How much money is saving one pound worth?

[wombat13]

I'm looking at stainless rifles in .25-06 and am wondering how much money it is worth to save a pound. The rifle will be for my daughter and we will pay a gunsmith to shorten the stock for her. We currently do most of our hunting from treestands or blinds, so we won't carry the rifle much, but a heavy rifle will be more difficult for her to handle (she will probably max out at about 5' tall like her mother). On the other hand, the heavy rifle will reduce recoil. Here's what I'm looking at:

Ruger Hawkeye All Weather (no longer made but can be found): About $700 NIB, 8 lbs. I like the 24" barrel, three-position safety, CRF and am used to Hawkeyes (my main hunting rifle is a SS Laminate Hawkeye). But 8 lbs is much heavier than the others.

Browning Stainless Stalker: About $900 on gunbroker, 6.7 lbs. Also 24" barrel, three-position safety, but not CRF.

Kimber Montana: About $1,200, 5.6 lbs. 24" barrel, three-position safety, CRF. This is everything I want, but very expensive.

Tikka T3x Camo Stainless: About $800, 6.2 lbs. Seems very nice at a good price, but I'm not sure about the 22.4" barrel and only 2-position safety. I'd prefer CRF, but push feed is okay.

What do you think?

 

[Llama Bob]

Do you have a feeling for her recoil tolerance? A super-light .25-06 is not a light recoiling rifle, despite the caliber.

 

[wombat13]

Do you have a feeling for her recoil tolerance? A super-light .25-06 is not a light recoiling rifle, despite the caliber.

Not yet. She hasn't shot any center fire rifles. I hand load, so I plan to develop some reduced recoil loads for target practice. Trail Boss has a published load for .25-06.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

I like the Tikka, light and not too $$. However, as pointed out recoil may be a bit much for her.

Is the Ruger a laminated stock? Plain or plastic stock an option from them? I ask since I'm looking at the same deal with their Scout rifle, plastic stocked version is about a pound lighter than the laminated one. So, if you like the Ruger you may want to look more there or pick up a plastic stock to get the rifle a bit lighter for hunting use.

 

[fireman 9731]

I agree about the recoil. What will you be hunting? There are smaller, lighter options out there in less recoiling chamberings that are very effective for hunting medium sized game. You might be able to save gunsmithing costs by looking at the CZ carbines or Howa Mini-bolts.

 

[Llama Bob]

Not yet. She hasn't shot any center fire rifles. I hand load, so I plan to develop some reduced recoil loads for target practice. Trail Boss has a published load for .25-06.

This might also be useful:
https://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/H4895 Reduced Rifle Loads.pdf

It spans the gap from trail boss loads (which can be too little to achieve bullet expansion in some cases) to full power ones.

What about a M70 featherweight? They're about 6 1/2 lbs (I think the weight on the website is high), available in .25-06, and cost about $750 I think. Nicer action than any of them except the Kimber too IMO.

 

[sirgilligan]

I don't think 8lbs is going to bother her.
If you really want to match the rifle to her, then she needs pick the rifle.
If you don't have to have a .25-06 then there are other CRF choices, including CZ and I think Dakota and Montana rifles.

 

[horsey300]

It's not just weight and lop that she's going to fight with, she'll handle recoil and aiming both better if it's balanced for her needs look at the lady hunter from savage and the weatherby Camilla, not per say the lightest but when she picks it up it puts more weight at her trigger hand and less on her support arm. I'm not saying that she would love to handle one more than a tikka but if you are serious about her hunting needs, lay out ALL the options for her and they will cost less than some of your other choices by the time you get them customized to fit her. Also if you are open to a different caliber, 6.5 Grendel, .243, and 7-08 would all be easier for HER to manage, capable of most anything she'll kill for quite some time and with a 20-22" barrel are still lethal to 400 yds without excessive blast or recoil. .260 would be a good one too. Any of the .308 spawn will serve her needs as good or better (better imo) than that powder burner 25.

 

[wombat13]

This might also be useful:
https://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/H4895 Reduced Rifle Loads.pdf

It spans the gap from trail boss loads (which can be too little to achieve bullet expansion in some cases) to full power ones.

What about a M70 featherweight? They're about 6 1/2 lbs (I think the weight on the website is high), available in .25-06, and cost about $750 I think. Nicer action than any of them except the Kimber too IMO.

Thanks for the link to the reduced loads. I figured the Trail Boss loads would be for targets only. I've never noticed the recoil when I'm shooting at a deer. The Winchester Featherweight is nice, but it's only a 22" barrel. I'd prefer to start with a 24" barrel. We can always have it cut to 23" or 22" if she doesn't like how long it is. Tougher to add an inch if you start with a short barrel.

 

[Dr T]

Perhaps Kimber Hunter in 6.5 CM? Street price in Denver was about $800 the last time I looked.

 

[Dr T]

Or Savage Lady Hunter in 6.5 CM (or other)

 

[CraigC]

Rather than cutting down a 24" .25-06, I would be looking at a Ruger American compact in a short action cartridge. By the time she outgrows it, she'll be able to choose her own rifle.

 

[joed]

To me rather then the weight I look at balance. If the rifle has good balance I doubt 1 lb would bother me. The .25-06 doesn't have a lot of recoil but to a new shooter a light rifle may have to much recoil. I agree, let her choose the gun.

 

[jmorris]

The rifle will be for my daughter and we will pay a gunsmith to shorten the stock for her. We currently do most of our hunting from treestands or blinds, so we won't carry the rifle much, but a heavy rifle will bemore difficult for her to handle (she will probably max out at about 5' tall like hermother).

I always find it funny when people pick the perfect rifle for someone else, instead of letting the user pick.

In any case I imagine the extra difficulty setting the heavier rifle on the window sill of the stand will be outweighed by the lighter recoil it hits her with when she fires. The kids I shoot with like quiet first, less recoil 2nd, when firing from supported positions.

 

[eldon519]

How long will the shots be? Do you really need something like a .25-06? If the shots are not too long, you could just get something like a used Marlin .30-30. They are pretty light and handy for a youth or smaller framed hunter. Big bullet with modest velocity for good terminal ballistics without a lot of recoil. They are pretty cheap and you can resell it for what you paid for it once she is full-grown and has some experience to pick her own gun.

The lightweight .25-06 just seems like an odd choice to me. Even if it is light, it will need a long barrel and will be somewhat awkwardly sized to her smaller frame. Even though the bullets are smaller/lighter, still will kick pretty good being a long action 06 family round.

 

[Jackal]

SO many people complain about their rifles being too heavy, then disregard the 35oz scope/mount sitting on top. A Leupold VX-3 with aluminum rings weighs less than a pound.

 

[jmr40]

There is absolutely no reason in 2016 to purchase a non-magnum rifle that can't weigh 7-7.5 lbs including scope and mounts. I've chased light weight rifles for mountain hunting for over 30 years and currently have a Kimber that comes in a hair under 6 lbs including optics and mounts. But I find it a little too light except for extreme situations. Somewhere between 7-7.5 is just about the perfect balance between carry ability and shoot ability. I don't shoot a heavier rifle any better and while perfectly capable of carrying a heavier rifle, I simply choose not to do so.

Choosing optics carefully is the key. A Leupold VX-2 in a 3-9X scope along with aluminum mounts will weigh less than a pound. There are lots of options in rifles out there that will weigh 6-6.5 lbs, many selling for well under $700.

A typical 30-30 is quite heavy. My Marlin with a lightweight 2-7X scope is almost 8 lbs. Compared to my 300 WSM with a heaver scope that comes in at 7.5 lbs.

 

[wombat13]

Thanks to Llama Bob, sirgilligan, and jmorris (and maybe one or two others) for answering the question I actually asked. Consensus seems to be that a little extra weight isn't a bad thing in this case and could be a positive by reducing recoil. I purchased the Ruger for the reasons listed in my original post.

 

[CraigC]

There is absolutely no reason in 2016 to purchase a non-magnum rifle that can't weigh 7-7.5 lbs including scope and mounts. I've chased light weight rifles for mountain hunting for over 30 years and currently have a Kimber that comes in a hair under 6 lbs including optics and mounts. But I find it a little too light except for extreme situations. Somewhere between 7-7.5 is just about the perfect balance between carry ability and shoot ability. I don't shoot a heavier rifle any better and while perfectly capable of carrying a heavier rifle, I simply choose not to do so.

Choosing optics carefully is the key. A Leupold VX-2 in a 3-9X scope along with aluminum mounts will weigh less than a pound. There are lots of options in rifles out there that will weigh 6-6.5 lbs, many selling for well under $700.

A typical 30-30 is quite heavy. My Marlin with a lightweight 2-7X scope is almost 8 lbs. Compared to my 300 WSM with a heaver scope that comes in at 7.5 lbs.

Well, that's one example. Marlins tend to be heavier than their Winchester counterparts. I've got a 24" half-mag model 94 with Lyman receiver sight that goes 6lbs 11oz but a standard 20" carbine is about 6½lbs. Add 10-11oz for a small variable and you're under 7½lbs.

There's a few reasons to purchase a new rifle that weights more than that and a walnut or laminate stock are high on that list. My Ruger American .300BO with Burris 2-7x is the same weight as the above mentioned Winchester but it also has a cheap plastic stock, plastic magazine and no bottom metal. Which is fine, if that's what you want to hunt with. Personally, I like walnut or maple.

 

[1stmarine]

I don't want to take a tangent here but I would pick up a popular short action unless there is another strong reason for the .25.
A 308 and 7mm08 they all provide reduced loads and youth models that you can upgrade later in terms
of the stock. I like Savage or Remington because they are the most popular actions on the planet for a good reason
and this way assure unparalleled aftermarket support.
Perhaps the best deal ever right now is the Bergara B14 that is a R700 action wiht all the improvements high end
R700 actions produce but for half of the cost. Look at the reviews and what other members are getting 1/2moa consistently.
A youth stock can be found on ebay or gunbroker for a few dollars and this is something they will outgrow pretty soon.
Look a the reviews on the Bergara and as far as the stainless, with melonite treatment available stainless is
less important for an all weahter rifle.
So all good reasons to consider IMO. Don't shy away from extra pound or two. It can be a very good thing on any rifle.
Rifles that are too light are not the most accurate ones.
Any of those calibers and rifles will retain value and even increase value.

 

[eldon519]

I just think you are gonna end up with a weird-looking and weird-handling rifle if you have a 24" barreled gun with a shortened stock.