Musgrave Vrystaat
Musgrave Manufacturers & Distributors · Rifle · Discontinued · 1971
Also known as: Musgrave Mk I, Musgrave Vrystaat Model
Overview
The Musgrave Vrystaat (Mk I) is a South African centre-fire bolt-action hunting rifle, one of the three original sporting models Musgrave of Bloemfontein introduced alongside the Veld and the Presidents (Mk II). It is built around the firm's Mauser-derived RSA action - sometimes marked 'Lyttleton RSA' after the Lyttelton Engineering Works that supplied the receivers - with a controlled-round-feed claw extractor. Fed from an internal box magazine and fitted with a blued barrelled action in a wooden sporter stock, it was chambered principally in .308 Winchester (7.62x51mm NATO) for African plains-game hunting.
Specifications
| Action Type | Bolt Action |
| Firing Mechanism | Striker Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Magazine Capacity | 5 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Internal |
| Effective Range | 300 m (328 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- .308 Winchester · primary · 7.62x51mm NATO — also known as .308 Win, 308 Winchester, 7.62x51mm NATO
Features
- Firing modes: Repeating
- Feed systems: Internal Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety
- Features: Controlled Round Feed, Claw Extractor, Mauser Pattern Action, Rsa Action, Sporter Stock
Service history
Operators
- South African civilian hunters
Production
Production years: 1971-1990s
Built at the Musgrave factory in Bloemfontein; one of the earliest generation of Musgrave centre-fire hunting rifles on the RSA action platform, alongside the Veld and Presidents models.
Origin
Country of origin: South Africa
Notes
Model-specific dimensions and the full chambering list for the Vrystaat are poorly documented. The .308 Winchester (7.62x51mm NATO) shown here reflects the primary documented chambering for Musgrave's RSA-action hunting rifles of the period; these rifles were also associated with .303 British sporterised conversions and the proprietary 6mm Musgrave plains-game cartridge. 'Vrystaat' is Afrikaans for the Orange Free State, the province where the Bloemfontein factory stood.
Background
Musgrave named its first sporting rifles for the South African landscape and republic they were built for - the Veld (open grassland), the Vrystaat (Orange Free State) and the Presidents model - marketing them as purpose-built for hunting African plains game.