Malxwal
Well-Known Member
That one made someone happy....
Rifle weights
- Thread starter paultap
- Start date
āātwas a killer dealā¦
Was actually a looker too - never seen a similar mod to it but was told it was a high quality mod, AMS I think it was?
On the rifle weights - unless you are doing a lot of miles or walking up the side of a lot of hills, I donāt think itās a major issueā¦.with all the kit many carry nor a few ounces probably wonāt make much difference - will just be something else next to the kitchen sink they are carrying!
As someone else said the carbon stocks are more rigid so may play a part in consistency or accuracy but itās not like the standard stocked Sakoās, blasers and Sauers are inaccurate so not sure where the difference would come in - they are rather easy on the eye though.
Regards,
Gixer
Len the dog
Well-Known Member
Did you get that mod off a pimped up saxo?
It was actually pretty light - it was stainless but fairly dropped the sound of the 06!
Me and a friend got a .243 at the same time.
Mine a Howa sporter in hogue stock and ase utra moderator Ā£700
His a T3 in grey laminate, mod etc Ā£2000
We zeroed at the same time.
3 shots on a thumbnail at 100 yards!
His was no better just willy wagging.
Yes itās nice to have good gear but I couldnāt spend the extra at the time and now I wouldnāt spend the extra for no gain
Iāve recently been around this buoy trying to scratch the itch of a lightweight .308 to go with my S20 in that calibre which, with a dS onboard, weighs in at 5.4 kg (11lb 15oz) in shooting configuration, ie mag with 5 rounds, bolt fitted, mod on with sling, as it would be carried in the field. Also high on my list for this new gun was it being threaded 5/8x24 so I could use the S20ās FW196 mod, stainless, synthetic stock, ideally cerakoted or similar, short 20ā barrel, ideally fluted and a proper mag, not a floor plate design. Top of the list was it had not to be stupid money as my rifles work hard and I donāt want to fret about every ding and scratch in the field. The attached summarises my research and findings.
DanP at Braces was kind enough to get in for me to look at the Sauer 101 Highland XTC in .308 which had a bare weight of 2.5 kg but cost Ā£3995. Unfortunately the stock felt flimsy and seeing daylight through the magazine slot and the receiver with no other metalwork in there didnāt do wonders for my confidence. Prior to the S20, I had a stainless 85 which ticked some of these aspects but I like others, had random fliers so there was always doubt at the back of my mind when I pulled the trigger so I didnāt want to go down that route. 18 months ago I had my 75 Hunter in .243 shortened to 20ā and recrowned by Mike Norris and I instantly fell back in love with that rifle again. Highly pointable, robust in its synthetic stock, the blued barrel not glinting or flashing as you moved, decent magazineā¦ā¦.Maybe a 75 Finnlight was the answer but I wanted a ādullā barrel. I looked at a Kimber but the experience of watching a trainee of mine living with one in the field constantly unloading/reloading as we moved locations and frequently got in/out of vehicles put me off floor plate or blind magazines.
Across the shop from the expensive Sauers and Blasers in Braces there was a new Tikka T3X in Veil Woodland cammo. Picking it up I was surprised by the weight - 3 kg bare, only .5 heavier than the XTC (a pound in old money). It was also half the price of the XTC and others considered such as the Carbonlight. With a 20ā stainless barrel cerakoted in a dull bronze colour in a lightweight camouflaged stock, it was certainly ticking most of the boxes. Some digging yielded some bargain new Tikka T3X Lites out there in ODG, Polyfade, etc, but I kept on coming back to the Wideland with its unusual colour, short cerakoted stainless fluted barrel with 5/8x24 thread (and included similarly cerakoted muzzle brake) and fluted bolt.
Discovering that it was described as a D18 barrel clinched it for me as thatās the same as is on the S20 - itās not the lightest but I played a hunch that the Tikkaās chamber wouldnāt be too dissimilar to that of the S20 and low and behold my fire-formed neck-sized brass from the S20 fits the Tikka and importantly, vice-versa keeping my .308 reloading straightforward and simple. Moreover, the Tikka was keyholing at 100m out of the box with my standard 130gr TTSX load - result!
Anyway, bringing this rambling post back to the OPās intent, whilst itās not a light as I had hoped to go, the Tikka loads out complete at 3.6 kg (7lb 15 oz) which is 3lb lighter than my S20 (25% reduction) and even 1.5lb lighter than the 75. This may not seem a lot but my stalking has now evolved to more of a series of long walks with drives in between rather than the other way round (blame the Teckel) and I can be out for 6 hours. For my normal shooting distances, the Tikka has rapidly become the the weapon of choice. The S20 still comes out but now only for those occasions where ranges lengthen or the conditions are more demanding but I have finally realised what Tikka owners know - they are dammed good lightweight rifles!
DanP at Braces was kind enough to get in for me to look at the Sauer 101 Highland XTC in .308 which had a bare weight of 2.5 kg but cost Ā£3995. Unfortunately the stock felt flimsy and seeing daylight through the magazine slot and the receiver with no other metalwork in there didnāt do wonders for my confidence. Prior to the S20, I had a stainless 85 which ticked some of these aspects but I like others, had random fliers so there was always doubt at the back of my mind when I pulled the trigger so I didnāt want to go down that route. 18 months ago I had my 75 Hunter in .243 shortened to 20ā and recrowned by Mike Norris and I instantly fell back in love with that rifle again. Highly pointable, robust in its synthetic stock, the blued barrel not glinting or flashing as you moved, decent magazineā¦ā¦.Maybe a 75 Finnlight was the answer but I wanted a ādullā barrel. I looked at a Kimber but the experience of watching a trainee of mine living with one in the field constantly unloading/reloading as we moved locations and frequently got in/out of vehicles put me off floor plate or blind magazines.
Across the shop from the expensive Sauers and Blasers in Braces there was a new Tikka T3X in Veil Woodland cammo. Picking it up I was surprised by the weight - 3 kg bare, only .5 heavier than the XTC (a pound in old money). It was also half the price of the XTC and others considered such as the Carbonlight. With a 20ā stainless barrel cerakoted in a dull bronze colour in a lightweight camouflaged stock, it was certainly ticking most of the boxes. Some digging yielded some bargain new Tikka T3X Lites out there in ODG, Polyfade, etc, but I kept on coming back to the Wideland with its unusual colour, short cerakoted stainless fluted barrel with 5/8x24 thread (and included similarly cerakoted muzzle brake) and fluted bolt.
Discovering that it was described as a D18 barrel clinched it for me as thatās the same as is on the S20 - itās not the lightest but I played a hunch that the Tikkaās chamber wouldnāt be too dissimilar to that of the S20 and low and behold my fire-formed neck-sized brass from the S20 fits the Tikka and importantly, vice-versa keeping my .308 reloading straightforward and simple. Moreover, the Tikka was keyholing at 100m out of the box with my standard 130gr TTSX load - result!
Anyway, bringing this rambling post back to the OPās intent, whilst itās not a light as I had hoped to go, the Tikka loads out complete at 3.6 kg (7lb 15 oz) which is 3lb lighter than my S20 (25% reduction) and even 1.5lb lighter than the 75. This may not seem a lot but my stalking has now evolved to more of a series of long walks with drives in between rather than the other way round (blame the Teckel) and I can be out for 6 hours. For my normal shooting distances, the Tikka has rapidly become the the weapon of choice. The S20 still comes out but now only for those occasions where ranges lengthen or the conditions are more demanding but I have finally realised what Tikka owners know - they are dammed good lightweight rifles!
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