Well folks here's the new rifle. I chose the Model 70 Featherweight in .30-06 because I've always liked the look of this model and they feel great. I was either going to go with a Model 70 Supergrade, Remington CDL or Browning X-bolt. The problem with the SG is it's too heavy for my tastes. The CDL is nice but didn't really turn my crank and the X-Bolt just hasn't done it for me yet. This rifle has appealed to me for awhile so I picked it last Night out of the two in stock and took her home Today.
My first opinion of it is I'm impressed. The last of the new, last generation rifles were garbage. The inletting looked like it was done with an electric drill, the fit and finish was horrible and the pad belonged on a rifle with a smaller stock. (And that was a Supergrade!
)
This rifle is a different story. The inletting is very well done, the fit is fantastic and the finish is very nice. The metal is polished and shows no machining marks. As a nice touch and what I consider an indication of good quality, gone are the slot head action screws. Now they are hex heads.
Here's the barrel channel. The lines are clean and straight:
And
And this is the rear action screw:
The barrel is a true lightweight and has been turned down significantly:
The stock has been epoxy bedded at the rear action screw, recoil lug and a bit at the front action screw:
And this is the new trigger compared to the old trigger:
I was going to try and lighten the pull weight a bit, but the 'easily adjustable' screws have been glued over. I'll try it first before I pull off the hot glue. As it sits the pull is crisp and feels about 4 or 5 pounds:
As a whole, this is a beautiful rifle that even though is pretty plain in the lumber department, still has nice grain and colour:
The other thing is the bolt handle is matte blued. If I remember right all the previous 70's except the Shadows were all gloss blued. I'll try and get it to the range this Weekend or one Night this Week. I still have a couple boxes of ammo kicking around here I'm sure. It feels good and I'm sure it'll shoot well.
My first opinion of it is I'm impressed. The last of the new, last generation rifles were garbage. The inletting looked like it was done with an electric drill, the fit and finish was horrible and the pad belonged on a rifle with a smaller stock. (And that was a Supergrade!
)This rifle is a different story. The inletting is very well done, the fit is fantastic and the finish is very nice. The metal is polished and shows no machining marks. As a nice touch and what I consider an indication of good quality, gone are the slot head action screws. Now they are hex heads.
Here's the barrel channel. The lines are clean and straight:
And
And this is the rear action screw:
The barrel is a true lightweight and has been turned down significantly:
The stock has been epoxy bedded at the rear action screw, recoil lug and a bit at the front action screw:
And this is the new trigger compared to the old trigger:
I was going to try and lighten the pull weight a bit, but the 'easily adjustable' screws have been glued over. I'll try it first before I pull off the hot glue. As it sits the pull is crisp and feels about 4 or 5 pounds:
As a whole, this is a beautiful rifle that even though is pretty plain in the lumber department, still has nice grain and colour:
The other thing is the bolt handle is matte blued. If I remember right all the previous 70's except the Shadows were all gloss blued. I'll try and get it to the range this Weekend or one Night this Week. I still have a couple boxes of ammo kicking around here I'm sure. It feels good and I'm sure it'll shoot well.
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