Musgrave Rifles - Ermelo 3.44

These rifles have their roots in target shooting and was designed for full-bore target shooters in an era when surplus war rifles such as the Lee-Enfield, Lee-Metford, P14 and others were used. The Musgrave facility[1] (located in Bloemfontein, Republic of South Africa) where they were built housed a giant gunsmithing concern. RSA actions and earlier hammer-forged barrels were manufactured at Lyttelton Engineering Works.
By 1989, Musgrave employed 220 people and produced 6,000 hunting rifles per year over a ten model range. Musgrave's product range diversified to include shotguns, sporting equipment, fuel locking devices and other items.
Though Musgrave was an ARMSCOR subsidiary since 1971, the name finally disappeared under Denel control,[2] in August 1996. The end of this era came about when Musgrave's Bloemfontein facility was closed down and some of the equipment and personnel relocated to Lyttelton Engineering Works (LEW) where hunting rifles under the "Vektor" (Vector) name were built for a short while, alongside the R4 assault rifle, Z88 pistol and other small armament which forms DENEL's main focus.[3]
The dormant Musgrave name was revived by a private owner and new semi-custom built Musgrave rifles from the town of Ermelo, Mpumalanga, RSA entered the market.