Rifles heavier than advertised. Very common.

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Huntin' Gun

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I do a lot of walking when I hunt. Sometimes up and down very steep coulees, sometimes up mountains, and sometimes just miles and miles of rolling stubble fields. I really appreciate light rifles.
I had in my arsenal a .270win xtr featherweight winlite SS push feed Winchester with a blind magazine and a factory McMillan stock. Kind of a rare rifle and it shot well. It weighed 7lbs 10oz with scope. I decided I would sell it to get something lighter.
I just received a Tikka T3x Lite SS that I ordered from a site sponsor. Online it is advertised as being 5lbs 14 oz. I figured with Talley lightweight rings and a Leupold VX2 scope I would be under 7 lbs. Many people report that Tikkas shoot lights out, so this should be a good “upgrade”.

Right after unboxing the rifle I put it on my digital kitchen scale.

6lbs 3.5oz.

That’s 5.5 oz heavier than advertised. I’m disappointed, but unfortunately not surprised.

This isn’t the first time this kind of thing has happened to me. The Sako a7 I bought was a full 8 oz heavier than advertised, as was the Winchester Extreme Weather rifle I bought. I sold those.

Even the Howa Alpine I have is 3 oz heavier than advertised. With an ultralight scope on it weighs 6lbs 14 oz. I was hoping the Tikka would be even lighter than that. Not so.

The x-bolt carbon fibre I have is only 1.5 oz heavier than advertised. That’s not too bad. But still.

Why can’t manufacturers just list what the weight of the rifle is? There should NOT be that much variation.
 
I just checked the spec sheet on tikka's website for that particular rifle (I own one too in 30-06) and it says that the weight is 3 kilos. Assuming you got the standard 22.4 inch barreled version that comes out to about 6.6 pounds. Maybe you were looking at the superlite specs by mistake? Or the vendor had the numbers wrong in their listing. :confused:
 
Hmmmm. I got the numbers from the Cabela’s website. But that’s not who I bought from. I just looked at tikka.fi and they do say 3kg. If that’s the case then I should be happy. I’m lighter than that! Why would Cabela’s have it listed at 5 7/8 lbs? They don’t sell the superlite. If they did then I’d have bought that.
 
One thing to consider is caliber. If you take a gun with the same diameter barrel, a smaller caliber will way more simply because the hole drilled in the barrel isn't as big, thus leaving more material. A 308 with the same contour barrel will weigh less than a 243 for example.
 
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The Tikka T3 spec sheet (not T3x) says weight is 6lb 3oz. That’s right where I am with the T3x SS. So I guess I’m unjustified in my rant. It looks as though I believed Cabela’s specs because they were more what I wanted. Oh well.
I ended up selling the A7 because the empty brass ejected straight into the scope and often bounced back down into the receiver causing a jam. That plus being overweight sent it down the river.
The Extreme Weather m70 had a fat pistol grip that I hated. That plus the weight sent it down the river as well.
Here’s hoping the T3x SS shoots as well as the internet says it does. I’m waiting for my VX2 to mount on it then we’ll hit the range.
 
Yes, the .243 will be heavier all else being equal. Does anyone know the density of the steel used in rifle barrels? If so then a quick calculation will show the weight difference. Subtract the volume of the two cylinders of the different diameters then multiply by the density. Maybe some unit conversions in there as well.
 
Huntin' Gun said:
The Tikka T3 spec sheet (not T3x) says weight is 6lb 3oz. That’s right where I am with the T3x SS. So I guess I’m unjustified in my rant. It looks as though I believed Cabela’s specs because they were more what I wanted. Oh well.
I ended up selling the A7 because the empty brass ejected straight into the scope and often bounced back down into the receiver causing a jam. That plus being overweight sent it down the river.
The Extreme Weather m70 had a fat pistol grip that I hated. That plus the weight sent it down the river as well.
Here’s hoping the T3x SS shoots as well as the internet says it does. I’m waiting for my VX2 to mount on it then we’ll hit the range.
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My god. Someone admitting they were wrong on the internet.

Is the world coming to an end?
 
Huntin' Gun said:
Yes, the .243 will be heavier all else being equal. Does anyone know the density of the steel used in rifle barrels? If so then a quick calculation will show the weight difference. Subtract the volume of the two cylinders of the different diameters then multiply by the density. Maybe some unit conversions in there as well.
Click to expand...

Any low alloy steel will have a density essentially the same as iron, 7.8 g/cc.
Based on that, expect that a .243 rifle will weigh 72 grams (about 2oz) more than a .308 rifle, if both have 22" barrels and all else is equal.
 
I just bought a rifle a rem 783 hb fde 223. Its stated as 8lbs. Though i didnt weigh it id bet its way less than that. I tossed the stock 2 minutes after unboxing it
 
I just picked up a Rem model 7 in .308 from the '80s. It has an 18.5" barrel and a really trim walnut stock. Weighed 6lb 1oz on my scale. With the 2.5-8×33 VXIII scope and rings it weighs 7lb 4oz. Perfect in my estimate.
 
Huntin' Gun said:
And from what I understand it is very difficult, nigh impossible to get one of those in Canada. The one dealer I spoke to who was willing to at least give it a try said expect over a year, and pay a lot more that I was willing to.
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Just an FYI - the fluted hunter stainless is the same as the superlight, just in a wood stock. If you are dropping it in a wildcat, etc, it makes the same gun
 
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