Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles A Tale Of Two 308's... 84 MT vs. 70 EW

GD, two burner stove? Coleman would applaud you

Bob, thanks man. Happy New Year.

El, what I did was find a used EW, sell the factory stock and bottom metal, and drop it in the Edge. Helped mitigate the cost.

Barring that, and staying with the factory handle, I'd prefer the EW over the Ultimate Shadow...

Well, a guy has to have a few "problems" to stay sharp. Me, I have to figure out how to "rattle can" my 84L with the rub marks it acquired earlier this week.

Haven't seen or heard from JimF in quite a while, Brad. Last I heard, he finally opened that ski shop he always dreamed of having. Since he was really putting in the hours to make it go, he didn't have time to post here anymore. He's one of the really good guys.
Yeah, rifles and what works is a really fascinating subject. Particularly if you have the Rifle Looney Bug and really need to stay away from gun stores. Like me. E

First off, Nice write up Brad, I followed some of your final polishing steps that you have posted on the campfire to help slick up my EW.

My EW is my favorite rifle, although in .300 WSM, and I'm on the lookout for one in .308 to go with it.(But other rifles keep causing me to stumble and go off track, I should just stay away from pawn shops and gun stores, or stay off the Campfire) Mine comes in at 7 lbs. 13.4 oz with a Leupold 3.5-10x40 CDS and factory stock. To me it is a perfect all around weight, and a good shooter to boot.

No sling or ammo.


My lighter weight .308 R700 is a little harder for me shoot as accurately but still nice to carry and as light as I would want for hunting in Alabama.

Scope not mounted, but on the scale with the gun.


I really like Brad's taste in rifles and if I was in good enough shape to climb mountains the way he does, I think a Montana would be a slam dunk for backpack hunting.

Bob.

How does the 84L Montana compare to an M70 FWT/McM Compact Edge, both in .30-06? Are the weights closer?

PG, yes, they can be made much closer, within approx 1lb of each other.

An M70 Fwt 30-06, with McMillan Hunters Compact Edge, Talley Lwt's, 6x36 Leupold, PT&G Aluminum Bottom Metal, Graphite Follower, Butler Creek Mtn Sling, 4rds will come in at 7lbs 7 oz's +/-

An 84L MT with barrel cut to 22.5" (how I like 84L's), Talley Lwt Lows, Leupold 6x36, 4 rds, Butler Creek Mtn Sling, will come in at 6lbs 8oz's +/-

Bob, I think the EW platform is one of the very best for the 300 WSM... thanks for sharing.

When it comes to weight, I'm torn. I have a 10lb 308 that certainly sits rock solid at the shot. But carrying it in the mountains is not a joy. On the other side is my 5lb 13oz 84M. Carries great, shoots well at typical ranges, but not as stable. Although I'm not convinced the difference has a functional impact on big game hunting performance. I want to look into moving weight around. Weight near the center of mass does little to contribute to stability, while weight away from the center is helpful for stabilizing. Think of adding a pound to the magazine; will that stabilize it much? No. Add that same 1lb weight to the end of the barrel. It would be very stable! What I want is to remove as much weight as possible from the center of my 84M (scope, rings, bolt, trigger guard, magazine, etc.) and add it to the end of the barrel. Not sure how yet, but that's my thinking. I want the best of both worlds.

22.5" 84L is the temptingist of temptations.

prm, had the Kimber Montana come with a no.2 contour instead of a no.1 contour, I'd call it a nearly perfect rifle.

In other words, I agree with you. I like a weight-forward rifle.

Understandably.

What I'm considering in a re-barrel is a 23" fluted barrel, leave the last ~4-5" unfluted with .575-.6" at the muzzle. I think it will balance nicely, yet remain light and should buy me a few FPS putting a 180 BT/AB at just over 2800 (nice round number). I'm also playing with the idea of making a carbon fiber mag box. The stamped steel bothers me.

I've been leaning more this direction myself. I had a magnum contoured 223AI "Faux SAUM Ti" and liked the balance a lot more than the MR configuration.

Thanks very much for this. The Featherweight is my favourite rifle, but I keep giving the 84L a sidelong glance.

I also like the weight forward a little. The M70 EW SS in a McMillan Hunters Edge has a nice hang to it. The FWT in same stock points slightly faster, hangs pretty well too. Both feel pretty good to me.

A 26" bull barrel can be pretty steady offhand.

Brad, .30 cal Montana's are almost too thin for me. I love the 243, 270 is thin enough.

Brad,

Given this I was always puzzled why you cut barrels? Not argumentative, just respectfully curious.

Mine's a 338. It's really thin and light!

Hi Ed, makes perfect sense to ask the question.

For me, it's a function of "feel" and the way the rifle looks. I'm 5'10" and I like a rifle with a shorter barrel. It just feels "righter" in my hands. I also don't like how long the 24" 84L barrel is in relation to the forearm. The 84L MT cut to 22.5", feels very close to the 84M MT with its 22" bbl.

Would say too, I've never found the loss of an ounce and a quarter (that's what you lose going to 22.5") makes it really feel less weight-forward. The barrel really needs 4-6 ounces out front to feel enough different to me.

Anyway, just the subjective fetishes of a rifle looney...