HARRY SELBY ON THE 416 RIGBY - 08/27/10
I hope it was ok to pirate the paragraph below from our friends over on AR, but below in Harry Selby's own words, on the wonders of subject cartridge and of course why I carry one (my current torrid affair with the 405 WCF notwithstanding ). I've also added a link to the entire thread over on AR forums:
And now Ladies and Gentlemen... Mr. Harry Selby....
link to whole thread
"I was on Safari in the Ikoma area of North Western Tanganyika in 1950/51. We were hunting with three clients from the United States� Chuck Steele Snr. and his son Chuck Jnr. the third clients name was Bob Wentzel. The Professional hunters were Donald Ker Chris Aschan and myself.
We were camped beside the lower reaches of the Grummetti river which forms the
Western boundary of the Serengetti National Park. We were after a general bag of trophies, including Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, and Rhino, all found in the Ikoma area, although rhino were not numerous.
The Safari was going very well, and after a few weeks we were literally coasting with plenty of time on our hands. We hunted in those days, mostly in the early mornings and evenings, game being very plentiful, it was unnecessary to stay out all day.
One evening found Chuck Jnr. and myself together with gunbearers Kidogo and Matheke cruising upriver in the hunting car, just outside the riverine bush.
We spotted a Buffalo about half a mile out in a swath of tall grass, only its back was visible, but �bull� was written all over what we could see. We decided to go take a look, as we had four Buffalo on the license, and we both loved hunting them anyway.
We soon discovered there was a shallow marsh between ourselves and the Buffalo, we waded it without a problem, and then crept up on the lone bull, who was totally oblivious to our presence. The stalk was ridiculously easy due to the long grass, and when he lifted his head he looked pretty good with a spread of well over forty inches.
Chuck was using a .470 hired from the company. His first shot hit the bull high in the shoulder dropping him in his tracks.. a second shot finished him off.
We sent Kidogo back for the car, he would have to bring it by a circuitous route to avoid the marsh, and that would take a while We had no four wheel drives in those days.
There were no trees for a considerable distance from where the Buffalo fell, and there being nothing on which to lean the rifles, we laid them down in the grass, in order to assist Matheke in the removal of the head and cape.
We figured that we would be finished long before the car arrived, and would be holding the rifles ready to put them back in the gun racks when it did.
I was at that time the proud owner of a first grade double Rigby .470, in mint condition, Jack Block, Managing Director of Ker & Downey Safaris had arranged for me to buy it from a friend of his for one hundred pounds about 270 US$. Seems crazy now doesn�t it.
As we were finishing with the skinning, I heard a vehicle, but paid no attention thinking it was my car approaching, no problem, Kidogo knew the rifles were in the grass. However I realized after a while that the sound was coming from a different direction from that I expected my car to appear. I looked up and saw Donald Ker's Power-Wagon approaching us, and already quite close. Donald and Chuck Snr. had obviously seen vultures and were coming over to investigate what was going on.
Donald drove up and stopped. In a flash I remembered the rifles, but it was too late, one of his front wheels had driven directly on to the barrels of my Rigby.470. Horrified I retrieved the rifle as Donald reversed and immediately realized the worst. The barells were badly bent. Who was to blame? Nobody! We did not expect Donald to come along when we put the rifles in the grass, and he did not know that the rifles were there. It was a tragic accident.
However I was devastated, and to make matters worse, I was now without a heavy rifle and I had another three month Safari starting as soon as the Steele Safari was over.
I had with me a very nice .375 Winchester Model 70 which I used for the remainder of the trip, but I could not start a new Safari with a .375 as my heavy rifle. That would be unthinkable, at a time when great store was laid on large bores and heavy bullets.
On arrival back in Nairobi a couple of weeks later, I immediately began making enquiries for a replacement, but time was short and there appeared to be nothing in the line of heavy double rifles available.
The only heavy rifle I could find was a Rigby .416 at a dealer by the name of May & Co. It had been ordered by Don Bousfield, a game ranger, and for some reason, Don and the .416 had not bonded. It was �as new� and for sale for one hundred pounds . I had no option. I bought it. Little knowing then that decision was one of the most important I would make throughout my hunting career.
So began a lifelong love affair between myself, the .416 caliber, and the Rigby rifle.
.
I very soon realized that this rifle and cartridge combination was for me far superior to any double. The inherent accuracy of a bolt action was apparent from the very first shot, the phenomenal penetration was to make itself evident as time went by.
I also appreciated the four round magazine, and on several occasions was glad that those four rounds were ready and waiting.
Suffice to say that after about two Safaris I would not have gone back to a double under any circumstances. In the Rigby .416 I had found the perfect Professional Hunters rifle,
A beautifully balanced, fast handling weapon propelling a four hundred grain bullet fast enough to enable it to reach out up to three hundred yards if need be, when trying to bring down a wounded animal, and yet perform with devastating effect on large dangerous game at close range. I was impressed!!!.
I have to say that this rifle never gave the slightest trouble, it did however, give the most satisfactory service anyone could ask for, it never let me down, ever!!. I think my Wakamba gun bearers were even more devoted to it than I was. Maybe they thought it had some kind of �dawa.�{medicine}. They called it �Skitini� the closest they could get to four sixteen, and I do believe they were convinced it did most of the shooting by itself. I merely pointed it in the right direction. They regarded it as the one thing that stood between themselves and a possible messy follow up.
Over the years as a Professional Hunter I carried the .416 from the Sudan in the North to Botswana in the South. There have been some rather tricky situations, and it was largely due to the qualities of the Rigby rifle and the performance of the 416 cartridge that everyone involved came through unscathed."
JORGE
And now Ladies and Gentlemen... Mr. Harry Selby....
link to whole thread
"I was on Safari in the Ikoma area of North Western Tanganyika in 1950/51. We were hunting with three clients from the United States� Chuck Steele Snr. and his son Chuck Jnr. the third clients name was Bob Wentzel. The Professional hunters were Donald Ker Chris Aschan and myself.
We were camped beside the lower reaches of the Grummetti river which forms the
Western boundary of the Serengetti National Park. We were after a general bag of trophies, including Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, and Rhino, all found in the Ikoma area, although rhino were not numerous.
The Safari was going very well, and after a few weeks we were literally coasting with plenty of time on our hands. We hunted in those days, mostly in the early mornings and evenings, game being very plentiful, it was unnecessary to stay out all day.
One evening found Chuck Jnr. and myself together with gunbearers Kidogo and Matheke cruising upriver in the hunting car, just outside the riverine bush.
We spotted a Buffalo about half a mile out in a swath of tall grass, only its back was visible, but �bull� was written all over what we could see. We decided to go take a look, as we had four Buffalo on the license, and we both loved hunting them anyway.
We soon discovered there was a shallow marsh between ourselves and the Buffalo, we waded it without a problem, and then crept up on the lone bull, who was totally oblivious to our presence. The stalk was ridiculously easy due to the long grass, and when he lifted his head he looked pretty good with a spread of well over forty inches.
Chuck was using a .470 hired from the company. His first shot hit the bull high in the shoulder dropping him in his tracks.. a second shot finished him off.
We sent Kidogo back for the car, he would have to bring it by a circuitous route to avoid the marsh, and that would take a while We had no four wheel drives in those days.
There were no trees for a considerable distance from where the Buffalo fell, and there being nothing on which to lean the rifles, we laid them down in the grass, in order to assist Matheke in the removal of the head and cape.
We figured that we would be finished long before the car arrived, and would be holding the rifles ready to put them back in the gun racks when it did.
I was at that time the proud owner of a first grade double Rigby .470, in mint condition, Jack Block, Managing Director of Ker & Downey Safaris had arranged for me to buy it from a friend of his for one hundred pounds about 270 US$. Seems crazy now doesn�t it.
As we were finishing with the skinning, I heard a vehicle, but paid no attention thinking it was my car approaching, no problem, Kidogo knew the rifles were in the grass. However I realized after a while that the sound was coming from a different direction from that I expected my car to appear. I looked up and saw Donald Ker's Power-Wagon approaching us, and already quite close. Donald and Chuck Snr. had obviously seen vultures and were coming over to investigate what was going on.
Donald drove up and stopped. In a flash I remembered the rifles, but it was too late, one of his front wheels had driven directly on to the barrels of my Rigby.470. Horrified I retrieved the rifle as Donald reversed and immediately realized the worst. The barells were badly bent. Who was to blame? Nobody! We did not expect Donald to come along when we put the rifles in the grass, and he did not know that the rifles were there. It was a tragic accident.
However I was devastated, and to make matters worse, I was now without a heavy rifle and I had another three month Safari starting as soon as the Steele Safari was over.
I had with me a very nice .375 Winchester Model 70 which I used for the remainder of the trip, but I could not start a new Safari with a .375 as my heavy rifle. That would be unthinkable, at a time when great store was laid on large bores and heavy bullets.
On arrival back in Nairobi a couple of weeks later, I immediately began making enquiries for a replacement, but time was short and there appeared to be nothing in the line of heavy double rifles available.
The only heavy rifle I could find was a Rigby .416 at a dealer by the name of May & Co. It had been ordered by Don Bousfield, a game ranger, and for some reason, Don and the .416 had not bonded. It was �as new� and for sale for one hundred pounds . I had no option. I bought it. Little knowing then that decision was one of the most important I would make throughout my hunting career.
So began a lifelong love affair between myself, the .416 caliber, and the Rigby rifle.
.
I very soon realized that this rifle and cartridge combination was for me far superior to any double. The inherent accuracy of a bolt action was apparent from the very first shot, the phenomenal penetration was to make itself evident as time went by.
I also appreciated the four round magazine, and on several occasions was glad that those four rounds were ready and waiting.
Suffice to say that after about two Safaris I would not have gone back to a double under any circumstances. In the Rigby .416 I had found the perfect Professional Hunters rifle,
A beautifully balanced, fast handling weapon propelling a four hundred grain bullet fast enough to enable it to reach out up to three hundred yards if need be, when trying to bring down a wounded animal, and yet perform with devastating effect on large dangerous game at close range. I was impressed!!!.
I have to say that this rifle never gave the slightest trouble, it did however, give the most satisfactory service anyone could ask for, it never let me down, ever!!. I think my Wakamba gun bearers were even more devoted to it than I was. Maybe they thought it had some kind of �dawa.�{medicine}. They called it �Skitini� the closest they could get to four sixteen, and I do believe they were convinced it did most of the shooting by itself. I merely pointed it in the right direction. They regarded it as the one thing that stood between themselves and a possible messy follow up.
Over the years as a Professional Hunter I carried the .416 from the Sudan in the North to Botswana in the South. There have been some rather tricky situations, and it was largely due to the qualities of the Rigby rifle and the performance of the 416 cartridge that everyone involved came through unscathed."
JORGE