NEWS ARCHIVE

The New Z8i - Incredible New Optics From Swarovski

We and quite a few of our customers have been waiting eagerly for the new Swarovski Z8i scopes. The first shipment just arrived, and we are expecting the remainder of our pending orders over the next few weeks. The Z8i is very impressive with its eight-fold magnification range and a sophisticated and elegant design. There are four model choices, but any of the four can effectively serve as an all-purpose scope: Z8i 1-8x24, Z8i 1.7-13.3x42, Z8i 2-16x50 & Z8i 2.3-18x56. If you are in the market for a new scope, take a look at these on our Swarovski Optics page. Of course, the Swarovski Z3, Z5, Z6 and Z6i lines are all still available. Zeiss has also introduced its new Victory V8 line of scopes with eight-fold magnification and larger 36mm main tubes for greater adjustment range. Zeiss' exceptional Conquest HD5 scopes are also still an excellent choice.

Show Season

Show season is once again upon us. Other business and travel commitments are preventing us from attending the Dallas Safari Club show this year. It is our favorite event of the year, but we are pleased to be donating our regular booth fees to the DSC to support the Club's great work. While we can't be there in person, be sure to check out our special show season New Year's Sale on our current inventory rifles (up to 40% off – limited time only).

Zambia!

For Kilimanjaro's 2016 Field Testing of our rifles, we are excited to be returning this June to Zambia and the great Nkwaji lodge at the Nchila Wildlife Reserve. With Sable and Sitatunga second to none, and a wealth of other game (including Cape Buffalo, Eland, Kudu, Roan, Bushbuck, Waterbuck, Puku and many more), this should be a great hunt. As part of this trip, we are proud to have been selected to undertake the restoration of three historic H&H and Rigby rifles in Zambia to return them to use in the field where they belong. Nchila is a great experience - good hunting, plentiful game, truly exceptional food and a very comfortable (as in luxurious) tent camp making it ideal for families. Erik's children, Will and Isabel, will be joining us again for this hunt. A stopover for several days in Livingstone to enjoy all the activities around Victoria Falls will be icing on the cake.

New Wood:

We have just acquired a number of exceptional Premier Grade and Exhibition Grade Turkish Walnut stock blanks. Outstanding Turkish walnut with great figure has been increasingly difficult to obtain and is a dwindling resource. These blanks will not last long. If you have been thinking about your perfect rifle with a gorgeous Turkish walnut stock, now is the time.

Looking Forward To Dallas 2016:

We at Kilimanjaro wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a great holiday season. Just after New Year's, it is time once again for the great Dallas Safari Club show beginning on January 7, 2016. We look forward all year to the hospitality of the DSC club members and the chance to see and talk with so many of our customers. We will be in a new location at this year's Dallas show in Booth #4426, and will have some extraordinary new rifles on display (with all available for purchase at special show prices). We also have a beautiful and very unique custom rifle in 7mm Rem. Mag. we have donated for the DSC auction. You can also follow and participate in the auction on-line here. Erik is also delighted to have three generations of the Eike family helping to staff the booth this year. Come join the fun.

Rifles Now:

We have new and very beautiful rifles just posted to the Rifles Now/Current Inventory page at significant discounts. Take a look. More are coming later in the year in 270 Win., 7x57, 300 Win., 9.3x62 Mannlicher, 416 Rem. and Doctari 450 Rigby.

Experimental Ballistics

Gallery Rifle No. 101 on our Gallery Page is our latest Doctari Professional Rifle in 505 Gibbs, and it is stunningly beautiful. This is actually an experimental rifle with a much faster 1:10 rate of twist. Typically, the 505 Gibbs cartridge is given a 1:16 rate of twist, but we have always recommended 1:14 to allow for heavier 650 grain bullets as they become available. There is a growing school of thought; however, that even faster rates of twist on these very large bore bullets improves the straightness of travel after penetration. That extra speed of rotation is not needed for stability or accurate travel in air, but in very large game, appears to aid in maintaining straight travel to the vital areas rather than wandering after impact. This Doctari Rifle was commissioned by a customer engaged in this research, and we are eagerly awaiting the field test results.

OLD & UGLY DAGGA BOY CHALLENGE: Bid Now

We received word from Dr. Kevin Robertson of a very special Cape Buffalo hunt sponsored by the South African Wildlife College to find and hunt the oldest and "ugliest" (high praise when it comes to Buff) dagga boy in the game rich area of the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve next to Kruger National Park. See the full description here: [PDF] and bid now on this unique opportunity. Proceeds go to support the important work of the South African Wildlife College.

A Great 2015

With 2015 already well underway, we hope you all have a great year. I enjoyed seeing so many of you at the Dallas Safari Club show. It is our favorite event of the year, and I am still humbled by the interest in and orders for our rifles. Almost every week during 2014, I had the privilege to test and do final inspection on a new masterpiece. The rifles were our best yet, and 2015 promises to be even better. We do have a few production slots left for 2016 deliveries. If you are contemplating your perfect rifle, don't wait too long, but be sure to check out our Rifles Now page for some stunning rifles we have ready for immediate delivery.

Show Time:

What a wonderful Christmas! With three young granddaughters staying over for Christmas Eve and Morning, Erik found all of the magic and hard work of Santa Claus come back home to roost once again. That is even more fun than building rifles. We here at Kilimanjaro wish you all the best for the upcoming New Year. Just after the holidays, it is time for our second favorite event of the year: the Dallas Safari Club show on January 15-18, 2015 where we will have our latest and greatest on display. The Dallas show has become the largest and most important of the hunting exhibitions, and we always look forward to the great hospitality of the DSC membership. If you haven't been to the DSC show yet, it is time to do so. We hope to see you in Dallas. Some very beautiful rifles of outstanding craftsmanship will be there for you to see and hold.

Kilimanjaro's 2014 Field Testing:

Kilimanjaro believes that field testing of its rifles in the most strenuous hunting conditions is a critical part of our overall quality assurance program. In the past, we have taken our rifles and put them to the test in extreme conditions in Africa, Alaska, the continental USA, and to the top of the Southern Alps of New Zealand. For 2014, we were pleased to deliver three top of the line Kilimanjaro model rifles to the Nchila & Nkwaji Game Reserve in Zambia for the use of its clients on their hunts. If you want to experience the best of African hunting, in superlative tented accommodations with exceptional cuisine, and get to hunt with a flagship Kilimanjaro rifle without carrying it half way around the world, we can't recommend Nchila & Nkwaji high enough. During our field testing, we were able to take two excellent Sables (and saw many others that are just awe-inspiring), Cape Buffalo, Roan, Kudu, Lechwe, Eland, Puku and Bushbuck. The link to the Nchilla website is on our Safaris Page and we recommend you take a look.

The 2014 Kilimanjaro Rifles:

For 2014, Kilimanjaro Rifles is further upgrading and enhancing specifications, craftsmanship details, and our testing and quality assurance program. Given demand, we are presently sold out for 2014 and acceptance of additional orders is limited for 2015 deliveries. With high demand for our flagship Kilimanjaro and Doctari Rifles, we are discontinuing the lower-grade Serengeti Rifle. Our unique Artemis Rifle for the huntress, and our superb featherweight Tigercat Rifle still round out our 2014 offerings.

Show Time:

We had an extraordinary show at the Dallas Safari Club Convention last month and sold virtually every rifle we had available. If you have not been to the DSC show, you need to attend what is very rightly billed as "The Greatest Hunter's Convention On The Planet." Thank you to the Dallas Safari Club once again for its outstanding hospitality, and to all of our customers that made it such a success. Erik, however, is very uncomfortable looking into the empty safes, so we are launching into production on all new display rifles for next year.

New For 2013

Our new and enhanced model line for 2013 debuted on December 28, 2012. In early 2012, Sporting Classics presented us with its prestigious Award Of Excellence, noting that Kilimanjaro's rifles were indeed "the pinnacle of strength, beauty and accuracy," and that Kilimanjaro "proves the old adage: there is always room at the top." We are not resting on our laurels, however. For 2013, we are raising the bar even further on quality, features and our commitment to excellence. To achieve this, and to ensure the highest quality with timely delivery, we have added a new Operations & Engineering Manager, significantly expanded our production capabilities, and recruited even more of the finest and most talented craftsmen and builders in the industry. We are excited to debut the new 2013 Kilimanjaro offerings with enhanced specifications for our Kilimanjaro, Doctari, Serengeti, Artemis and Tigercat rifles.

Sporting Classics Award of Excellence!

Kilimanjaro is proud to be the recipient of Sporting Classics magazine's prestigious Award Of Excellence for 2011. We are very pleased that our intense commitment to quality, and to making the finest custom rifles in the world, is being recognized by the leading hunting journals. In addition to this award from Sporting Classics, Kilimanjaro was also selected to grace the cover of Sports Afield's 2011 Rifles issue. As we move into 2012, we continue to grow but are maintaining the highest standards, and the most stringent quality assurance and testing program –on each and every rifle– in the industry.

The Shows Are Coming

The 2013 show season is almost upon us again. Because of the early scheduling and our President's holiday commitments, we will not be at the Dallas Safari Club show this year, but we have a beautiful Artemis rifle donated for its 2013 auction, and look forward to returning to Dallas in 2014. We will be at the Safari Club International show in Reno in January, and look forward to seeing you there. We have donated an exceptional Early European Rifle in 7mm-08 for SCI's 2013 auction.

Kilimanjaro's 2012 New Zealand Field Tests in the extreme mountain and glacier conditions of the Southern Alps

Each year, Kilimanjaro puts its rifles to the test in the field in our continuing efforts to craft not merely beautiful rifles, but rifles tough and durable enough to handle the most extreme conditions. In 2010, it was twenty-eight days in Africa and the dust & ash after burning of the long grass in the Selous. In 2011, it was the extreme wet conditions of the Alaskan Peninsula in the Fall in pursuit of monster Brown Bear. For 2012, we headed to New Zealand's South Island to tackle the extreme mountain and glacier conditions of the Southern Alps.

Kilimanjaro Introduces The New Serengeti Custom Rifle

With new precision equipment, Kilimanjaro Rifles now has the ability to more affordably create our unique custom rifle stock geometries in standard configurations. For those hunters that cannot yet afford to treat themselves to the very best, full custom rifle experience our flagship Kilimanjaro Rifle, the New Serengeti Rifle is our semi custom hunting rifle offering at a starting price of $7,495. Featuring our proprietary Stealth Lamination, and all of Kilimanjaro Rifle's quality and beauty, the New Serengeti Rifle is available in your choice of virtually any chambering, right or left hand, Monte Carlo or straight comb, in any of our five most popular rifle stock geometries, and in lengths of pull from 13.0 to 14.25 inches - over 6,000 different possible base configurations for your perfect custom hunting rifle.

Kilimanjaro's 2010 African Field Tests: 27 Days Of Flawless Performance In The Harsh Conditions Of The African Bush.

For five weeks, and a full 27 days of hunting, including 21 days in the Selous Reserve of Tanzania, Kilimanjaro Rifles recently subjected its custom rifles to the most strenuous field testing in the harshest African conditions. Many hunters are wary of subjecting rifles as beautiful as Kilimanjaro's to the rough conditions of the field, but that is what we create and craft them to handle.From the strength and stability of our Stealth Lamination of fine Turkish Walnut for the stock, the beauty but toughness of our twenty step "Museum Grade" wood finish, to the even tougher but elegant non-glare finish of our ceramic metal coating, every aspect of a Kilimanjaro rifle is designed and crafted to handle and excel in the roughest of field conditions. As important, we design and craft them to look good (and to stay looking good) while doing so. At Kilimanjaro, we demand tight tolerances for accuracy and smooth operation without slop or play. At the same time, however, our actions must be designed and honed to handle and continue operating flawlessly in the grit, dust, dirt, ash and mud to which they will be subjected in the field. This is a delicate balance, and one we put to the test in the field.