If one were drawing up the specifications for a dangerous game rifle one might decide on a Purdey self-opening double-rifle in 500 Nitro Express – and such a rifle would indeed represent the epitome of British dangerous game rifles.
Fast Facts
- The name Purdey has become synonymous with the Beesley self-opening action since the early 1880’s.
- The Beesley action is made to spring open when the top lever is operated, making the gun easier and arguably more convenient to reload.
- While this system has proved to be very popular for Purdey’s shotguns it is very rare to find a double-rifle so equipped.
- One of these rare Purdey self-opening double-rifles chambered for the 500 Nitro Express is coming up for sale by Rock Island Auction on 15th August, 2025.
The Beesley self-opening action for side-by-side guns has been synonymous with the name Purdey, since Frederick Beesley sold his patent to Purdey for the sum of £35 back in 1881.
So good was this action that it became the de rigueur system for Purdey’s side-by-side guns and by 1884 was to be found on about 64% of the guns made and sold by them.
Beesley’s design used the action mainspring to do double duty – not only firing the gun, but then applying pressure on the action to spring the action open instead of requiring the shooter to manually press the barrels down to cock the action and open the gun.
This action required the shooter to apply the force required to cock the action on closing the gun – but once cocked and closed the self-opening action was very quick and instinctive to reload.
Beesley’s self-opening action was not limited to side-by-side shotguns but could be equally well applied to double-rifles.
While side-by-side double-rifles are most commonly associated with dangerous game and hunting safaris in darkest Africa that has not been their exclusive domain. British sportsmen and women typically did a lot of their sport shooting with side-by-side shotguns and being familiar with that style of gun they often wanted the same action type for their deer stalking rifle, and even for their small game rifle – double-rifles were made in calibers as small as 22 Hornet.
London gunmaker James Purdey & Sons has earned itself an enviable reputation as a maker of best guns, favored by royalty and by well-heeled clients who appreciate the beauty, reliability, and ergonomics of Purdey’s creations.
That being said there are very few double-rifles made by Purdey, but for a dangerous game double-rifle a Purdey with a classic Beesley self-opening action would stand as one of the most sensible items of life insurance for a hunter going on a dangerous game hunt in Africa.
And to have that rifle chambered for the 500 Nitro Express would, I think, be one of the best possible choices – its a caliber described by the professional hunter John Taylor as “A real killer on practically anything”.
The 500 NItro Express, in a properly designed and crafted double-rifle, is a reasonably pleasant rifle to shoot. I’ve had the opportunity to discover this for myself – in order to enjoy the 500 NE you need to spend time working up to it from smaller calibers, both to gain familiarity and to develop physically so you have the muscle mass and coordination to master it.
A Purdey ejector double-rifle chambered for the 500 Nitro Express with the Beesley self-opening action is going to be a rare bird and a valuable one. In my mind a superb choice for someone who wants the absolute best in their dangerous game rifle.
These guns do not come up for sale often – in fact in the years we’ve been running Revivaler this is the first one to come up.
This Purdey double rifle features extensive engraving by English Master Engraver Phil Coggan and represents the best that Purdey offers.
This rifle has steel chopperlump 24 inch barrels featuring a ramped beaded blade front sight with traditional flip-up moon bead and removable sliding hood with gold inlaid lines at the front and rear, a sling swivel on the under rib, and a two-leaf (one standing, one folding) rear sight with gold inlaid centerline regulated for sensible 50 and 100 yards range affixed to the raised rear quarter rib.
The rifle has 2003 proof marks and is confirmed to have been completed on July 20th, 2007.
Complete rifle weight is a sensible 12 lbs. 6¾ oz. The 24 inch barrels on their own weigh 7 lbs. 1 oz.
The barrels are fitted to the coin finished Beesley patent self-opening side-clipped pinless sidelock action with third fastener.
This Purdey is an exhibition grade rifle and is being offered by Rock Island Auction on Friday August 15th, 2025, at Bedford, Texas.
Picture Credits: All pictures courtesy Rock Island Auction
Jon Branch is the founder and senior editor of Revivaler and has written a significant number of articles for various publications including official Buying Guides for eBay, classic car articles for Hagerty, magazine articles for both the Australian Shooters Journal and the Australian Shooter, and he’s a long time contributor to Silodrome.
Jon has done radio, television, magazine and newspaper interviews on various issues, and has traveled extensively, having lived in Britain, Australia, China and Hong Kong. His travels have taken him to Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan and a number of other countries. He has studied the Japanese sword arts and has a long history of involvement in the shooting sports, which has included authoring submissions to government on various firearms related issues and assisting in the design and establishment of shooting ranges.
