
500/450 NE by H&H early 20th Century vintage (Thanks to U.S. Pres. T.R.)
375 Flanged Magnum by B.B.

*O/U*
333 Jeffery by Boss and Co. (with that EXQUISITELY BEAUTIFUL Forearm design)
275 Flanged by Boss and Co. (with that EXQUISITELY BEAUTIFUL Forearm design)

It's fun to dream...

This is quite an interesting topic. I can't imagine a list (above) that is as opposite as mine. It is interesting as to what drives our attraction(s). I hope this post is expanded on without getting into the all too common pissing contests. What say you all? For me a series of fine vintage English & Scottish doubles to cover a variety of game in a variety of eras. Black powder express and bore doubles from .360, .400, .450, .500, .577, 8-bore and 4-bore. That should cover the Victorian era. For Edward the same balance with cordite: .240, .300, .350 or .375 (all flanged), .450-500, .450 no2, .500, .577, .600. Of course, all could be boxlocks, or sidelocks, or droplocks, or a combination of the three. Nothing modern, non-UK, no O/U.
Let's go, fellas, fess up as to your dream battery.
Cal
PS. I'd throw in a pair of shotguns in each group for winged game.
But, hey, that's just me.

If I could have five matched, except for action size, cased and numbered “1” through “5” (the big five)with consecutive serial numbers, made by Westley Richards. Chamberings starting with; all with British rose &scroll engraving

#1~ 375H&H flanged, with A leopard bust engraved on the action belly

#2~ 450/400NE 3 inch, with a Lion bust engraved on the belly

#3~ 450NE 3 ¼ inch, with a Cape buffalo bust engraved on the belly

#4~ 470NE , with a Black Rhino bust engraved on the belly

and #5~ 500NE ! with an elephant bust engraved on the belly

All made to fit me and as new as tomorrow! NOW! If I could just win the lotto for about 20 million USD and if at age 77, I would have enough time to see them all finished, and book about a 60 day full bag safari to blood them all, I could die happy!

.........................................................................

quote:

Originally posted by MacD37:
If I could have five matched, except for action size, cased and numbered “1” through “5” (the big five)with consecutive serial numbers, made by Westley Richards. Chamberings starting with; all with British rose &scroll engraving

#1~ 375H&H flanged, with A leopard bust engraved on the action belly

#2~ 450/400NE 3 inch, with a Lion bust engraved on the belly

#3~ 450NE 3 ¼ inch, with a Cape buffalo bust engraved on the belly

#4~ 470NE , with a Black Rhino bust engraved on the belly

and #5~ 500NE ! with an elephant bust engraved on the belly

All made to fit me and as new as tomorrow! NOW! If I could just win the lotto for about 20 million USD and if at age 77, I would have enough time to see them all finished, and book about a 60 day full bag safari to blood them all, I could die happy!

.........................................................................

Now THAT'S the right deal and almost exactly what I would want as well. For me is drop the 470, move the 500 up one place and make the 600 the 5th of the five

I think ill play PowerBall today.

quote:

Originally posted by CCMDoc:
Now THAT'S the right deal and almost exactly what I would want as well. For me is drop the 470, move the 500 up one place and make the 600 the 5th of the five

I think ill play PowerBall today.

The ranking of the 500NE would still be my top choice of the five. I have absolutely no desire to own a 600NE double rifle. I had two 577NE doubles and I simply find anything larger than a 500NE to be no gain is effectiveness and simply weigh too much to carry all day! I do agree the 470NE is not my favorite either but it is about the only chambering that fits in the five with the 500NE as top!

………………………………I think I’ll play the lotto tonight as well, but I doubt I would live long enough to see the matched five finished. Too bad I didn’t win the lotto twenty years ago!

Mac and Doc,

You guys are very close to my choice as well. I would take out the 470 also as there really is no need for this cartridge with 500NE ammo available now days. I would place at the top, the 577NE.

But then again, I think Doc and I place the 577NE and 600NE at the top based on what we have and currently love. I agree Mac that there is no meaningful gain above the 500NE (Doc will disagree but that's cool ) and the 577NE wouldn't be needed, but I would still rather have it in the line up instead of the 470!

I might change the 450NE to a 450 No. 2 however, just for the cool factor!

450/400 bradshaw falling block OPPPS wait it's being built now hahahahaha

quote:

450/400 bradshaw falling block OPPPS wait it's being built now hahahahaha

A suitable ladies cartridge for you!

I could settle for one rifle on my wish list, a Holland and Holland Royal in .500 NE. That would round out the collection nicely.

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:
I could settle for one rifle on my wish list, a Holland and Holland Royal in .500 NE. That would round out the collection nicely.

Amen to that!

1. 9,3X74R Chapuis REX Serie 3 for North America.

2. 375 flanged Chapuis Jungle

3. 500 NE Krieghoff Imperial Gold

4. 577 NE Verney Carron Azur Safari Eloge just because....

Dave, you're just missing the 577NE in real life! You've pretty much nailed down the others!

Ok - as long as I am dreaming in Technicolor - I want to fly First Class to London and go straight to William Evans, Gunmaker. There, I will be measured for a sidelock double rifle in .470NE with a flip up night sight, just like the one Peter Hathaway Capstick described in all of his "Death" series books (by the way, Andrew Dawson of Chifuti Safaris is the current owner of the rifle Capstick extolled the virtues of in all his books).

Yep - that would do it!

Ok - maybe a cased, matched pair would be even better!

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Williams:
I would place at the top, the 577NE.

+1

Mac's spot on in my opinion. I only own two doubles currently, a 9.3x74 and a .470. The 9.3 would work fine for cats; might suffice for buffalo in a pinch if legal, but not my first, second or third choice. I'm not real impressed with the .470 either, mine just never chronos at what the loads for which it was regulated are said to generate.

I think a .500 and a .375 Flanged would cover you for what that's worth; and it's worth what you paid for it.

Well here is my list. Keeping in mind I have never actually shot most of these guns, but I have handled most of them.

1. Bailey Bradshaw Double- Engraved with Elephant.

2. Westley Richards Sidelock- in 475 NE #2
Fully engraved with Cape Buffalo and Rhino gold overlays with scroll set on a CCH action.

3. Heym 88B-PH- in 500/416 NR, light scroll engraving.

4. B. Searcy sidelock- 375 Flanged with lion on one side and Leopard on the other.

I like pairs. If I were living in Africa close to a century ago and needed a lifetime supply of hardware and ammo, I would choose...

A pair of 8 bore doubles
A pair or 450 NE doubles
A pair of scoped 9,3x74R doubles

I think a guy could hunt the world for a lifetime with those.....and with equal money spent on ammo to feed them.

Just two flavors for me, each a testament to a personal hero:
An English .577 BPE with shells carrying hardened bullets, in honor of Sir Samuel Baker;
And a French-built double in .303 British in honor of Edouard Foa.

Ooooh, dreams are free. So here is my list

600 NE by Jeffery
450 NE by H&H
450/400 - Webley long bar
375 Flanged by Purdey
7X65 rimmed by Rigby
222 rimmed or similar by Biley Bradshaw - in double falling block

If we're living dreams, I only need 4 guns period:

H&H Bolt Rifle, best gun, in .300 H&H with a 26" barrel, iron sights with leafs for 50 and 100. Quick detach scope mounts with either a Zeiss or Swarovski 3x9x40, outstanding wood, barrel band, leather recoil pad, H&H cheekpiece. Comes in at 9.5 lbs with scope.

H&H Royal, case colored in .375 Flanged with 25" barrels, flip up ghost ring for 100 yards, leaf sights for 50 and 100, quick detach scope ring with either Zeiss or Swarovski in 3x9x40. Fantastic wood and leather butt pad. Comes in at 10 lbs. with scope.

H&H Royal, case colored in .500/450 with 24" barrels, flip up ghost ring for 100, leaf sights for 50 and 75. Again fantastic wood and leather butt pad. 11 lbs max.

Lastly, an H&H 12 Bore Paradox with 29" barrels, choked IC/IC, regulated for 50 yards with H&H Paradox cartridges, and also used for upland game. 7lb. gun. Fantastic wood and leather but pad. Also, highly engraved rose/scroll and case colored.

I'm not picky, however.

I would be quite content with a 450NE in a Westley Richards or William Evens.
However, a Holland&Holland in 465 and a light and handy 375Flanged would also be nice.
For now I think Ill settle for this one;

Westley Richards in 375F

Westley Richards hand detachable lock in anything from .450/.400 to .500 NE

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:
I could settle for one rifle on my wish list, a Holland and Holland Royal in .500 NE. That would round out the collection nicely.

To be clear, a pre-World War II Holland and Holland Royal in .500 NE, not the stuff Holland and Holland is currently turning out.

I'll bite.

1. Webley-made (pre-1939) screw-grip boxlock, Southgate ejectors, 26-inch barrels, .500 3" NE. Name on the action body not important but let's make it an Evans for argument's sake;

2. WJ Jeffery & Co (Leonard) pinless sidelock ejector .450/400 3" NE (they made a few of them and the one I've seen was one of the nicest double rifles I've ever handled - it weighed in at just over 9 lbs with 24" barrels);

3. Scoped .303, 26-inch barrels, something like a back-action H&H Dominion weighing as little as possible would be nice;

4. As far as shotguns are concerned, I'd go for a couple as well. First up, and just because everybody needs a workhorse, a 12-bore screw-grip boxlock ejector pigeon gun, 30-inch barrels, choked about IM and F, secondly a 12-bore Paradox or Ball & Shot of sorts for those pesky wounded leopards and crop-raiding bushpigs, preferably something with ejectors, and lastly a cased Woodward 12-bore game gun, circa 1886, 29-inch barrels, snap-action non-ejector choked IC and M. Quirky, I know, but I just happen to own one and it's just about everything a game gun should be. Besides, one has to impress the neighbours every once in a while!

I'd also throw in a scoped bolt gun or three, just to round things off. Perhaps a nice A-Grade 9,3x62, a .30 Super and a .275 Rigby.

That should just about cover all the bases, I reckon!

quote:

Originally posted by MacD37:

quote:

Originally posted by CCMDoc:
Now THAT'S the right deal and almost exactly what I would want as well. For me is drop the 470, move the 500 up one place and make the 600 the 5th of the five

I think ill play PowerBall today.

The ranking of the 500NE would still be my top choice of the five. I have absolutely no desire to own a 600NE double rifle. I had two 577NE doubles and I simply find anything larger than a 500NE to be no gain is effectiveness and simply weigh too much to carry all day! I do agree the 470NE is not my favorite either but it is about the only chambering that fits in the five with the 500NE as top!

………………………………I think I’ll play the lotto tonight as well, but I doubt I would live long enough to see the matched five finished. Too bad I didn’t win the lotto twenty years ago!

Mac,

I say drop the 470, keep the 500NE on the top of your list but add something on the other side!

For me, it will be a 240NE Flanged. I even have the reamers for it on my bench, just waiting to accumulate the funds to start the project (or hit the lottery).

I'd like the following:
- A used but well taken care of John Wilkes in .450-400 3".
- An H&H Hammer 8-bore with Jones underlever and best-grade damascus barrels in excellent condition.
- An H&H Royal in .375 H&H belted with an extra set of barrels in .300 H&H belted (It's my fantasy, if you don't like go dream your own.)

22lr,
6.5x55
9.3x74R
450-400 3" NE
600 Nitro

My must have list for doubles would look like this:

All English and Scottish box locks and sidelocks. The wood will be jaw dropping beautiful because I like it that way.

Calibers?

450-400 NE
450 NE
500 NE
375 Flanged

(Now the dream sequence begins) These rifles would of course be extremely well regulated and shoot every load, and they would all shoot to the same point. Well, that would take some of the fun out of it now wouldn't it?

AKMATT

quote:

Originally posted by CCMDoc:

quote:

Originally posted by MacD37:
The ranking of the 500NE would still be my top choice of the five. I have absolutely no desire to own a 600NE double rifle. I had two 577NE doubles and I simply find anything larger than a 500NE to be no gain is effectiveness and simply weigh too much to carry all day! I do agree the 470NE is not my favorite either but it is about the only chambering that fits in the five with the 500NE as top!

………………………………I think I’ll play the lotto tonight as well, but I doubt I would live long enough to see the matched five finished. Too bad I didn’t win the lotto twenty years ago!

Mac,

I say drop the 470, keep the 500NE on the top of your list but add something on the other side!

For me, it will be a 240NE Flanged. I even have the reamers for it on my bench, just waiting to accumulate the funds to start the project (or hit the lottery).

Doc, that is an excellent idea if all I wanted was five matched double rifles for about everything.

However, what I wanted with the list I posted was a Big Five matched Set with a representative caliber for each of the big five. And though I would love to have a double chambered for the 240NE it would not fit in a big five series! Now, the 500/450NE might better take the rhino spot than the 470NE, but there are no flies flying around the 470NE.

On the 240NE, flanged (bullet dia .245) what I would love to see is somebody come out with a 243Win flanged, with no other changes, with the same ballistics, and bullet diameter as the 243 Win (.243 ~ 6mm ) with 100 gr bullets and barrels with a 1~10 inch twist with a velocity of 2900 ~ 3000 fps.

I have taken over 300 game animals of North America with 243 Win rifles and never found it lacking on anything of the deer/prong horn species including moose, and elk, but it just doesn’t fit in an African big five series of five double rifles!


............................................................................................

quote:

Originally posted by D R Hunter:
... of ALL double rifles I'd like to own if I had tons o' money:

*SxS*
4 Bore Muzzle Loader by Colin Stolzer
577 NE by Bailey Bradshaw
577 BPE by H&H 19th Century Vintage
499 HE by B.B (Thanks to Ed Hubel for a great cartridge)
500/450 NE by H&H early 20th Century vintage (Thanks to U.S. Pres. T.R.)
375 Flanged Magnum by B.B.

*O/U*
333 Jeffery by Boss and Co. (with that EXQUISITELY BEAUTIFUL Forearm design)
275 Flanged by Boss and Co. (with that EXQUISITELY BEAUTIFUL Forearm design)

It's fun to dream...

Some of y'all have said WHY you picked what you did. In my original post I did that a little. Below is my full set of "WHYS".

The 4 Bore by C.S.
The concept of a 1 inch bullet diameter just puts me into a special place mentally.
I love muzzle loaders as a rule, having killed all my deer with them.
C.S is obviously using modern metal so safety is there, and the quality of his
work according to all I've heard is wonderful.

577 NE by B.B.
These Farquharson double rifles are just the conceptual top of the heap IMO.
Never will one come "Off Face". Work up a 2400 FPS 450 NE load (or 45-120) if
you want to, and send off a batch to BB to use to regulate the D/R he's building
for you in that caliber. (as an example) IMO they look spectacular too! The
577 NE IMO, is the biggest caliber needed what ever animal you may facing. If
it can't be knocked off it's feet with a reasonably placed 577 NE hit, the 600 NE,
700 NE and what ever else won't take it off it's feet either.

577 BPE by H&H
An old hammer rifle with Jones underlever and island locks by this maker is such
a visually and functionally exquisite thing. I love the caliber because so many
game animals can be rightly taken with it.

499 HE by B.B.
This caliber is as cool conceptually as the rifle that would fire it! Straight
tapered walls, 3.5" tall brass, and a bullet diameter that"s just small enough to
be under the radar of the evil 50 caliber obsessed idiots.

500/450 NE by H&H early 20th Century Vintage
Just like President T. Roosevelt's because I really admire what he did with his life.

375 Flanged Magnum by B.B.
At 8 pounds weight or so, this is the closest thing to the perfect do it all hunting rifle imaginable.

333 Jeffery by Boss and Co. (with that EXQUISITELY BEAUTIFUL Forearm design)
I just love the look of the Boss & Co. O/U design and I think calibers under 9.3x74R
ought to be done in O/U. And this caliber is a very diversely usable one.

275 Flanged by Boss and Co. (with that EXQUISITELY BEAUTIFUL Forearm design)
THE deer rifle, (and like game).

DR:
You have a great list, no doubt. There is indeed something special about a 1 inch bore. I shot a bison with my Hughes 4-bore double a year ago and it was an experience! The largest of calibers, including the 8s and the .577 and .600, have a special place in my heart.
Cheers,
Cal

You guys take most of the fun out of this, there is nothing left for me to put on MY list.

quote:

Originally posted by pagosawingnut:
You guys take most of the fun out of this, there is nothing left for me to put on MY list.

Come on, put a Holland and Holland Royal in .500 NE on your list and maybe we can get a package deal.

Under the go big or go home doctrine..........

1. H&H Royal .600
2. Westley Droplock .577
3. Daniel Fraser .500 3.25"
4. .475 #2
5. .450/400 3.25"
6. .360 #2
7. .275 #2

All pre war Enghlish........of course.........

Brett

Mike,
I'd have to use their nothing down, small payments (you know like the mortgage payments on your house) for the next umpteen years to be able to afford one of those. Or my other option is the lottery that I haven't hit yet........

This is about dreaming, not about being practical. If it was the latter, I would have never put down a Royal!

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:
This is about dreaming, not about being practical. If it was the latter, I would have never put down a Royal!

If this was about being PRACTICAL we wouldn't be taking about DOUBLE rifles!

{Except for maaay-be a 9 or 9.5 pound 450/400 Jeffery 3 inch by Bradshaw...}

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:
DR:
You have a great list, no doubt. There is indeed something special about a 1 inch bore. I shot a bison with my Hughes 4-bore double a year ago and it was an experience! The largest of calibers, including the 8s and the .577 and .600, have a special place in my heart.
Cheers,
Cal

Thanks Cal. Your own list would be pretty impressive to all D/R guys for sure!