Gun
 

Looking into a new gun. Left handed tikka t3 lite in 300 win mag. Any thoughts? And the only other gun I own is a ruger m77 hawkeye 30-06. Will the 300 be a better rifle?

It'll do everything a little "better" than the '06...but maybe is not necessary. What do you typically hunt?
-Jake

Deer and elk sometime antelope

You can never have too many guns, but your 06 is all you need for what you're hunting. The Tikka is a nice rifle, but you'll only gain distance that you may not need and generally more recoil unless you put a brake on it.

Like the others said, for what you hunt, the venerable 06 is all the cartridge one needs for anything 400 yards and in. It will actually perform just as well as a .300wm out to that distance. It's AFTER 400 yards that the .300wm will outshine the 06. So, unless you are into long range hunting out past 400 yards, the only things you are gaining is recoil and ammo cost.

A 300 WM will not handle light bullets or reduced loads as well as a 30-06.

I use both cartridges and find that where a 300 WM shines is with heavier bullets. I often use bullets that weigh between 150 and 180 grains in a 30-06 but in the 300 WM it is always either a 180 and 200 grain bullet for me. The heavier bullets are very useful for thumping larger game (elk and larger). The 300 WM offers a little more range than a 30-06 but I doubt if you will get much benefit from that in a factory rifle with a light weight barrel. For practical purposes I doubt if you will gain more than 75 yards in real world situations, but you will certainly gain some recoil

The Tikka is not my cup of tea but most guys that own them are very happy with them. They seem to be good solid hunting rifles, as is the Ruger. I like the factory trigger on the Tikka much better than the factory trigger on the Ruger, but of course the Ruger trigger can be improved significantly either by a gunsmith or with an aftermarket trigger. Neither rifle is a perfect choice for a true long range rig, but both are fine hunting rifles.

As far as the Tikka. Mine (in 30-06) has become my favorite rifle. I've owned Ruger 77s and although they are good rifles, the action of the Tikka is much slicker. The 300 win mag is a lot of cartridge for what you're hunting. And unless you plan on going after bigger game someday I'd say why not go down in caliber. I hear good things about the 270 WSM and of course the 270 Win is a proven game getter.

Will the 300 be a better rifle? So...

Are you asking if the Tikka is a better rifle than the Ruger Hawkeye?

OR...

Are you asking if the 300win mag is a better cartridge than the 30-06?

The Tikka isn't a better rifle, in my opinion. Not really worse, but not better either.

The 300win mag isn't a better cartridge really either. Not really worse either, but not really better - especially if you're shooting factory ammo. With 150-180grn pills in most factory loads, you won't see any more than a 100-150yrd difference between the two, and that gap only really starts to matter after 1,000yrds.

So for my money, I'd look at more ammo, better scope, or hunting tags, rather than another rifle.

Unless, of course, you just want another rifle... :fighting0007:

Sounds to me like you need something more like a .223 (.22-250 / .243).

Maybe even a AR platform in .223/5.56.


You already got big game covered with your .30-06 !!! :fighting0007:

I own and love my Tikka in .223 !