Читать книгу Gun Digest 2011 онлайн

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Whenever you try to send a big 570-gr. bullet out the muzzle between 2,300 and 2,400 fps you can, as a consequence, expect a considerable amount of recoil. For this reason I wanted to leave the contour of the barrel heavy, which wound up to be close to one inch in diameter as it met the forearm of the stock. The most common barrel length for a rifle like this is probably 24 inches, but I was looking for a fast handling rifle for those tight spots on dangerous game that no one wants to be faced with, but appreciates being prepared for. A barrel of 22 inches seemed to fit that bill perfectly. In order to provide better overall balance and at the same time reduce the felt recoil, two 1-lb. mercury recoil reducers were placed in the butt stock. This resulted in a terrifically well-balanced rifle that would swing quickly. Eventually the rifle hit the target weight of just under 12 lbs. with scope.

One thing I fear possibly as much as being mauled by a hungry lion or stomped by an angry elephant is the idea of getting hit in the eye with the scope from a caliber like the .500 Jeffery. I have been the recipient of such a blow but from a much smaller caliber and I do not want to repeat that experience, especially if it is the consequence of sending the equivalent of a 1-1/3-oz. fish-ing sinker speeding to its destination. For this reason I took the advice of a close friend and retired South African professional hunter and got the scope away from my eye. We mounted the long eye relief Leupold scope 10 inches out on the barrel and anchored it with a Modified set of Leupold quick detachable QRW mounts.