Since you've got a custom in the works from an excellent gunsmith in his own right. I'd ask him what he would like to see take shape for he's very experienced and float the idea around. .
Chris prefers the black pad / black tip over the red pad / no tip but does not force his preference over the client's wishes. Nice guy!
Were it me I would go red pad/ebony tip. Prince of Wales pistol grips look foreign to our eyes, but I've done a couple over the years and have come to like them. The open design of the grip is conducive to aiding in snap shooting.
One thing I've done on two rifles is to put a small bit of ebony on the bottom of the PoW grip, in place of the naked wooden knob- 1/4-3/8" thick and blended into the rounded shape of the knob. A dot of ivory in its center as a subtle embellishment, with a single initial scrimshawed thereon, would be a classy touch that I've threatened to do but never got around to. The small piece of ebony at the bottom of the grip also helps tie in the butt with the ebony tipped forearm.
Optics or irons as primary sighting equipment? That'll drive comb height and also effect decision about PoW grip shape. That style grip loses something in the translation if comb is high, IMO only. (Low comb can be used with scope as secondary/backup to iron/receiver sights, not so much the other way around.)
Last edited by gnoahhh; 10/23/19.
"You can lead a man to logic, but you cannot make him think." Joe Harz "Always certain, often right." Keith McCafferty
Interesting. I have a bunch of these and I think the 1" is just fine and have not had any issues with the color. I think it looks classy. But by all means use whatever you like best for this lovely project. I will cast my vote for red recoil pad and ebony forend tip. And I also think your choice of the 2.5x8 Leupold is a good one. I chose that on my only "bespoke" rifle. But that lovely matte 4X you scored is really all you need. I've killed lots of critters out to 400 yards with the 4X leupold and it is plenty. But, in truth, that 2.5x8 VXIII is the better scope. And did I hear right that the custom shop is making the M8 3X again?
I vote red pad no tip and stay with the Rigby pattern, elegantly simple. Don't forget the rounded grip knob......
After flip/flopping several times, I did finally decide on a .750" red pad w/o the black tip which is more keeping with the Rigby style. The rounded knob will be replaced with a simple steel grip cap instead. The front sight will be a bit farther back on the bbl about .375" much like some of the older English rifles. Trigger guard will be stamped with the ser#.
Barrel came in this week. Will be a Ron Smith 1:8" gain twist .600" at the muzzle. 23" long.
Have you thought about switching to the Jerry Fisher round bottom bottom metal instead of the Argy you are planning on? If you want a really sleek gun that would handle like a little Purdy, it would move you in the right direction. It is surprising how much wood you can take out of the action area by switching to that bottom metal.
Those are very nice bottoms. I did the math and by the time I pay the US to CDN exchange and the 15% duty at the border plus the gas to get to Maine , I'd be into it for almost $1K CDN. Add on top of that, this rifle will have a lot of Rigby overtones and the bottom will be perfect for that.
That Rigby pattern is different in a bigger way than colors. From the one look at it in that photo it has to shoulder and fire like lightning compared the other, more deliberate weapon. Funny, custom tradtional bow buyers talk colors too.
I thought about a classic Leupold 3x for a bit but ended up sending a VX-III 2.5-8 with the rifle to the gunsmith for overall fitting to the bolt and sights. I will try this scope out for a bit but may end up putting a VX-3 1.5-5 on it when it arrives home.
I received some advice from a very helpful member here who explained to me that English walnut would be a more fitting wood for this project. Based on his advice and a bit of research, I bought the following blank this week. It's a bit understated, but a good fit for this "working gun" and has good grain through the wrist.