Hi, I have a Remington 700 Adl 7mm mag with 26 inch barrel. I really like the rifle as it is a less than 3 inch shooter at 300 yds. But it is godawfull heavy . I have a Leupold 6 power with a leupold dot reticle mounted in Leupold dual dovetail mounts with a Quake claw sling .I figure the rifle so set up weighs about 9 1/2 pounds give or take a couple of ounces. I would like a lighter weight rifle in 7mm rem mag caliber. Does any one know of a rifle that would weigh less than this one in that caliber ? I like the caliber because i can find the Blue box federal for less than $20.00 at our local wally worls .or can but premium ammo for $35.00 at the same place. The catridge kills deer great and has a considerably flatter pointblank range than 30-06 270 etc. in fact the catridge even with the blue box federals still outruns the 270 with premium ammo. anyway bottom line is I like the catridge but just want a considerably lighter rifle. say a pound or so lighter. I have even thought about changing the scope mounts, scope ,sling etc in an effort to reduce the weight . which would be the better route get a different rifle in same caliber or change some things around on the present rifle?not in a big hurry as our next deer season is about a year away just something to talk about and contemplate. Thanks,Craig
If you're hunting in AR, a 7mm08 would kill anything that lives there and the new Marlin XC comes in at 6.25 pounds driving tacks. A "light" 7 Mag will kick the piss outta you and, unless a real premium priced one, will never shoot as well as you good old 700.
Actually the pointblank range of a well handloaded 30-06 or 270 is so close to yours that no deer at 300 would know the difference, especially running against Federal blue box. The 150 blue box when sighted in at 200 drops 6.6" @ 300, ft lbs 1834 Federal Premium 270 130 Sierra BTSP 6.4" ft lbs 1703 FP 30-06 150 Nosler BT 7.2" ft lbs 1756 FP 7mm08 140 NBT 7.7" & 1587 (a handloaded 120 will do much better)
The FP 06 load is only starting at 2900, 3100 with handloads in a modern rifle is easy.
Any of the 4 will kill any Whitetail at 300 that ever walked the earth. Sounds like a great reason for a new rifle and scope to me. Tell your bride you're just protecting your health. Good hunting!
I'm not sure you'd notice a whole lot of difference between 9.5lbs and 8.5lbs. I have a Savage 111 in 7 Mag, it weighs in at 8.5lbs with 24" barrel, scope and bipod. I wish it had a 26" barrel. I wouldn't even care if it weighed a pound more to get it.
I have a 7mm Rem Mag that's an even 8lbs with scope....don't think I'd want it much lighter..
"after the bullet leaves the barrel it doesn't care what headstamp was on the case" "The 221 Fireball is what the Hornet could have been had it stayed in school"
Craig: You could pick up a Ruger Hawkeye,7RM;this rifle has one of the lighter barrel contours available on factory offering.
If you want to spend some dough to get a good light stock,get a Brown Precision for the rifle.Been awhile since I've had one like that but I suspect you will come in right around 8 pounds scoped.
If you want to revamp you ADL to make it lighter you're gonna have to rebarrel it and I would go with something like a #2 Krieger,etc,and drop it into a light stock such as Brown,McMillan,or Bansner.You should have no problem coming in at about 8 pounds scoped,maybe under that by a bit.
I completely understand wanting lighter 7 mags;I've built several over the years and used them extensively.
Cut 4" off the barrel and go with Talley mounts...that should get you where you want to be for $75. A lighter stock will get you another pound but cost as much as a new rifle.
As Bob points out, drop it into a Brown or McMillan Edge, but Talley's, go with a 2-7x33 Leupie VX II and a generic uncle Mikes sling (rubber padded). You should be under 8lbs at that point.
Or buy a Kimber Montana LA ( I think they make a 7RM....) with the same mounts/glass.
I have a 8 lb 7 mag with a 24" factory barrel. It sports a 4.5-14 x 40 non AO scope and is in a Rem Ti stock.Rings are Rifleman with alum weaver bases. It is a pussycat in the recoil department. Kick the p--- out of ya? Not really. This rifle had a second barrel made for it in 7 STW and even with its greater recoil it wasn't that bad.
A Remington Ti stock will help you loose quite a bit of weight. They weigh right around 28 oz. They sell for $175-$225.
A 24" barrel is quite adequate for this chambering. You could cut off some of the existing barrel.
Another scope mounting option is the aluminum Leupold rifleman rings with either the steel Leupold Weaver style bases or the aluminum weaver bases. Why when you can get talleys that are a bit lighter, weighing a total of 2 1/2 oz? The rifleman rings come in several heights one which is lower than the Talleys.
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If price is no object you can go hog wild. A buddy had a model 700 which is chambered in 257 weatherby lightened considerably. He had the 24" #3 Lilja fluted and the action/bolt machined to minimize the weight. A McMillan Edge stock and Talley one pc aluminum rings. End result was a rifle WITH a 3.5-10 x 40 VX3 that weighs under 7 lbs.
Hope that helps to answer a few of your questions.
"Does any one know of a rifle that would weigh less than this one in that caliber ? "
Same rifle, but take some steps to lose weight from it;
1.) Drop weight in the stock...depends on what stock it is wearing now (the plastic factory stocks are heavy also) but look at the Bell & Carlson TI alaskan stock (avail from stocky's for around $203.), you can get lighter stocks but it will either cost you more or require more work on your part (glass bedding)...save 8 ounces plus (depending on the stock you get.
2.) whatever stock you get remove the existing recoil pad and use a flip-flop pad ...save a couple of ounces OR get one of the Pachmayr Decelerator pads that doesn't have the steel backing plate and you'll lose about an ounce (MPI Stocks has them...about $25.00). The steel backing plate isn't necessary if you glue (superglue) the pad to the stock vs using screws.
3.) Replace the existing bolt shroud with an aluminum gre-tan ...save a couple of ounces (about $50. from Brownell's)
4.) Talley Lightweight rings will lose some weight for you.
5.) If the triggerguard is steel...go with an aluminum one.
6.) What does your scope weigh? look at the leupold ultralights, the fixed 4X is pretty light...but you may want more magnification than that.
Except for the stock a lot of little things that add up.
A 7 1/2 pound 7 Mag won't kick the piss out of you with a well designed stock...specifically one that does not have much if hardly any drop in the butt.
I've got a Colt Light Rifle in 300 WM... in the tupperware stock they come with, they weigh 6 1/2 pounds... I modified a Bansner Hi-Tech Specialties Rem. 700 stock to fit it, now weighs 6 lb-1 oz with the Talley rings it came with. Also, They have a reputation for shooting (mine consistently shoots 1 inch or minus (at 100 yards).
Bcraig.....................Altering your rifle like what "jerrywoodswalker" mentioned is a good alternative.
However if it were me, I`d itemize the cost of doing those things vs the cost of simply buying another new or used lighter rifle chambered in a different cartridge. You have a very good excuse for buying another rifle, and you may want to keep your 7 mag as is to use in easier or on flatter terrains.
There are lots of lighter, handier, easier carrying and more compact rifles out there to choose from. For most of your purposes for the game hunted and hunting distances, do you really need a 26" tubed 7mm Remy mag?
Cost out what the differences would be and go from there.
I know what you mean. I don't want a heavy rifle any more and sold my very accurate 700 7RM. I now have the Tikka T3 SS/Syn in 7RM. Light, accurate and doesn't kick, IMO. My guess is under 8# ready.
I recently tried a reduced 7RM load for deer. 45.0 gr. IMR 4895 under a 140 gr. Sierra was stunningly accurate and to the same point of aim as my full power load! I'm hooked.
If you can't handle that then you don't want a 708 either.
bcraig, I went the Colt Light Rifle route in 7 Mag too. I sent mine to Melvin Forbes and had him put his graphite stock on it as well as a couple of other mods. I have about $1100 into mine and it weighs a couple of ounces over 7 lbs. with a Burris 4.5-14x / AO "Light Mag" scope. The recoil is not an issue at all. With the 24" barrel, I still get acceptable velocities and it handles nicely. It shoots MOA or slightly less to 800 yards off the bench and that is with limited load development. It may someday become a .264 Win. Mag. with a Douglas barrel when I wear the Colt barrel out, but for now I am very satisfied and feel it is a great value for the $$$! Good luck in your quest. BTW, I had a new 700 ADL 7 Mag. like yours with the 26" barrel that I sold to a good friend recently. I had him get a Bushnell 3200 10X fixed scope w/ turrets for the gun. We sighted it in, chronographed some factory Hornady 154 SST's, and ran some ballistic data for the load/conditions. On a beautiful, still October day we shot the gun @ 925 yards off the bench for fun... 10" 3 shot group with factory ammo. He was shocked! He initially did not want to "just waste the ammo"! Now he is a believer in the gun's/cartridge's potential... pretty awesome value for under $600. I felt bad for a couple of seconds about having let the rifle go... then I remembered how much nicer the Colt will be to carry at 9000' now that I am approaching 50!
Hi, I have a Remington 700 Adl 7mm mag with 26 inch barrel. I really like the rifle as it is a less than 3 inch shooter at 300 yds. But it is godawfull heavy . I have a Leupold 6 power with a leupold dot reticle mounted in Leupold dual dovetail mounts with a Quake claw sling .I figure the rifle so set up weighs about 9 1/2 pounds give or take a couple of ounces. I would like a lighter weight rifle in 7mm rem mag caliber. Does any one know of a rifle that would weigh less than this one in that caliber ? I like the caliber because i can find the Blue box federal for less than $20.00 at our local wally worls .or can but premium ammo for $35.00 at the same place. The catridge kills deer great and has a considerably flatter pointblank range than 30-06 270 etc. in fact the catridge even with the blue box federals still outruns the 270 with premium ammo. anyway bottom line is I like the catridge but just want a considerably lighter rifle. say a pound or so lighter. I have even thought about changing the scope mounts, scope ,sling etc in an effort to reduce the weight . which would be the better route get a different rifle in same caliber or change some things around on the present rifle?not in a big hurry as our next deer season is about a year away just something to talk about and contemplate. Thanks,Craig
A 270W in a M700 LSS with a McMillan, or McMillan Edge, or Banser, or one of the B/C stocks. Heck, a model 700 with a 22 inch sporter contour barrel in any of those stocks will be lighter.
The Montana rifles. The new Ruger M77 Hawkeyes.
Lose the 26 inch barrel, replace the dovetail mounts with Weaver bases, Burris rings, or Talley mounts. A half inch Decellerator pad will lighten things up--even lighter is a flip-flop recoil pad--and they work great.
Given equal barrel length, and shooting bullets of equal Sd, there is essentially no diff between a 270 and 7mmRM.
Casey
Casey
Not being married to any particular political party sure makes it a lot easier to look at the world more objectively... Having said that, MAGA.
