Shooting a lightweight rifle well

[Anello]

The rifle I usually hunt with is a hair over 7.5LBS all in (not an ultralight, but substantially lighter than my previous rifles). Was a bit lighter but I upgraded the glass. What I noticed is that lighter rifles just require more practice, and a light trigger. I noticed a marked improvement when I bought a 2.5 lb Timney trigger. I am not an expert shot, by any stretch, but I can shoot really well with that one now both offhand and in a shooting position. I try to not shoot it off the bench too much and focus on field shooting positions. Downward pressure if you are shooting off a tree limb helps when hunting, but, with the weight you are looking at every little wiggle is going to be magnified, so I go back to my original thought (more practice). They can be shot well, they just require more practice, consistent mounting, and a light trigger in my opinion (which is worth what it cost).

A question for you guys who shoot lighter rifles a bunch: On a lighter rifle, is it a better idea to keep the barrel shorter to prevent excess movement? I ask as mine is a 22" barrel and I can feel the difference in that it feels like less wind drag than longer barrels I have used, but that might just be my imagination.

 

[JonS]

Took her out the other day. I’d say she’s a keeper. The wind was blowing sideways left to right. First shot made me smile at 100. 2nd was probably me based on 3 and 4. Then went to 200 and found the drops at 200 to line up with the b and c reticle.
I’ll go back again soon and try some more and make sure I can correct shot 2, but overall, I’m pleased thus far.

 

[Steve_in_OR]

Took her out the other day. I’d say she’s a keeper. The wind was blowing sideways left to right. First shot made me smile at 100. 2nd was probably me based on 3 and 4. Then went to 200 and found the drops at 200 to line up with the b and c reticle.
I’ll go back again soon and try some more and make sure I can correct shot 2, but overall, I’m pleased thus far.

 

[Steve_in_OR]

I would say you have your technique down. Nice shooting.

 

[AkRyan]

Wrap your arm in the sling and pull it into your shoulder, your trigger hand won't have to support any weight and you won't need your thumb on top of the stock. Easy on the trigger and watch animals drop. Hard to push down on your scope if you aren't prone or on a bench.

 

[AkRyan]

It's a 5 lb rifle I think, will weigh it as soon as I get it. My thoughts on shooting it would be against a tree, on a pack, on a tripod with arca mount or trigger stick. Off hand is not much further than 50 yds for me and I'd still prefer to lay down or kneel or something utilizing a sling.
I don't have a target weight, shoot the tikkas well enough to harvest animals and have a light model 7 .260 that I shoot well, this one will hopefully travel to AK for a caribou hunt as the former owner would have loved to come along before his passing. He'll be there in spirit.

I am a life long alaskan and I can tell you first hand you won't get many chances to shoot prone here or off a tree for caribou. Practice off hand and off sticks.

 

[JonS]

I am a life long alaskan and I can tell you first hand you won't get many chances to shoot prone here or off a tree for caribou. Practice off hand and off sticks.

I plan on having a tripod and/or sticks along for the AK trip, lots of time here in CO or WY, I can get prone or on some tree. Thank you for the advice, it's all good!

 

[ianpadron]

Shooting prone off a pack is your best bet in the field with light rigs. Not a whole lot of difference between light and heavy rifles at normal hunting ranges when prone, especially if you have sound mechanics and a super light and crisp trigger. From the shoulder or field position is a different story...every breath, heartbeat, etc are magnified with a light setup. If you hunt in areas where shooting prone is going to be a problem, I'd get a nice sling, tripod saddle, and learn how to use them.

As someone who got into hunting/shooting as an adult, and as bit of a perfectionist, I made an effort to pick as many brains as possible Re: shooting mechanics in hunting scenarios.

As I experimented, the 3 most beneficial tips I have been given are:

1) lighten your trigger as low as it will safely go. Important on any rifle, 10x more important on a light rifle. Physics.

2) practice getting BEHIND your rifle when prone. This not only means being behind it with your body in direct alignment (instead of angled off to the side) to mitigate recoil, but applying pressure into the rifle in a manner which has zero effect on your natural point of aim. A good way to practice this is to get behind the rifle and center the crosshairs on your target just like you're getting ready to shoot. Take a deep breath, exhale 1/2 way, close your eyes for a while...then reopen them...if your aiming point has shifted significantly, you're torquing your rifle somewhere along the chain. Fix that and your groups will be so tight you won't believe it.

3) Dry fire drills are your friend. At the range, have a buddy randomly load your rifle for you. Have them occasionally not feed a round, and observe or video your mechanics. You'd be surprised how many little things happen when the rifle goes "click" instead of "bang". Slapping the trigger...flinching...closing your eyes...a myriad of little things that are amplified while shooting a lightweight rifle. When you get to the point where every single trigger pull looks and feels exactly the same...you're going to like what happens on the receiving end of your rifles.

Lightweight rifles are the only rifles worth owning! Sounds like you picked a sweeeeet one!

 

[Nimrod62]

Following with interest...

 

[Antares]

Whew! I bet that things going to have a “lively” recoil impulse.

 

[HNTR918]

I practice my infield shooting positions, lightened the trigger below 2lbs, and ALOT of dry fire practice.
Rifle, Scope, & Rings ammo puts me at 6 lbs.
I like todo 3-5 dry fires before each live round is sent downrange.

 

[BoltActionBrotherhood]

I don’t shoot my light rifles any different than I shoot my 28lb rifle.

 

[Wrench]

Super light rifles vsn be very accurate, but they can also magnify your errors quickly. A little pressure on the pencil thin tube, a bit extra stock flex.....recoil velocity....it all adds up.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Be consistent. Always follow your shooting process before, during and after the shot.

Does not matter if it is a pellet gun, a rimfire, a non-magnum, or a magnum. Your shooting process should never change.

 

[wind gypsy]

Be consistent. Always follow your shooting process before, during and after the shot.

Does not matter if it is a pellet gun, a rimfire, a non-magnum, or a magnum. Your shooting process should never change.

Much easier said than done!

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Much easier said than done!

Only due to lack of desire on the shooter’s part.

 

[kcm2]

Hold it tight against your shoulder and if you can, adjust the trigger pull to 2 lbs or as close to it as you can. You can shoot a light rifle accurately, plenty so for big game hunting.

 

[MojaveJim]

Lots of good training out there for fundamentals, online & in person classes. I make it a point to go to at least a couple classes a year. They aren't cheep but the amount of ammo you can save to reach the same level is a bargain.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Is it common for people to have these problems with lighter rifles? I’ve been shooting light rifles for awhile and it’s never been an issue. My lightest rifle is under 6lbs with the scope and my heaviest is over 9lb.

 

[Hoodie]

I notice a little difference in group size from field positions between my 6.5 lb rifle and my 9.5 lb rifle. It's pretty much only from field positions. Prone off a pack is pretty similar. A 3.5 inch group kneeling off a pack with the heavy rifle might become a 5 inch group with the light one.

My light rifle has a 1.5-4x20 scope on it, whereas the heavy rifle has a 2-10x. I'm sure that also plays some role, but not much at the distances I shoot from field positions at (sub 300 yards).

The heavy rifle definitely settles in to the rest better and has less reticle float.

You can get away with shooting a heavier rifle free recoil as well. I don't do that with either of mine, but it's basically a non-option with stouter cartridges in light rifles. For me anyway.