ORIGINAL: jaybe
If what you are after is the ability to hold the rifle more steady from the offhand position, why not just get a good shooting stick? Then you'd have the stability you're after without the extra weight to carry afield.
After re-reading your first post, I see that reduced recoil was your first concern. I like the idea of adding a screw-in weight (like a bow stabilizer) for the range - or filling the stock with lead shot (if it's plastic), then removing the weight and using a shooting stick for hunting.
A shooting stick may be the ticket, I've also thought about a bipod. This year I just took off my pack and used it as sandbags and shot from the prone position. Worked great, shot him dead. I was just curious how much better the precision might be from standing positionif I moved the balance back.
I like to tinker. I really don't have plans to take it to the field unless it gives me an advantage beyond my expectations and have comfortable arrangements carrying it. My 7mm Mag weighs in at a little over9 lbs while my Sidekick weighs only 7.5 lbs. I shoot loads in my MLthat wouldproduce more recoil than the Magnum rifle
, if my ML weighed 9 lbs. At 7.5 lbs., the recoil adds up out at the range. Range weights would definitely lengthen my range sessions and make them more enjoyable.Im not actually concerned about recoil in the field.
A muzzleloader, loaded with a 410 grain projectile and 70 grains 2f BP,is comparable to say a 45-70 or 50-70 cartridge rifle.One can't find any of them weighing in at 7.5 lbs. From that standpoint, Ireally don't consider adding weight to the rifle "making it heavy". I think a weight in the neighborhood of 9.5 lbs would be tolerable in the field and a balance closer to the triggerguardcould be an improvement. Eventually, Iplan build a wood stock for my Sidekick. That, in and of itself, may provide the weight and balance I'm looking for. Thanks for your comments Jaybe.
Happy Hunting, Phil