always enjoy info on Hemingway. Good read.
Thanks
Kidd

Did'nt Bill Jones buy that rifle??? I love WR doubles...If I was loaded I would order a new 577 just like it!

Ed

Too bad that he "cheaped out" and didn't spring for a second trigger!

Bill is a personal friend and yes he owns it.

He actually had it on display at our SCI chapter fundraiser this past weekend.

He has shot a few elephants with it in the last year.

Great article; thanks!

What is the official name of the 'action mechanism' of Hemingway's WR drop-lock?

I really like this(except for the trigger) rifle.Nice wood,shape and engraving.It was interesting to find out reading the article that it was built for someone else-probably someone who was more passionate about rifles than Hemingway was.I would not call it the Hemingway rifle if it was originally built for someone else.

I echo 505ED's sentiments as it would be the one that I would order as well. Single-trigger 26 inch barreled .577 Westley.


Dutch

quote:

Originally posted by Dutch44:
Single-trigger...

Why is the Westley Richards single trigger so maligned?
Anybody ever witness or hear of a verified failure of one?

quote:

Originally posted by Huvius:
Why is the Westley Richards single trigger so maligned?
Anybody ever witness or hear of a verified failure of one?

I've responded to this question several times in the past. While not on a double and certainly not a WR, I had my trigger fail to fire while lined up on a buffalo bull's shoulder at about 30 yards back in 2006. The rifle had taken several DG animals in the days previous, including a Hippo the day before. Without warning, it simply disconnected and failed to fire the rifle until it was opened up and repaired.

It's one of the many benefits of having a double rifle; ie. the theoretical idea of having two complete rifles on one frame should something go wrong with one, the other should still be operational. So yea, I had a verified failure of a trigger in the DG fields.

Ben:
Todd is correct: two barrels, two locks, two triggers will leave one with a single shot if one fails. That said I don't have anything in my files of vintage hunters speaking poorly of the WR single trigger--a few have praise for it. Anything mechanical can fail including the trigger on a double trigger double. I'd prefer double triggers but would add a single WR to my collection in a New York minute. Taylor suggested all of one's rifles have either or, not a mixture of both types.
Cheers,
Cal

I know of one WR DR single trigger that
made the gun double all of the time.

Was eventually purchased by WR, fixed
and probably sold on.


The most pertinent point is what Cal said,
"Taylor suggested all of one's rifles have either or, not a mixture of both types."

quote:

Originally posted by Huvius:
Why is the Westley Richards single trigger so maligned?
Anybody ever witness or hear of a verified failure of one?

Huvius it isn’t the Westley Richards single trigger that is particularly maligned but single triggers by anyone on a double rifle that is to be used on dangerous game.

The fact is a double rifle is best designed a s TWO completely independent rifles on one shock! The single trigger is the only thing that takes that away! If that trigger fails to reset after firing the first barrel the shooter is in real trouble if that first shot doesn’t stop the charge.

That is not the only thing that can be a problem with a single trigger. If the single trigger is installed in a DGR double rifle it needs to be a SELECTIVE single trigger, but that too can be a problem in the heat of battle. Let’s take a hypothetical here that was mentioned in Taylor’s book “AFRICAN RIFLES and CARTRIDGES” page 325. Paragraph 2.

quote:

By John Taylor:
You see, it would be absolutely essential that the mechanism should be of the selective variety, so so that you could fire either barrel first, and you would have to remember to shift what ever mechanism there was after firing the right barrel before you could dare to open the breech for the purpose of reloading without firing the left barrel , so that if you were suddenly attacked before you had gotten the shell into the chamber you could snap- to the breech and fire the left barrel. If you had forgotten to shift whatever slide or other control there was in the selective mechanism before opening the breech, then you would find yourself snapping the lock of the empty right barrel when endeavoring to stop a charge. Because the opening of the breech re-sets the mechanism of the single trigger device.

When almost all double rifle makers do not even install auto safeties on the large doubles used for dangerous hunting because it is just one more thing to forget if a reload is needed in the middle of a fight , in a tight spot, the single trigger is far more complex if something goes wrong or you forget something.

The single trigger on a double rifle is the only thing I totally disagree with old Elmer Keith where double rifles are concerned.

It makes no difference as long as everything goes as planned, but like Control feed in a bolt rifle, and the single trigger or auto safety on a double rifle, the old saying applies (KISS) “Keep It Simple Stupid”

Having said all that the Westley Richards doubles are my favorite badge from England, but even if I did own that rifle it would go back to WR for the fitting of double triggers!

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I'm surprised how primitive the animals engraved on the rifle are.

As to the trigger, with second-hand guns, sometimes you have to take what you can find. I understand WR's single trigger assumed that the shooter would let go of it under recoil and unconsiously resqueeze it, whereby it had to be pulled three times to make the second barrel fire. Is that usual in other makes?

I think the rudimentary depictions on early doubles looked strange at first but realized the people making the engravings probably never saw a real rhino ect before. The realism of depictions came later. I like the old depictions because that usually means they were from the golden age of African hunting. Looking at the prints in books of the same era it all made sense. I am not a fan of animals on rifles usually because it takes rare talent and costs as much as a safari.

That rifle was originally made for an Indian client (my conviction). The rhino is the Indian one horned species and is a reasonable image but proportionally too short. They tend to look more prehistoric than the African species. The tiger looks too skinny too!

Great rifle !

quote:

Originally posted by sambarman338:
I'm surprised how primitive the animals engraved on the rifle are.

As to the trigger, with second-hand guns, sometimes you have to take what you can find. I understand WR's single trigger assumed that the shooter would let go of it under recoil and unconsiously resqueeze it, whereby it had to be pulled three times to make the second barrel fire. Is that usual in other makes?

I know what you gents mean by the animals. I have a Wilkes .600, best quality in every aspect, but the animals look like they were engraved by the engraver's kindergarten kid when he was on a lunch break!
Cal

Agree re the engraving on some of the animals.

I think the name we used to use for those
"tigers" on the sides of some guns was
"Birmingham pussy cats" !

quote:

Originally posted by cal pappas:
I know what you gents mean by the animals. I have a Wilkes .600, best quality in every aspect, but the animals look like they were engraved by the engraver's kindergarten kid when he was on a lunch break!
Cal

Most of the double rifles that came out of India were shipped in the white and engraved in India, or th3e animals were done in England from pincle drawings set to them with the order to the maker in England.

I have owned a number of doubles that came out of India when their laws made most firearms illegal to anyone but the wealthy, and all had the same cartoonish depictions of the animals. It seems the scroll was done in England leaving spaces for the animals to be engraved in India. The scroll on that WR was definitely well done by someone in England, but the Indian rhyno and tiger were likely done in India.

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