What's the weight of your hunting rig? What do you all think is manageable, ultralight, or boat anchor style. Do you use a muzzle brake?

I plan to build something chambered in 6.5x47L, 260, or 6.5creed. I was thinking of a weight about 5lbs or under without optics. But,I was looking on the internet and found some really cool lightweight stuff. Pierce Engineering Titanium action(Rem 700 clone)17oz. AB Arms Mod*X chassis 19oz without all the rifle furniture. 13" Bartlein #1 featherweight barrel 17oz. Plus trigger, plus hand grip, we are looking at 59oz, 3.625 lbs. Is this to light? I see a lot of you running 8-10 lbs rigs.

Thanks

I'm not a target shooter -- most all of my SPs are designed for hunting. I lean toward heavier guns -- heavier barrels, as I like the extra weight. Many of my hunting handguns weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 6 - 7+ pounds. Dedicated target shooters will opt for much more weight but for hunting -- this works for me. I can shoot the heavier guns better -- as the lighter models are much more difficult to hold steady, especially after you've just climbed a mountain, walked for miles, or simply get nervous when that monster buck appears. While lighter pistols are easier to carry - I'll pack the extra weight and feel more confident when the shot materializes. Just my 2 cents -- your mileage may vary.

I don't worry too much about weight, mostly hunt from blinds now, I don't like them too heavy, 7 to 10 pounds max for my rifles, but I don't use any muzzle breaks , so something to soak up the recoil is always nice. On my bird guns I like double barrel S X S 16 gauge 7 lbs or so . on my SPs again no breaks and not too worried about the weight, do not have any bench guns specifically, all are put together with the thought of hunting, +2 on what Mark said, the extra weight is good for a steady shot.

Ed

Weight by what type of hunting shooting you are doing. If everything on foot every ounce counts. Even a 5# unit gets to be a boat anchor after a couple hours on the trail. Sitting in a blind no big deal go for comfort that's where the extra weight comes in softens that should slam. There is also a bit of optimum length per cartridge- slightly affected by factory or hand loads as well. Your avg. sporting rifle is going to have around a 20-22" barrel, shorter than that and muzzle flash starts to get ridiculous particularly in the magnums with slow powders. A high velocity wiz bang cartridge tends to suffer quite a bit when the barrel is too short. I won't even get into sight radius / barrel length as most are running optics now days not Irons of one type or another. You can lose up to ( give or take) 100fps per inch below 20" of barrel length from a factory cartridge velocity spec.

Just one more little tidbit- barrels less than 16" better be on an action designated from the mfg. as a pistol or big brother gets his shorts all wadded up in the wrong places.

My 6.5x55 AI XP weighs in at 9# even as pictured. I run hearing protection whether shooting or hunting as well. It isn't exactly a light weight rig, but in a centergrip, it's manageable in the field.

quote:

Originally posted by mark hampton:
I'm not a target shooter -- most all of my SPs are designed for hunting. I lean toward heavier guns -- heavier barrels, as I like the extra weight. Many of my hunting handguns weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 6 - 7+ pounds. Dedicated target shooters will opt for much more weight but for hunting -- this works for me. I can shoot the heavier guns better -- as the lighter models are much more difficult to hold steady, especially after you've just climbed a mountain, walked for miles, or simply get nervous when that monster buck appears. While lighter pistols are easier to carry - I'll pack the extra weight and feel more confident when the shot materializes. Just my 2 cents -- your mileage may vary.

X2

Well said Mark!
I don't mind the extra weight. The stability trade off is well worth it

-Mike

I myself like to set up the pistol as I want it and don't really worry about weight. I have a 308 that is almost 13 lbs and I still use a muzzle brake. I can see impact through the 6-18 Leupold rifle scope. I am a fan of center grip more for hunting. I always use hearing protection so the brake is never a problem. I feel some weight can be your friend as for accuracy also. You couldn't go wrong with a pistol such as Da-law-Dawg has pictured! Good luck and let us know what you come up with. Oh and welcome to SP!

Being a wheelgun hunter at heart an SP for me still needs to be maneuverable. If I can't shoot it in a modified free hand position I don't want it.

I like it light and maneuverable with a good brake.

Ditto on mark and law dawg. My sp' are all on the heavy side.
Nmhunter

Mine also, they run from 8-9 to 11-12 lbs.



Sonny