The lightest Rifle out there ?

[Thar]

Browning A-Bolt Titanium, if you can find one, 5lbs 4oz with a 22 inch barrel so still big deer legal in 243. They cost over 3 times the cost of a normal A-Bolt mind.

http://www.browning.com/products/catalog/firearms/detail-historic.asp?fid=001B&cid=035&tid=038

I have one and it is not for sale. LOL

ATB

Tahr

 

[Monkey Spanker]

View attachment 59081
Just finally finished putting this little 'lightweight' together.
Steyr Scout in 7mmx08. Roedale mod only weighs about 180grams. Swarovski 8x50 'Kurz' sat in a set of high 3rd eye rings.
The entire set-up as you see it weighs only 8lb with the bolt fitted too!
I've got some rounds loaded up but not tried it yet (waiting for some ideal weather!).
Thought I'd try some 120 grain Noslers with N140 behind to start with. Probably a bit of a 'Marmite' rifle, but actually feels really nice!
Can't believe I've gone back to a fixed power scope either!
MS

 

[Shropshire Dan]

I was looking at a Ruger american in .243 a couple weeks ago extremely light weight Imo. That's what I'm looking at getting my wife

 

[tumbleweed]

Had a look at a Kimber Mountain(something)? Rifle whilst in the USA October '14 and its a cracking rifle, very light 5lbs and well balanced, never had a chance to shoot but I wished. Compared to my Tikka T3 .243 and Browning x bolt stainless .308 it was like night and day, if i was to carry any rifle anywhere i wish i had money for the kimber.

 

[Southern]

I have several friends with the regular Kimber 84 at 6-lbs in French Walnut, several of them in 7mm-08, one in .308, one in .325 WSM ( yow!) and they all love them and they shoot great. I ran some of my handloads through the .308, a Hornady IL 150-gr BTSP, and a Barnes 150-gr TSX; both shot to the same place, and all 5 shots touching or overlapping.

 

[Muir]

Had a look at a Kimber Mountain(something)? Rifle whilst in the USA October '14 and its a cracking rifle, very light 5lbs and well balanced, never had a chance to shoot but I wished. Compared to my Tikka T3 .243 and Browning x bolt stainless .308 it was like night and day, if i was to carry any rifle anywhere i wish i had money for the kimber.

I sold Kimber's in the 1980's and was so disgusted with the accuracy I could never make myself pick one up again. I'm sure they are better now.~Muir

 

[JasonH]

Interesting I will copy two articles and post on here which are in U.S. Publications about light hunting rifles. Sports afield and shooting times.

 

[ejg]

I've handled the Kimbers before too. Very nice however some barrels are so thin one can't or only with great difficulty fit a moderator which is just about standard with us. I still think a normal sporter weight barrel cut to 20" such as fitted to a T3 is a good compromise. As Southern said rather save weight on the scope, bipod, moderator, stock etc. One problem we have is that in mainland Europe we mostly see high seat hunting and the weight of gear is not important, development is going for heavier gear. Just look at the weight of some modern Mausers etc. Scopes on an average are also extremely heavy compared to say Leupolds. If one wants a light weight rifle one should weigh each component, shocking how much difference there is between even small things like scope mounts.
edi

 

[Heym SR20]

My combination gun is 7lbs with scope - lovely to carry, but more difficult to shoot than my bolt guns which are a bit heavier and have the weight further forward. 8 to 9 lbs is about right IMHO. And if that is too heavy then we can all loose two or three pounds from around our middles.

Tikka or Sako light, with a simple 6x42 scope is the way to go. Swarovski or Zeiss are lighter than Schmidt & Benders I think.

 

[tackb]

My combination gun is 7lbs with scope - lovely to carry, but more difficult to shoot than my bolt guns which are a bit heavier and have the weight further forward. 8 to 9 lbs is about right IMHO. And if that is too heavy then we can all loose two or three pounds from around our middles.

Tikka or Sako light, with a simple 6x42 scope is the way to go. Swarovski or Zeiss are lighter than Schmidt & Benders I think.

this !

 

[ejg]

Heym & Tackb

you can loose as many pounds as you want...the lighter rifle will still be easier to carry, sling will cut less into your shoulder etc.
Overall it will be better to learn to shoot light rifle.
edi

 

[Southern]

To continue with what ejg said...

I and several friends own older stalking rifles from England, Germany and Austria, most of them under 7 lbs with iron sights. The heaviest is an 8x57mm built for Hermann Goering, which has a stout and dense walnut stock, and it is just over 7.5 lbs.

A set of aluminum rings instead of steel, a nylon sling instead of wide leather, hard plastic or skeleton steel buttplate instead of recoil pad, 12 oz scope instead of 24 oz - all add up.

Hunting with iron sights is the quickest way to take weight out of your hands. Keep the scope in a holster or pack until you need it, especially in rough terrain.

I agree about the thin barrel on the Kimber. I think a 20-inch Model 70 Compact, with its thicker barrel an slim stock, at 6.25 lbs, in 7mm-08 or .308, would be a great starting platform for the sort of rifle you hunters in the UK are trying to build.
Model 70 Featherweight Compact, -- Winchester Repeating Arms -- Product Model

 

[tackb]

Heym & Tackb

you can loose as many pounds as you want...the lighter rifle will still be easier to carry, sling will cut less into your shoulder etc.
Overall it will be better to learn to shoot light rifle.
edi

disaggree , lose weight and get fitter will help more on the hill than a 7lb set up instead of a 10lb set up

 

[ejg]

but... even if you are fitter, you will go further & faster with the lighter gear.
for example, no matter how fit snipers are, one of the main things they crib about is the rifle weight and rightly so.

Lighter gear helps the unfit and the fit... believe it or not, we will all get older and weaker.
edi

 

[Foxshot]

I agree ejg, it is FACT that no matter who it is or how fit they are, you will find it easyer going with a light rifle than a heavy one.

 

[nun_hunter]

Also as a professional guide you don't have control over the clients weight and fitness but you can control the weight of the rifle. Carrying something overly heavy for 7+ hours in my opinion is way more uncomfortable than the felt recoil of a light rifle taking 1 possibly 2 shots.

 

[User00026]

small ring mauser 98 action with 20" featherweight barrel and no moderator in a bedded synthetic stock (not an expensive synthetic as they can be pretty heavy), or standard walnut stock with a slim profile and a kickeeze pad. Mill out a pattern in the magazine box to remove weight there, and use a simple 2-7x33 scope or 3-9x36.

should meet all the requirements you have, you want one?

 

[Thar]

disaggree , lose weight and get fitter will help more on the hill than a 7lb set up instead of a 10lb set up

There are few people at my age that are fitter on the hill, proven at a recent British Championship Fell race. But I still go for a light rifle, don’t get me wrong most stalkers need to get fitter lose, weight to get more out of the sport, but one is not exclusive to the other.

As other have said there is weight to be lost on accessories, I have Tally lightweight alloy mounts, Swarvoski fixed power scope, I think they are one of the lightest quality scopes, and A-Tec CMM moddy ,well under 7lbs all done. Don’t put a S+B on it they weigh a ton although are unbreakable.

ATB

Tahr

 

[User00001]

We had a guest last year for stag stalking who turned up with two 2l bottles of Evian water. This was in October and it had been raining for about forty days and forty nights. Half the estate was inaccessible due to rivers in spate. The consensus of opinion between the Stalker, me (Ponyboy) and the walking ghillie was that we would probably be able to find enough water!

I do want to get a lightweight rifle at some point but would never compremise on quality or accuracy.

 

[Muir]

I don't know how big your 'hill's are but where I hunt you don't carry a 10 lb rifle unless you need to. I am fairly fit but a heavy rifle at altitude is an unnecessary burden.~Muir