Issue 57 March 2024

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Featured In March 2024Woodward Part 3

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the vintage gun journal

Introducing the March Issue

Welcome to The Vintage Gun Journal, your free-to-view monthly magazine for all things British gun and rifle.

2024 has seen a continuation of the trend for new model launches from British gun-makers. Rigby launched the new Shikari boxlock double rifle in January and Westley Richards will start releasing their new over & under gun in numbers this year, following successsful testing and refinement of a pair of prototypes.

Rigby also launched their Lightweight .350, a variant of the successful Big Game model that kick-started the newly acquired company when L&O returned it to London in 2011. In a challenging economic environment, it is encouraging to see our gunmakers taking strides forward.

We attended the British Shooting Show, which was compact but well presented and certainly worth the entrance fee for the networking opportunities it offered.

With auctions coming into view (Holt's this month) has there ever been a better time to buy a used English sidelock? Guns that sold for £20,000 a decade ago are making half that now.

On the right day, it should be possible to buy a handsome and functional 'best' 12-bore sidelock for under £5,000. So, if you have always promised yourself that Boss or Purdey game gun, now would be a good time to get out your wallet.

I will be at Holt's to view the stock mid-month.

Thank you for reading the VGJ.

write to the editor

Diggory Hadoke, Vintage Guns Journal Editor sitting at his desk working hard