Henry “Exhibition Edition” Rifles
March 30, 2020
The Henry Repeating Arms Company and High Caliber Gifts, LTD have jointly announced the first-ever “Exhibition Edition” of Henry Big Boy Silver, Golden Boy Silver, and .45-70 rifles.
The Limited Edition of only 120 rifles will mark the first time in Henry history that an edition of the iconic Big Boy Silver, Golden Boy Silver, and 45-70 rifles have been made available with rare Exhibition Grade black walnut stocks, the highest grade of black walnut available.
All 120 rifles will be auctioned exclusively on GunBroker.com, beginning March 15 and ending April 5, 2020.
“When these very special walnut stocks became available, we contacted our friends at High Caliber Gifts to ask if they would like to partner in a special edition,” reported Henry President and Owner, Anthony Imperato. “They welcomed the opportunity, and we are pleased with the “Exhibition Editions” we have created. We are always happy when we can make unique collector editions available to our loyal Henry fans—and, without question, these are such editions.”
What qualifies as Exhibition Grade Walnut?
A 35-year veteran of exhibition-grade walnut grading provided this description of Exhibition Grade wood:
“An exhibition-grade blank is classified as “Exhibition” if it is “Highly figured” for at least 80-90% of both panels.
“Exhibition Grade Walnut is taken from large mature black walnut trees that can be over 100 years old. But that does not guarantee that a tree that old will produce Exhibition Grade blanks, only a few experts are able to recognize a walnut tree that may produce stock blanks of Exhibition Grade quality– so the detection is a key point for acquiring Exhibition Grade quality blanks. However, after the milling takes place not all logs produce what you hope they produce. In fact, only about one out every 1,000 gunstock blanks we hand select qualifies as Exhibition grade. That’s why the exhibition grade is so rare and expensive.”
Big Boy Silver Edition
The Big Boy Silver edition is based on the iconic Henry .44 magnum Big Boy and will feature unique 24-carat gold Exhibition Edition engraving and exhibition-quality black walnut stocks. Also, only one rifle will be produced per state. The state identification will be engraved in the receiver and in the custom serial number.
The right side of the receiver features a 24-carat gold inscription, “Henry Repeating Arms Company,” highlighted by tasteful gold scroll and oval design. The forward section of the receiver features a 24-carat gold inscription proclaiming Exhibition Edition, “State Name,” 2019. (The rifles carry a 2019 date because the extensive preparation for the series began in the Fall of 2019.)
The left side of the receiver features the iconic “Henry-Made in America or Not Made at All” logo in 24-carat gold and gold banner proclaiming “One of One.”
Golden Boy Silver Edition
Like the Big Boy, the Golden Boy Silver will be limited to one per state. The rifles feature exhibition-quality black walnut stock, 24-carat gold engraving and inscriptions highlighting the Exhibition Edition status of the rifle and its “One-per-State” collectability.
The right side of the receiver features a 24-carat gold inscription, “Henry Repeating Arms Company—Exhibition Edition,” highlighted by impressive gold scroll and oval design. The forward section of the receiver features a 24-carat gold inscription proclaiming, “‘Name of State’ 2019”.
The left side features the iconic “Henry-Made in America or Not Made at All” logo in 24-carat gold and gold banner proclaiming “One of One.”
Exhibition Edition .45-70
Due to limited availability of exhibition grade stocks for the 45-70, only 20 of the 45-70 edition were produced. These rifles are based on the popular High Caliber Gifts 45-70 Bison Tribute rifle. More than 300 of the Bison Tribute have been sold, but, in addition to the exhibition quality stocks, these 20 rifles feature highly collectible serial numbers, including 0000BISON1091, 777BISON1091, and 1000BISON1091.
Further adding to their beauty and collectability, the receiver engraving on these rifles has been enhanced by one hour of hand engraving per rifle.
Engraving on the right side of the receiver is based on an original charcoal drawing, “On the Brink,” created by well-known South Dakota artist Ray Kelly. It portrays a Bison bull and cow looking over an expanse of prairie that once included thousands of grazing bison.
Engraving on the receiver’s left side is based on a Wild Wings exclusive Rosemary Millett oil painting entitled “Dusty Plains Bison.” Millet created the painting after watching two bison bulls walk across a South Dakota plain and being amazed at how much dust two ambling bison could generate.
Limited Edition
Henry Repeating Arms and High Caliber Gifts have tentative plans to produce a second series of Exhibition Edition rifles in 2020 or 2021 if exhibition quality stocks are available.
If there is a second edition in the future, these rifles will always be the first of a kind. And, if another Exhibition Edition is never produced, these rifles will be passed down from generation to generation, and from collector to collector, as the only ones of their kind.
All 120 of the Exhibition Edition rifles will be auctioned exclusively on GunBroker. To view individual photos of all 120 rifles, click here.
Jeremy Mallette is co-founder of International Sportsman. An avid hunter and outdoorsman, he has spent more than a decade in the outdoor industry, from hiking and camping to silencers and hunting. His father taught him to shoot at age six, and he received his first firearm at age eight — a 1942 Colt Commando .38 special revolver. He enjoys yearly trips to Kansas for pheasant hunting, spending time with his children at the deer lease, and collecting unique firearms.
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