Part 2 of 10
Saving Weight on a Budget
Most of the ultralight components we’ll use on this project won’t come cheap, but this is an exception to that rule. The PT&G aluminum triggerguard weighs only 0.6 ounces and retails for only $25. The factory 700 guard weighs 4.6 ounces, which tells us that we saved nearly as much weight with this $25 part as we did with lots of work on the milling machine.
Krieger Rolls Us a Thin One
Barrels on lightweight rifles are a tough compromise. All things being equal, it’s easier to get good accuracy out of a heavy barrel, but that’s a quick way to lose all of the precious ounces that we gained on the action. I decided to go for broke and pick the lightest precision barrel that I could find. Krieger makes a “0” contour which weighs only 40 ounces at 22 inches. I wanted to take full advantage of our .260 Remington chambering so I ordered a barrel with a 1:8-inch twist which will give us the versatility of using bullets up to 140 grains. The techs at Krieger assured me that even their featherweight barrels will shoot well if the gunmaker does his part. We will soon find out.
At 41.6 ounces including a Holland Recoil Lug, this barrel is about as light as it gets. We'll lose a couple of extra ounces during the threading, chambering and crowning processes.
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