Weatherby Vanguard Obsidian Rifle Review: Black Beauty

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Roy Weatherby was a showman. In the days before polymer stocks permeated the rifle market, his high-gloss California walnut stocks, white-line spacers and rosewood-accented Mark Vs were the most eye-catching rifles on any gun rack.

By the late 1960s, Roy was a household name, but not everyone could afford his sleek Mark V rifles. That prompted the company in 1970 to release the Vanguard, which was called “The only medium priced rifle that lives up to the Weatherby reputation!”

The original Vanguard rifles mimicked the Mark V’s sleek looks, although the aesthetics were a bit less flashy, and they carried a suggested retail price of $200. When you consider that the Mark V was priced at more than $300 by then, the Vanguard was certainly the best option for a budget-conscious shooter who wanted a Weatherby rifle.

I wonder what Roy would think of the new Vanguard Obsidian, which is perhaps the most basic rifle to ever wear the flying W logo.

Basic?

Don’t get me wrong. The Vanguard Obsidian still has touches that hint at its Weatherby DNA. It features a Monte Carlo stock, albeit a black polymer one instead of California walnut. The action—manufactured in Japan by Howa—bears the characteristic trio of relief ports, and the contour of the enclosed bolt shroud mimics that of the Mark V. And, like every other Vanguard rifle, it is guaranteed to shoot 0.99 inch or less for three shots at 100 yards.

Vanguards have always been the least expensive way to own a Weatherby rifle, but the price point of the Obsidian is truly impressive—just $569, which makes it one of the most affordable rifles on the market. And I think it may offer the best bang for your buck of any bolt gun out there.

The Vanguard used a push-feed, dual-lug action similar to the Remington Model 700—quite unlike Weatherby’s own nine-lug Mark V. The overall design of the action has changed little in the last 50-plus years, and the Obsidian still uses that same push-feed forged steel bolt design. The bolt body is fluted, with the aforementioned vents, and there’s a small cocking indicator that extends below the rear shroud. The bolt handle extends down and back and features a bell-shaped bolt head with texturing.

The sturdy M16-style extractor is positioned just above the outboard lug of the rifle at the two o’clock position. The bolt also features a plunger-style ejector that protrudes through the recessed bolt face, similar to the Remington 700.

Nuts and Bolts

Vanguard receivers are cylindrical but feature a flat metal base and a heavy-duty recoil lug that is flat on the rear surface and angled at the front. The recoil lug rests in a cutout in the polymer stock.

There have been a few upgrades to Vanguard guns over the years. Early guns had a reputation for heavy, creepy triggers, but this was addressed with the development of the HACT two-stage trigger in the 2010s. By removing a lock nut and adjusting the screw on the front of the trigger housing, you can dial the trigger down to a pull weight of just 2.5 pounds.

Most Vanguard rifles I’ve tested had trigger break weights around three pounds out of the box, including the Obsidian. Trigger break weight when tested on a Wheeler gauge averaged just a bit over three pounds for 10 pulls.

Another new feature found on all Vanguard rifles since July 2024 is a threaded muzzle. The 22-inch No. 2 contour barrel on the 6.5 Creedmoor Obsidian test rifle has 1/2x28 threads, and with a basic adapter I was able to add a Silencer Central Banish Backcountry suppressor. There’s also an Obsidian rifle with a 20-inch No. 3 contour barrel, perfect for those who like to run a suppressor full-time or need a compact rifle for brush hunting.

Barrel and Stock

Vanguard chrome-moly barrels are cold-hammer-forged, and the 6.5 Creedmoor comes with a 1:8 twist suitable for stabilizing heavy bullets. Both the receiver and the barrel of the Obsidian feature a matte blue finish.

I like that Weatherby went with a classic stock profile and did not resort to adding weird lines to the polymer stock in an attempt to make the gun look “modern.” The Vanguard’s polymer stock is austere, but the ergonomics are good. There’s a palm swell on the pistol grip that fills the hand, and the Monte Carlo stock aligns the shooter’s eye with the optic.

Sling-swivel studs are located on the butt and fore-end. In keeping with the Obsidian color scheme, the recoil pad is dense. On the test rife it was well-fitted—no gaps or uneven spots.

Detachable box magazines are quite popular today, but the Obsidian uses an internal box magazine with a steel hinged floorplate and follower. I understand the practical advantages of a detachable box magazine, especially in competition or tactical situations, but for a hunting rifle the internal box is a reliable and sensible design.

Built For Hunting

I’ve tested many rifles with detachable box magazines, and they aren’t always easy to use. The Vanguard’s time-tested internal box has been working well for so many years that changing to a box magazine would amount to solving a problem that didn’t exist.

Vanguard rifles have a three-position safety. In the rearmost position it blocks the trigger and locks the bolt. Moving it forward to the middle position blocks the trigger but unlocks the bolt for loading or unloading the rifle. Pressing fully forward allows the rifle to fire. The design is unlike a Winchester wing safety that rotates to three positions around a vertical axis; operation is more akin to a rocker-style safety, albeit with a third position.

Other controls include a bolt stop release button that must be depressed downward to remove the bolt, and a floorplate release that is located on the front of the trigger guard. The floorplate release is tucked neatly out of the way so it doesn’t run the risk of dumping the contents of your magazine at your feet about the time you’re ready to fire at an animal.

The Vanguard Obsidian was built to be a hunting rifle, so no matter the game you’re hunting there’s probably an Obsidian chambered in a suitable round. Although traditionally cited as a Weatherby rifle for non-Weatherby cartridges, the Obsidian is available chambered in .257, .300 and 6.5-300 Weatherby magnums, as well as 14 non-Weatherby cartridges ranging from .223 Rem. to .300 Win. Mag.

Accuracy

I’m no stranger to the Vanguard line. I’ve owned three and have tested at least five other variants, and I had high expectations for the Obsidian test rifle. It didn’t disappoint.

With a Burris Fullfield E1 4.5-14x42 scope aboard, the rifle met Weatherby’s 0.99-inch accuracy guarantee with Nosler’s 140-grain Whitetail Country ammunition, a traditional cup-and-core hunting bullet. One group with the Nosler measured right at an inch, and the next two groups measured 0.94 and 0.82 for a 0.92-inch average.

The Vanguard Obsidian 6.5 Creedmoor holds four cartridges in the staggered box magazine and weighs 7.4 pounds. It’s not light, but recoil was very mild in this chambering. Adding a can to the rifle makes it a dream to shoot, and it would make a great setup for deer hunters. And if you live in a state that restricts rifles to straight-wall cartridges, you’ll be happy to know Weatherby also offers the Obsidian in .350 Legend.

Starting with the budget rifle renaissance of the early 2000s, rifle manufacturers decided that inexpensive hunting guns needed some pizzazz to stand out on store shelves. The Obsidian looks like the offspring of the original Vanguard that debuted in 1970. Sure, it lacks many of the niceties found on other rifles like an optics rail, M-Lok fore-end, muzzle brake and so forth, but the clean, classic lines of the Obsidian make it a winner in my book.

Mid-Priced Sporter

Weatherby has also done a remarkable job of making this gun feel like the true mid-price sporter it envisioned and not an entry-level gun. For proof of this look no further than the thread protector. Some companies do their guns an aesthetic disservice by adding an oversized, knurled thread protector that seems like an afterthought. At least on my sample, unless you look closely at the Vanguard Obsidian you won’t even notice the thread protector—which is as it should be.

Years ago when Weatherby first launched the Vanguard 2, a former marketing professional for the brand told me that one of the primary complaints was that the trigger was “creepy.” This was, of course, a result of ignorance about the mechanics of the two-stage trigger. It does add a layer of safety—the trigger has to travel farther than a single-stage—and I think it looks better than a bladed design.

Like I said, the internal box magazine is a worry-free design, and I didn’t have any feeding issues with the Vanguard Obsidian. There were no issues with the bolt riding over top of the uppermost cartridge in the stack, and the ejector tossed the empties clear of the action without striking the scope.

The three-position safety is a beneficial safety feature, and hunters have the option to lock the bolt closed—a benefit in heavy cover. However, I do think there are more intuitive three-position designs. I find the Winchester Model 70 wing safety to be simpler, and I think Ruger’s and Savage’s three-position tang safeties are the simplest and quietest of all, but the Weatherby’s safety works just fine.

Bottomline

The action doesn’t cycle as smoothly as rifles like Winchester’s XPR and others with full-diameter bolts. Further, the use of two locking lugs instead of three means that the Weatherby requires a 90-degree lift to cycle the action. And, as I said, the Obsidian is a simple, classic design without the features that some hunters want, such as QD cups and factory-installed optic rails.

The Obsidian, though, is a darn fine rifle. Suitable for hunting most any game, it manages to be inexpensive without looking cheap. The action has proved itself to be trustworthy for over 50 years, and as budget rifles go, the Obsidian is certainly a great value.

In 1970 the original Vanguard sold for $200, which, when adjusted for inflation, translates to $1,622 at the time of this writing. The current price of a Vanguard Obsidian is less than a third of that, and the new rifle comes with a better trigger and an accuracy guarantee.

The person who saves and saves hard to buy a new hunting rifle needs to know that the gun he or she purchases will serve them for years to come. The Obsidian might be rather plain, especially compared to some of its Weatherby brand mates, but this blue-collar bolt action offers most hunters everything they need.

Weatherby Vanguard Obsidian Specs

• Type: two-lug bolt-action centerfire
• Caliber: .223, .22-250, .243, .25-06, .257 Wby. Mag., 6.5 Creedmoor (tested), 6.5 PRC, 6.5-300 Wby. Mag., .270 Win., 7mm-08, 7mm Rem. Mag., 7mm PRC, .308 Win., .30-06, .300 Win. Mag., .300 Wby. Mag., .350 Legend
• Capacity: 4; internal box mag
• Barrel: 22 in. No. 2 profile, 1:8 twist; threaded 1/2x28
• Overall Length: 42 in.
• Weight: 7 lb., 6 oz.
• Stock: black polymer, Monte Carlo cheekpiece
• Finish: matte blue
• Trigger: two-stage; 3 lb., 2 oz. (measured)
• Sights: none; drilled and tapped
• MSRP: $569
• Manufacturer: Weatherby, weatherby.com

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