Rifle Weight vs Stability

D

Demaiter

New member
I've been toying with .223 as a entry level longer range rifle to 500 yards with 69gr matchkings.

I've had some problems with the fit of the rifle from upright shooting to prone shooting which I've made a post about.

This post is to ask the question as to rifle weight. A lot of these long range precision rifles are 12+ lbs where as sporter rifles are 8lbs scoped.

When shooting prone or from a bench or anystyle shooting - does the extra weight really help to stabilize the rifle from a bipod or sandbag etc?

Am I doing myself an injustice by trying to shooting too far with a typically too light of rifle?

How heavy are the rifles the PRS guys are using and does that weight really help to stabilize the platform from various field/prone positions? - in the same sense that a good trigger helps compared to one with creep/heavy pull?

Thanks
 
I shoot NRA Highpower, which is position shooting. The weight helps in offhand. It slows all the movement down, plus when you've got a lot of barrel mass hanging out front, you need some in the back to make it balance at least reasonably well. 13-15lbs is pretty typical for Highpower. I've seen an AR service rifle that was 23lbs.

With the bigger calibers, the weight helps w/ recoil. I sure it helps steady things up on a rest, at least a little.

You can always add/remove weight.
 
A heavier rifle is easier to hold steady, but the rifle is not any more accurate. It really depends on the skill of the shooter and the accuracy desired. Everything is a compromise, a lighter gun is much easier to carry, a heavier gun easier to shoot accurately. To me the difference in accuracy is so small that anything over 7.5-8 lbs isn't worth it except on a range toy. The heaviest rifle/scope combo I own is a 300 WSM that is under 7.5 lbs. My Kimber 308 is under 6 lbs including scope and mounts. It shoots just fine.

But for what you want to do it seems that a much heavier rifle is in order. If you're not going go be lugging it around in mountains and only shooting at the range there isn't much reason to make things more difficult with a lighter rifle.

 
Overall weight of a rifle is not always a concern except that the heavy rifle can aid in recoil control. For the position shooter the balance of the rifle can be of greater advantage. Some shooters favor a rifle that is muzzle heavy. The extra weight out front slows the movement of the front sight. However that weight once in motion will be harder to stop. Other shooters prefer that the rifle be butt heavy. It is a personal preference which can only be determined by the shooter. I've added weight to my AR service rifle under the handguards. It's only real advantage comes in the standing position. But the overall weight helps recoil control in the other position.
 
Here we go again. . .So, there is mechanical acccuracy and practical accuracy.

Mechanical - How well the sum of it's parts can shoot clamped in a rest with a machine pulling the trigger.

Practtical - How close you can get to the mechanical limits. In this realm, weight, trigger weight, stock fit, your ability, how you like the optics all play a part.

IME, simply stated heavier guns shoot better or more accurately closer to their mechanical accuracy limit.

From a field position, shooting prone, I like a 12 - 14 lb rifle. . .rested.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top