A few years ago, Dick Wright was about to do another interview article with Tony Boyer. On this site, he asked for questions. Mine was would he give up barrel weight for rifle balance? It made the article. The answer was yes. IMHO rifle balance trumps barrel weight, and based on conversations that I have had with more than one good shooter, I think that there is no disadvantage going slightly under five pounds at, say 21.5". I like to have a rifle balanced so that it will shoot well only touching the trigger, for those occasions that give an advantage to heads up picking, and I think that shooting truly free (as opposed to free except for...) places the highest demands on rifle balance and bag characteristics. If you want a larger diameter barrel, you might consider 20". I understand that, in the past, some very good shooting rifles have been built that way.