Franchi Momentum Elite Bolt-Action Rifle: Full Review with Video

Franchi, the well-known maker of fine and affordable shotguns, unveiled an updated bolt gun in its Momentum Elite. Launched on the March 2018 cover of Guns & Ammo, the Momentum was actually Franchi’s first rifle. The new Elite versions now feature detachable box magazines, Cerakote metal finishes and stocks wearing popular camo patterns.

The Momentum is a three-lug bolt-action rifle with a short 60-degree bolt throw. It’s quick cycling and offers clearance for large optics. Many rifle shooters prefer to mount their scopes as low as possible. Doing so enables the shooter to keep his face firmly planted on the stock while still seeing a full field of view through the scope. The problem is that many of today’s optics, with ever-increasing magnification ranges, utilize large eyepieces and ocular housings. Given the greater lift required by two-lug bolt designs, usually 90 degrees, such scopes must often be mounted high above the bore to accomodate the housing and prevent the bolt’s handle from impacting the optic during the loading cycle. The Franchi Momentum family has no such problem.

Another advantage of the Momentum’s three-lug action is the 6-o’clock placement of one lug while the action is cycling. Having one lug sit as low as possible in the action enables the bolt to have maximum cartridge case head engagement when it moves forward to strip one round out of the magazine. Even fat, short-action magnum cartridges with aggressive approach angles would feed reliably in the Momentum. When a cartridge leaves the magazine and noses up into the chamber, the case head drops lower. Depending on the action and cartridge, the case head can slip under the bolt face. A Momentum will never experience this issue.

The standard Momentum models have an internal magazine with a hinged floorplate, but the new Elite comes with a center-fed detachable box magazine. This is a welcome improvement on an already good rifle. Placing the rounds one on top of the other and then lining them up in between lug abutments for the bolt lugs was a great idea. This means rounds leaving the magazine first rise up into what is essentially a bolt lug raceway. From there, it is a straight shot into the chamber. The Momentum Elite feeds smoothly, and the relationship between the detachable box magazine and bolt lug opening is why.

One of the more visible action features is the full-diameter bolt found in the Momentum’s receiver. The receiver has no need for relief cuts to accommodate the bolt lugs because the bolt body, itself, is equal in diameter. Cycling the action is simply sliding a cylinder inside a housing. There is nothing protruding away from the bolt body to bind when cycling. Contrast that with a typical two-lug action with bolt lugs protruding at the 3- and 9-o’clock positions. The opposed lugs sit in raceways and, while lateral pressure at the back of the bolt body won’t usually cause a bind, pushing down too forcefully while running the bolt forward certainly will. Unfortunately, the most common mistake made when cycling a bolt action is to apply downward pressure while pushing the bolt forward. Apply all the sideward, downward, or any other -ward pressure you like to the Momentum. Guns & Ammo’s staff are confident this bolt won’t bind under anything resembling normal use.

Another reason the Momentum’s bolt cycles so smoothly is the hard-chrome finish applied to the bolt. With a little lubricant, the bolt requires minimal effort to operate.

The features on the action’s exterior received the same critical engineering as the bolt’s design. The bolt stop sits on the side of the receiver and uses a steel lever that protrudes into a recess milled into the bolt body. Normally, the bolt stop impacts the inboard bolt lug on a two-lug action and, cycled hard enough, a bolt lug can take some damage with that arrangement. The Momentum’s action locates the protruding steel bolt stop within a milled groove on the bolt body, and it never touches any of the three lugs. No matter how hard a guy cycles the action, the lugs will remain pristine. The steel bolt stop also uses a steel roll pin to hold it in place, making for a very durable assembly.

The Momentum’s stock looks like a common affair, but there are a couple subtle features that are worth calling out. Removing the barreled action from the stock reveals a pair of recoil lugs embedded in a “V” shape near the front action screw. The two recoil lugs protrude up and interface with corresponding slots milled into the bottom of the receiver. The “V”-shape arrangment ensures the action remains centered in the stock, while the marriage between lugs and receiver ensures the action won’t move under recoil. Mechanical consistency is a key factor to the rifle’s accuracy.

The sling attachment points molded into recesses in the forend and buttstock, though avant-garde in appearance, proved their worth when the time came to attach bipods and slings and go shooting. Because these points do not protrude beyond the stock’s exterior lines, there’s no risk to the shooter’s support hand during recoil. The forend also remains uncluttered, and the rifle won’t teeter precariously on a stud or swivel when laid across a hard-surfaced rest.

Franchi’s decision to carry the stock’s forend forward beyond the sling attachment point also gets top marks for functionality, as it ensures that a bipod can seat firmly against the stock’s surface and maintain proper orientation when tightened down.

During the accuracy evaluation, our test rifle, chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor, demonstrated repeatable precision that would be impossible without a great trigger. The Momentum’s trigger attaches to the receiver with two retention screws, so removal for maintenance is not difficult. The trigger adjusts from 2 to 4 pounds, has no discernable creep and a crisp let-off. It would be hard to ask more from this rifle’s trigger.

Accuracy was better than expected from Franchi’s first rifle platform, and a good indication that the company is moving in the right direction since releasing the original Momentum. All three types of ammunition tested produced sub-half-MOA groups for three shots at 100 yards! Getting just one such group during a rifle test is exciting, if not conclusive. But, when all three types of ammunition tested (from three different manufacturers) deliver tiny groups, the rifle’s accuracy becomes a big part of the story.

Franchi might be new to the rifle market, but the Momentum Elite is a positive step forward for the fledgling bolt action. When assessing the rifle and considering its features, we can’t help but see the value it offers American consumers. Few rifles, even those costing much more, will match its accuracy.

Franchi Momentum Elite Specs

Type: Bolt action
Cartridge: .223 Rem., 6.5 Creedmoor (tested), .308 Win.
Capacity: 4+1 rds.
Barrel: 22 in. (.223/.308);  24 in. (6.5)
Overall Length: 44.25 in. (.223/.308); 46.25 (6.5)
Weight: 7 lbs., 8 oz. (tested)
Stock: Injection-molded polymer
Grips: Molded checkering
Length of Pull: 14 in.
Finish: Cerakote (steel)
Trigger: Adj.; 3 lbs., 2 oz. (tested)
Sights: None
MSRP: $849 to $899
Importer: Franchi, franchiusa.com