OK, I went on an elk hunt last fall and I brought a 300 WSM Bear hunter and a 116 7mm Rem Mag with and they are both pretty heavy guns for vertical ascent mountain hunting. I believe the Bear hunter weighs in over 8 LBS and the 116 7mm Rem Mag is about 7.5 LBS. I talk with a State trooper pretty often that just upgraded to a Kimber 300 WSM and I believe it weighs in at about 5 3/4 LBS and just loves the weight savings on his elk hunting trips. I would really like to get a really good elk hunting rifle that is at least in that ball park.

What I looked at at Cabelas last week-
Kimber hunter, in 30-06 5LBS 12 Oz $850
Kimber Subalpine 30-06 or 280 AI 5 LBS 5 Oz $1700
Kimber Subalpine 300 WSM 5 LBS 12 Oz $1700
Tikka T3X Superlite 300 WM and 7mm RM 6 LBS $950
Tikka T3x Lite 300 WM and 7mm RM 6.5 LBS $750 (stainless) $670 (Black)
Browning Hells Canyon Speed 300 WM and 7mm RM 6.8 LBS $1050

I saw on the internet... on Savage website
Savage 111 Lightweight Hunter 30-06 SPR 6LBS $989 MSRP
It has a wood stock (I like that)

I really want a magnum, but in the case that I can't get a magnum I would settle for a 30-06 or 280.
The Kimber was everything I thought it would be in a lightweight rifle and it has the best Mauser style controlled feed. It felt so light that it was almost toy-like.
The Browning HC Speed had the best stock feel of any of the rifles that I handled that day.
The Tikka Superlite and Lite were nice and had a nice smooth action.

Has anyone used the Savage Lightweight hunter? I am a little disappointed that it only comes in a 30-06 for the largest, but it is still just fine. What did they do to lighten the gun besides a shorter barrel than the rest? Could I just get a lightweight stock for the 116 and get somewhat close? Overall I am looking for a review of it before I just buy the Tikka Superlite 300 WM or Kimber Subalpine .