CLASSIC WEATHERBY FIREARMS

 

Weatherby Firearms of the 1950s would be like the fine classy handmade furniture pieces of the early 1900s. They had that fine finish and classic styling that were unique to the Weatherby line. They were a unique style and as a gun enthusiast you either like it that way or considered it too fancy for a gun.

The Weatherby Firearms of the 1950s would be built on the Mauser action. They are considered by some to be the finest Mauser action rifles ever produced. They had a unique design and styling and of course the Weatherby Magnum cartridge designs.

I would personally like the Mauser action rifles of the Weatherby design as my personal favorite in the Weatherby Rifle. And of course the Mauser action Weatherby’s are some of the most collectible Weatherby Firearms. They may be the most difficult Weatherby Firearms to collect.

By the late 1950s Weatherby Firearms would start producing rifles manufactured by JP Sauer company in Germany. These would primarily be based upon the newly designed action that would become the Weatherby Rifle trademark. The German Weatherby’s are also very collectible and are highly sought after firearms.

The early Weatherby Firearms of this period are not readily available in good numbers. They did not produce many of these rifles and this would be especially true with the Mauser action Weatherby’s. More German Weatherby Firearms were produced and therefore are more readily available but still command very high collector interest. Either of these Weatherby Firearms are excellent choices for those looking for investing in classic firearms of the Golden age of Classic Firearms.

Tomorrow`s Rifle Today

 

Weatherby Firearms would produce a distinct line of cartridges that were totally unique to the Weatherby line. Of course the 30 caliber cartridge or what we call the

300 Weatherby Magnum

would be the most famous Weatherby cartridge. They would produce several different cartridges and I will discuss the Weatherby cartridges in another article.

 

When collecting the Weatherby Rifles, the cartridge would be very influential in the value of a particular rifle.

They would not have produced nearly as many 378 Weatherby Magnum rifles and therefore will demand a much higher value than the more numerous 300 Weatherby Magnum.

Like all collectible firearms the condition is very important when buying a particular firearm. We would sell many 300 Weatherby Magnum rifles in our Northeast Pennsylvania gun shop (Northeast firearms in Honesdale PA). Many of those rifles were used for deer hunting rifles and may not be in excellent shape.

But because they were high-grade rifles, the men that owned them seemed to take care of them better than the average hunting rifle. For this reason many of them have stayed in very good condition over the years.

Weatherby Rifles were noted for high velocity and high recoil. For this reason Weatherby’s would be some of the first rifles to have muzzle brakes or Mag-na-Port installed on them. This would certainly help with the recoil but if done on those collectible firearms it will hurt the value significantly.

Any Weatherby from the 1950s or 60s would not have factory muzzle brakes installed. (Not that I have ever seen)

Weatherby Rifles were also not noted for great accuracy. Because of the extreme pressures and velocity the guns would lose bullet accuracy. Because of this I would glass bed many of these rifles. This will also hurt the collector value. But not as much as the muzzle brake.

I have not mentioned the Japanese made Weatherby’s in this article as they are not of the 1950s and 60s era. They can be good collectible firearms also but my main focus is the 50s and 60s.

For rating these firearms from the 1950s and 60s the Weatherby Rifles will get in Excellant rating and if you can find them in the early variations they do make great additions to any gun collection.

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