RIAC believes that this website is accessible to the widest possible audience pursuant to the guidelines of the Americans with Disability Act. 522 online hunting and shooting books and articles! Dicksons rifles were given two deep grooves, with a twist of one quarter in thirty inches. The three-leaf rear sight includes a stationary wide English V and two U-notched folding leafs for 50 and 75 yards/meters. The Nickudu Files represents the biggest collection of online hunting and shooting books, articles and stories on the net. Double rifles are extremely expensive, starting at about $10,000 and selling upwards of $260,000 USD in 2015, and have generally been replaced by repeater-rifles using rounds such as the . Cartridge Type: Rifle Height: 3.25" Width: 0.655" Average FPS: 2134 Average . . However, since foot-pounds is not a particularly good method of measuring the actual effectiveness of a big-bore cartridge, it is noteworthy that by using Taylors Knock-Out (TKO) formula, it earns an impressive 89.29. Ten of those were the .475 (No.2) and one the original .475. It is noteworthy that there are three distinct versions of this cartridge, including the .500 Black Powder Express (.500 Express), which appears to have been developed during the 1860s and features a 3.25-inch case length. The sight picture is straight down the rib and the front sight shows clearly even with a dark background. Forums.NitroExpress.com This was especially advantageous for users of double rifles, which were often used in cover, where a rapid, shotgun-like mount brought the rifle to the shoulder for a quickly-taken shot at a moving, or fleetingly seen, quarry; one which was often dangerous. Experiments with rifling included the depth of the grooves, the number of grooves and the twist rate. As far as I can tell, the Nitro Express era started in 1898 with introduction of the .450 NE from John Rigby. Some more feeble attempts at humor! Would the .500 Nitro Express be a good choice? Caliber/Gauge:.500 . Plus members articles inaddition to numerous articles in other parts of the forums. The bullets were of cast lead and roughly the shape of a pear, with raised protrusions corresponding with the grooves in the bore. Might one not be better off with one of the bigger caliber rifles? Upon assembling the rifle for the first time, it was noted that the barrels fit the receiver with extreme precision and were tight to open and close. Over the following two weeks, 20 to 30 rounds were fired each day without any real discomfort. Currently Shopping by. This paired with its limited ammo count suggest it should only be used against players or the bounties themselves. It has Birmingham nitro proof marks. Designed by Jeffery in 1903, the .600 Nitro Express was the largest and most powerful commercial hunting calibre in the world until 1988, when it was surpassed by the staggeringly powerful .700 NE. If you enjoy big game hunting around the world and safaris, enjoy the stories and photos and share your own. Read articles on African This is a slight modification from original, with some precious metal inserted to provide a distinct visual bead. The debate around the best calibre for Africa has raged since the nitro express rifles we recognise today first burst onto the scene, as the nineteenth century turned into the twentieth. All the accessories come with the case. Last edited on 19 December 2022, at 06:43, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nitro_Express&oldid=1128257946, This page was last edited on 19 December 2022, at 06:43. Shown for comparison is the (left to right): .30-06, .458 Winchester Magnum and the .500 Nitro Express (3-inch). Double rifles, because two barrels is always better than one. The Black Powder Express class of cartridges for rifles is legion and starts with fairly small bullets of around .360, moving through .400 to ,450, .500 and, finally, .577. Regular bullet weight is 400 grains, but 350s can also be found. The wood has very attractive figure patterns, sharp checkering, and slight storage and handling blemishes. The ability of the hunter or PH to quickly shoulder. The pure math however does not take into account the weight distribution of a double-rifle, which has the weight of two barrels to help dampen out recoil, and the fact that if the rifle is made to fit you it will further tend to dampen out the felt-recoil. I have often heard shooters describe the big-bore British cartridges as having a slow recoil, or easy to manage. Perhaps they have never fired one! Like many double rifles, the Watson has a dolls head extension of the rib, locking into the top of the breech. For historical perspective, I like to refer to John Taylor, whose practical knowledge of dangerous game cartridges is well expressed in the books he wrote in the 1940s and based on years of hunting (and a good bit of poaching) when ivory hunting was a fairly lucrative adventure, still undertaken by a few hardy individuals, like Pondoro. per page . Chin. I hope you enjoy the video and thanks. The term Nitro Express came to be applied to many of these rimless cartridges also. The rifling in the right barrel shows a lot more wear than the left, so it would appear that this Watson Bros .475 (No.2)has seen some action over the years. Jon Branch is the founder and senior editor of Revivaler and has written a significant number of articles for various publications including official Buying Guides for eBay, classic car articles for Hagerty, magazine articles for both the Australian Shooters Journal and the Australian Shooter, and hes a long time contributor to Silodrome. The bullets for this caliber are strongly constructed and will not expand explosively. He told me It has a lovely feel and balance, very natural to point and shoot. By comparison the high performance Hornady Superformance .458 Winchester Magnum loading with its 500 grain DGX bullet at 2,140fps delivers 5.086ft/lb at the muzzle and 3,888ft/lb at 100 yards. A .500 Nitro Express is a rifle you can comfortably carry all day on a hunt without needing it to be ported for you by a gun-bearer, and it has a flat enough trajectory curve to be used out to 200-250 yards on non-dangerous plains game in addition to being a reliable stopping rifle against dangerous game. By comparison a typical heavy sporting rifle in one of the small bore magnums such as the popular 7mm Remington Magnum or .300 Winchester Magnum will commonly weigh 8.5lb before a rifle-scope is attached and up around 9.5lb-10lb with rifle-scope and mounts, depending on how big and heavy or small and light the rifle-scope is. Sort By: 1 Item(s) Show. In 1903 Jeffery & Co decided to outdo them all, creating the .600 Nitro Express, the most powerful sporting cartridge commercially available for over half a century.[2]. The Nitro Express Rifle is an even bigger magnum. Twin-hammer action with Universal Trigger System and Combi-Cocking Device Set trigger integrated in the front trigger Slim compact steel action with reinforced sidewalls for extra strength Small Arabesques engraving Ergonomically shaped Kickspanner manual cocking device providing safe and simple operation .577 Nitro Express 650 Grain Cutting Edge Solids- The .577 Nitro Express is a large bore centerfire rifle cartridge designed for the purpose of hunting large game such as elephant.This cartridge is used almost exclusively in single shot and double express rifles for hunting in the Tropics or hot climates in general and is a cartridge associated with the Golden Age of African safaris and Indian . The Nickudu Files on the NitroExpress.com eMagazine. The 480 grain bullet with which the .475 was generally loaded, was pushed at 2,175 feet per second. As an example the Holland & Holland double-rifle pictured above tips the scales at 10lb 13oz. We use techniques and processes that rival hand loads, with the ultimate goal of making . 458 Winchester. Ballistic performance is very similar to the .450 N.E but the bigger bullet offers a little more punch. 170 Vintage hunting books and articles These two-shot groups were fired offhand. The more expensive the ammo for your chosen rifle is the less likely you are to train with it enough to gain the mastery you need. The energy delivery difference between the two is huge. To complicate matters further, the No.2 Eley and No.2 Jeffery differ enough to not be interchangeable, the Jeffery using a slightly larger diameter bullet. They are Kynoch brass and Woodleigh bullets. After working the action and firing the rifle extensively, it began to wear in while remaining tight. Though the Nitro Express has a short range, its shot is incredibly powerful, with an . The real game changer was Cordite, which arrived in the late 1880s and revolutionised the nature of sporting rifles; express rifles included. <p>This Hoppe's .17/.204 Caliber Cleaning Kit includes everything you need to clean a .17 caliber rifle. Those after African big game exclusively may prefer a .470 or a .500 and those with a serious liking for horsepower may even opt for a .577, if buffalo and elephants are the quarry. So the .500 Nitro Express delivers about 30% more energy. The chequer has been refreshed, the stock finished and the blacking re-done. Jon has done radio, television, magazine and newspaper interviews on various issues, and has traveled extensively, having lived in Britain, Australia, China and Hong Kong. Suddenly, instead of muzzle velocities of between 1,400 and 1,600 fps, new .500 and .450 rifles could now achieve between 1,900 and 2,150 fps with bullets from 350 grains to 570 grains in weight. Check it out and enjoy untold thousands of pages of reading. During the 1990s however the making of some of the old British big game rifles and cartridges, including the .500 Nitro Express, resumed. Shop By. In 1899 Rigby approached the engineers at Mauser to make a special Gewehr 98 bolt action to handle their .400/350 Nitro Express. WILKINS in gold on each side and has blued removable firing pin bushings, a blued toplever, a blued manual safety with gold inlaid SAFE, a long upper strap extending to the comb, and NITRO EXPRESS/700 H&H inlaid in gold on the underside. per page . So, if you can manage a .458 Winchester Magnum comfortably then you can handle a .500 Nitro Express equally comfortably. If you enjoy big game hunting around the world and safaris, enjoy the stories and photos and share your own. Wonderful find . The Nitro Express can rarely be found in the Bayou. One of the things that sparked my interest was his choice of rifle. The factory loads mentioned feature various 570-grain solid and expanding bullets at 2,100 fps, and most of them produced actual velocities that were close to that figure. Nome [ editar | editar cdigo-fonte] .470 Nitro Express Ballistics. 4oz., 14 7/8in. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqzo3O-uuBESupport the Channel! When purchased, the serial number was stamped into the stock, an indication that it may have been in a game department armoury in Africa in the past. I purchased the rifle used but took it to the Krieghoff service center in fall of 2021 for a complete inspection, cleaning, installation of upgraded hi-viz sights and new recoil pad. Australian company Woodleigh Bullets had become a mainstay maker of British big game rifle bullets during the hiatus and, along with cases made by Bell Laboratories, were key to keeping these dangerous game rifles shooting in the period of the 1970s and 1980s. Double triggers offer reliability and permit the choice of which barrel (or load) is fired first. The .500 may surprise you in that it does not explode a deer. [Modern Firearm] A Joseph Bourne and Son, Birmingham Farquharson type falling block single shot big game rifle, .450 Nitro Express. Development work on the .600 NE most probably took place in the late 1890's . I have seen .600 NE rifles come off a shooters shoulder during recoil then hit him in the face, causing an immediate blackout or, at the least, bleeding. Now, that is not a calibre you see every day. From left to right: 1.17 HM2,2.17 HMR, . The top-safety slide is non-automatic, which is common practice on a dangerous game rifle, for obvious reasons. 15 inch length of pull. Ask questions too! It is probably fair to say that the Nitro Express calibres transformed big game hunting in Africa, but the .470 was not the first. Today, expect to pay $400,000 and upwards for a basic .700 rifle, depending on order . Enter the forums, join as a member, its FREE, and join in the discussions. Extractors only (no ejectors). The Merkel 140-2 is a well-built rifle that offers reliability, power and accuracy at a reasonable price. The stippled effect continues onto the quarter rib, onto which one ramp and two folding leaf-sights are mounted. To get used to it, he hunted fallow deer in New Zealand prior to his African trips and once managed a 200 yard kill, shooting from a sitting position. The Merkel features precision machining, automatic selective ejectors and a Greener cross bolt. Also member's Ask questions too! The notion of this kind of performance has long been with sportsmen and gunmakers. Open sights with flip up leafs and visible orange front beads for quick target acquisition come with every rifle. Thus we can see that a double-rifle in .500 Nitro Express is not a lot heavier than a typical heavy sporting rifle: it is of a weight that most people can manage to carry and wield comfortably. Jeffrey, a man who would go on to design some of the best cartridges and the rifles to fire them in, such as the .404 Jeffrey and the .500 Jeffrey, both of which are back in production. For a slightly reduced load that produced noticeably less recoil, try 96.0 grains of RL-17 for just over 1,900 fps; 105.0 grains reached 2,113 fps and is a factory duplication load. 28" round barrel. 13 oz. Weight 16 lbs. The forend houses the ejectors and is attached by an Anson pushrod. The Sidelock Double Rifle The 'express' train of firearms, our Sidelock Double rifle is the high-speed heavy-weight with an aptitude for accuracy. Editor's Note: The original price of $115,000 for a .700 H&H back in 1990 now looks like quite a deal. While they were not the smoothest barrels I have seen, their finish is respectable, and they did not produce unusual fouling during many shooting sessions with jacketed and cast bullet loads. It is similarly effective in bringing down buffalo, bear, and other large game found in the Americas. 114 Asia articles The .700 Nitro Express is a big game rifle cartridge made by Holland & Holland, London, England. (Black Powder Express). This, however is not bolted in the manner of a Westley Richards or a Webley screw grip, it simply slots into place at an angle. Although still a challenge, more hunters can master the recoil of the .500 NE than the heavy stopping cartridges such as the .577 and .600 NE, making it a practical choice. Using the Federal factory ammo driving the Barnes Triple Shock X bullet at 2,100fps and a 200 yard zero the drop at 225 yards is 2.81, and at 250 yards it is 6.42. British makers listed were W.J. Very fine "factory fresh" condition with only the slightest handling and storage marks. This rifle features double triggers and selective ejectors but is also available with extractors (at less cost) for hunters wanting a quietly opening action. The overall condition is very good, with crisp engraving and a good deal of original colour. The Merkel 140-2 features a sliding tang safety. The main difference was the wider use made of the .470 by well-known makers, while the .475 remained the preserve of but a few; Watson Bros being one of them. that you must be at least 18 years old to purchase shotgun ammunition and 21 years or older to purchase handgun and rifle ammunition. One notable example is the Merkel 140-2, with variations offered in .375 H&H Magnum, .416 Rigby, .450/400 Nitro Express (NE), .470 NE and .500 NE, which is the cartridge I selected. Although the mathematical calculation of recoil does not tell the whole story it does give us some indication as to what felt recoil for a given caliber will be like. If you are looking for a stopping double-rifle cartridge, one with a track-record that stretches back to the nineteenth century, then the .500 Nitro Express may be for you. The .470 and the .475 are both necked-up versions of the .450 case and are very similar in performance. Boasting its own specialty ammo, it has the capability to kill a healthy hunter in a single shot within close to medium ranges. Created from loading the already popular .450 Black Powder Express with cordite, the .450 NE was a fast and accurate cartridge capable of taking all African and Indian dangerous game. Nitro Express RiflesWhen smokeless powders, with their increased power to move a bullet at speed, became available, everything changed. Point of impact was different than the 570-grain jacketed bullets, but the rifle can be sighted-in at 100 yards by drifting the rear sight assembly slightly and using the 75-yard/meter rear sight leaf. They were loaded to higher pressures and not intended to be fired in rifles designed for black powder, which by comparison were not as strong. The Nitro uses Special Nitro ammo with unique damage ratios: Nonetheless, there are newly manufactured rifles with properly regulated barrels that can be purchased for a fraction of the costs listed above. The Nitro Express Rifle is actually named for its cartridge, called as such because of the bullet velocity, which is fast as an express train, according to James Purdey, who coined the term, and because the propellant used is cordite, which is made of nitrocellulose and nitroglycerin. Enter the forums, join as a member, its FREE, and join in the discussions. The Sabatti Big Five EDL rifles are classic African Big Game guns designed with side plates like the classic side lock rifles. The sunken concave rib has a matted stepped front sight block with bead sight, matted stepped quarter rib with blued standing notch rear sight with gold inlaid center line and calibrated for 50 yards, J.&L. It comes in a brass cornered and leather wrapped takedown case with dark green lining on the fitted interior, two snap caps, a Westley Richards & Co. oil bottle, and a takedown cleaning rod. Serial number 13636 and the 29 Old Bond Street address indicate the rifle was made before 1930. Muzzle Loading Express RiflesPushing a lead ball or conical bullet down a rifled barrel provides greater stability (and therefore greater accuracy) than pushing one down a smooth bore. 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