New Backcountry Rifle

[jjness11]

Looking for a new backcountry rifle. I am set on a 300 Win Mag, but cant seem to narrow down the actual rifle. I have looked at the Mountain Ascent, Model 70 Extreme Weather, Legendary Arms, the Christensen Ridgeline, and recently started looking at the Christensen Mesa a little. What do you guys like, or what is your go to? I want to keep the weight as low as possible, and I am dead set on the 300 Win Mag.

I know this has been covered a lot, but I haven't seen much on the Mesa. Any help/feedback is appreciated.

[kselkhunter]

I don't own one but am a fan of those Kimber Mountain Ascent rifle. 

[DJ_Mack]

I wanted a shorter barrel for adding my suppressor so I chose the Kimber Adirondack.  I absolutely freaking love it.  It is a tack driver and It feels great.  I would not hesitate on an ascent.  On the other hand those christiansen arms ridgelines are pretty darn nice also.  Hard to find to put your hands on though.  I have a christiansen arms AR10 and it has been flawless for me.  If you ever need anything their customer service is top notch!

[Duckslayer89]

300 yards with my CDS dial. It's about a 12x12 inch target from edge to edge. The first shot down low I forgot to dial up from 200 yards. Shows you how much a bullet can drop and how dead on the CDS system is. This was my first time shooting out that far and first time using the dial. I was happy with it for an ultralight rifle. Mine is a 308 with 165 grain accubonds. Forgot to add this was a kimber mountain ascent if your curious on accuracy. Whole reason for posting. Also look at the cooper backcountry if your going to throw down that much money. They look sweet

[Biggerhammer]

I would have a total melt down and kick my dog a couple times(He likes it) if I even owned a rifle with a chambering that dropped that much between 200 & 300 yards!🤕

All that aside, well done.😉

[follow maggie]

I have a Model 70 in .300 Win Mag and am very happy with it. Not very heavy to carry all day & it's very accurate. Shoots tight groups on the range & puts critters down in the field.

[Duckslayer89]

I would have a total melt down and kick my dog a couple times(He likes it) if I even owned a rifle with a chambering that dropped that much between 200 & 300 yards!🤕

All that aside, well done.😉

Lol! I was surprised, but it's just a standard 308 win. Lots of people have them 

[Biggerhammer]

The .308 has plenty of juice to get the job ✅ done. Just ribbing you a little.👌

[opdinkslayer]

Buy a tikka superlite and then take all the extra money it would cost you for the rifles you listed and put a brake(if you want),rail/top end rings & the best glass you can buy on top of it. They are under 6 lbs. and shoot lights out. Stock upgrades are available if you don't like the factory one as well.

[jjness11]

[quote Also look at the cooper backcountry if your going to throw down that much money. They look sweet
[/quote]

Those do look amazing. I hadn't seen that model before, but I haven't ever heard a negative review about Cooper.

[jjness11]

Buy a tikka superlite and then take all the extra money it would cost you for the rifles you listed and put a brake(if you want),rail/top end rings & the best glass you can buy on top of it. They are under 6 lbs. and shoot lights out. Stock upgrades are available if you don't like the factory one as well.

I've already got the glass. I picked up the Vortex Razor HD LH a couple weeks back. It is getting lonely in the safe! I know those Tikka's shoot, just never been a fan personally.

[Duckslayer89]

[quote Also look at the cooper backcountry if your going to throw down that much money. They look sweet

Those do look amazing. I hadn't seen that model before, but I haven't ever heard a negative review about Cooper.
[/quote]

Ya it's in a separate section on their website. Buy once cry once live once lol 

I recently switched my ring setup to a nightforce standard duty rail and the ultralight titanium jaw 6 screw rings. HIGHLY recommend it. The standard duty rail is super well built and lighter than a steel rail by a lot. Check them out when you look for rings...Especially with a 300 and a light rifle think those rings are up to it

[jackelope]

Remington, Kuiu and Leupold are working together to build the "Ultimate Sheep Rifle." It will be interesting to see how that plays out.

[jackelope]

Does anyone have a 700AWR? Interesting they don't list a weight.

https://www.remington.com/rifles/bolt-action/model-700/model-700-american-wilderness-rifle

[JBar]

Does anyone have a 700AWR? Interesting they don't list a weight.

https://www.remington.com/rifles/bolt-action/model-700/model-700-american-wilderness-rifle

It's listed, just gotta scroll way over to the right. 7.375 pounds 

[lewy]

You listed some great options and have a really good do all caliber picked out! I'll agree that the sako/tikka route is worth considering. I've been pondering a cooper 92 myself for some time, just wish I could put my hands on one first. Handled a ca ridgeline at sportsmans the other day and it felt pretty darn good!

[opdinkslayer]

Buy a tikka superlite and then take all the extra money it would cost you for the rifles you listed and put a brake(if you want),rail/top end rings & the best glass you can buy on top of it. They are under 6 lbs. and shoot lights out. Stock upgrades are available if you don't like the factory one as well.

I've already got the glass. I picked up the Vortex Razor HD LH a couple weeks back. It is getting lonely in the safe! I know those Tikka's shoot, just never been a fan personally.

If your considering a cooper backcountry and already have the glass then why don't ya go all the way and have Travis @ Rbros build ya a lwhunter and there is no wondering if you got a shooter or not? Whats another 1200 when your that deep into a rifle/scope setup?

[jackelope]

Does anyone have a 700AWR? Interesting they don't list a weight.

https://www.remington.com/rifles/bolt-action/model-700/model-700-american-wilderness-rifle

It's listed, just gotta scroll way over to the right. 7.375 pounds 

Dang....it didn't fit on my screen and I didn't scroll. Thanks dude. Forget that option. That's a heavy rifle.

[fillthefreezer]

why buy a super ultralight "backcountry" rifle then put a razor on it?

[opdinkslayer]

why buy a super ultralight "backcountry" rifle then put a razor on it?
[/quote

The razor lh model is a 1 inch tube lightweight model not the boat anchor razor your thinking of.

[kselkhunter]

Why not put a Razor on it?  None of the guns under consideration are "super ultralight" as it's 300 win mag caliber (need the extra weight to soak up recoil, even with a break).

The 300 win mag version of the Ascent is 6lbs 7ounces (it's the 308 win or 6.5 Creedmoor versions of Ascent that are the lower 4lbs 13ounces weight).  Model 70 Extreme Weather is 7lb 4 ounces in 300 win mag.  Christensen Ridgeline is 6.8lbs.  Legendary Arms is 6.6-7lbs. For comparison, a standard Browning X-bolt Stainless in 300WSM is 6lb 8ounces for the standard rifle, 6lb 13ounces for the 300 win mag version. 

A Leupold Vx2 3-9x33 "Ultralight" is 11.5 ounces.  A Razor HD LH 13.4 ounces in the 1.5-8x32.  You can drop down to 6.5 ounces with the Leupold 2.5x20mm Ultralight, but I wouldn't do that if it were me (especially if putting it on a 6.5-7lb rifle already).  A basic Zeiss Conquest 3-9x40 is 15 ounces as comparison.  Stepping up to Swarovski Z5 5-25x52 is 17.5 ounces.

[fillthefreezer]

thanks opdinkslayer  my bad

[jjness11]

why buy a super ultralight "backcountry" rifle then put a razor on it?
[/quote

The razor lh model is a 1 inch tube lightweight model not the boat anchor razor your thinking of.

Yes, its the Razor HD LH (light hunter). They are pretty impressive scopes.

[PNW4Life]

I'm curious how recoil will play a role in overall weight.
What's too light for a 300 mag?

[kselkhunter]

Depends on how good the muzzle break is.  :-) 

The rifles the op listed are all reasonably low weights for caliber.  I wouldn't want to shoot a <6lb 300WM, even with break.  In my experience, the lighter the gun the more challenging to maintain accuracy.

The recoil energy difference is significant in 6lb gun for 308 vs. 300WM.  Which is why there is the 1.5lb difference in the Mountain Ascent for the two calibers.

[jjness11]

I'm curious how recoil will play a role in overall weight.
What's too light for a 300 mag?

Well that was one of the deciding factors in my decision. I ended up going with the Christensen Mesa, due to a little extra weight, and wanting to try out a new rifle. I got my scope mounted and bore sighted last night. Now I need to load up some ammo and get to the range. Let me know if you guys want some feedback/results on this rifle. With it being fairly new to the market, I haven't found much on it. I will be testing it with Nosler brass, 180 accubonds, H100 and RL17.

[JBar]

  I've been looking at this rifle as well so a review would be helpful. Thanks!

[kselkhunter]

Yes, please keep us posted.  I've been eyeballing that rifle as well.

[yorketransport]

I'm curious how recoil will play a role in overall weight.
What's too light for a 300 mag?

You can never go too light. I had a 300 RUM pistol that weighed 6# 10oz scoped and it was very manageable shooting 200gr accubonds at 2945 fps from the 18" barrel. A good muzzle brake fixes everything!

[elkslayer069]

Anybody looked into the Q ? I want one

[high country]

I found that heavy scopes on light nasty rifles will fail at the mounts if you don't pony up for #8's and or bed them in.

[PNW4Life]

Anybody looked into the Q ? I want one

What's the "Q"?

[jjness11]

Anybody looked into the Q ? I want one

What's the "Q"?

I don't know much about them, but they make precision rifles. I have heard Ryan Cleckner talk about them on his podcast. I don't think they make hunting rifles.

http://liveqordie.com/product/rifles-by-q/the-fix-by-q/

[high country]

Is Dave building these or just his reamer design?

[PNW4Life]

Hey JJ, with you and Yorke as motivation, I decided to man up and ordered all the components for my backcountry lightweight 300WSM. I should end up right around 6.5lbs with optics.
Thanks for the nudge in the right direction brother. Looking forward to hearing how your Mesa turns out!

[Magnum_Willys]

Hey JJ, with you and Yorke as motivation, I decided to man up and ordered all the components for my backcountry lightweight 300WSM. I should end up right around 6.5lbs with optics.
Thanks for the nudge in the right direction brother. Looking forward to hearing how your Mesa turns out!

What brake you pick ?  I'm thinking thats a pretty good combo - especially after watching my buddy drop a 330 bull at 680 yards one shot with his last fall. 

[PNW4Life]

Hey JJ, with you and Yorke as motivation, I decided to man up and ordered all the components for my backcountry lightweight 300WSM. I should end up right around 6.5lbs with optics.
Thanks for the nudge in the right direction brother. Looking forward to hearing how your Mesa turns out!

I have one of Ryan Pierce's Round Mini Mag 3 Port Muscle Brakes. He can spot shots with it mounted on his ~10lbs hotrodded 28 Nosler. I should be alright with that brake, even with it being a lightweight.
What brake you pick ?  I'm thinking thats a pretty good combo - especially after watching my buddy drop a 330 bull at 680 yards one shot with his last fall.