And the crowd goes wild: Here is my new Ryan Breeding 416 Rigby. Most certainly a work of art and a masterful tool for the bush.
I haven't been able to hold her yet as I work in Afghanistan, so Ryan is holding it until I get closer to the states. I will be home in mid May and will get to caress her then. A 505 Gibbs is now on order as well, it'll be another 2 years (or close to it) before Ryan can get it to me, but it will also be well worth the wait. My 1st Safari will be in late 2011 and will include the 416 Rigby and (I think) a 338WM. That should be an adequate duo for Buff and Plains Game.

Very nice.

Could you tell about the finish? type & color?

Thanks

The finish is a dark gray moly product, it's spayed and baked, pretty much the same as the Teflon that most gun makers use. We (myself & Ryan) looked into different technologies, but in the end, we decided on his tried-and-true moly. . . Dave

Beautiful rifle!

SWEEET!!

tekdvr,

Great rifle.......Congratulations!

Can you tell me about the front sight? I have never seen one that looks quite like that...

Dave

Great looking rifle. I really like the coating. Should be plenty for your 1st safari.

Greg

Very nice!

DavidC - Sorry; I can't give any info on the front sight, my guess is that it's a "RBbigbore" proprietary deal. He makes most of the "do-dads" from scratch. He's currently working with a local university to computerize / CADize these parts, just as a time saving measure. This guy (Ryan) is at the top of his game, no question about it. He makes some very serious tools for the bush. His stuff is designed from from the ground up to a final work that will more than cover your ass in the field. Reliability in ugly situations is his signature! To add to the myth, he's just a damned fine man and Toni makes a hell of partner to boot, (she's a great gal). Great people to deal with and they simply absorb dumb questions with grace and precision.

BigChev4x4 - Thank you and yes; it should punch a "plenty big hole" to cover my first outing.

Harris - Thank you also, and great name, happens to be mine as well.

AND guys: I just read what I wrote; I apologize if it sounds like a sales pitch, it's not (or maybe it is), but this guy is a true professional and I love to trumpet people that actually care. It seems to be a rare thing these days.

One more thing (work with me, I'm on a roll): I am a blessed man; I have been embedded with the United States Marine Corps for quite some time now (over 3 years - Iraq / Afghanistan) and these young men and women do an impossible job, under impossible circumstances and do it with pride, selfless dedication, STRENGTH and a heavy dose of humor. I work, live, eat, sleep (and other things) with these Marines and do it in ugly places. I'm a damned happy man! ! ! Dave

very nice rifle

How fine is that checkering? From your photos, looks VERY FINE INDEED, maybe up around 28 lpi?

Hey, his shop is only about half an hour east of me. Want I should run over and pick it up for a little test shooting session? I'd guarantee to have it back to him for refinishing before you cross the big pond?

Rich

Rich, Just you LOOKING at it would make it a used rifle in my book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Very nice!

quote:

Originally posted by DavidC:
tekdvr,

Great rifle.......Congratulations!

Can you tell me about the front sight? I have never seen one that looks quite like that...

Dave

Looks like a latch so that the shroud can be lowered or removed when required.

Yes, the latch is spring loaded and its metal to metal fit is so precise, it is hard to see with the naked eye. The hood can be locked in both the upright and lowered position.

The scope mounts are by Joe Smithson, and are push button, one piece Q/R mount.

I'am also Having Ryan build a 416 Rigby, which will have a case hardened receiver and floorplate with black coated barrel. It should be ready this summer.

I'm new to the whole wood scene, so here comes whats likely a dumazz question

How does he get the finish inside the checkering to be so much darker than the rest of the stock? or is it an optical illusion on how the pics were taken?

quote:

Originally posted by cmfic1:
I'm new to the whole wood scene, so here comes whats likely a dumazz question

How does he get the finish inside the checkering to be so much darker than the rest of the stock? or is it an optical illusion on how the pics were taken?

It may be deliberate, or it may be a mistake (I doubt the latter) but I have seen dark panels like this when the finisher has allowed too much staining to collect in the checkering.

That's one fine looking rifle. What type of action is it built on?

Ryan generally uses Granite mountain actions.

Sevens: 470drshooter is correct; it's a GMA action, the 505 is also being built on GMA's heart.
Oh; I apologize for the delay in replying, but I've been in the boonies for several months; returned home for my baby's high school graduation, took a little break with all the kids (plus a future daughter-in-law) and (sheewww-damn) now I'm stuck at the office for a month or so. Looking forward to getting back to the "boonies".
Hey 470; we're gonna need pix of the new 416, I almost went with the case hardened action - may still have time with the 505, so send pix soon. Speaking of the 505, I had better call Toni, or she'll kick my ass. So-Long for now. . . Dave

I was just asked last night to post a friend's Ryan Breeding rifle in 500 Jeffery on this site. He is moving down to a 458 Lott. See Classifieds.

tekdvr
as far as the coatings go did you look into DLC coatings , thats what im doing with my Satterlee actions
Daniel

Ilove that checkering job, its very nice. Whom ever done it for you is very skilled...

M-98: No; I haven't heard of DLC, but I'm now looking into it (Google is your friend).
Info seems to be kinda short as far as firearms go, but one smith that uses it said that it goes on at about 3 to 5 microns. Thats a good thing.
I also read one post (can't attest to reliability) that said it's the coating used by SIGUSA on their coated stainless slides - If it's the model I'm thinking of, then it is a very tough and hard-use finish.
I'm gonna keep digging for info and I'd appreciate any data you can provide. Like; have any of the rifles made it to the field yet, if so, how are they holding up (compared to Teflon and such)? I still haven't talked to Toni, but I probably have time for a change-up.
We had discussed Mr. Birdsong's "Black T" for the 416 and thought we were going with it, but learned at the last minute that it was very close the same product that Ryan has been using for a while.
Anyway; If I find something tougher, I'll request it. Ryan is also open to new products, as long as they can back up the claims with hard data.
Thanx. . . Dave

DAV
DLC , as i understand it , is a diffrent derivative of WCC coating which Satterlee uses for his titanium actions....Ifound RICHTER PRECISION 717 560 9990 ask for MATT in relation to DLC coatings

I spoke with matt at length about coating for rifles and he suggested that the DLC coating
is the one for rifle actions....the pictures i have seen of items treated with the DLC coating were really impressive, they were blasted with a ceramic blasting compound and the finish was a rich matt black...you have to see it to know what im talking about
Matt sent out a sample bit of steel that was coated with that DLC coating to Satterlee s and stuart had it in his pocket for a few weeks went through the wash etc etc and there were no wear marks even on the edges .
The WCC coating that satterlee gets applied to his titanium actions is a charcoal grey colour, the DLC coating is a matt black....i think it could pass as a rust blue
Ask new guy/chris who posts here to send you a photo of his titanium action which was coated with WCC
Then if you want, another poster who goes by the name of trax once sent me some unreal photos of diffrent items including side arms which were coated with DLC coatings...he still might have them on file
Also the guys at RICHTER PRECISION do most of the DLC coatings for U.S rifle manufacturers...i think its worth investigating
my 3 satterlee actions are getting done in the next few weeks
Daniel

tekdvr
iv asked one of my friends to post a picture of a bracelet that was coated with DLC.. i hope you see what i mean by a soft black finish...
it will be posted here in the next day or so
Daniel

The .338 WinMag + .416 Rigby two rifle battery is probably one of the best 2 gun batteries one could think of for Africa. Then of course there is the .375 H&H + 450 NE, and then the....but that should be another thread. I just wanted to second that emotion.

Here is the pic M98 asked me to post for him.

Alan

GSSP thanks for posting this for me!
The obove picture is a watch bracelet which has been coated with the DLC coating, i think this coating is good enough for any custom rifle
Daniel

Daniel

Do you know how Ritcher applies the DLC on firearms?
If applied by PVD, (physical vapor deposition)it can leave a lot of area uncoated/unprotected from the elements. This is not usually caught until after rust appears. I am not fond of any coating that is sprayed on.
The application by plasma assisted chemical vapor deposition would work and get into the unseen areas.
A lot of places are doing the same coatings under different names. IonBond in NC is one of the largest that I know and they list it as Black Diamond. They have there own custom finishing shop set up for firearms.
I have been looking at QPQ lately as a finish option.

James

JAMES
intresting you came in on this , as D Echols
e mailed me with a few issues he s had with looking at diffrent coatings and went back to getting his rifles blued
P PRECISION have a number of diffrent ways of applying there coatings PVD,CVD, TD and one or two others
You mention that the PVDprocess can leave a lot of areas unprotected, and you only notice when rust appears...my question is , would nt you notice before the rust set in, as those areas that were poorly coated, you could see the polished metal, so it would be obvious....just wondering
The guy that i spoke with @R Precision told me they have the contract to do the coatings for a number of rifle manufactures, so by what he told me they do a fair bit of work
I did look at QPQ , i think a guy by the name of Tip Burns does this, one of the posters here on AR had it applied on his rifle and he said he was really happy with the result
i know Satterlee gets all his titanium actions coated with WCC and has never mentioned having issues with the coating application, but i have e mailed him just to make sure
i spoke with NEW GUY/Chris who posts here and he had his titanium M 98 coated with the WCC coating and is real happy with it
i guess its back to the drawing board
Daniel

Daniel

As for the PVD unprotected areas. Those will be in locking lug area and in the bolt body. If you can't see it from the outside it is not coated. The heat application will dis color the metal and give you a false sense of protection. You won't know till your on a hunt and it turns orange.
Titanium does not need the weather protection that chrome moly does. Coatings of this type is about the only way to get a color match. All of the other propriety's are just a added benefit.
QPQ has it good and bad points also. Some stainless cannot be treated. It changes core hardness on some parts. Some say in order to get an excellent exterior finish it has to be blasted after QPQ and caustic blued. As for T Burns I think he is just the middle man. He sends it out to be done.
All of my builds I caustic blue unless I am asked for something different. If I rust blue I will caustic blue first just to give that little bit of protection on the inside. On all bad weather guns I have all fire control parts hard chromed.
I am building 6, 338 Federals now that are to be lightweight, bad weather guns. I think I am going to QPQ them for testing.

James

Tekdrv,
That looks perfect! Truly a classic.

People talk about the Golden Age of rifle making, but I believe that rifles like yours show that we are in the golden age now. Congrats.

Wes

IIRC the front sight is a new NEC sight that has not made it into the catalog yet, I saw it at Reno at the NEC booth. If you call them up they can get you fixed up.

The sight is listed under "New Products" on the New England Custom Gun website.
Dabney