Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Winchester M70 Super Grade

Beautiful rifles... steel bottom metal... sporter barrel contour... the 26” rifles are 8.5 lb. !!!

Wow, in this day and age of ltwt rifles with synthetic carbon fiber stocks and 22” fluted barrels with threaded muzzles... who is buying such an old classic?

I am sorely tempted... but one would approach 10 lb scoped and loaded... who can lift such a beast??

Almost 10 lb... about that of the iron sight M1 Garand our fathers humped up the hills...

It's funny that you should mention that rifle. I was looking at it and a Win LWT in 30-06. With a Leupold 4x33 or similar weight scope, this rifle is less than 8 lb. The barrel is 22 in.



- SATIN FINISH WALNUT STOCK WITH CLASSIC FEATHERWEIGHT CUT CHECKERING AND SCHNABEL FOREARM create the iconic Featherweight look
- POLISHED METAL SURFACES add style and elegance
- ALLOY ONE-PIECE BOTTOM METAL adds rigidity for better accuracy
- FORGED STEEL RECEIVER WITH INTEGRAL RECOIL LUG IS BEDDED FRONT AND REAR to eliminate shifts in zero for exceptional long-range accuracy
- PRE-’64 STYLE CONTROLLED ROUND FEED WITH CLAW EXTRACTOR fully controls cartridge from magazine, to chamber, to ejection

Three-Position Safety shows safety status at a glance

- COLD HAMMER-FORGED FREE-FLOATING FEATHERWEIGHT PROFILE BARREL for years of pinpoint accuracy
- RECESSED TARGET CROWN enhances accuracy and protects the rifling
- M.O.A. Trigger SYSTEM with zero take-up, zero creep and zero overtravel gives you outstanding accuracy
- Blade-Type Ejector for full control of ejection force
- PACHMAYR® DECELERATOR® RECOIL PAD for optimal protection against felt recoil

I’ve been thinking about one.

A ten pound rifle just don't fit my likes these days.. I have several of the featherweights in 7mm-08 and .308 They are superb rifles.

I hefted (an appropriate word in this case) one way back when they started making them again in New Haven. It was a beauty, but about the right size and weight for a .375 IMO.

The one that interests me now is the SS Featherweight Dark Maple. Would like it better with steel bottom metal.

Oddly enough I was wondering what my short action M70 Fwt 243 weighed yesterday, so I pulled the scope and weighed it - 6 lb -13 oz with a set of Weaver bases. I haven't put the scope back on and weighed it but with a Leupold 3-9x40 and lightweight rings I suspect it will set right at 8#, just about perfect IMO.

I like the looks of the Supergrade but I am not ready to deal with a 10 lb rifle.

drover









3

I'm curious. When does a rifle get too heavy for you? By you, I mean everyone who has posted in this thread.

I understand not wanting to carry a heavy rifle around, but "heavy" must be different for different people.

Further, can you tell the difference between a 7 lb and an 8 lb rifle?

I have an 8lb M700 and a 9 lb Browning Medallion and can't tell the difference.

I have always preferred my hunting rifles to be around 7-1/2 to 8 lbs, for me it is a good compromise between an easy to carry weight and yet heavy enough to mitigate recoil.

drover

And still do, 5 miles a day, 6 days a week and with a 30lb slab of iron in the backpack.

Makes the lightweight hunting rifle feel like I'm packing a pencil come Elk camp....

The 8ob gun will kick less and be easier to shoot accurately...

Always interesting to hear opinions about an "ideal" rifle weight.

I have hunted a lot of different country over the decades, not just here in Montana but around 15 different countries., at elevations from near sea level to well over 10,00 feet above sea level. While in general I like a big game rifle of about eight pounds, have also found plenty of use for rifles under 7 and over 10 for various applications.

Have also found my rifle-weight preference changed for even the same kind of hunting over the past 40-some years--especially as rifle balance changed. Years ago a typical lightweight had a short, very thin barrel and walnut stock. Today a much lighter rifle can have a "full contour" barrel of 24+ inches and light synthetic stock--and weigh even less. The modern rifle will balance far better.

I never worried about weight when I looked for any rifle. I figured that if they made it for someone to carry, that's why they optioned them with slings and balanced stocks. That was likely the young guy in me talking back then.

As a former armourer, depending on my duties, the rifles I carried were generally over 10 lb. I humped them a lot of miles. Perhaps that was why I never thought about civilian rifle weights. They were all lighter than what I had at work.

I could never tell the difference between 7 and 9 lb. I could really notice balance differences though, especially with bipods. All my single shots have heavy barrels. I have a 30-303 barrel on the way that is 26 inches long and 1 inch in diameter along its length. I am expecting it to weigh 11 lb. I have no plans for a bipod, but have a Boyds stock. That is definitely heavier than the Flextech that came from the factory. This is a 6.5 Grendel. I haven't weighed it yet, but it has to be ten lb.

Yep, it's the difference between a M70 Fwt or a Kimber Montana with ~15oz scopes both in 270Win.

Buddy and I were just talking about this the other day. He wanted a NIB 280ai. He was looking at Christensen and Savage. I said "If you were a real man, you'd buy a Super Grade in 280 Rem and Ackleysize it." He calls the next day--it's on its way! He's having a lot of fun shooting it. Excellent accuracy on 160/162 bullets over Re-23. Not going to push it with longer bullets largely due to 1:9 twist.

He's happy: A beautiful rifle in the chambering he wanted. He always coveted a Super Grade, too. Two-fer IMHO

I can identify with your buddy, lol

The “mild sociopaths” Mule Deer has written about like to make cracks about how those who prefer light rifles should take some weight off their fat azzes instead of worrying about a pound or two on their rifles. Well, I carry a rifle in my hands, or slung on my shoulder, and a lighter one means I can go farther and react more quickly. While still-hunting, a rifle belongs in your hands, not slung, and a light one makes it easy to hold in one hand while you glass, or part brush on the trail. On the trek back to where I usually hunt, a heavy gun gets shifted back and forth several times, but one of my light ones stays put, slung muzzle down on my left with my hand holding the forend, or carried in the crook of my arm with my thumb over the bolt knob. Even while sitting in a treestand or on a log, stump, or stool, a heavy rifle gets uncomfortable resting across my legs, with or without my hand underneath it. A small thing maybe, but over time it all adds to my fatigue level, which affects my concentration and how long I can sit still.

I think a lot of it depends on how you hunt. If you hold the rifle in your hands all day and walk a lot, the difference between a 7 lb rifle and an 8 lb rifle will be very apparent. I don't think anyone who does any amount of bird hunting would suggest that an 8 lb or heavier shotgun is ideal.

My rifles sling is rarely employed unless walking back to the car after dark or climbing something that I need both hands free for, but our style of deer hunting feels a lot like grouse hunting minus the dog.

There are a few of the Lightweight Supergrades still around (S.C. BACO guns made about 2015). Featherweight barrel contour, steel bottom metal, Supergrade walnut and stock contour with black foreend tip sans cheekpiece. Mine, a 7mm Mauser, weighs 8 1/4# with scope and steel mounts and rings. I love it.

If you can find one, snap it up. Best of both worlds, IMO.

I had a collection of five of them when they first came out, they were really the nicest M70s I've ever seen but the were heavy and I didn't hunt with them much. Eventually sold them all off. If I were a collector, I'd love to have them back but most of my rifles were fiberglass stocks with stainless or carbon barrels these days.