My rifle weight

[aaron600rr]

So I purchased my Sako A7 roughtech Pro 300 win mag with a Vortex PST 6-24x50 a couple years ago when I first got into hunting. I've decided I want to do a lot more backpack mule deer hunting and get off the roads. I just weighed my rifle @ 10lbs with scope and sling. How bad is 10lbs to carry around on the mountain. I like shooting this rifle but I'm considering getting something lighter.

I've been backpacking for 10 + years and I keep physically fit and I know losing the 2lbs in weight would be much cheaper and easier than buying a whole new rig. If you've switched from a heavier gun to a lighter one how much of a difference have u noticed in general?

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[elkguide]

I'm in pretty good shape, as in I rode a little over 4000 miles on my bicycle this summer, and hunting this fall in Idaho with a rifle that I have carried for years that weighs 9 pounds, it began to take a toll on me. By the 7th day of the hunt, I switched it out for my back up rifle that weighs 7 1/2 pounds and I was a much happier hunter. It is less expensive and better for you to lose weight but I still don't see any sense in carrying extra weight in your rifle or in your pack, if you don't need to.

 

[aaron600rr]

I'm in pretty good shape, as in I rode a little over 4000 miles on my bicycle this summer, and hunting this fall in Idaho with a rifle that I have carried for years that weighs 9 pounds, it began to take a toll on me. By the 7th day of the hunt, I switched it out for my back up rifle that weighs 7 1/2 pounds and I was a much happier hunter. It is less expensive and better for you to lose weight but I still don't see any sense in carrying extra weight in your rifle or in your pack, if you don't need to.

This is what I feared. I wonder how much weight I could shed with my telescope of a scope for a smaller one.

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[elkguide]

One of my winter projects is to change the glass on the 7 1/2 pound rifle from a 28 ounce 3 - 12 scope to a 20 ounce 3 - 9 scope. Guess that I'm getting wimpy with my maturing but half a pound NOT carried is a big win at the end of a week long hunt.

I have very good binoculars and a good spotter to tell me what I'm going to shoot looks like so all that the scope needs to provide for me is a clear view with a good set of crosshairs to put on target.

 

[AK Troutbum]

You could almost cut that wt. in half with a different UL wt. set up, and while you're still only talking about possibly shaving 4 lbs., that's only on one item. If you could take everything that you put in your pack, including your pack, and cut it's wt. in half, that would most definitely be a significant wt. loss. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you already have everything else that you pack, down to the lightest possible wt. with the only exception being your rifle, then just shaving another 4 lbs. or so off is not that significant, so probably not worth buying another rifle. However, if you really want to buy another rifle (hell, even if you just sort of want to buy another rifle), I say do it, do it up good, and don't regret it. After all, as far as I'm concerned, a person can never have too many firearms or bamboo fly rods, regardless of what your wife may say.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

I don't have any ultralight rifles, but I think my heaviest is right at 8lbs loaded. Quite frankly I'm not going to drop a lot of cash to drop two pounds on a rifle, but I would for four pounds. Your mileage may vary.

 

[Ross]

When I went to my tikka in 03 from a 9.5 pd bdl I never looked back. I shaved right about two pds with the purchase.If you spend a lot of time climbing the two pds will be a noticeable difference after a long day andor long week of hunting.

 

[aaron600rr]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'm gonna start slowly researching new guns and scopes and try and get something under 8.5lbs.

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[mtwarden]

my old Featherweight w/ a Leupy 2-7x36 weighs a pretty svelte 7.2 lbs- I was averaging close to 15 miles (with lots of vert) a day this past elk season and was damn glad it was that light; if it was a pound lighter than that- I certainly wouldn't complain

 

[elkguide]

Kimber Montana.
Swarovski.



Top of the line but it's a lot easier to start high and come down
than it is to start low and struggle to get higher.

 

[JPHuntingAUS]

I had a 10lb rifle that I lugged around for a while. It's doable but gets taxing and now that I have lighter I appreciate the difference

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[belly-deep]

Heavy rifles tend to wind up on your shoulder when they should be in your hands

 

[tttoadman]

When I went to my tikka in 03 from a 9.5 pd bdl I never looked back. I shaved right about two pds with the purchase.If you spend a lot of time climbing the two pds will be a noticeable difference after a long day andor long week of hunting.

This is exactly what I did 2 years ago, and have been thrilled. I dropped 2 1/2 lbs because I also run without a strap now. 2 1/2lbs in your hands all day is a really big difference. 2 1/2lbs in a pack is not that big of a difference. Don't try to overthink it too much. Hunt with what you have. When you decide to blow a a few bucks, I think you will be really happy.

 

[ReddingArcher]

I don't think it could hurt buying a new rifle. Like AK Troutbum said you can never have too many. Carrying an extra 3-4 pounds is fairly significant in my opinion. If you aren't looking to spend a ton, take a look at the tikka, either t3 or t3x. I just put a leupold vx-3i 4.5-14x40 with side parallax adjustment on a t3x 300 WM superlite and it's weighing in at 7 pounds 9 ounces. I couuld probably shave a couple ounces by going to talley lightweight rings but I'll probably leave it alone. For right at a $1500 setup I think it's tough to beat.

 

[AK Troutbum]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'm gonna start slowly researching new guns and scopes and try and get something under 8.5lbs.

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I think if you're going to do it, do it up big (or in this case little), and shoot for something in the 6 lb. range, total for rifle/scope comb. No sense in spending $ on a new outfit to shave a couple pounds when you could shave twice that amount of wt. by spending just a bit more. If you're concerned about an UL wt. rifle in a heavier caliber and dealing with the recoil, throw a removable brake on it, for a just a little wt. penalty and you should be good to go. Anyway, JMO.
This one is less than a 2 oz. weight penalty for 60% felt recoil reduction and considerably less muzzle/barrel flip.

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[luke moffat]

I did a mountain goat hunt in 2009 with a Ruger 338 WM that went 9 pounds all up.....I now hunt with a 338-06 that goes 6.1 pounds scoped and really only gave up 200 fps to get a rifle that was 3 pounds lighter and 3" shorter and handier. I still have my 338 WM but it only gets used on ATV or boat based hunts where packing for miles on end isn't going to be occurring.

 

[handwerk]

For me the sweet spot is between 7 1/4 and 8lbs. w/scope. Still feels pretty light in the hand yet balances well and the little weight they have over the flyweight rifles helps when it comes to shooting.Many folks, including myself have a hard time shooting those 6 pounders, not to mention they get pretty snappy when it comes to recoil..

 

[JollyRoger]

I'm in a similar position looking to put a rifle together for spring bear and the coming years for deer/elk. I've found a few really nice Leupold scopes for 13 to 17oz Put that on a T3X Lite and you're walking around with a 7.5lbs rifle once it's all loaded up.

 

[aaron600rr]

I'm gonna check out the Tikka T3x today.

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[Kimbersig]

I have a custom 6.5X300 SAUM that one of the members here who's also my hunting partner built. it weighs 6.2 lbs with the Swaro z3 on top of it. its an awesome sheep rifle! the only disadvantage to lightweight is its harder to make longer distance shots. I killed my Dall this year at 520 but that was starting to push it for a field shot. if you're a long range shooter then you might want to consider going with something heavier.