Weatherby Vanguard Back Country Rifles

Weatherby announced they will be producing the new Vanguard 2 Back Country rifles in 2013.  The Back Country rifles feature many of the same features found in other Weatherby rifles, but the guns are designed with an eye toward reliability in rugged, off-the-beaten-path areas.

First of all, the rifles are lightweight, coming in at just 6.75 pounds.  This is critical for anyone who has to carry their gun over long distances, especially in rugged regions with significant elevation changes.

The Back Country’s stock is synthetic with spiderweb accents.  The stock is pillar bedded and in the Monte Carlo form.  The butt end of the stock is topped by a Pachmayr Decelerator pad to assist with absorbing recoil.

The 24″ barrel is fluted and cold hammer forged.  A sub-MOA accuracy guarantee (0.99″ or less using Weatherby factory ammunition or other specified premium ammo) is included with each of the Back Country rifles.  All barrels are a 1:10″ RH twist.

The metal parts are Cerakote-finished in Tactical Grey.

The Back Country rifles all feature a “creep free” two stage trigger and a three position safety.  The Weatherby triggers are fully adjustable to 2.5 pounds and are factory-tuned.

The new Weatherby Back Country rifles are chambered for the:

• .240 Weatherby Magnum
• .270 Winchester
• .257 Weatherby Magnum
• .30-06 Springfield
• .300 Winchester Magnum
• .300 Weatherby Magnum

The internal magazine has a hinged floorplate, allowing the shooter to access the unfired cartridges from the bottom of the rifle.  Magazine capacity is five rounds for the .240 Weatherby Magnum, .270 Winchester and .30-06 Springfield.  All others have a capacity of three rounds.

MSRP is $1,399 on the Weatherby Vanguard Series 2 Back Country rifles.

Weatherby Vanguard Synthetic Package

Want a sub-MOA rifle that is ready out-of-the-box to take into the woods?  Take a look at the new Weatherby Vanguard Synthetic package.

The package starts with a Series 2 Vanguard rifle.  The rifle is guaranteed to shoot less than 0.99″ groups with Weatherby ammo.  It has all of the features of the non-package gun including a creep-free, two-stage trigger, grip inserts in the Monte Carlo-type stock and a 24″ forged barrel.

The rifle can be chambered in one of 15 different calibers, starting at .223 Remington and going all the way to .338 Winchester Magnum.  There are a variety of popular cartridges in between the two extremes in selection.

The package also features a factory mounted Redfield Revenge scope (3-9×42) with a 4-Plex reticle.  While I always recommend carrying the gun to the range to check the sighting yourself, with the factory installation, you should at least be on paper with your first shot.

The Redfield Revenge is a scope with a built-in rangefinder.  The rangefinder estimates the distance to target in the scope, allowing you to figure the rough distance and the appropriate holdover to make the shot.  The scope included in this package weighs about 15 unces.

The package also comes with a rifle case and sling.

MSRP is $999 for any of the packages.  A standard Vangaurd Series 2 rifle carries an MSRP of $649.