Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles The Colt Light Rifle

So like 20 years ago (or whatever it was) when Melvin Forbes of Ultralight Arms sold to Colt, I picked up one of the Colt Light Rifles in .270 I figured that it was a pound heavier than the Custom guns built by Forbes but at $750 vs $3500 I could carry the extra 1 lb and I had more muscle than money in those days.

Fast forward 20ish years and I have never fired the gun. Has been sitting in the back of the safe. I have a couple high altitude mule deer hunts coming up. I am 61 years old and after I just got back from my elk hunt in Wyoming hunting 9,000 in elevation higher than I live....well I realized that I now have more money than muscle (and lung power). So I am debating buying one of Melvin's New Ultra Light Arms Model 24's in .270

What are your guys thoughts. Should I dump the unfired Colt Light Rifle and buy the $3500 real deal? Is it worth it for the 1 lb savings? (5.75 lbs vs 6.75 lbs)

The value of losing that pound is only something you can determine. That's a mighty expensive pound. Bet you could lose a pound of body weight for a lot less or some weight from your pack. If it were me, I'd save the $3500 and book me yet another "high altitude" deer hunt (or two) and shoot the CLR.

One great option is to send it back to Melvin and have him put one of his stocks on it and change out the trigger etc. You could have him put a stainless barrel on it as well if you wanted. Cost for the conversion will be considerably less than a new nula and significantly faster - and weight will be within 4 ounces. Search “colt light rifle conversion” on this site and you should find a bunch of threads.

Yea, I definately need to take more than one pound off me I dropped 20lbs before the elk hunt. Want to get another 20 off. I have heard that the CLRs ...some are real shooters and some are just OK. I don't even know yet what mine is as I didn't want to shoot it if I was gonna sell it.

But I am leaning towards rolling with the CLR and using the money for more hunting.

Interesting....thanks for the heads up.

I kind of assumed Melvin wanted nothing to do with the CLRs

yeah i would think the extra weight of your gun is in the stock so just send it back to Melvin for the stock upgrade if the gun shoots pretty good as is

This makes total sense.

Melvins stocks are typically 24 oz
weigh yours and see what the savings would be

I will do that.

Well, do you like the rifle?

If so, no. Super-light rifle weights are a false god. Below 7 lbs and field accuracy decays very rapidly, disproportionately more than the weight reduction. It's easy to dump a pound of pack weight, or just take a dump before the hunt, if 16 ounces is that important. If this weren't true, a Fieldcraft would still be in my closet. Hunt the rifle if you like it. If it were me, I'd sell it and get a Tikka - at a pound heavier yet.

Yes, you can compensate for it with training. But it's an uphill battle, and most rifle loonies already shoot all they can.

Besides, when you get older you get smarter and walk less

Get it out and shoot it, Most of them shot very well as is I had a 30-06 and it was scary accurate right from the box. Forget about that extra pound and go kill your Mule deer.

This. I have a CLR in 7RM and it was a shooter right out of the box. If you want to save a few oz and get Melvin's stock but don't want to send him the rifle, he will (or used to be) willing to sell you the stock and send it to you for a drop in.

Then again, if you have the money a ULA is never a bad choice.

In my not so humble opinion, but since you asked, HELL NO! I would keep the Colt and the $3500 and I would hunt the hell out of it never looking back!

I use to stock the CLR’s and I wish I’d have kept a few. My price for a brand new in the box Colt Light Rifle was $550 and they sold at a rate of maybe 1 a year or 18 months. They weren’t popular at the time but neither were the Sauer SHR970 switch barrel rifles that we sold for $495 back then in the early 2000’s. Woulda…coulda….shoulda….😁

You have a nice rifle that will do everything you need it to do..AND..you don’t have to spend the equivalent of the GDP of Lichtenstein to do it. 👍

Good luck and enjoy your light rifle whichever way you go….after all it is YOUR money to do whatever makes you happy.

Now that's a great idea......

Shoot it as is, if it's acceptably accurate, take it hunting and don't look back. If it's not accurate to your standards, send it to Melvin for the NULA makeover. Save the $3500 for more hunting.

I recently got a CLR back from NULA. I spent around $900 for the stock, trigger, follower,and firing pin spring upgrades. I like it, but I liked it when it was in its factory configuration too. I haven't had the upgraded rifle long enough to know how I feel about it or whether it was money well spent. The one thing that I do like about the upgraded stock is that it seems to reduce the felt recoil.

How did you like the grip angle?

I think the CLR used the same stock dimensions as the ULA. I’ve thought about ordering a NULA but the biggest thing holding me back is spending the money on a rifle that I can’t handle first. Most of what I’ve read has been positive with how they handle but mention the tight pistol grip. I have big 2x gloves hands and usually like a more open grip that gives me room to position my hand more naturally.

Man, I'd send it back to Melvin. Not because it wouldn't work great in its current configuration. Not because I think it's necessary and not because I think doing so is a wise investment.

I'd send it back to Melvin for the upgrades, because if I didn't, I'd always have doubt and lingering questions in my head; Should I have sent it back? How much better would it shoot? What am I missing out on?

Skeen is correct, and old Mel ain't gonna be around forever.

I don’t recall the grip angle standing out to me either good or bad. I believe that they felt trim through the wrist but otherwise unremarkable and I have big paws. I really wish I would’ve kept a couple but I had no interest in 30-06 at the time and since I like women that meant the .270 wasn’t for me. 😁