Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Blind magazine bolt actions

I like them. No issue on emptying the mag without chambering a round.

Yup. I was futzing around with my Fieldcraft trying to figure out if the mag box was floating free, and got the follower cocked. Had a bit of a time getting it back in place. Didn't want to pull the stock since I left my 80 inch-pound driver in my other pants (the ones I never had).

The lack of an opening in that one is a concession I'm willing to make, everything else considered. But I like the Alpine almost as much, it has a floorplate, and cost about a third of the price.

Most of us could lighten our load not on our rifles, but on our waistline.

Drop ten pounds and you wont give a damn about 4-6 ounces.

Sorry, but my standard retort to that logic is that I carry my rifle with my hands and arms, or slung on my shoulder, and that's where the difference is felt (probably not 4-6 oz though), not by my legs or lungs. Paring down one's ass is well worth doing, as is exercising to gain strength, endurance, and lung capacity. Been using a rower for a month or so, and can already feel a big difference.

A similar subject is the use of tactical-type scopes on hunting rifles. My main gripe with those (aside from the reticles) is not the 20+ ounces, but the bulky form factor that it results from. I find tall turrets, side-focus knobs, large eyepieces and objectives and high mounts decidedly unwieldy on a rifle that gets carried a lot and shot a little, and also slow to mount, aim, and shoot. Edit: I just mounted a 20oz Tract on my FN .270, a pretty heavy rifle even bare, and sighted it in. After handling it a bit, I ripped it off and replaced it with a closeout Weaver V7. Dropped 9oz, but more important, improved the balance and feel a bunch. Still goes over 9lbs, but might actually go hunting now.

Like the ADL style, no problems for me.

I think it is a matter of how often you're going to empty and reload your rifle. Personally I don't care for blind mags, because there are scenarios where I might need to unload and load again several times in the course of a days hunting, and cycling the rounds through the action each time's a bit tedious. In fact that is part of the reason the majority of my repeaters have detachable magazines.

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Thanks all, for your thoughts and contributions. Especially for the makes and models.

I was thinking - KISS.

Keep it simple, Stupid.

A blind magazine, stainless short bolt action rifle in .308 Win. balanced on the front screw with a 18" threaded barrel and suppressor, stiff composite stock, a Montana Sling and Talley Lightweight or Leupold Backcountry Mounts holding a Leupold FX 6x36 scope with LR Duplex.

Can there be a more simply thought-out blueprint for big game hunting?

Then I realize, thats a Kimber Adirondack and I suddenly loose interest. LOL



Where am I wrong?

Add the Winchester Model 54.

You’re not wrong and other than going 20” on the barrel that’s exactly what I put together this year.



Rem 700, 308 cut to 20” threaded for a muffler
McM mountian rifle ADL
Triggertech
Nightforce sitting in Talleys

I have 3. High Brass' Savage 110 .243 we bought him for his first rifle, Rem 660, and my Win M70 classic stainless in a Winlite stock. I like a hinged floor plate better than a detachable mag or blind mag.

I really like blind magazines! For rough country they typically offer a lighter weight, a more rugged rifle that has a nice feel to it and there is no floor plate to open at the wrong time; as has happened.

I refuse to buy a rifle with a blind magazine. Used to own a Kimber Montana but one hunting season cured me. We are required by law to empty the gun anytime we go into a vehicle moving from spot to spot and (obviously) I do the same whenever I get home... and I unloading by cycling the action was a huge pain.

I much prefer flush fit mags (ala Browning X Bolt and Sako 85). Hinged floor plates are fine too.

I prefer a blind magazine, and love the Barrett and Kimber... I just can't relate to the "pain" of that first world problem of having to cycle the bolt to unload.

This, and generally I’m not getting in and out of a vehicle very often when hunting so it’s really not an issue.

I like not having my hand on cold metal when carrying my rifles hunting as I’ve never grown fond of slings. That and I’m cheap, so no bottom metal usually saves me money on hunting rifles. Pure range guns are another story.

Plus like fubar mentioned, I prefer the more rounded bottom of an adl style for carrying a hunting rifle.

Do you prefer boots that weigh 5 pounds apiece?

Have you any idea what the weight savings would be is starting a custom project from scratch and going with an ADL style bottom on a 98 as opposed to a full steel hinged bottom?

Lol, so true... ask any world-class cyclist if he wants to lose weight off his bike... not all weight is created equal, and the idea body weight is the same as gear weight is misinformed at best.

And btw, I don’t have any weight to lose... I’m pretty close to my ideal weight, but I’ll shed weight on gear anywhere I can.

What the horse has to carry to the finish line is the reason you don't see any fat jockeys.

To each, his own.........and having said that, I prefer a floorplate that will allow me to unload the rifle that way, rather than one cartridge at a time. As far as weight goes, the difference is of no concern to me, and I doubt it is enough to ever matter.

Same way with accuracy. I have a Remington LVSF in 243. The factory story was ADL style. I never liked it, and put a B&C Alaskan T1 stock on it, BDL style. Not one bit of difference in the accuracy department, and I like the rifle a lot better now.