Bergara Premier CIMA Pro review: a featherweight carbon stalking rifle

Bergara has built a loyal UK following on a simple promise: real accuracy at a sensible price, with a catalogue of centrefire bolt-actions running from around £805 to £3,985. The new Premier CIMA Pro sits near the top of that ladder, and it stopped me in my tracks on the stand at the 2026 Great British Shooting Show, all exposed carbon fibre, a splatter-effect finish and a clean, modern outline.

What matters most here, though, is the weight, or the lack of it. Unscoped, the CIMA Pro tips the scales at just 2.6kg/5.6lb, and the first time I lifted it I was struck by how readily it came to the shoulder. I set out to test it the way a stalking rifle should be tested, in the field over several outings after muntjac, to see whether a rifle this light could still shoot. Prices quoted are RRP at the time of publication and may since have changed.

Build and first impressions

Handling the CIMA Pro for the first time, the standout is how little there is to carry and how well the little there is has been made. I could see only the faintest signs of use, most likely from its spell on the show stand, which suggests I was among the first to shoot it. Fit and finish are excellent throughout, and the whole rifle gives off an air of quiet quality rather than showroom flash.

The CURE carbon barrel

Starting at the sharp end, you get a muzzle brake, which makes sense on a rifle this light, though I suspect almost every UK owner will swap it for a moderator on the 5/8-24 UNEF thread. I fitted a Wildcat Evolution and, even at 440g, the balance point at the front of the bolt barely moved, bipod and all. The barrel itself is one of Bergara’s CURE carbon-fibre units, which weave stainless-steel strands through the carbon to draw heat away. This Cold Bore Technology is designed to keep the point of impact steady as the barrel warms, and although the barrel is light it looks and feels like a fairly heavy, straight profile. It measures 20in long and 21mm at the muzzle, is free-floated all the way back to the reinforce, and wears a 1:10in twist in this .308 Win.

Action and bolt

The Pro uses Bergara’s Premier Gen II action, a receiver machined from 416 stainless steel and given a titanium-coloured Cerakote finish across all the steel parts. To shed mass, Bergara has skeletonised the action and opened the ejection port out to 72mm. The top is drilled and tapped for Remington 700-pattern bases or a Picatinny rail, like the one fitted here, and the area is relieved to make top-loading easier. The bolt is a treat, with a spiral-fluted body and a 60mm handle topped by an enlarged, knurled knob. Rather than a plain two-lug head, it carries a floating bolt head for full contact with the action’s abutments, a 90-degree lift, twin ejectors and a healthy extractor.

Trigger, safety and feed

The trigger is often the making of a rifle, so Bergara’s choice of a TriggerTech unit is a real win. I have run one on my own Bergara for years, and it is every bit as good as its reputation suggests. The single-stage trigger on the test rifle broke at 3lb 15oz and adjusts easily from 1.5 to 4lb with an Allen key. The two-position safety moves forward for fire and back for safe, leaving the bolt free to cycle either way, and a tactile cocked-action indicator sits on the shroud. To keep the weight down, feed is from a hinged floorplate rather than a detachable magazine, which at least means there is nothing to lose in the field; the .308 test rifle held five rounds.

Stock and handling

The foundation of the CIMA Pro is its autoclave carbon-fibre stock, finished in a textured tan-and-cream spiderweb splatter. The autoclave process, borrowed from aerospace and motorsport, achieves a very high fibre-to-resin ratio, so the stock is astonishingly light yet impressively stiff. Where many light stocks feel hollow or ring on firing, this one inspires real confidence. The forend runs 15in from the trigger-guard to the tip, with plenty of room for sticks and your hand, twin sling studs and a subtle finger groove on each side. The grip is a traditional, gently raked shape that suits a thumb-up or thumb-wrapped hold. The 13.5in length of pull, including the 1in butt-pad, was a shade short for me, and the standard comb sits a touch low under a modern scope.

Accuracy and in the field

Light rifles are not always easy to shoot well, because less mass means more felt recoil, so my aim was to see whether the CIMA Pro would meet its sub-MOA guarantee with hunting ammunition rather than match loads. The rifle came with a ZCO ZC Hunter 1.7-12×50 scope and a spread of Hornady non-toxic ammunition. I began with the 125-gr ECX, which shone at 100m, printing two back-to-back three-shot groups under 0.448in at 3,000fps and 2,507ft/lb. Group sizes and recoil both climbed with the 150-gr ECX and 165-gr CX, out to 1.2in (1 MOA) and 1.9in (1.675 MOA), so two of the three non-lead loads made the grade and one did not. Because carbon barrels can shift as they cool, I rechecked zero with the 125-gr load before heading in after muntjac, and the CURE barrel passed with flying colours as the Pro accounted for two bucks.

Strengths and weaknesses

Strengths

• Genuinely light at 2.6kg/5.6lb unscoped, yet rigid and confidence-inspiring
• Superb single-stage TriggerTech trigger
• Sub-half-inch groups at 100m with Hornady 125-gr ECX
• CURE carbon barrel held its zero as it heated and cooled
• Quality action with a floating bolt head and a slick 90-degree lift

Weaknesses

• At £2,980 it is a serious investment
• Low comb and a short 13.5in length of pull did not suit me
• Heavier .308 bullets opened the groups up and lifted felt recoil
• A hinged floorplate rather than a detachable magazine will divide opinion

Verdict

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the CIMA Pro. It is accurate with the right ammunition and about as handy as a rifle gets, earning an overall 84/100 across handling, accuracy, trigger, stock and value. Would I choose .308? Probably not: the 125-gr loads were lovely, but heavier bullets made it harder to shoot well, and the softer recoil of something like 6.5 Creedmoor makes far more sense in a rifle this light. If low weight is your priority and the price does not put you off, it is a genuinely brilliant thing to carry.