Not just a perfect modern iteration of the company's best known model, it transports nineteenth century aesthetics and developmental genius into the hands of the twenty-first century hunter. Regulated for 250-grain bullets, loaded into the traditional brass bottle-neck case especially made by Kynamco for Westley Richards, this wonderful medium game rifle is again viable, after decades during which the world considered the .318 cartridge obsolete. Westley Richards customers know better and we remain the only company on earth making rifles in .318 Accelerated Express. Any reader wondering why s ..read more

As US columnist Doug Larson is quoted as saying: "Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days". That image of the file seems apt when discussing the gun trade. The spectre of nostalgia is one all too often invoked by the average gun trade marketeer. As an industry, we (and I include myself) are overly susceptible to its haunting influence. Were we born too early? Do we belong in another era? We may pretend we do. We like the old things, like leather cartridge bags that smell of Ballistite. We collect Victorian shotguns and hang maps of a long-dead empire on our stud ..read more

Like many a managing director before him, Taylor co-patented, along with one of his employees, several important improvements to sporting guns and rifles. He may be best known among sportsmen and collectors for the 1897 hand detachable ‘Droplock’ which is still the cornerstone of the doubles Westley Richards builds today, but the one patent that carried his personal marker throughout its life was the L-T capped bullet. Like the Holland & Holland ‘Paradox’, introduced in the 1880s, the Westley Richards ‘Explora’ and ‘Fauneta’ were designed to shoot a solid projectile as well as a shot cart ..read more

Mr. Chiswick is still in business and currently working on his 80th rifle. We currently have three of Classic Arms Corporation rifles here at the U.S. Agency. All three rifles are based on original  commercial Mauser actions and stocked in spectacular walnut. The stocking and metal work are second to none on these rifles and they rival the quality of any rifle maker from their respective era. They are also beautifully cased in Oak & Leather cases with canvas covers and Nitre blued accoutrements. No detail was left unchecked on these rifles, and they truly represent the best of custom ..read more

These are traditional square body actions with single beads along the edges, automatic safety, and two triggers with a rolled edge guard bow. The action body and lock plates are color hardened and engraved in a full coverage bold deluxe Acanthus scroll pattern. On the bottom of the action, “Asprey London” is inlayed in gold.   Asprey 12g Self-Opening Sidelock Ejector Barrels on the Asprey guns were done by Mick Kelly. This gun has 28” chopper lump barrels and 1992 London proofs for 2 ¾" (70mm) chambers, and have smooth, concave game ribs with the Maker’s name inlayed in gold a; the rest ..read more

Both rifles were completed in the early 2000’s. One is a Best Quality bolt action magazine rifle chambered in Jeffery’s .404 rimless cartridge and the other a Best Quality double rifle with hand detachable locks and chambered for the .470 3 ¼” NE. This bolt action is currently one of my favorite rifles in our inventory. Based on a new double square bridge, magnum length Mauser action with Smithson 30mm quick detachable scope rings, a quarter rib with 1 standing/ 2 folding leaf Express sights that are gold lined with Westley’s patented combination foresight and folding sight protector. The bot ..read more

To me, and I’m sure many of you, the English rifle makers like Rigby’s, Holland & Holland, and Westley Richards set the bar on what a bolt action sporting rifle should be. One American gunmaking company that has rivaled the English makers since its founding in the early 1920’s is Griffin & Howe. The partnership between Seymour Griffin, a cabinet maker, and James V. Howe, trained as a  toolmaker, was formed in 1923. Griffin was an amateur gunmaker who was an exceptional stock maker. Howe was a gunmaker who did stock work as well but specialized in metal work like sights and butt pl ..read more

The majority of British gunmakers are small businesses, turning over a few million pounds each year. By way of comparison with other household names in the industry; companies like Midway USA, Cabellas, Colt and Beretta we are financially insignificant. What makes a handful of relatively modest British firms punch above their weight in terms of global recognition is history, allied with tradition, artistry and handcraft excellence. Over the years, everyone has tried to make British type guns to compete with the British but, let’s face it, nobody has ever managed to crack that code and deliver ..read more

Like our other models, our sidelocks are easily recognisable as Westley Richards rifles. We fit the same combination of Purdey double under-bolt and Westley Richards bolted doll's-head that we have used since the 1880s. With the pressures that a powerful nitro express cartridge  exerts on the action, the presence of a third bite is reassuring. "Sufficient time will always influence exceptional craftsmanship" - Trigger The sidelock photographed here has been almost 5 years in the making. It is a stunning, bold-looking rifle in the ever-popular .375 Holland & Holland Magnum, regulated ..read more

To most, the body-action gun is synonymous with the 1875 Anson & Deeley ‘boxlock’. That is an error since there are numerous derivatives quite different internally, though they may look very similar internally. For evidence of this dis-assemble a Greener ‘Monarch’ or ‘Empire’ model or indeed a Beesley patent spring-opener. They all look like the Anson & Deeley from the outside but are quite different internally. Many of these inventions were made in significant numbers but few have continued into the modern era. Here at Westley Richards, we still make ‘boxlock’ Anson & Deeley rifle ..read more