David Miller Co. Custom Safari Magnum .338 Win Mag Custom Mauser Bolt Action Rifle & Swarovski Scope
SOLD FOR:$6,000.00
LSB#: 171005MW04
Make: David Miller Company, Tucson, Arizona
Model: Custom Safari Rifle
Serial Number: X0110
Year of Manufacture: Late 1970’s-Present
Caliber: .338 Win. Mag.
Action Type: Bolt Action with Hinged Floorplate Magazine
Markings: The top of the barrel is marked “DAVID MILLER CO. 338 WIN. MAG.”. The right side of the receiver’s chamber ring is marked “X0110”.
Barrel Length: The barrel is 24 ¼” and has a recessed target crown.
Sights / Optics: There are no provisions for iron sights. There is a variable power scope mounted to the receiver with custom two-piece mounts with integral rings. The eyepiece of the scope is marked “SWAROVSKI” and “Z6 / 2.5-15X44P”. The scope comes with see-through lens covers and the rear of the eyepiece is rubber to protect your face and glasses under recoil. The reticle is a full duplex with five short stadia lines below the horizontal with 5 aiming dots between the lines. This bullet drop compensating reticle is referred to as a BR reticle by Swarovski, and can be used with their ballistic program (www.ballisticprograms.swarovskioptik.com) to develop ranges for the various stadia lines based on bullet parameters. In addition to its windage and elevation adjustment knobs, there is a focus knob on the left side of the scope to adjust for parallax at various ranges. The scope shows no handling mark and the lenses are clear and free of distortion. This scope is in Excellent condition.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The stock is a beautiful fancy walnut with dark marbling in the buttstock. The stock has a pistol grip with a checkered blued steel grip cap, a cheekpiece and a reddish-brown solid rubber recoil pad marked “Pachmayr”. The stock is hand-checkered with smooth fleur-di-lis patterns in the checkering. There are sling swivel studs mounted in the belly and the underside of the forend. The stock was made with great detail, with contoured lines around the bolt release, port opening and magazine floorplate. PLEASE see our pictures to get a good idea of how beautiful and well made this stock is. There is a ding in the bottom edge of the cheekpiece and a few drag lines in the cheekpiece itself, with a few more light marks scattered over the surfaces. The checkering shows light wear without mars. The LOP measures 14” from the front of the trigger to the back of the recoil pad. The pad shows no wear and there is still a little give on its edges. The pad is in about Fine condition. The stock rates in about Excellent condition.
Type of Finish: The finish is a matte blue. The bolt is jeweled.
Finish Originality: All Original
Bore Condition: The bore is bright with sharp rifling and no erosion.
Overall Condition: This rifle retains about 99+% of its metal finish. We didn’t see any marks in the finish. The screw heads are Allen head and the markings are crisp. Overall, this rifle rates in about Excellent condition.
Mechanics: The action functions correctly. The action is a Mauser action with a bolt release on the left side of the receiver. We have not fired this rifle. As with all used firearms, a thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories: The scope is included.
Our Assessment: David Miller and his partner Kurt Crum, who is a magician with wood stocks, are extremely talented gun makers who cater mostly to the high-end custom trade. They make beautiful yet functional rifles. This is a custom safari rifle they chambered in .338 Win. Mag. PLEASE SEE OUR PICTURES! We could go on for some time extolling the virtues of this rifle, but you have to see for yourselves. The high-end Swarovski Z6 2.5-15X42P bullet drop compensating scope is mounted to the receiver with two-piece custom mounts with integral rings. You might drop this rifle and break the scope, but you aren’t going to get the point of aim to shift with these mounts. The fancy dark marbled wood is beautifully contoured around the bolt release, magazine floorplate and port. The .338 Win. Mag. is a powerful big-game cartridge base on the .375 H&H magnum cartridge. It is the first choice among professional brown bear guides in Alaska to back-up their clients and is the most popular medium bore cartridge in North America. An article in Outdoor Life (https://www.outdoorlife.com/articles/hunting/2015/09/3-rifles-hunt-world) featured a safari rifle built by Miller as follows: “Rifles made by the David Miller Company of Tucson, Ariz., are widely considered the finest hunting rifles ever created. Note the emphasis on hunting, because many of today’s custom gunmakers have strayed from the basic concept of making rifles to be actually used… Beautiful as David Miller’s rifles are, the Tucson gunmaker’s philosophy is to build firearms that eliminate mechanical failures in the field. Carmichel’s .338 features Miller’s signature scope-mounting system, which unites the scope with the receiver in an interlocking cradle of steel. Carmichel once hit an oncoming lion on the point of the shoulder with this rifle. The 250-grain Nosler Partition exited the hip after ranging through the cat’s entire body diagonally. Now that’s performance!!”. If you are looking for a beautiful, well-made and reliable rifle to take to Alaska after a bear, on safari to Africa, hunting plains game, or for elk and moose here in the United States, you don’t need to look any further.
