Nice that you now have a donor action and stock for your 416 build!
And as mentioned it should mean more to you as you get to help build it; very cool!
As for your original question, I would have answered the following:
The CZ in 416 Rigby will have the advantage of confidence and familiarity in a known rifle make, model and configuration which is a great bonus! and the Rigby is such a classic cartridge. This would have been my recommendation.
The Winchester in the 416 Rem has the advantage of also being a classic rifle design with a more common cartridge which would make ammo and or components easier to come by.
The Ruger in 416 Ruger is definitely a lighter, handier rifle, but this can result in greater felt recoil. Although some report that it is comfortable to shoot. But recoil is a subjective thing, and each will perceive this differently.
Myself, I opted to build a 416 Taylor on a left handed Ruger M77, as that was what I could find for a donor action. I liked that it is capable of equaling the performance off the Remington or Rigby in a standard length long action with a magnum bolt face, and that it used a whole lot less powder to produce the same results. It is a standardized cartridge that used to have factory ammo loaded for it and I can purchase properly headstamped brass from Quality Cartridge for it. At this time, I am loading 350gr bullets to approx.2400 fps and it shoots 1/2" groups and has more than enough power for north american game. Should I ever make it to africa, I will develop a 400gr load for it, or at the very least, a matching 350gr Barnes solid load to match the 350gr TSX load that I have now.
And as mentioned it should mean more to you as you get to help build it; very cool!
As for your original question, I would have answered the following:
The CZ in 416 Rigby will have the advantage of confidence and familiarity in a known rifle make, model and configuration which is a great bonus! and the Rigby is such a classic cartridge. This would have been my recommendation.
The Winchester in the 416 Rem has the advantage of also being a classic rifle design with a more common cartridge which would make ammo and or components easier to come by.
The Ruger in 416 Ruger is definitely a lighter, handier rifle, but this can result in greater felt recoil. Although some report that it is comfortable to shoot. But recoil is a subjective thing, and each will perceive this differently.
Myself, I opted to build a 416 Taylor on a left handed Ruger M77, as that was what I could find for a donor action. I liked that it is capable of equaling the performance off the Remington or Rigby in a standard length long action with a magnum bolt face, and that it used a whole lot less powder to produce the same results. It is a standardized cartridge that used to have factory ammo loaded for it and I can purchase properly headstamped brass from Quality Cartridge for it. At this time, I am loading 350gr bullets to approx.2400 fps and it shoots 1/2" groups and has more than enough power for north american game. Should I ever make it to africa, I will develop a 400gr load for it, or at the very least, a matching 350gr Barnes solid load to match the 350gr TSX load that I have now.























































