Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Ultralight .308

So I'm getting tired of lugging my 14 lb. Ruger M77 Mk II Target model around, and as a bit of a backlash am looking at ultralight rifles. Whitetail deer mostly, but I've always wanted to go after elk and sheep as well. I'm looking at Howa 1500 Ultralight barreled actions in .308, but the Ruger No. 1 looks nice as well. I'm not married to the .308, but I'm very familiar with it and have plenty (always a nice thing).

Does anyone have any familiarity with ultralight rifles that would cover deer, elk and sheep? I'm pliant with regard to caliber as well.

My brother has a Savage short action .308, don't know if you would consider it an ultralight, but it's a lot lighter than my CZ .270 and it shoots awfully good.

Take a look at one of these:

http://www.weatherby.com/product/rifles/vanguard/carbine


My dad has one in .308 and it is a super little rifle.


One of the Ruger Frontier rifles in .308 would rate a look too.

Just food for thought..

Why not pick up a little youth .308 rem 700(or 7??) and put it in a TI take off??

A wise member once told me to do so, and the rig is unbelievably light..6.25 with talley LW rings/bases, a belly full of dumby rounds(less the powder) and my little lightweight synthetic sling..

May not be Montana light, but I have a rifle scoped and ready to rock for less cash.

With that being said, I often lust over the little Montanas just the same..grins

Hey,

Another option(some may cringe) but a tikka t3/sako a7, with a 20" tube would be pretty slim and likely shoot balls to the walls..

My .22-250 tikka is amazingly fun and shoots excellent..the plastic, well I hate it but I look at it like it can be, is, and will be more beat. I am adiment that I want to take a tikka stock, which I find a touch thick in places and sand a bit off the edges..I hate the checkering anyway.

Rem 700 TI with a Leupold 2.5x8 and DD's.

6 lbs .03 oz

Thats an exceptional option!

What's the barrel length Tom??

20" I do have a few aluminum parts.

Trigger guard and firing pin assembly.

i have a weatherby ultralite in a .308 with talleys and leupold ultralite scope 3-9x33 i love it and it wears a full 24"barrel to boot weights about 6 1/2 pounds

Sounds about perfect. Is it a touch barrel heavy? Thats how I like em' and the few I've handled have been..a good balance though.

Matt

No its not barrel heavy...its got one of those pencil barrels.

Balances fairly well.

A Kimber Montana seems like a pretty obvious choice.

Marlin XS-7 in 308 with Weaver rings and a straight 6x Burris,light sling and rds under 7.5# and under $500 all together. If you are watching the bucks. I have a M77 RL in 257 Roberts with a Burris 3x9 Ballistic Plex also very light. Used to have a M77RL in a 30-06 with a good old 4x Weaver fully capable of killing on both ends.Even was miserable with it downloaded, it went away....With a good layup synthetic and the hi tech recoil pads availible today you should be able to come up with something really shootable.Best of luck. Magnum Man

Great input, thanks all.

Anyone have accuracy problems with the lighter barrels? I'm spoiled by my bull barrel.

I'd buy a Kimber Montana .308 and call it a day. Spend the time you would have spent searching for a rifle, shooting and hunting!

Kimber Montana unless you have the cash for a NULA.

Mine shoots 1" avg at 100 yds

Kimber MT 308 22" bbl... shoots MOA and better.

With Leupold 2.5-8x36 in Low Talley Lwt's is 5lb's 15oz's.

D'oh.....22" not 20. sorry.
I'm thinking of cutting it to 20"

I had a Rem Mod 7 in .308 with a very pretty wood stock about 10 years ago. It was the perfect old man's rifle. I loved that little rifle, but I could not make it shoot factory ammo, so I traded it. I probably did not spend enough time on it. It could have been the optics, but I always blamed it on my age and that small, thin barrel. I use a Sav 99 in .308 from a stand now.

I have several Howa's and a Vanguard. They are great rifles. I read good things about Kimber Montana's and Tika Lite's. Good luck.