Nitro Express Calibers - Some inventions from the 19th century are still considered perfect for their intended purpose. However, due to their effectiveness, large-bore double rifles are timeless and the choice of experienced professional hunters and sportsmen who pursue large and dangerous game, including elephants, buffaloes, etc. will fail.
Shown for comparison are (left to right): .30-06, .458 Winchester Magnum and .500 Nitro Express (3 inches).
Nitro Express Calibers
As the golden age of the double rifle passed, well-designed vintage pieces (typically those produced since the 90s) put them out of reach for the average hunter/shooter. And many were heavily burned and had significant wear.
Nitro Express Black Powder Round
However, there are newly manufactured rifles with properly adjusted barrels that can be purchased at a fraction of the above cost. A prominent 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 my cartridge of choice.
The story really begins in the second half of the 19th century, when experienced professional hunters (PH), adventurers and sportsmen determined that the large caliber double rifle was the best sporting weapon for hunting large, heavy and dangerous game. Thickets or trees in unexplored Africa. Fast bar from hunter ability or PH
The Merkel 140-2 is equipped with selective ejectors; The right muzzle is fired and the shell is ejected.
A shotgun and sending a heavy, solid bullet through thick skin, heavy bones and muscle into a charging animal's vital organs can often mean the difference between life and death. A side-by-side double rifle is relatively small, quick to handle, and naturally fires with acceptable accuracy. If necessary, a quick fill shot is ready the moment the rifle can be taken off recoil and back on target. Moreover, a double rifle is essentially two pistols in one, as it has two barrels, two bolts, two firing pins, two triggers, and two ejectors. If one "side" fails due to a broken part or defective cartridge, the other barrel saves lives.
Buy 700 Nitro Express
Although many excellent cartridges were developed for single-shot and double-shot rifles during the black powder era, the Nitro Express cartridges are still highly sought after and practical for today's hunters. In the late 1970s, when I first began shooting and experimenting with large-bore double-barrel rifles, the ammunition was hard to find in the United States and generally considered obsolete. Ammunition had to be bought from specialist dealers and was expensive. Originally, the fired cases were loaded manually, as the Berdon 172 primers had to be removed in an unusual manner, finding bullets was difficult, and determining the powder charge that produced the correct pressures and velocities matched this. Factory load ballistics and proper control for a given rifle are a challenge.
At 50 yards, the barrel's adjustment is close to factory and hand loads. These two-shot groups are released from the hand.
That all changed as Federal, Hornady and Nosler offered factory ammunition for the extremely popular Nitro Express large-bore cartridges. As I've come to expect from all three companies, the ammo is high quality and holds better bullets (solid and expanding) than vintage ammo. They also have boxer primed shells and the U.S. Manufactured bullets are readily available, making it easy for hand loaders to assemble loads.
Although traditional double rifles are chambered for powerful bullets, their actions are not powerful – at least compared to repeating rifles. As a result, the pressure in the chamber is intentionally kept low. This serves to increase the reliability of both the rifle and the ammunition, making it less sensitive to temperature changes. The same cannot be said for some modern large-diameter cartridges loaded under high pressure.
Nitro Express 3\
One of the most popular cartridges was the .500 NE (3-inch), developed by Westley Richards of Great Britain in 1890. Notably, there were three different versions of this cartridge, including the .500 Black Powder Express (.500 Express), which was developed in the 1860s and had a 3.25-inch case. The next version was the .500 Nitro for black powder, which was loaded with cordite and first appeared in the 1890s.
The .500 NE (3-inch) got its name from the Cordite loads, which consisted of guncotton (based on nitrocellulose) and nitroglycerin. They were loaded to high pressures and were not intended to be fired from rifles designed for black powder, which were not as powerful by comparison. The current maximum industry average pressure is 40,611 psi. Conventional Ballistics lists the .510 inch, 570 grain bullet as having a muzzle velocity of approximately 2,150 fps (according to Kinnoch data), producing 5,860 foot pounds. However, since foot-pounds are not a particularly good method of measuring the true effectiveness of a large-bore cartridge, using the Taylor Knock-Out (TKO) formula, it earns a high of 89.29. By comparison, a .458 Winchester Magnum with a 500-grain bullet at 2010 fps TKOs 65.75, and the larger .460 Weatherby Magnum pushes a 500-grain bullet at 2600 fps for a TKO of 85.05.
The big .500 Nitro provides the high-caliber, bone-crushing and deep-penetrating qualities needed to reach the heaviest African game under all conditions, and is generally considered a stop-gap round, but it's also fun to shoot! Although still challenging, most hunters can master the recoil of the .500 NE over hard stopping cartridges like the .577 and .600 NE, making it a practical choice.
The Merkel Company of Germany has been manufacturing fine sporting arms since 1898. The Merkel 140-2 is an Anson & Deeley designed box lock that is simple, strong and reliable. This rifle has dual triggers and selective ejectors, but is also available with extractors (at a lower cost) for hunters who want a silent opening. For added durability and strength, it features Greiner's famous cross-bolt and traditional double-bottom bite locking system. The bolts are qualified and the firing pins are bushed, all indicating a high quality double rifle.
Jeffery Rimless (rimless Nitro Express) — Ammunitionartifacts
This particular model is very simple, as the case color is hardened and there is a light scroll engraving. The classic-style stock has a low-profile cheekpiece and is made of straight-grain Turkish walnut, meaning it's strong and functional. Higher-end versions, such as the 140-2.1 African Safari Series, feature elaborate hand engravings, gold-encrusted game sights, octagonal barrels, and a silver nitride body with enhanced wood. Barrels are rust blued at low temperatures, a beautiful, long-lasting, non-reflective sheen reminiscent of a bygone era.
The rear sight has a solid wide English "V" with two U-shaped folding wings at 50 and 75 yards/meters respectively. The bow tie is a standard gold bead.
Merkel uses a combination of advanced manufacturing or tooling with hand fitting, polishing and barrel adjustment. During the first assembly of the rifle, it was observed that the barrels fit the body with great precision and were tight when opening and closing. After working the action and shooting the rifle extensively, it became tight and began to "wear out".
The barrels are hammer forged and have a 1:15 thread. They are simple and beautifully designed. Using a Lyman borecam, they were further examined for surface condition. While they aren't the smoothest barrels I've seen, their finish is respectable, and they didn't produce unusual fouling during most jacketed and cast bullet shooting sessions.
Federal Premium Cape Shok .500 Nitro Express 570 Grain Woodleigh Hydro Solid Centerfire Rifle Ammunition
Adjusting the barrel of double rifles is an art and often misunderstood. Adjusting some rifles will eventually cause bullets to cross lower paths and begin to propagate beyond the normal hunting range. This does not mean that they converge or intersect. I've used rifles that shoot bullets parallel, but they're also great at long range. It is perfect; However, a rifle that correctly groups both barrels at normal hunting distances is certainly effective and appropriate. Adjustment is very delicate and even small changes in load, pressure, powder charge, velocity and bullet design can affect the way the barrels are grouped and the flight path of the bullet. In other words, one charge may join the bullets and then separate, while other charges may form parallel groups or begin to separate shortly after leaving the barrel.
The three-leaf rear sight has a constant width English "V" and two folding U-notch wings at 50 and 75 yards/meters.
Using factory loads containing various 570 grit rounds at 2,100 fps from Hornady, Federal and Nosler, the Merkel 140-2 test rifle often put two rounds 2 to 2.5 inches from each barrel at 50 yards. Interestingly, group sizes were slightly larger at 100 yards. The extreme velocity spreads of these loads are particularly impressive. For example, the Hornady DGX load has an extreme dispersion of just 5 fps
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