Light weight left handed elk guns, what does a guy buy?

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gobigorgohome

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I started hunting with my father in-law this fall in Saskatchewan and everything he does is more or less in the forest/bush. Hunting open season moose and elk earlier in the year, then eventually deer. I managed to take a nice 5x5 bull elk in September and then hunted hard in deer season but didn't see anything worth shooting.

What i came to realize while I was a couple miles into the forest, in snow shoes, trying to find a deer, was that my LH browning a-bolt 1 stainless stalker in .280 rem is still an incredibly heavy gun. For next season I'd really like something lighter and heavier hitting, but what on earth does a guy buy?
 
A Tikka t3/t3x. Your abolt isn’t super heavy thou. Maybe send it out to get the barrel fluted. Buy some aluminum rings and a lighter scope.
 
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Lightweight left handed factory rifles you are pretty much restricted to a Tikka T3x Lite 6.2 lbs or a Weatherby Mark V Backcountry 6.3 lbs,

Fierce not sure on weight, Remington 700, Browning, Savage, Bergara may also have some left handed options
 
build it - this is my custom Rem 7 in 284 Win, '5.5 lbs' with the Leupold V1 3x9 LR scope, less if you go to a compact.

(work by Mitch Kendall - Wildcat stock, trued action, skeletonized bolt, receiver flats done, 22" Apex barrel), Talley rings bases. 140gr TTSX 2880fps .35 moa. easy 600yd shooter + proven.
 
OP, I am in the same boat. Switched to left hand recently, and wanted a rifle that was lighter than my right handed rifle which weighed in at just over 8lbs with a full clip and sling (which frankly isn't that heavy, the rifle alone is only 6.3lbs). For a factory rifle, I found there are basically no options. The lightest factory rifles are still over 6lbs (Tikka t3 Lite), Nothing comes close to what a Kimber weighs... You can get an aftermarket stock that will drop the weight some more, but they're not cheap either - you're looking at $1000 for a rifle and I think a Wildcat stock is about the same, so $2k+, especially if you don't already have a lightweight scope to add on top.

I ended up buying a Rem 700 because I found a used one for a really good price in the exact caliber I have always wanted. Its heavier than my right handed rifle by at least a few ounces, but down the road when I have the funds I can look at getting a new stock and some other work done to lighten it up.

So long story short, either suck it up and keep running the Browning, or be prepared to spend a few grand. Your options are either a Tikka Lite in a Wildcat stock, or a customized rifle like 9.3 Hunter's Rem7 shown above, as there are no truly lightweight lefty rifles off the rack. One other option is to look for a used Forbes rifle, but they're pretty rare and will still cost you close to what the Tikka and a Wildcat stock will.
 
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Weatherby Fan said:
Lightweight left handed factory rifles you are pretty much restricted to a Tikka T3x Lite 6.2 lbs or a Weatherby Mark V Backcountry 6.3 lbs,

Fierce not sure on weight, Remington 700, Browning, Savage, Bergara may also have some left handed options
Click to expand...

I bought a lh mark v backcountry in .257 bee this year.

With a cheap allen sling, talley light weights and a vx5 3-15x44

It still weighs in at 8lbs. I mean it is a bigger scope? But still.

Could try a backcountry Ti but that would be $$$
 
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