So Rod, do you mind sending me a PM on what you would charge to build that same rifle for someone.

I love the color. I tried to get that look with a light Mahogany stain but when the lacquer got to it it went way dark.
Very nice,
Frank

Purpleheart it is. The wood looks like coffee with milk when first sanded out. Eight hours of thermo-nuclear treatment send the shade to light pinkish red. It turns this color with our urethane-modified tung oil finish.

This is the matte black FalconCoat. About the most durable finish I've seen. It's a licensed process, and others do it around the country under various names. Not teflon, but a robust polymer.

This rifle has a chrome-moly barrel as we started the project before we settled on FalconCoat for the Serengeti line. Now all Serengeti's get stainless barrels and FalconCoat treatment on a 4140 Action.

Frank,

We'd be happy to do another, and this one is for sale after the ShotShow. It's a bit light. I was hoping for 10lb to 10.25lb. I think we should go up to a .750 to .770 muzzle (#6 contour), and puff up the forend just a bit.

On the other hand, this rifle feels "balanced" - mass between the palms. With a compact light scope, it would be about right. For pricing details, give Larry a call. You have your PM.

If you want it a tad heavier, just put on a heavier scope. Something like this would be almost perfect with a Schmidt & Bender 1.25-4x20 or even a 1.5-6x42, etched reticle to handle the recoil. You might even be able to find an older scope with a steel tube, that will give you a few additional ounces. Just a thought.
- mike

I like it it looks great! Will it continue to change color until it gets to that deep purple color or will the finish you put on it slow it down? I have a bow with purple heart its a nice looking wood. Can you make stocks out of wengee (looks like rosewood) or zebra wood or bubinga?
Dean

Rod-

Very cool rifle!!! How much does it cost to build one like that and can you build one in 416 Rigby? Thanks!

Very nice, posting this has helped me decide on what stock I want on my current project - thanks - KMule

I think the .416 Rigby will have to wait until the Montana Professional Hunter action makes it to the market, unless you have another action available that is large enough. You are going to have to check with Rod what actions he actually has patterns for at present. Maybe the website might specify?? New Serengeti Site

Actually, one thing not mentioned until now (probably too obvious?), is that the stock above is actually laminated, so not only does it look unusual, it is also impervious to moisture and a lot stronger than a regular walnut stock! Neat!

-mike

Rod,

You mentioned moving up to a number 6 barrel contour next time. Is the current barrel a number 5, and what is the muzzle diameter? Also which stock geometry was used on this rifle.

Ibex

Ibex, the rifle is pictured on Serengeti's website. Its a #5 contour in a Merlin geometry. Muzzle dia. should be very close to .700

Joe

Will it continue to change color? Good question. Only time will tell. It seems to have stablilized after the finish went on. Have to carry it outdoors for a while, under a hot and unrelenting sun. And, of course, hunting game for which the caliber is warranted. Hmm...have to think of a good test location. Any ideas?

Haven't tried wengee, zebra wood or bubinga. But we're game. We have pistachio on the drying rack. And mesquite. The key issue: will it work without splintering. Purpleheart is boarderline here. Checkers nice, but care is needed in bolt slots, ejection ports and similar areas.

Actually we can build a .416 Rigby today. We have a CZ550 Safari Magnum stock in purpleheart. It is somewhat heavier than the Merlin but not excessively so. The action can be had from Brownnells. We have .416 barrels in stock.

The #5 contour on the rifle is .708 at the muzzle. The geometry is our standard CNC Merlin.

Thanks Rod for the reply! Can you build a 416 Rigby with MRC's current long action? How did you attach a secondary recoil lug on the barrel? How much roughly to build the whole rifle pictured above? Thanks in advance for the info!

The story couldn't end until we range-tested this rifle.





I had some reservations about recoil management for shooting groups at 100yd and the scope gave us fits because we kept forgetting to disengage the posilock when doing adjustments. Then I overheated the barrel (imagine that) which does not make for good groups in a pressure bedded system. The boresighting and scope zero rounds and four three shot groups in a row (77gr of IMR4895 - 2250fps) were beginning to make me "think" about flinch.

But, we let the rifle cool to "slightly" warm and did three more.



This has a Montana Rifleman barrel. When I used a borescope on the blank over a year ago, I had to have it. Hate to see this rifle go.