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The Weatherby excluded, the reality is that from the animal's perspective they are all the same. The Weatherby is just the Rigby case with a belt and the radiused shoulder. In fact, when Rigby cases were very hard to find, folks simply turned off the Weatherby's belt and presto...cases for their Rigby. The Remington is the way to go if you don't handload. Much cheaper to shoot, but if you intend to get a rifle in 416, you'll either take up handloading or won't shoot your rifle very much. I've had my 416 for 10 years and have a couple thousand rounds through it. You just can't do that if you don't handload...unless you have deep pockets. Handloading the 416's is the same as loading a 30-06. You don't need to do anything special or different.

I have to disagree with Grizzly, though, about a couple things. First, the 416's...any of them...most certainly do not run out of gas at 200 yards. No, they were not designed for long range shooting like a 300 magnum, but when loaded with 300 or 350gr Barnes X-Bullets they shoot remarkably flat. I'd not hesitate to shoot an elk-sized animal at 300 yards with one if conditions were perfect and it was the only shot I was going to get. I'm not promoting long distance gunning, but the rifle is most certainly capable if the shooter is well practiced.

Also, I can't quite figure out this comment about the Weatherby..." Because too high a velocity just punches holes in an animal at ranges where most shots are taken.

I've always heard the exact opposite from Weatherby shooters, and shooters of other very high velocity rounds. At the higher impact velocity, the bullets fail at close range, not just zip through. The 378 Weatherby had (and still has) the same issue. "Regular" bullets are not designed for such a high impact velocity, blow up and fail to penetrate to the vitals. Not trying to start an argument, but this is very well documented by folks with much more experience than I, such as Ross Seyfried, etc.

Bottom line is you'll enjoy whichever 416 you choose. They are very cool rifles.

Rick

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"Life's too short to hunt with an ugly gun"

U.S. Coast Guard, retired

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