Thread: How heavy should a hunting rifle be?

I disagree.

You carry a hunting rifle the whole day, to give off one shot.

A hunting rifle needs to be as light as possible while still being capable of delivering that one shot with enough accuracy.

My first rifle was a Tikka M695 in 270win. With a can, 3-15 Burris Signature HD scope, medium height optilocks with bases, and bipod it weighed just shy of 5kg loaded. Full wood stock, flat-bottomed receiver (t3 are round on the bottom) and the only plastic on it was the base of the mag and the trigger guard. It is just absolutely beautiful. I must admit, for multi-day alpine mission though, it was just a bit too much. Carrying it off-hand when sidling steep slopes or moving through awkward terrain gets pretty tiring on the arm and shoulders. Since getting a 7mm rem mag T3, she has been relegated to more easy going deer missions now where terrain is forgiving and shots are 300m or less. I also put a smaller scope on which helps cut weight. Nowadays I take a 7mm rem mag tikka when in harsh or excessively steep terrain because its lighter and just more weather resistant with the stainless. Chances are I will be taking longer shots in that terrain as well so no reason to lug a heavy 270 around when you can take a light plastic fantastic really.

I know you said this post wasn't about calibre, but you could be on to something with the 30-06. It wouldn't be too bad of a starter calibre if you can handle the recoil (your build/stature will be relevant here) as it would allow you to drop pretty much every animal in NZ. It also performs pretty well ballistically for on older cartridge and it has plenty of killing power to give you a bit of margin. It could mean you don't need to buy two different rifles if you want to hunt tahr or chamois later on alongside deer and pigs etc.

Originally Posted by Floundering Around

.
I know you said this post wasn't about calibre, but you could be on to something with the 30-06. It wouldn't be too bad of a starter calibre if you can handle the recoil (your build/stature will be relevant here) as it would allow you to drop pretty much every animal in NZ. It also performs pretty well ballistically for on older cartridge and it has plenty of killing power to give you a bit of margin. It could mean you don't need to buy two different rifles if you want to hunt tahr or chamois later on alongside deer and pigs etc.

110kg, 6"3. I have a .22 for little stuff. Just need something for big stuff. I know it will decapitate wallabies and goats, but I don't mind that. I don't eat their heads anyway. I was looking for plastic 308 but decided recently that an old 30-06 would be much more style.

Originally Posted by Brad S

110kg, 6"3. I have a .22 for little stuff. Just need something for big stuff. I know it will decapitate wallabies and goats, but I don't mind that. I don't eat their heads anyway. I was looking for plastic 308 but decided recently that an old 30-06 would be much more style.

110kgs,you light bugger.Id love to be 110kgs,dont worry just enjoy life while we can.

Originally Posted by Trout

110kgs,you light bugger.Id love to be 110kgs,dont worry just enjoy life while we can.

I'm actually less than that, only 108kg now. Exactly 2 weeks ago I was 122kg. Due to a weird illness I've been dropping 1kg every day.
But approx. 105-110kg is my slim weight, in winter about 10kg heavier than that, because that's squat PR time.
Weird, I know.

@Brad S use this link if you want to search the forum. Way better then the search function on the website.

https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=006821...05:v1c9rbw9yqe

Originally Posted by stagstalker

@Brad S use this link if you want to search the forum. Way better then the search function on the website.

https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=006821...05:v1c9rbw9yqe

This is gold! I'm a newbie here to, was getting a bit frustrated trying to search for stuff!

Heavy rifle = lighter recoil force and if the stock is designed and fits correctly very comfortable to shoot. All things being equal, stiffer stock and barrel, better contact with the stock and more stable off the bipod or a rest and probably offhand...

Lighter rifle, physics means more recoil and more punishment requiring muzzle devices to assist with recoil etc etc.

If it's being carried and properly slung an extra kilo or so isn't here nor there but it does depend a lot on what you are doing with the rifle, mountain climbing vs quad shooting etc etc.

As far as calibre, probably the top calibers for animals taken in this country in the past would have been .303Br, .308Win/7.62, and some where in the top group would be the .30-06. It's not as common a calibre now but still as capable as the shooter and possibly has a slight benefit over the .308 in that a lot of makers barreled their .30-06's in a faster twist than the .308W often 1-10" twist. Dunno why that was when the .308 often got 1-12 or 1-13".

Weight is one factor but the other thing to consider is length of rifle, including a suppressor. Dragging long rifles thru scrub & shite bush is not much fun. It gets old real quick. I assume if it’s on older model 3006 then it’s probably a 24in bbl? Add another 4-5 in for suppressor and that’s a big cumbersome unit to drag thru scrub. You could chop barrel back to 20 or 22in, I would not go shorter than 20 myself for long action like 3006. And then a suppressor is a must unless you want to loose your hearing.

Originally Posted by chainsaw

Weight is one factor but the other thing to consider is length of rifle, including a suppressor. Dragging long rifles thru scrub & shite bush is not much fun. It gets old real quick. I assume if it’s on older model 3006 then it’s probably a 24in bbl? Add another 4-5 in for suppressor and that’s a big cumbersome unit to drag thru scrub. You could chop barrel back to 20 or 22in, I would not go shorter than 20 myself for long action like 3006. And then a suppressor is a must unless you want to loose your hearing.

yip a slightly longer barrel is MUCH MUCH easier on your ears than one below 20" said it before....just ask the fellas whos mate has a short shotgun..they dont want to shoot with him for long.

carry earplugs for the times yo uare setting up for longer shot,or range work..for the up n shoot type shooting,you wont be shooting many rounds and dont notice it..if your mate fires behind you yo usure as hell will..but not fella on the trigger. the blast is going away from your ears,still bad but not really really bad.... I rate using chainsaw without muffs for 5 minutes about same as couple of shots..and the good lord knows how many times Ive done that over the years.

Sako Finnlights are the perfect weight for a hunting rifle in NZ

Attachment 238118

Originally Posted by 7mmsaum

Sako Finnlights are the perfect weight for a hunting rifle in NZ

Attachment 238118

So a bit heavier than a t3 is the sweet spot eh

Originally Posted by 7mmsaum

Sako Finnlights are the perfect weight for a hunting rifle in NZ

Attachment 238118

I actually had an 85 finnlight 2, which never actually made it to my safe before I decided I'd rather have a rifle half the price with twice as much character.

2 litres of water weighs 2 kgs,carry 1 litre of water.5kg rifle,just carry less in yr pack.Instead a packet of bullets,just carry 5rds.Lighten yr load allround.Some guys carry a lot of unnecessary gear on them.