quote:

Originally posted by doubleriflejack:
Being personlloy small and light in weight, I have no problem with recoil, unlike big heavyweight guys---simple physics, lighter weight guys = less resistance, so they move backward much easier than heavy guys who get more shock to shoulder, more tissue displacement, etc.

However, being a double gun nut, with a large collection of double rifles, most of them being the great classic British and German rifles, I must say that my opinion is that the Sabatti .500 is indeed too light in weight. However, by adding as much lead weight as possible just foreward of the forend iron, within the forend wood itself (mill out as much area there, where the ejector mechanism normally would be, if you have an extractor model, and epoxy lead into that cutout).

Install a steel grip cap, or better yet a steel trap grip cap (perhaps with some lead under it, epoxied into a hole drilled there, TIG weld an extension onto the trigger guard (with trigger guard off, of course) and run it all the way to the aforementioned grip cap.

Mill out an add on steel top tang extension, shape and fit it to the existing Sabatti top tang, just under end of the safety, that you will run out an inch and a half or so beyond the comb, and inlet it into the stock.

Trigger guard extension and top tang extension increase the strength of the stock wrist (a weak area of stock). Each time you remove or replace the action to stock, you will have to remove screws holding trigger guard and top tang extension in place, prior to removing the stock throguhbold, but those are simple chores.

Add a mercury recoil reducer into the stock throughbolt hole, and this will bring the rifle to perfect weight. I did all this, and more, to my .500, and some of these things to my .470, and I like them as well as any modern French or German working double rifles on the market.

Another thought: If you have W. Ellis Brown's book, converting shotgun actions to double rifles, and are competent enough to do that sort of work, or wish to hire out the work to be done, make a new monoblock from scratch, to fit your Sabatti action, and fit into that monoblock new .500 NE barrels, making them a straight taper from muzzle to breech, or perhaps with a bit more taper than that, but nothing as severe as the existing extreme Sabatti taper, and you will have a two barrel set, one heavier set regulated properly and giving gun weight appropriate for .500, and a second barrel set that you can use for light weight bullets only (may require re-regulation of the existing barrel set, for lighter bullets. If you can do the work outlined in Brown's book, this should be no problem.

Whatever you do, or don't do, you will have a rifle with an action far stronger than found in any shotgun action, and it will be of a modern alloy steel, vastly superior in all ways to any shotgun action.

My personal opinion is that, with time, should the Sabatti rifles continue being produced, they will increase in price, as did the Chapuis that first started out selling for around $1000. in-----was it the 1970s?

By the way, my first Sabatti was a .500, (at the price, I thought that if it needed better regulation, no problem, I could do it, as I took the class from the aforementioned W. Ellis Brown, while in gunsmithing school in MN, prior to his writing his book. Now in second edition, and made several successful conversions myself, up to and including the .577 full nitro on the big boxlock Spanish 10 ga. mag actions).

I liked the .500 Sabatti so much that I bought another one, this time in .470, with the best fancy stock I have yet to see on Sabatti rifles online, and enhanced that fancy grain by stripping the original horrible finish and refinishing it in best London hand rubbed oil with Alkanet stain (my own mix).

That .470 is as accurate (obvious simple good luck) as my .375 Westley Richards, which is so accurate that it is boring. Now, I recently bought a .450/.400 Sabatti too, so you can see I think highly of them; consider them to be the best double rifle buy on the market today. I don't have a Sabatti in 9.3 x74R, or any of the less expensive Sabatti (so can't speak about them), but have several double rifles in that caliber, both in o/u and sxs, all German, and I have grown to love the caliber. I think the best, or at least one of two best classic old cartridges ever developed by the Germans. No wonder the caliber is so well liked and popular in Europe!

....Mac >>>===(x)===> MacD37, ...and DUGABOY1
DRSS Charter member
"If I die today, I've had a life well spent, for I've been to see the Elephant, and smelled the smoke of Africa!"~ME 1982

Hands of Old Elmer Keith

quote:

Originally posted by tiggertate:
It is difficult. As you probably know, all the literate Texans were killed at the Alamo.

quote:

Originally posted by doubleriflejack:
It may be difficult for even a Texan to understand, but doing all the custom work I mentioned to Sabatti rifle YOURSELF, would cost very little; only time and enjoyment, if you enjoy working on such things.

Having the work hired out wouldn't cost all that much either, as a COMPLETE conversion, double shotgun to double rifle, have sold for $4,000, plus or minus a bit.

I know what a paragraph is, and how to form one, but I just grouped the post all together to save space. It couldn't have been too difficult to read and understand, for even a Texan found it understandable enough to make snide remarks about it! Some of you guys need to get out more, and do more shooting, rather than shooting your mouth off. Have a nice day, though.

....Mac >>>===(x)===> MacD37, ...and DUGABOY1
DRSS Charter member
"If I die today, I've had a life well spent, for I've been to see the Elephant, and smelled the smoke of Africa!"~ME 1982

Hands of Old Elmer Keith

quote:

Originally posted by doubleriflejack:
Sounds like more blowing smoke from another Texan, another pompous ass. Enough said about you Texans and your compulsion to make snide remarks toward others and their comments.

quote:

Originally posted by LionHunter:

quote:

Originally posted by doubleriflejack:
Sounds like more blowing smoke from another Texan, another pompous ass. Enough said about you Texans and your compulsion to make snide remarks toward others and their comments.

I'm not from Texas and am not in the habit of defending those that are, but if I was a new poster who seems unable to write using correct punctuation and structure, I'm not sure I'd be calling names. Especially on MacD37, who is one of the most knowledgeable and respected DR folks on AR.

But this is the internet and there is no law against showing your ignorance.