Thread: Tops Gun Advice

yep, my experience same as @stug's. Recoil on unbraked or non suppressed 7mmRM is very manageable, especially if you're not a 8 stone featherweight. I have had 2 7mm RMs - one 24in bbl in B&C stock the other 26 in bbl in CF stock. Both weighed in at ~9 lbs with scope, rings etc.
Got several light weight "tops 7mms" - 280AI , 284 and SAUM that weigh in at 5.5 - 6 lbs bare rifle. All shot without brake or suppressor for load dev and I've found the recoil manageable. 280AI without brake kicks a bit but its got a super thin recoil pad and always have the option to carry the brake or suppressor if needed on the tops. I could lose some further weight if I went to bolt fluting etc but have not gone that far.

With your current set up you could lose a fair bit of weight by going to a CF stock and not running the suppressor.
As other have stated overall balance also important along with weight and length.