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Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 481
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Campfire Member
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 481 |
You are not settling in anyway with a 270. There's no reason to look down on it. With its performance history on game, it has nothing to prove to a rifle chambered in a "fashionable" cartridge.
Don't let fashion fads impact your view on proven performance.
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Joined: Dec 2017
Posts: 1,360
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2017
Posts: 1,360 |
You’re really worried about rifle weight while hunting elk? The Howa 1500 std .473 bolt LA barreled action weighs 5 lbs. Find a 28 oz stock and 10 oz scope and you have a nicely balanced alpine rifle weighing around 7.25 lbs.
If you’re not packing out with a horse/mule you’ll have to tote around 120 lbs per quarter times 4 quarters at possibly very high altitude. Still worried about that 7.25 lbs rifle.
Even if you have horse/mule pack out you’ll expend considerable energy and endurance just carving and packing the animal. My point is you need to be in very good condition to enjoy an elk hunt, your rifle weight in my opinion and my experience at hunting and packing out elk at 10,000 ft would be the least of worries on the hunt. Only one man’s opinion.
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Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 4,113
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 4,113 |
I have a Howa that I like a lot - it has served me well for whitetail hunting but I'm still fairly new to hunting and don't have a ton of experience with it. I'm hoping for the chance to do some Wyoming elk hunting in 2021 and am curious what you guys think about using a Howa for backcountry hunting. I don't have a scale but I believe it weights about 7.5 lbs on its own and over 9 lbs with my scope on it. Seems like the only way to lighten up a Howa is to replace the stock with a McMillan Edge, which I'm not sure I want to do.
When I see people investing in super lightweight rifles like Barrett Fieldcrafts and Kimber Montanas, I start to wonder if I'm in for a world of hurt if I try to haul my Howa around in the mountains. I dunno - I guess I could go for a hike just carrying the thing and see how I feel about it. Hunted for decades with standard sporting rifles. I use Tikka's a lot now. I carry them more than I shoot them and the Tikka's are accurate. That being said, a standard sporting weight rifle isnt that bad and surely isnt going to impact your normal hunt much at all. Get a good sling and good boots to hike in and have at it.
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 29,851
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 29,851 |
One is going to haul an elk out of the mountains, and he's worried about packing 1 to 2 lbs of extra weight up the hill? My premier concern with whatever unit I select is accuracy, and I'm thinking of taking a 15 lb Sharps for the next go.
Last edited by 1minute; 01/18/21.
1Minute
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Joined: Dec 2020
Posts: 137
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OP
Campfire Member
Joined: Dec 2020
Posts: 137 |
One is going to haul an elk out of the mountains, and he's worried about packing 1 to 2 lbs of extra weight up the hill? My premier concern with whatever unit I select is accuracy, and I'm thinking of taking a 15 lb Sharps for the next go. You’re really worried about rifle weight while hunting elk? The Howa 1500 std .473 bolt LA barreled action weighs 5 lbs. Find a 28 oz stock and 10 oz scope and you have a nicely balanced alpine rifle weighing around 7.25 lbs.
If you’re not packing out with a horse/mule you’ll have to tote around 120 lbs per quarter times 4 quarters at possibly very high altitude. Still worried about that 7.25 lbs rifle.
Even if you have horse/mule pack out you’ll expend considerable energy and endurance just carving and packing the animal. My point is you need to be in very good condition to enjoy an elk hunt, your rifle weight in my opinion and my experience at hunting and packing out elk at 10,000 ft would be the least of worries on the hunt. Only one man’s opinion. I think a person can be concerned about more than one thing at once. Asking about rifle weight doesn’t mean I’m not interested in accuracy, my own physical conditioning, or the tons of other things that factor into an elk hunt.
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Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,003
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,003 |
mcclure,
I have a Vanguard, chambered in .270 WSM, that I have restocked with a McMillan Edge. Scope is a Leupold VX3, 3.5-10x, in Talley LW mounts. All up, it weighs 7 lb. 15 oz., and is a very easy carry in mountainous country. Consider the Edge stock if you really want to do something that will reduce weight.
I'd rather be a free man in my grave, than living as a puppet or a slave....
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2,512
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2,512 |
Here's me with my 11-lb MkV .340. ![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/ZGZZAnh.jpg) ![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/1AFxPcc.jpg) For me, that Safari Sling seems to feel like it takes some of the weight off the rifle, and it's always ready to shoot. And having it up front seems to offset some of the weight of a backpack. ![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/ZpQFGMU.jpg)
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Joined: Dec 2020
Posts: 137
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Joined: Dec 2020
Posts: 137 |
MarineHawk, thanks for the safari sling suggestion. I have been considering those thinking it might do exactly what you’re describing. I’ll have to give it a try.
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Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2,512
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2,512 |
MarineHawk, thanks for the safari sling suggestion. I have been considering those thinking it might do exactly what you’re describing. I’ll have to give it a try. They go on all my rifles, except for my semis that have a similar setup. So much easier to carry a rifle that way than with a regular sling. https://www.amazon.com/Boonie-Packer-Products-Safari-Sling/dp/B07CQKQQ83
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 29,851
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 29,851 |
MarineHawk: Like that setup with the chair. Started doing the same when I finally got some foraging patterns figured out in a favorite Wy location. Have a low boy chair I use in the squirrel fields and pack it a couple days before the elk opener. Taken 4 bulls and 1 cow from that chair.
1Minute
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Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,581
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,581 |
9 lbs isn't a deal breaker, hunt it.
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