Franchi Momentum Classic Walnut Elite in 270 Winchester

The 150-year-old Italian firearms firm of Franchi USA (owned by the even older Benelli USA Corp.) made its reputation with reliable inertia-driven, auto-loading and elegant over-under shotguns. More recently, Franchi ventured into the centerfire bolt-action rifle arena with their Momentum series. The first I tested was a Momentum Elite Pro Varmint chambered in 224 Valkyrie. It included a then-new Evolved Ergonom-X synthetic stock with removable cheek rest, checkered-polymer grip, wide forearm, and TSA recoil pad. The 14-inch length of pull (LOP) suited me well. The one-piece Picatinny rail, RELIA three-lug bolt with quick 60-degree lift and adjustable RELIA Trigger are added bonuses. The heavy, 24-inch barrel includes a fast 1:7 rifling twist. It feeds from a detachable seven-round polymer magazine. I speak in the present tense because that rifle proved appealing enough that I purchased it after utilizing it during annual varmint shoots.   

Making the rounds at the 2026 SHOT Show, I naturally wandered by the Franchi booth. I immediately spotted the new Momentum Classic Walnut Elite, a gorgeous rifle featuring a Grade-A satin walnut stock and a Gun Metal Grey Cerakote finish (which I initially mistook for bead-blasted stainless steel). I knew immediately I needed to run one through the paces. 

I assumed that, as a show display firearm, the rifle I handled at SHOT was hand-picked for beauty, which would be understandable. Unboxing the test rifle a month later, I fully expected to be underwhelmed by the wood on the production model. To my surprise, the test rifle I received was even more attractive. This is one gorgeous piece of well-figured walnut, creating a rifle any gun nut would be proud to show off at the range or hunting camp.  

The Franchi Momentum Classic Walnut Elite is a seamless blend of classic Italian styling, impressive quality and cutting-edge technology. The top-quality walnut stock and Gun Metal Grey Cerakote receiver and barrel are undeniably fetching, but this stock is also incredibly ergonomic, and the rifle is engineered to provide consistent accuracy. Franchi is guaranteeing 1-MOA accuracy with premium factory ammunition.  

The Classic Walnut Elite includes Franchi’s evolved Ergonom-X stock, crafted to maximize shooting comfort. Franchi says they researched the five most common shooting positions and designed this stock to optimize ergonomics and efficiency. The stock holds raised curves and crisp laser-engraved checkering to ensure a positive grip, even while wearing gloves or in wet, icy weather. The checkering is what I would term raised scales. Generous patches are found on each side of the pistol-style grip, and on each side and the bottom of the wide, flat forearm. Checkering is also found on each side of the stock’s balance point above the magazine well and on each side of the subtle rear-butt bag hook. The overall effect is undeniably appealing, completely functional and quite comfortable. Sling swivel studs are located front and rear. 

The Ergonom-X stock is fitted with Franchi’s proven TSA Recoil Pad, which is said to reduce felt recoil by up to 50 percent. This, first of all, promotes improved shooting comfort and more fluid follow-up shots, but is also welcomed by recoil-sensitive shooters (though the out-of-the-box 14-inch length of pull isn’t especially suited to youth or petite women shooters). The TSA Recoil Pad includes rounded edges to allow faster rifle mounting without snagging clothing and subtle molded-in checkering to reduce slippage while the rifle is shouldered. I must say, the TSA design was certainly effective, making the 270 Winchester feel more like a 243 Winchester.   

Those were the positives. I encountered problems with this stock due to a culmination of the classic (low)

comb profile, elevated factory-installed Picatinny rail, and the modern 50mm objective rifle scope used during testing. Mounting the scope in medium rings so the objective bell cleared the front of the Picatinny rail raised the ocular bell high enough that achieving a consistent cheek weld became problematic. Considering these issues, this rifle would likely pair better with a 1-inch-tubed, 40mm to 44mm optic mounted in lower rings. As shot, I found myself crawling on the stock and never quite finding a just-right cheek plant. That problem is surmountable, as we shall see…    

The round-body receiver holds a three-lug bolt with 60-degree throw for faster cycling and assured clearance around low-mounted or modern scopes with larger ocular bells. The one-piece RELIA bolt design is spiral-fluted and has a hard-chrome finish. A side guide channel accepts the bolt stop mechanism to keep the bolt on track. The simple bolt handle is straight, with a large, target-style handle. The full-diameter bolt, the main body larger than the bolt head, requires no receiver lug raceways, helping to eliminate binding and resulting in ultra-smooth cycling free of chatter. The three-lug design also places the lower lug at the 6 o’clock position, which, combined with the corresponding bolt-lug raceway and straight-line feed magazine, results in slick and reliable push-feed cartridge chambering.   

A small barrel appears at the rear of the bolt shroud to show at a glance when the bolt is cocked, and the two-position safety is marked by forward red (fire) and rearward white (safe) dots. The safety is manipulated by a large, serrated lever. The safety does not lock the bolt, so it can be cycled for unloading while on safe. The bolt stop is created by a rocker button on the left side of the receiver, which also allows the bolt to be quickly removed for cleaning.     

The receiver holds a one-piece, 0-MOA Picatinny rail anchored by four screws. It includes a matching

Cerakote finish that became slightly marred by the rings following optics mounting. Franchi approached recoil-lug design from a fresh angle. The barreled action includes a pair of milled slots that mate to an aluminum block embedded into the stock through milled, V-shaped slots forward of the front action screw. The V shape should help center the action in the stock to ensure mechanical consistency. The action tang is seated atop an embedded rear bedding block, both the rear and front bedding blocks appearing to project through the stock to create aluminum pillars that the action screws seat atop. 

The barrel is what Franchi labels a light contour, measuring about .79-inch behind the 5/8-24 muzzle threads. The cold-hammer-forged, chrome-molybdenum barrel is free floated and comes with a knurled thread protector. It is 22 inches long and includes a classic 1:10 rifling twist rate in the tested 270 Winchester chambering. A Dead Air Nomad Ti XC suppressor was added to allow shooting without hearing protection.  

The trigger guard, “bottom metal,” and magazine well appear to be molded from a polymer material, the works cemented into the wood stock. The Momentum feeds from a detachable, four-round (in the 270 Winchester round tested) polymer box-style magazine. The magazine includes grooves at the bottom edge to allow a firm grip and is released by a spring-loaded, non-knurled button inside the trigger guard. The

magazine required pulling from the bottom edge to remove it from the rifle with the release engaged. Returning the magazine involved first tipping the front edge of the magazine into the magazine well and clicking it into place from the rear. Once this operation was understood, it quickly became second nature. The magazine’s flush fit maintained the rifle’s sleek lines.     

Like other Momentum-series rifles, the Classic Walnut Elite includes Franchi’s RELIA TRIGGER. This is a single-stage trigger “designed to safely operate between a 2- and 4-pound pull weight.” Which means this trigger is not user-adjustable. Franchi advises owners that trigger adjustments should be made only by Franchi USA or a licensed gunsmith. This, in my estimation, was a poor decision on Franchi’s part, as most serious riflemen prefer to make their own trigger adjustments. There was a tiny amount of take-up on the front end of the pull, and out of the box, the test rifle’s trigger broke at slightly more than 4 pounds (though I’m not attesting that my trigger scale is precision calibrated). If I owned this rifle, I’d immediately have the trigger adjusted to 2 pounds, which would likely help promote better accuracy. I can say with all certainty that my 224 Valkyrie Momentum includes a more pleasant trigger pull, so my nitpicking might be a one-off pertaining to this particular rifle.  

Buyers can purchase optional accessories separately, such as replacement TSA recoil pads, allowing length of pull adjustments, and large- and small-capacity box magazines.

The Momentum Classic Walnut Elite was topped with a proven Burris TR-15 3-15x 50mm riflescope for testing, mounted in sleek Warne Mountain Tech four-screw rings. The TR-15 is an exposed, locking-turret riflescope with a frog-hair-fine First Focal Plane (FFP) reticle. That reticle is my favorite feature, as it allows precision work, though at lower magnifications it all but disappears. It includes a wedge-marked side parallax wheel. It is quite compact for its capabilities and for a scope with a 30mm tube. Other than the eye-alignment difficulties already mentioned (which were no fault of the optic), this should have been a great Western big-game pairing for this rifle. I’m pretty certain the objective bell of this scope would touch the front of the Picatinny rail if mounted in lower rings. As tested, with scope and suppressor, the rifle weighed 9.98 pounds.   

Franchi test fires and certifies minute-of-angle accuracy before each rifle leaves the factory. Franchi then provides a testing certificate with each rifle. To test that guarantee, I gathered six factory loads from Hornady, Nosler and Sierra, which included bullet weights from 130 to 150 grains. Loads included modern polymer-tipped bullets like Hornady’s SST (Superformance), ELD-X (Precision Hunter), Sierra’s Tipped GameKing (GameChanger) and classic soft-points such as Hornady’s InterLock (American Whitetail), Nosler’s Solid Base (Whitetail Country) and Partition (Custom Grade). Three of those loads missed the 1-MOA mark by small margins, while three easily clustered into sub-1-MOA groups. Hornady’s 145-grain EDL-X Precision Hunter loads bettered the 1-MOA guarantee by a wide margin.  

Having very limited experience with the venerable 270 Winchester, my handloads consisted of fairly random charges of modern, temperature-stable powders and various load manuals’ “most accurate loads,” which often involved “legacy powders” such as IMR-4350. Monolithic copper and polymer-tipped or VLD-style long-range lead-core bullets were represented. I set up each bullet with two powders/loads, cherry-picking the best results after the smoke cleared. One long-for-caliber monolithic bullet performed so poorly that it was eliminated altogether, likely the result of insufficient rifling twist/bullet stabilization. Another lightweight copper slug failed the 1-MOA test, but not by much. The loads listed in the handload load table are the highlights of that shooting, the best resulting from Federal Premium’s 136-grain Terminal Ascent and 59.5 grains of Vihtavuori N560.    

Each Franchi rifle comes with a 7-Year Warranty, including repair or replacement of any defects in workmanship or materials to the original purchaser, and only through an authorized dealer. Registration and proof of purchase are required.

Out of curiosity and thinking in terms of a pure hunting rifle, and not assembling benchrest groups on paper, I mounted a Meopta Optika5 MeoPro 2-10x 42mm PA with covered turrets, 1-inch tube, side parallax, plain plex reticle, crystal-clear glass and oversized control surfaces. Paired with lower Warne four-screw, 1-inch rings, the objective bell just cleared the front of the Picatinny rail and the chunky ribbed-rubber magnification ring, the rail rear, while also providing an edge-to-edge view at the highest magnification and a satisfying cheek weld. Problem solved. 

The Franchi Momentum Classic Walnut Elite in 270 Winchester, paired with a scope in this class, would make a fine big-game combination, whether guarding a patch of whitetail hardwoods from a stand or blind, or stalking high country in pursuit of mule deer or elk. It is a completely practical hunting rifle, but it is designed to elicit plenty of envy in camp with its handsome good looks. The walnut on this rifle is truly stunning, offset by a flawless Cerakote finish that really pairs quite well.