Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Experiences with a winchester model 70 XTR Featherweight

I'll tell you that it was a dam shame when I had to sell mine. Was in .308win and was the best production rifle I have owned to date. With a little trigger modification and a free float job, it was a one hole shooter all day, everyday......The good thing is a few months ago I picked one up in .280 Rem..

CLB

ingwe

nice rifle. I don't recall ever seeing a FWT with a forend cap and with iron sights like those. Are those after-market items? thanks

Well built rifles, nice (adjustable) triggers. Had a few over the years, settled on a 7x57.

Worked on a .30-06 (late build) that was problematic, other than that one, the ones I have shot were very good shooters, light weight, decent stocks, and good triggers.

No, those are my quasi-custom touches... just wanted to do a couple things to it so I added the ebony forend, sights, barrel band and matte finish..
Ingwe

thanks, looks great!

do the barrels heat up fast?

Thinner barrels on any rifle will heat faster than others.. Also depends on the caliber.. Shoot a few .300WM vs. a .243 and there's a huge difference in the heat factor..

It's always best NOT to let them get hot, no matter what chambering you have....

how many rounds do you think i can get through before it gets too hot in a 243. win
suggestions
time between shots?

A good rule of thumb for a cartridge like a .243 in a FWT is 5 shots, then let cool.. For any magnum, 3 is max, then cool..

If you're shooting in hot sun, you might wanna drop the count by one just to make sure.. Also, make sure you keep your spare ammo out of the sun..

what are some problems that may cause this rifle to give bad accuracy or bad problems?
bedding?
stock?

Possibly, but no more than any other rifle. Me thinks you're worrying too much!

I had two 270's and one 7 x 57. Once I got the 7 x 57 bedded. It shot well enough to kill every thing I pulled a trigger on. Good rifles. I had a standard M-70 XTR in 270 that shot very well right out of the box once the trigger was adjusted to 3 lbs. Seems to me that you are very new to center fire hunting rifles, and you are over thinking things. Look the loads you bought may not group to your liking or what you thing is should do, as long as it groups 3 shots in to 2 inches or so a 100 it will be plenty accurate for big game shooting.

i have hunted very few times
i dont seem to have the time with 6 children to feed and sales down
i have to work atleast 8-10 hours a day
my son is the one that is going to use this rifle mostly
he is going to go hunting with his uncle
my brother in law he is very active in hunting
my son is going to the shooting range tomorow and try out the rifle for himself
i just wanted to mke sur he had a good rifle and what i can do to improve it

Excellent rifle, wish I had one in 243 myself. If it doesnt shoot well with the ammo you have, give the federal fusion or blue box a try, it has done well for me in most calibers. Kudos for getting your son out in the woods with a sweeter rifle than most of us started with

Winchester must have done some special orders. I have a M70 XTR featherweight in 7x57 Mauser. The wood is ordinary but the barrel and action are matte blued. It also has factory iron sights. Apparently it's rare. No one I've asked has seen a similar one. My guess is that a Winchester distributor special ordered it.

You've got a VERY desireable rifle there. I've never heard of one in 7x57 like yours.
Kudos on the acquisition...

DMB: It's a keeper. I've had offers for it. It's staying home in the Safe and out hunting. I just lucked onto it in the used rifles for sale in Reno sporting goods store and got it for a good price. $700 with a 4x Leupold scope.

I have two XTR's and they are both very fine rifles. One is a 270 and the other is a 300 H&H mag. They are both very accurate and made beautifully. They have a higher polish blue than any other Model 70's I own. Even though they are push feed rifles, I think they are among the best rifles Winchester ever made.

I have two Winchester Model 70 Featherweight rifles. One is a push feed in 7x57 the other one is a Classic Model in 6.5x55. Both are excellent rifles that are very accurate and have taken numerous whitetail deer. The fit and finish on both is very nice. These two are my "go-to" hunting rifles.

My son went to the range today
and fell in love witht he rifle
he just got back
he had groupings of 5 shots in 3/4 of an inch
with both the powershok federal ammo and the federal loaded tsx's
the only bad thing is that it needs a better scope but dont seem to have the money
everything was smooth and good
I am definetely a Model 70 fanatic
those grouping got my attention
he also beat my brother in law who has a weatherby mark 5 sporter chambered in 257 weatherby magnum
the 70 is lighter and shorter
doesnt have the same punch as the 257
but has better groupings at 100 yards