Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors What ever happened to the Rigby Custom 1920???

That's another of those unsung beauties Loggah! Neat period piece influenced by that California look with deep Teutonic engraving.

Don, do you remember the Counsellor pulling into the gravel drive at Jed's in his red Toyota Celica and popping the hatchback to reveal a load of custom 99 and other assorted rifles at the first Fest? I remember thinking who is this guy? That was the first time I met Mark aka Vigillinus.

I must be getting old - recalling ghosts and empties.

Bert, I sure do! i had a 99T in 250-3000 that he wanted pretty bad,said it was Griffin & Howe work. Someone here had a picture of his trunk with the custom rifles in it.LBK,Rick maybe.Don

IIRC, Blitz may have posted a similar at one time.

I've got the pics from the first fest somewhere. When I find them I'll repost the trunk pic.

I forgot I had posted the pics from the 2006 Fest on my website. Here are the URL's:

http://www.olscool.com/SavageFest2006/SavageFest2006.htm

http://www.olscool.com/SavageFest2006-2/SavageFest2006-2.htm

The second link has the "trunk" picture. I've got the original pictures somewhere, gotta dig through my archives to find them.

Enjoy!

Blitz

Actually, there is a close up of the trunk in the first link.

Thanks for posting Blitz

I see the pig rifle, any contact with LRF lately?

Thanks so much for reposting those Blitz.

What a wonderful introduction to the world of Savage rifles and gun collectors!

The Mark's custom 99s (not cross referenced to the auction linked above):



Jed displaying the Pig Gun for Mark's (in the red shirt) consideration with Lulu, Jed, and Steve99. Me? I'm hiding behind Mark making mental notes:



Thanks again. With the borders closed one can only dream of seeing that many extraordinary pieces again. Cheers!

Lynn (LRF) is mainly on the Single Shot and Custom Gun forum of the DoublegunBBS. He's scratch-building a custom Dutch Mannlicher in the English custom gun builder's style which by judging from his step-by-step pics will simply be to die for.

Hi Joe! Thanks for your input as your Post above reacting to my critical critique concerning wisdom of using a Savage Model 1920 as basis for customization/adornment. Quoting your comment: “I can only fall back on the John Madole engraved Savage 219, and what he purportedly said when asked why he did such work on that rifle. Paraphrasing, he said, "Did Da Vinci ask the canvas if it wanted him to paint the Mona Lisa on it".
My own “Err… What the heck does that paraphrase mean?” Net, two observations.

First. The instance of his selecting the Model 219 and of later uttering nonsensical justification. Suggesting perhaps under influence of the same ‘judgment impairing substance’ as selecting the 219 to bestow the work as post-justification logic holiday! Second. My analogy. If another to use DiVinci, I’ll use Rodan! “The Thinker” his great sculpture, magnificent capture of human form. Seated ‘upon underlying object, a rock’. Notably, not ensconced ‘upon the latrine’! Thus, ‘net’ achieving… “The Thinker” rather than... “The Stinker!

I own both several Models 20, one 20/26 and a Model 219 in 30-30 Win. I acquired and appreciate these rifles ‘for era reflected and what they are now. There’s a certain classic virtue to such utility guns. Such my opinion, where both of these Savage rifles place. Adornment, can indeed produce beautiful results. But, aesthetics for me inseparable from underlying utility of function; the 'net', integral. Such vision, perhaps my weakness!
The answer to a lot of seeming discordant artistic works. "Why”, about the same as today. ‘Commissioned by someone prepared to pay for it!’

No intent that any owner's feelings harmed in the production of this work!
Just my take
Best!
John

John, your post gives food for thought.

What we don't know is whether there were any modifications made on the internal parts or the action that would not be immediately visible to the naked eye.

I strongly suspect that John Rigby & Co., being rifle makers of notable standard and well versed in customizing Mauser rifles, had a few ideas of how the Savage Model 1920 would benefit from improvements. A modified trigger is the first place that I would believe that Rigby would start in the smithing project. That's where I would start if I were to customize a 1920 even before considering restocking, engraving or other embellishments.

The current owner is the only one who knows for sure. Just my two cents worth.

The thinker !! circa 2005 during the vault build !

Well if I ever get lucky enough to draw a moose tag I hope to scratch my head in that place.

Speaking of customs (99's), and One-of a-Kinds (Loggah!)!

Does anyone have a better side-on photo of these two (on the left, from Jed's Fest) short-side-panel custom 99s? I'm trying to mimic them for one of our esteemed Brethren!

[Linked Image]

Incredible pics of custom guns. Thanks for posting these.

thats nice Don

It is pretty nice, the safety has me stumped, the safety thumbpiece and the piece it slides in are wider then any others i have seen. I have several other 1920, 20-26 rifles and the safetys are all narrower. Don

I viewed a M1920 .250-3000 30 years ago owned by the BIL of the girl I was living with at the time, which was completely adorned with fine scroll engraving and wore a pretty English walnut stock . His grand dad had it done a bazillion years ago. The gun, if he still has it, is now somewhere in New Hampshire or Vermont (c'mon, I lost track of him 25 years ago and I don't remember which state he moved to upon leaving the wilds of suburban Connecticut). I was almost too bashful to show him the plain-Jane M1920 .250 I was campaigning at the time. If that gun ever came on the market up there it would/would've been on the radar of you New England boys.