.350 Rigby Magnum

DL

Well-Known Member
An old gent sold me a few of the above (inert) in order to make myself a display board.
I have looked in the reloading tables,but havent seen it listed. It's obviously an old safari round,How long has it been obsolete for?
Do they still use this calibre abroad?
 
I have a couple of these old girls in my collection & this is the story so far as I am aware.

Chris

Introduced in 1908, this is the rimless version of the 350 No. 2 Rigby, it is also the same as the 400/350 Rigby except for a lighter bullet to increase velocity.

The famous London gun-making firm of John Rigby & Co introduced this proprietary cartridge in 1908. This was at a time when "medium bore" calibres were utilised all over the world for soft-skinned game as well as for occasional use on dangerous game in open country.

Rigby had been at the forefront of innovative cartridge development several years previously with the introduction of the rimmed 400/.350. With the end of the second Anglo-Boer War in 1902, Rigby became Mausers British Agent; this collaboration with Mauser led to the use of the renowned square-bridge magnum-length action and a revolution in magazine rifles and the long rimless cartridges. No other maker then offered such a magnum-length bolt action rifle and Rigbys name became synonymous throughout the world for the best in Mauser-actioned big game rifles.

Sporting cartridges of the day reflected the high velocities attained with the then new military rounds. 1905 saw the adoption of a 153 grain spitzer bullet for the Mauser Gewehr 98 at the unprecedented velocity of 2880 fps (in a 30 inch barrel) and, in 1906, the United States followed with the introduction of the 150 grain bullet at 2700 fps for the 1903 Springfield.

To meet the challenge, the .350 Magnum Rigby replaced the faithful old 400-350 which had been loaded with a 310 grain bullet at 2150 fps. The new cartridge used a .358-inch diameter bullet of 225 grains in semi-spitzer soft-nose and round-nose solid forms, both departing a 24 inch barrel at an advertised velocity of 2600 fps. In 1908, this was considered a remarkable velocity for the calibre.

As was common practice at the time, This cartridge comes from an era when medium-bore cartridges (those calibres between .32 and .40) were considered the absolute minimum for use on soft skinned dangerous game and the larger antelope. This was largely due to poor bullet performance in the smaller calibres; something that does not occur today thanks to modern technology and advanced bullet design.

The enhanced performance of modern small calibre bullets has, without doubt, contributed to the demise of the "medium bores". However, nostalgia aside, Rigbys .350 Magnum is a versatile cartridge and with bullets such as the Speer Grand Slam and Barnes X, it can hold its own against the more popular .375 H&H.

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Chris, This is good stuff you have on the calibre. I am going to busy myself with brasso/duraglit & plan on putting the rounds in a circle,in a clockface type design. Danny
 
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