Merkel 140 Double Rifle

About the Merkel 140 Double Rifle

The Merkel 140 is a side-by-side double rifle built for dangerous-game hunting, chambered primarily in .470 Nitro Express and also offered in .500 Nitro Express, .416 Rigby and .375 H&H Magnum. Produced in Suhl, Germany, it uses a robust boxlock (modified Anson & Deeley) action with a Greener crossbolt and double underlug locking, double triggers with an articulated front trigger, automatic ejectors and express sights. Its two hammer-fired barrels deliver a near-instant second shot, the traditional configuration favored on African safari for stopping heavy game at close range.

Side-by-side double rifles like the Merkel 140 carry on the classic British and Continental safari tradition, where a fast, reliable second barrel chambered in a big Nitro Express cartridge is prized as insurance against a charging buffalo or elephant.

Merkel 140 Double Rifle specifications

The 140 line includes the 140-2 and 140-2.1 boxlock models and the current Safari 140AE. Barrels are regulated as a pair so both fire to the same point of aim at typical dangerous-game distances. Quoted weight starts around 4.6 kg and varies with caliber, barrel option and stock wood.