Dave asks in comments:
Does a stalking rifle have to have open sights? Or are peep sights allowed?
We can agree that the "stalking rifle" probably came about during the heyday of the African safari. A rifle of serious caliber that could be carried a lot and shot very little. Most of those rifles had express sights, but I've seen a few with peep sights. Back in those days, rifle optics were worse than not having sights at all. Iron sights ruled, simply because they were durable, quick, and reasonably accurate for the task at hand.
The staking rifle, as I appreciate it, is light, quick, and of sufficient caliber to do the job. In this modern era, Jeff Cooper's Scout rifle could be considered a stalking rifle. Light, quick, easy to use. I have an old Remington 700 in ,308 Win that might fit the bill as a stalking rifle. It has an 18 inch tube, a low power variable, and is very fast to get on target.
For that matter, my Winchester 94 might be considered a stalking rifle. It's light, at about 6 lbs, has a good peep sight, and if very fast in the woods.
To my mind, a stalking rifle is defined more by what it is not. It is not a precision rifle. It is no a bench rifle, it is not known for one-shot groups, although many stalking rifles are capable of good accuracy. It's a rifle that you an carry all day, and take one good shot in the field.
If you're interested in good, classic British stalking rifles, here is a good place to start your education, but beware; this is a rabbit hole that you might not find your way out of.
2 comments:
"Stalking Rifle" to me is a long arm designed to be shot off hand, following game in the woods - thickets. The 94 Winchester, 336 Marlin and 99 Savage classic woods rifles from way back when. More recent are bolt carbines, the 600, 700 and Model 7 Remingtons, the CZ 527 Carbine and others. I guess woods roaming rifle is much the same as a stalking rifle.
And here I thought a "stalking" rifle is one Santa delivered and left in a case leaning against the chimbley.
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