Looking to add a lighter hunting rifle, and discuss options with folks who have done similar. I will be adding this rifle to my existing heavier modified R700 factory rifle (it's an SPS left hand varmint in .308, sitting in a Manners T2A stock, 24" varmint factory barrel, Timney trigger). There would be *some* value in keeping same caliber for both rifles, but I'm open to upgrading to a lighter recoiling and flatter shooting option like 6.5 Creedmoor if there's a strong reason to. In my case, I don't see a strong reason to change from .308. I'm a minimalist and have pared down my bolt action rifles to only the 1 heavy R700, but want to add only one more, this lighter general purpose rifle that I can use for hunting, range plinking out to 600, or anything else. I live in Washington state, but am not a 'long range' hunter, and not interested in ever trying to take hunting shots beyond a max of 600 yards. If I ever did get interested in that, I'd upgrade to a better and more specialized caliber like 7mm Rem Mag or 300WM. Given my existing rifle is in .308, I don't handload right now and .308 availability is the best it's ever been, and that my use case is just a general purpose rifle within 600 yards, staying with .308 makes a lot of sense to me. The .308 has so much versatility letting you hunt anything from varmints with 110gr loads, all the way to 'big game' loads or even long range hunting using heavy loads like the Berger Juggernaut. That caliber versatility seems to fit well with a general purpose rifle.
Here are the basic specs on this lightweight GP rifle:
* Tikka T3x lite stainless lefthand in .308. I would like to keep the max total weight of the rifle (unloaded and unscoped) in the range of 6.5 - 7 pounds. With a light variable scope and mounts, and a 5rd loaded Magpul AICS mag, this should add in the range of 1.5 -2 pounds more, for a max total of 9 pounds.
* Mark @ Short Action Customs is going to do 2 basic mods: cut barrel to 20" and fit an APA brake, and fit the factory stock for CDI bottom metal so I can run AICS mags. Yeah the brake makes for louder shooting, but I wear ear pro regardless, and have no plans to run a can on this rifle in order to minimize weight, cost, and ease of handling. So the brake is best option I can see to tame .308 recoil in a lighter rifle. APA believes their brake can prob reduce recoil 45-50% in a light .308 rifle.
* Lightweight mounts (probably Talley) and a lower power illuminated optic, prob 1-6x or 1-8x, or 2.5-10x.
A few questions:
* Does the reasoning on sticking with .308 make sense? Are there other reasons I should considering changing to a lighter recoiling caliber like 6.5 Creedmor?
* Does modding the Lite's factory stock to add AICS bottom metal make sense? CDI precision guy confirms it works fine and he has fit a lot of them. Yes, if there were a readily available aftermarket synthetic lefthand stock for the Tikka T3x that could be fit for CDI DBM, and would keep the weight down, I'd consider it. But all affordable aftermarket lighter synthetic stocks I found, like Hogue or Bell & Carlson, are right hand only offerings. KRG Bravo is a newer interesting option, but again RH only. You can go to a light chassis like MDT LSS that has lefthand options, but there, your chassis will inevitably be heavier and push beyond the weight boundaries by the time you add all the required pieces.
* For optics: thoughts on best optic magnification ranges. I'm thinking a lightweight illuminated variable, and in the range of 1-6x, 1-8x, or 2.5-10x? What I'm really wondering is, on a GP rifle like this designed to work within 600 yards, what is the optimal magnification range for the optic? I've considered splitting the difference and finding a good lightweight option in a 1x - 8x. But maybe the 10x pays off more with shot placement at distance. I do think the 1x also adds some value for close work including brush/woods hunting in the area I live. And finally, do I want to go with FFP or 2FP?
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