This is a new gun that we are adding to our product line this year. I'll be posting regular updates as we make progress. Here's the first photos in the series. The rifle is a .275 Rigby ordered by a client in Texas.

The Highland Stalker was designed by one of our gunsmiths. He does a lot of stalking in the Scottish highlands. It's designed to be lighter than our traditional rifles. No iron sights. More along the lines of a mountain rifle.

I don't see any bottom metal in the picture. Will this be a blind magazine?

There will be.

Beautiful piece of wood. Turkish walnut?

quote:

Originally posted by John Rigby & Co.:
The Highland Stalker was designed by one of our gunsmiths. He does a lot of stalking in the Scottish highlands. It's designed to be lighter than our traditional rifles. No iron sights. More along the lines of a mountain rifle.

Mr.Porter,

When I think of lighter 7mm rifles, the small ring variants of Std.length 98, Intermediate and Kurz come to mind.

I believe Rigby once produced small ring Oberndorf mauser based sporting rifles.

However, apart from the Kurz length, I dont know of any relaible source for new manufacture HQ small ring mauser actions in Std or Intermediate length.

It looks like you have gone with a HQ LR Prechtl action. I gather your smith has figured that it will still allow him to achieve his preferred weight.

Neat looking project.

Yes indeedy, looking forward to following this one through.

Here's an update on the stock pictured above...




This is a picture of the prototype. I hunted stag in the Scottish Highlands with it last week.

Outstanding!

M

That is a bit of a tease. Some more pics please without the detail hidden by long grass and obscure angles.

Those are the pictures that I have at the moment.

What a beautiful example of workmanship. I look forward to seeing it at DSC.

BVG, here are a couple more pictures that I took with my iPhone.

Looks great. The bipod on a Rigby looks a bit out of the ordinary, but looks fine just the same.

Thanks for posting those.

quote:

Originally posted by Chuck Nelson:
Looks great. The bipod on a Rigby looks a bit out of the ordinary, but looks fine just the same.

Thanks for posting those.

Agreed but the scope looks worse! Nice rifle.

Lovely lovely rifle, however I have to agree with the posters above me. Bipod and that leica spaceship on top is like having a beef tenderloin sprayed with nutella and perhaps jam on top!

Id go with either a Zeiss Victory or perhaps a Kahles KXi for a more sobre look, and a soft rest-pillow in the backpack in lieu of the bipod..axel

The scope is simply one that we had at the shop that Leica has given us as a demo. I agree that a smaller scope would be more aesthetically appealing, but that's the one we had available. It is a very nice scope! As far as the bipod goes, I'm not an expert Scottish stag hunter, but from my experience, it was very practical and easily removed.

Is it just me but the stock on the rifle pictured with the scope on doesn`t look like it came from the blank pictured above.Anyways,I like the rifle.

The finished gun in the pictures is the prototype. The stock blank in the first post is the one in the picture being shaped and also with the Corbett rifle. Does that make sense? I'll post more pictures of the work in progress rifle as the project moves forward. I didn't mean to cause any confusion by posting pictures from last week in Scotland.

That is a nice hill stag also.

Gorgeous rifle!

Hi all. I am newly registered but a long time follower of the forum on custom guns. Can not wait for followup photos. Will be giving some of my own progress photos on single shot action i am making from Bohler M201 steel.

Loving looking rifle. Who made those mounts - I have something very similar on my Heym SR20 which was originally sold new by Rigbys when it was in Great Suffolk street and then to me when it previous owner traded it in.

Nice looking rifle but a stalking rifle needs a stalking scope. Not some quasi-tactical, over powered and over sized long range "sniping" scope.

Does anyone do anything with the scraps of those beautiful stock blanks ?

458Win do you ever read the whole of the string before commenting?

Yes I do
If a man wants to order a Rigby "stalking" rifle and put the largest scope on it he can find - or even paint it - it is his rifle.
Like everyone else here I was simply stating my opinion.

JR&Co stated it was a scope they had in the shop and he just used it on the spur of the moment for the hunt.

I've ordered a new Swarovski Z6i 1.7x10x42 BT 4Ai that it will be wearing shortly.

Seriously, all this concern over the scope this rifle is wearing?

Whatever works best for the owner is what's best for the rifle.

Funny that in this case it was just an expedient to get the rifle afield.

Beautiful rifle, you wouldn't have to twist my arm to get me to agree to take it, even with that scope, lol.

Another beauty.
Would be interesting to have a custom carbon fiber stock made for it.
Make a mold from the wood stock.
Paint it with brush from the highland where it will be used.
If it was bad weather or just to protect the wood stock the synthetic could do the rough work of crawling around on hands and knees not to mention being about a pound or so lighter.

kent,,,,i like the lines and the bolt shoulder of the gun that you are making with the double sqaurebridge ,,....the scoped rifle looks too americanized ,the sculpted bolt release area ,and the bolt shoulder look like a lot of typical rifles , i understand that it is a plain rifle but i think it needs a little more to set it apart from what else is out there,this is just my personal opinion ,
the double sqaure bridge rifle looks real nice but will the extra wieght of the 2 square bridges come in to play ,the 275 on your website looks real nice ,i really like the rigby style scope mount ,keep up the pics and good work....paul

seen this on line its an old rigby with a new twist ,looks something like what your building the forend is like the original but with horn ,,stock looks like turkish ?...paul

I would have to see the serial number to know when the original rifle was built. The only thing original on that gun is the action (if it's a Rigby) and the stock, not the forend. Everything about that rifle screams late 20th Century. The bolt is wrong for 1920, the scope mounts are wrong, the barrel is wrong and the forend tip is wrong. The stock looks more of the 50's era shape to me.

kent,,i lifted these pics of the irish gun trader site ,,it states that the gun was sent back to rigby about 15 years ago for a new barrel,,is that BSA bottom metal too??? looks like roberts modernized it ,,not collectable anymore,but i do like the lines of it ,,the pics on that site are horrible tho.....paul

It probably had military style bottom metal on it originally.

And here is the finished product. The customer wanted his prized whitetail deer on the floorplate. I think it came out nicely.

handsome but sadly tarted up with that giant scope. to each his own I suppose...

The first Highland Stalker that I posted with the new scope. Swarovski Z6i 1.7-10x42. The second rifle wears a Z3 3-10x42. You can pick the scope of your choice when your order. To each his own.