Barrett’s Ultra-Light Fieldcraft

BACK in the 1950s when I started hunting goats in steep terrain along the Turon-Macquarie river system, buying a production bolt-action rifle weighing less than 7-1/2lbs was almost impossible. Most models hovered around the 8lb mark and a scope and mount added another 1-1/2 lb. Despite being young and fit I nevertheless felt the burden of an outfit with the all-up weight of 10lbs. It wasn't until 1957 that I was able to obtain a really light rifle - a BSA Featherweight model in the Royal line, which weighed 6-1/4lb. It was chambered for the then "new" .243 Winchester.

This rifle represented a significant reduction in weight compared to what was available at that time. Today I'm an old shooter who is thankful this is no longer the case. The concept of a lightweight, easy-carrying rifle that offers speed of handling and excellent accuracy has become so popular that today the major gunmakers are producing a fine selection of ultra-light bolt-actions and the Barrett is one of the lightest of the new breed. It is seriously accurate and may well set a new standard for high country hunting rifles.

My test rifle was a short action model chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor with a