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Rifle weight
- Thread starter RedRaider
- Start date
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Sneuses
Well-Known Member
Pounds are PAIN. The fewer the better, lot of rifles out there right at the 6 pound mark. My rifle bare is 6.9 then add glass. Currently looking at something of lesser weight. Don't forget your pack evaluate that and what you put in it, carry it say 16 miles that was my opening day hunt in Montana. You get the idea.
It absolutely was lope country. This was in Utah near the Great Basin. The elk travel from Granite Peak Nevada to the Burbanks in Utah and vice versa. I got her in on them traveling the lowland mountains and she executed a perfect shot honestly. The elk staggered downhill a few steps and fell over. My wife's elk was in Unit 21 Colorado Plateau. Place is brutal. Utah flats are wayyyyy easier. Which is why we had the 10 lb rifle! Ha!Great pic, country looks more like lope country to me than the elk country I normally roam in the Rocky mountains though...
Those offside shoulders can really be pains in the ***
Eddiejoe12
Member
I think 7-8 is my max with the scope, at altitude it's about ounces and not pounds in my opinion. Of course I'm old and chubby.
I have hunted the mountain states from Wyoming south to Arizona from 4,000 ft up to 10,000 ft. Gone up and down many a steep face. 7.5 pounds feels good and 8.25 pounds is ok. Heavier lets you be more accurate because recoil in a light rifle in a less than ideal shooting position-less than ideal form and the shot can get away from you. Under 8.25 pounds with scope should be ok.
LOL, doing rifle drill with a M1 Garand in early August at the Pensacola sea wall at 1300 in sweltering heat it never occurred to me to ask my kindly Marine Gunny for a lighter version. Of course back then I was young and fit so no problem. Now forty years latter and headed out to bust the big terrain I prefer to carry a rifle that does not tip the scales over about 8 pounds. Yes I weigh my rifle, silhouette match director will disqualify your rig if it goes over 10 lbs 2 oz.
I carried a 10 lb 25-06 Winchester model 70 for miles and miles in my 20's. Young dumb and strong as bull, but that was my only rifle. I also hauled hay and cut 75-100 cords of firewood for 12 years to help pay bills after my day job. In my 40's now, I work smarter and always look for the most efficient way to accomplish tasks. No more packing bucks on my back whole like in this photo. Now I quarter animals and carry 7.5 lb rifles. Everything punishing you did to your body in your teens and 20's gets revealed in a painful way in your 40's. Knees, back, shoulders and my hands have taken a beating over the years. I appreciate my Kifaru pack and Crispi boots. Yes, even my boots and clothing get weighed and used accordingly. It's Hell getting older. My Grandpa always said don't get old....lift lighter loads whenever possible and wear ear plugs. You'll thank me later. Man, was he right!!
Attachments
Raudy....man that picture gives me a flashback and laughs. Western mature 6pt Whitetail buck....only 300 yards to the road. Brother laughing, talking crud, and sitting down waiting for me the entire trip. One time...swore I never would again. To this day....+30 years since...largest piece is a hind quarter with bone in. My dad would always say "Consequence for choices son...you made it you own it".
Danehunter
Well-Known Member
Stand hunting does not require a light rifle. I use this lightweight (6 pounds 3 oz.) 6.5 PRC Browning X-Bolt Pro for hunting Nevada's mountains where a light rifle helps a lot. With scope, rings and sling shown here it is 7 lbs. 8 oz.
SCOPE: Bushnell Elite LRTS 4.5 - 18 x 44 with illuminated G3 small "Christmas tree" reticle. Cerakoted OD green.
Norwegian HELLE GT hunting knife
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cjuve
Well-Known Member
I have several LR rigs from 7.5lbs up to 16 lbs. The weight range that seems to work best for me is 8.5-9.5 lbs fully loaded.
My 280 Mountain rifles like 145 gr Speer BT I have tried everything from 140 to160 gr the 145 just shoots better out of mine
Montana'eer
Well-Known Member
I think it all depends on individual. Some people can carry weight fine, some can't. To me a 7lb rifle with a good sling is the same as a 10lb rifle with a good sling. I really don't notice the difference after a while.
Where I notice the weight is upland hunting, where I carry a shotgun at the ready AND have to haul my dogs water with me- usually a full 2 liter bladder and close to another gallon in the pack. 8-10 miles is the norm. A 6lb Citori Feather Lightning O/U sure as heck feels better than a 8lb Silver every day.
If your trip involves backpacking- that's another story. I always do practice hikes for big trips. Always made the guys in our Scout troops do the same. Work up distance and weight, do it often enough to where you build stamina and find YOUR comfort zone.
Where I notice the weight is upland hunting, where I carry a shotgun at the ready AND have to haul my dogs water with me- usually a full 2 liter bladder and close to another gallon in the pack. 8-10 miles is the norm. A 6lb Citori Feather Lightning O/U sure as heck feels better than a 8lb Silver every day.
If your trip involves backpacking- that's another story. I always do practice hikes for big trips. Always made the guys in our Scout troops do the same. Work up distance and weight, do it often enough to where you build stamina and find YOUR comfort zone.
