New ultralight rifle

[blackbeard]

Looking for a light weight rifle for elk and deer. Like a CA Ridgeline or tikka superlite. Can't decide if I want another 308, 270wsm, or something new. I do handload also. Any ideas is much appreciated thanks in advanced

 

[rwc101]

If you go 270 WSM, buy all the good quality brass you can when it's available.

 

[Deleted member 16014]

There’s always Kimber Hunter or 84m. Forbes 24b. Barrett Fieldcraft.

 

[Deleted member 16014]

I wouldn’t be afraid of used from a reputable seller.

 

[Elkmagnet]

Pay attention to twist rates.
I would have bought a tikka t3 superlite if it wasn't for the slow twist in the caliber I wanted. I ended up with a savage ultralight and it shoots great so far.
Hard to beat a tikka right now.

 

[std7mag]

How light do you want to go?

At 5.5lb the Kimber Hunter, and rifles from NULA(Forbes), are hard to beat.

The Savage 110 Ultra Lite, Tikka T3 Lite, weight in at 6.4lb.

Spoiler alert.
The Savage Axis weighs 6.3lb, and costs a lot less.

I'm looking to buy a Kimber Hunter in 280AI.

 

[SticksMcKinley]

I’ve been pleased with my CA Ridgeline in 6.5 PRC.

 

[Willy Dee]

I have a Weatherby Ultralight Mark V in 30-06 springfield and a Weatherby Cinderlite Mark V in 270 win. I like both a lot. If I had to choose, I would pick the Cinderlite (new and improved ultralight). It looks like Weatherby phased out non Weatherby calibers in the Mark V line so buying used or old new stock is necessary to get a "tradional" caliber.

I also handload 30-06, 270 win, and 308 win. I prefer 30-06 and 270 win due to the longer case length which provides more flexibility and options for reloading. 270 components are a little harder to find but seem to be coming back into stock.

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[Tikka06]

I had a superlite in 30-06. It’s a fantastic rifle. All in weight with a vx3 4-14x40 is like 6.8lbs I think. Super accurate and a joy to carry. Get the limbsaver pad though, it kicks. I’m going to pick up another superlite in 7-08 or 308 eventually. I also have a ridgeline in 300 wsm. It’s a bit heavier but is way easier to shoot, especially with the brake on it. I like both choices.

 

[belshawelk]

I have a Tikka 270 WSM. She's one of my favorites in the safe. Never had a problem getting ammo. Even now, except 140Gr Accubonds which mine shoots at 3/4 inch all day long ( I have 6 boxes so I am covered, but I am a ammo whore, so I wanted more). I have yet to find ANY round that shoots over 1" through her.

I took her for a drive last week to be my back up gun for hunting this year. I made a promise I will use her next year.

 

[brockel]

Looking for a light weight rifle for elk and deer. Like a CA Ridgeline or tikka superlite. Can't decide if I want another 308, 270wsm, or something new. I do handload also. Any ideas is much appreciated thanks in advanced

How light and have you ever shot a light rifle?

 

[deer_shooter]

I've had my eye on the Christensen Mesa for a couple years now. I handled one at Scheels last year and almost brought it home. I think the Creed is around 6.5lbs IIRC.

 

[blackbeard]

How light and have you ever shot a light rifle?

I'd like to keep is around the 6 pound mark, give or take. I've shot em before just never owned one.

 

[coleslaw]

I have a CA Ridgeline in 300 WSM. It's a very good rifle, but for the price, not quite great. It's a consistent 1 MOA rifle no matter what I put through it. I reload Hammer Hunters for it now and it's about .75 MOA at best with those. The accuracy is good enough, but I still think the rifle could be a little better for what it's supposed to be... "semi-custom" is just a meaningless marketing term so don't think you're getting anything near actual custom.

That being said, I love the rifle and it is still my go to rifle for all my elk hunts. It fits me very well and I have it topped with a Vortex HD LH 3-15X42. Ideal for anything from dark timber to extended ranges.

 

[BucksnDucks]

I have a Ridgeline in 280 AI and would not consider it ultralight at all. It's light considering barrel length but not a lightweight rifle IMO. Barret Fieldcraft and Kimber offerings are indeed very light weight. When I think of "ultra" light I'm looking at compact rifles sub 6 pounds (usually low 5lbs range with shorter barrel). I have a 20" Rem 700 in 7mm-08 that falls into this category. Small, light rifles are a joy to carry but have limitations to consider.
If you're looking for a rifle in the low 6 lbs. range the Ridgeline is a nice one to consider. I'm still getting used to the bulk and length of barrel but the rifle shoots very well.

 

[Brian in Montana]

I shot a big cow last week with a T3X in .308. Not an ultra lite, just the standard T3X, but it's as light as I'd want a hunting rifle to be and I've hiked many, many miles with it in the sling attached to my pack, under my right arm. Every time I shoot that gun or hunt with it I go away wondering why I mess with anything else. I've killed 2 elk, a black bear, and probably a dozen deer with it.

I've gotten into the build-you-own trend, but if I were to buy another factory rifle it would probably be a Tikka.

 

[blackbeard]

Would I gain much if anything by going 280AI over 270 wsm?

 

[YoungGun]

Would I gain much if anything by going 280AI over 270 wsm?

For handloading, the 7mm line of bullets is going to offer some great options in the upper weight class for the caliber with better BCs in general than the 270 WSM. That said, there are heavy for caliber bullets coming out in the .270 offering now, too. But hard to beat 7mm for the shear number of offerings.

You'd want to check twist rates for both calibers before stepping up. My Tikka Superlite 7mm Rem Mag shoots the 168gr Bergers in half MOA fashion with the HSM factory loads. With Tikkas, you will run into two potential problems- A) Slower/More standard Twist Rates; B) inability to shoot bullets with a longer COAL for hand loads due to the factory magazine. Neither is an issue for me, and you can get around B) with replacing the bottom metal to a certain extent. I love mine, but still think it's good to provide the good and the bad of them.

 

[YoungGun]

As an example- Berger's heaviest offering in .270 is their 170gr EOL Hunter bullet. G7 BC is .339.
Meanwhile, their 180gr VLD in 7mm has a G7 BC of .345 and their 195gr EOL Hunter bullet a G7 BC of .387.

Berger's bullet stability calculator is helpful when determining adequate twist needed for each bullet weight/velocity. https://bergerbullets.com/twist-rate-calculator/

 

[MinnesotaHunter]

How light and have you ever shot a light rifle?

I know when I started shooting my Kimber Mountain Ascent, I definitely had to polish my skills in order to get that rifle to shoot well. It is capable of sub-MOA, I was able to get myself equal to the task, but it took some work.

For my money, I won't go lighter than about 6.7lbs for a bare rifle.