How heavy is too heavy

[oldred]

My Highwall type rifle tips the scales at a bit over 14 1/2 lbs with it's heavy 32" octagon barrel and almost everyone who has held this rifle comments on how heavy it is. I realize that 14+ lbs is a bit hefty but how common is it for a single shot rifle of this type to weigh that much or even more?

[rollmyown]

Wow, at 14 1/2 lbs I'd need acouple of big wheels hanging off it.

[NSP64]

it depends what it shoots, a .22 it is a little heavy.
45-90 if might be too lite.

[oldred]

It's a 45/90, I suppose I should have mentioned that.

Basically I am just curious as to how common single shot rifles of 14+ lbs are.

[Gunlaker]

As long as it's not an off hand rifle I think it should be as heavy as the rules would allow it to be. I have a Shiloh that weighs around 16lbs chambered in .45-110 and I love it. None of my highwalls are close to 14lbs but I wouldn't mind building one configured that way.

Chris.

[wild thing]

My rolling block 45-70 weighs in at 12pounds 3 oz. john

[nanuk]

at that weight, a 45/90 would be fairly gentle to shoot??

[Artful]

I have limited my Ruger #3's to 375 bigbore as the 45-70 was too much of a good thing in that configuration, but is fine in Marlin 1895

[Prairiewolf]

Yeah, my Marlin 1895 Cowboy is 8 lb empty, and over 10 lb fully loaded with 10 rounds of 45-70, but I wouldn't want it any other way, because it's balanced very well so it doesn't feel that heavy, and the weight helps with the recoil. My Sharps 45-70 weighs in at 13 lb 7 oz empty, and with a 34" barrel and it's not balanced at all - - very muzzle heavy, but it's generally shot off the sticks so the weight is a blessing. My Winchester highwall doesn't come close to 14 1/2 pounds, but it has a shorter barrel and it's a 38-55. I can't imagine a highwall being so heavy, but again it's in that big old barrel, which would be great if you're shooting stout loads at long range, which I assume you are. In fact I'd love to have that gun, just wouldn't want to have to shoot it offhand for any longer than 10 seconds! My arms would be shaking!

[MT Chambers]

My '74 Sharps in 50/90 is around 11lbs. and recoil is manageable, I wouldn't want or need anything heavier for a rifle I use in the field, for a range rifle any weight is okay.

[Don McDowell]

My Highwall type rifle tips the scales at a bit over 14 1/2 lbs with it's heavy 32" octagon barrel and almost everyone who has held this rifle comments on how heavy it is. I realize that 14+ lbs is a bit hefty but how common is it for a single shot rifle of this type to weigh that much or even more?

It's not that uncommon to encounter rifles that heavy in the creedmoor and midrange matches and the gong matches. It is about 2 lbs over weight for bpcr sillouettes.
The old buffler runners liked the 16 lb barreled sharps.

[Dan Cash]

Exactly what Don Mc says. In museums one sees old sharps and Remingtons that were used by buffalo hunters. Those fellows carried those guns in wagons or horse back pretty close to where they were going to shoot. A hundred rounds through one in a day will make you thing a 16 pound rifle is a willow switch. My own .45-70 weighs right at 11 pounds and by the end of the day, I am ready to quit.

[Gunlaker]

at that weight, a 45/90 would be fairly gentle to shoot??

It should be pretty nice. My .45-110 has about the same felt recoil as my Silhouette weight .45-70's.

Chris.

[oldred]

This rifle is shot from the bench and I don't attempt any serious offhand shooting so the weight has been a plus instead of a problem. I was just curious, I know 12 to 16 lb rifles are out there but I have yet to attend any kind of shooting event so I wasn't sure just how common they are.

[rhbrink]

There's lots of them oldred go to a Schuetzen match and you probably will not see many rifles under 12 lbs. I have a 38-55 and a 45-90 both set up for BPCR that weigh right at 12#, a 45-100 for long range that weighs 14.5# and my 32-40 single shot weighs close to 15#.

RB

[Donor8x56r]

I had a chance of carrying (2 of us) and shooting PTRD rifle-all 38 lbs of it.

I wouldn't worry about 14 lbs :)

[390ish]

I wish my RSM in 458 Lott weighed 14 lbs every time I pull the trigger.

[fa38]

My lightest offhand Schuetzen rifle is a little over 10.5 pounds and the heaviest is 16lb 9 oz.

There was one offhand shooter a few years ago that shot a 21 lb rifle offhand at Beeson's near Etna Green in the Schuetzen matches and he shot a the record 74-2c twice for the three shot Burch/McCoy match. He was also shooting the reentry 10 shot matches but I don't know if he shot the 100 shot Hudson.

[oldrodder]

My Sharps "Quigley" come in at 14 lbs....................and I'll need every once!!!Cal. 45-120

[oldred]

My Sharps "Quigley" come in at 14 lbs....................and I'll need every once!!!Cal. 45-120

Even with the 45/90 the weight has tamed the recoil down to a comfortable level even with the crescent butt plate. This barrel was chambered in 45/90 WCF instead of the Sharps chamber which it turns out was a mistake because the WCF chamber limits my COL and thus my choices of 500 grain or heavier bullets, after discussing this here a few weeks ago I have decided to ream it out to 45/110 but I have not gotten around to buying the reamer and new brass yet. I guess there's not much point to all that weight if my cartridges are limited but the 45/110 will take care of that!

[Gunlaker]

Even with the 45/90 the weight has tamed the recoil down to a comfortable level even with the crescent butt plate. This barrel was chambered in 45/90 WCF instead of the Sharps chamber which it turns out was a mistake because the WCF chamber limits my COL and thus my choices of 500 grain or heavier bullets, after discussing this here a few weeks ago I have decided to ream it out to 45/110 but I have not gotten around to buying the reamer and new brass yet. I guess there's not much point to all that weight if my cartridges are limited but the 45/110 will take care of that!

Why not just buy a new mould that has the first couple of driving bands at bore diameter? In my .45-90 I have about a quarter inch of bullet in the case. There is room for plenty of powder. It would not be a problem at all to fit 100gr of Goex FFg Express in the case.

Chris.

[Andrew Mason]

i have a 45-120 that weighs in at about 9lbs.
is that too heavy?