I have used 338Win and 375H&H Mags on elk and have been questioned on ocassion for using such " magnum power" , so.....

After weighing several factors and carefully studying the reloading manuals and the ammo boxes to make sure they make no mention of the word " magnum" ..... I just bought a 416 Rigby. So even though it is a pre-WWI cartridge and not a magnum, do you think it will be sufficient to handle a bull elk or perhaps a brown bear in a pinch?

EKM

Its all in the name.

Look at a .250 savage then look at a .25/06. One might assume that one is a " standard" (non-magnum) 25 cal. and the other is a " magnum" 25 cal. But the 25/06 does not have that magnum word attached to it.

Look at a .222 rem. then look at a 220 swift. The swift must be a " magnum" right? Well noone attached the magnum word to it so it isn' t but it is.

EKM, with proper shot placement that 416 should do the trick....

Boy, I don' t know. I' ve heard those .416 bullets will just bounce off a shoulder. What you need is a .50 bmg, that is the only sufficent caliber to take a majestic elk or a brown bear.

I would love to meet you at the range some day and give your .416 a try. I' ve never shot anything bigger than a .300 win mag

Just out of curiosity, what loads are you planning on using? I know a few guys that shoot 416 Rem and it took me awhile, but I finally found one. Anyway, they use the 300 gr X bullet on elk every year and as you might expect, bowl them over...

Jorgy,
50 bmg would be fun as a novelty, but at 33 pounds I' m afraid that I wouldn' t make it far from truck before collapsing so probably won' t work there. So, regarding range opportunities are you from anywhere around Denver?

Colorado Elk,
416 Rigby built its reputation with 410 grain bullets, but I will probably drop well below that for elk this fall, especially if I can get Barnes X' s to work well. The lighter (say 325gr) all copper XFB bullet is longer and shaped better than than jacketed lead bullets of the same weight/caliber (thus a higher ballistic coefficient i.e. .467, about the same as a larger 7mm jacketed lead bullet).

I kind of like the Barnes idea of lighter, faster, flatter and STILL having devastating payload and bullet action on the business end. It could score high on all of the Big Four: Energy (5900 ft-lbs), Taylor KO Index (56), Hydrostatic Shock (2,899 fps), and Bullet Performance (Barnes penetration [usually clean through]; expansion [4 " petal" design]; retention [usually 95+%]).

Per My Point Blank Ballistics Program and Barnes #3 Data:

With a 200 yard sight in:
1.6" high at 100 yards with 5200+ ft-lbs remaining
0 high at 200 yards with 4500+ ft-lbs remaining
7" low at 300 yards with 3900+ ft-lbs remaining
21" low at 400 yards with 3400+ ft-lbs remaining

Recoil:
69 pounds
22 fps velocity
Should be refreshing! [X(]

We' ll see, I' ve got my homework cut out on this one, good thing its only June.

Now for flexibility and cost savings, all I have to do is to learn how to reload, I' ve got all the stuff, just got to get started -- should be fun!

Never Go Undergunned,
EKM

I started loading for the same reason, although the 416 REM is only about $80/box. The 300 gr X bullets have signficantly reduced recoil compared to the 400 gr. The information in the Barnes #3 manual had all the information to get me started, although I ruined a few cases in the process. I can' t wait to use it this fall. Let me know how you like your Rigby (and what loads you decide on)! Happy Hunting.

Yeah, I live in Thornton, just north east of Denver. $80 a box for ammo, holy crap!

I think those Rigby cartridges are about $120/box!!! (per Midway). I think my reloading costs are about $.80 (after cases) per cartridge. It is amazing how few cases you can load per can of powder.

Jorgy,
I haven' t shot a 300 Win Mag. so that makes us even! I would not be opposed to getting together for some shared shooting experiences as long as everyone is 21 (sorry, liability). We could meet at Cherry Creek Shooting Center or elsewhere if you have a membership.

Perhaps you would be interested in a progressive Magnum Slugfest and we could each work our way up through: 300 Win Mag, 338 Win mag, 375 H&H Mag, and 416 Rigby. If ColoradoElk wanted to join us we could include a 416 RemMag in the line up.

My 416 Rigby doesn' t have a scope on it yet though I have a Leupold Vari III 3.5-10 waiting for it. Of course, for " introduction" purposes NOT having a scope could be an advantage!

Never Go Undergunned,
EKM