With fashion moving towards lighter rifles, who on here still stalks with an AI?
Accuracy International for stalking.
- Thread starter BE Precision
- Start date
I use an AW for stalking. If I was headed out on the hill for a good while I’d be tempted to take a lighter rifle though! Even with a biathlon sling it’s a heavy beast. The R93 off road is much easier for long days. If I’m lying up and waiting, then the AW every time. It’s a joy to use.
Must be really strong sticks!
CarlW
Well-Known Member
Could be mounted in the back of a pickup...!Must be really strong sticks!
Ah , Yes, the good old pintle, the link tends to rattle a bit though!
Cranhill
Well-Known Member
I'm confused, when weren't stalking rifles lighter?
8x57
Distinguished Member
Do you mean the trend for tacticool rifles in the field is actually waning and that folk are actually returning to using true sporting rifles in the field? I hadn't noticed this myself but if its true I'm all in favour of it.
Hope not. "True" sporting rifles are a pile of junk that manufacturers foist on us to save cost and because they think we are stupid enough to not know any better.
The design of the sporter stock comes from the fixed sight era and is hopeless for scoped rifles. When was the last time you saw a rifle without a scope? Why did it take manufacturers 40 years to give us proper ergonomic designs? Not that the innovation came from them. How hard was it for them to envisage an adjustable stock and a grip that puts the trigger in reach. Military had been doing it for years.
Why did it take so long to get even a basic sort of bedding into factory sporters ?
Why can't you by a field rifle that other than a useless sporter profile or a hulking great varmint tube? Well you can now if you try but I only know of one or two.
Until very recently if you wanted a rifle with proper ergonomics, decent "bedding" characteristics and a barrel that behaved better than a piece of spaghetti we were stuck with tactical style rifles. Its hardly been a revolution though. Go into any gun shop and most of the designs on offer do nothing to improve the shooters experience.
JabaliHunter
Well-Known Member
Just not correct on so many levels!
Cracking rifles, love the MO3. The one piece QD rail is very nicely engineered too
Obviously never owned any Sako products then.
I agree on most points. Maybe worded a bit harsh.
actually there is more to it where classic stalking rifles are of a great disadvantage, I noticed that on my first rifle, an old 1960's Sako.
We can build much better rifles.... then again who needs them. I had a chat to a young German hunter on the Heym stand at Dortmund who was handling a rifle with a stock that I designed, I showed him different holding techniques saying he might shoot better that way... his answer was he wouldn't need that.
That kind of answered a lot of my questions.
edi
Mick9abf
Well-Known Member
AI = almost undoubtedly more accurate than any factory sporter, heavy but realistically a pain in the arse to carry around the hill but if you want to or it’s on an Argo or on a quad crack on.
Any modern sporting rifle = accurate enough for stalking out to hill ranges and about half the weight and of course price.
Guess it boils down to what the user wants but the reality is modern sporter rifles are more than adequate for what they are made for. Some people are obsessed with accuracy etc but the reality is the kill zone on a deer is pretty big so it’s all up to you and whether you can be arsed humping an AI round the hill if your on foot.
Any modern sporting rifle = accurate enough for stalking out to hill ranges and about half the weight and of course price.
Guess it boils down to what the user wants but the reality is modern sporter rifles are more than adequate for what they are made for. Some people are obsessed with accuracy etc but the reality is the kill zone on a deer is pretty big so it’s all up to you and whether you can be arsed humping an AI round the hill if your on foot.
alberta boy
Well-Known Member
The AI's are an amazing platform , extremely accurate and reliable rifles . There are a number of people here who use them for open country hunting along with other similar rifles . One acquaintance of mine uses a Sako TRG in 338Lapua for open country Elk , it's a beast , but very effective . They are heavy and not what I'd call a general purpose hunting rifle though . To be honest , they would be the last thing I'd use in heavy cover when after game . I hunt black timber for Elk , Moose and Deer quite a lot . Ranges are well under 100 yards and shots are fleeting . I don't really need a rifle that's capable of .25 MOA to shoot game under those conditions , a rifle that fits me and gets on game quickly ( pointy , for lack of a better word ) is far more important , one of the reasons lever actions are so popular here . I'm sure similar stalking conditions exist in the UK .
Rifles like the AI have their place , but I don't think that they will ever become the norm for most hunters , great rifles , but a little specialized , this is from a Canadian viewpoint obviously . The thought of packing one above treeline after sheep makes me tired just thinking about it lol . I've never been a huge fan of ultra light rifles , but about 7 pounds is my cut off when I'm above 6000 Ft and everything is uphill . There is a large number of factory rifles that fill the bill , inexpensive ones at that , that shoot extremely well and are capable of taking game further out than most can shoot . Long story short , AI's are phenomenal rifles , but not my first choice as an all round stalking rifle , local conditions withstanding .
AB
Rifles like the AI have their place , but I don't think that they will ever become the norm for most hunters , great rifles , but a little specialized , this is from a Canadian viewpoint obviously . The thought of packing one above treeline after sheep makes me tired just thinking about it lol . I've never been a huge fan of ultra light rifles , but about 7 pounds is my cut off when I'm above 6000 Ft and everything is uphill . There is a large number of factory rifles that fill the bill , inexpensive ones at that , that shoot extremely well and are capable of taking game further out than most can shoot . Long story short , AI's are phenomenal rifles , but not my first choice as an all round stalking rifle , local conditions withstanding .
AB
There is a lot of misinformation on this subject.
My hill stalking rifle is a 7Lb (scoped) 7mm08. It's home loaded and shoots 1/2" providing you don't heat it up too much. #4 profile fluted barrel. It's actually a bog standard factory Remington 700 Ti with Talley mounts and a Swaro Z3 that has been properly bedded.
It's a great rifle to carry and does all I need it to do at stalking ranges. In January on the hinds it was good for two 5 hinds sittings - 5 for a group in under a minute - no loss of accuracy but I probably wouldn't want to take any longer shot strings with it. Furthest shot was a sika calf who ran when I shot the hind. It was shot when it stopped at 360 meters. I really don't need anything heavier for the hill and certainly don't for woodland stalking where I have not taken a shot longer than 100 meters all year. The comb isn't quite high enough but that is taken care of with a removable cheek raiser/bullet pouch which get's me to the right height and means I carry 5 spare rounds on the rifle at all times. When the average day out is a 15km walk with 1000m of ascent why on earth would I want to carry anything heavier?
I wouldn't choose that rifle for any long range work over about 400 meters. For that I have a 14 Lb 6.5x47 lapua with a heavy barrel and big heavy scope on it. It is a more stable platform, it has an adjustable comb, recoil is negligible and I never fail to see shot strikes. It's a better tool for that job, but that job is not stalking and I rarely have to carry it too far.
To write off all rifles that are not tacticool and weigh less than 12Lbs is madness and shows a very poor understanding of stalking.
My hill stalking rifle is a 7Lb (scoped) 7mm08. It's home loaded and shoots 1/2" providing you don't heat it up too much. #4 profile fluted barrel. It's actually a bog standard factory Remington 700 Ti with Talley mounts and a Swaro Z3 that has been properly bedded.
It's a great rifle to carry and does all I need it to do at stalking ranges. In January on the hinds it was good for two 5 hinds sittings - 5 for a group in under a minute - no loss of accuracy but I probably wouldn't want to take any longer shot strings with it. Furthest shot was a sika calf who ran when I shot the hind. It was shot when it stopped at 360 meters. I really don't need anything heavier for the hill and certainly don't for woodland stalking where I have not taken a shot longer than 100 meters all year. The comb isn't quite high enough but that is taken care of with a removable cheek raiser/bullet pouch which get's me to the right height and means I carry 5 spare rounds on the rifle at all times. When the average day out is a 15km walk with 1000m of ascent why on earth would I want to carry anything heavier?
I wouldn't choose that rifle for any long range work over about 400 meters. For that I have a 14 Lb 6.5x47 lapua with a heavy barrel and big heavy scope on it. It is a more stable platform, it has an adjustable comb, recoil is negligible and I never fail to see shot strikes. It's a better tool for that job, but that job is not stalking and I rarely have to carry it too far.
To write off all rifles that are not tacticool and weigh less than 12Lbs is madness and shows a very poor understanding of stalking.
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