Tikka vs Ruger
 

Which is (on average) the most accurate rifle,a Tikka T3 or a Ruger M77?

I'm in the middle of a debate at another site and I want to see what a different group of people think. Thanks for your help.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Tikka!

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

the shooter

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

IMO Not enouph to quarrel about, I shoot Rugers and a cousin shoots Tikkas, both or accurate rifles, Its a matter of what you like.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Out of the box I'd say Tikka. Especially since they have great, user adjustable triggers. I do like Rugers too... as a matter of fact I just bought my wife a Ruger a few weeks ago. In the end, both are good products.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Honestly, a huge chunk of the whole "accuracy" thing can be laid squarely at the shooter's feet.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

No offense guys. I appreciate all responces but I think we all understand that the shooter makes the most difference. However lets concentrate on the firearm here. There are differences.

[Deleted]
 

[Deleted by Admins]

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

They hired a very good custombarrel maker to start building barrels in house. I think his name is Bill Atkinson but not entirely sure. Their barrels are very good, in fact about a year ago they had John Ratzenberger(Norm ofCheers fame) tour their plant, the barrel machinery and area looked like an operating room. Their trigger on the other hand could be detrimental to accuracy unless tuned. All in All if I am looking for a rugged gun that will always go bang I would pick the Ruger. The Tikka has a better trigger pull(Rugers is simpler and more rugged)and possibly a betterbarrel since Sako barrels are extremely good barrelsbut that would be the extent of it.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Man, I have seen some awesome Rugers and some terrible ones. I have seen some wonderful old Tikkas and so so new ones.

I would pick a serious gun IMO with a serious bolt and not all the plastic.. The Ruger hands down.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Okay, Okay, Okay

Based on the things that I have seen and heard, a Tikka will usually outshoot a Ruger.

However, faced with the proposition of buying one over the other,I would opt for the Ruger. That's just my own personal preference.

You could write 10 pages dealing with all of the things that people dislike about Ruger rifles. Bill Ruger's brand of personal politics, investment casting, Ruger's crazy ideas concerning how to mount a barreled action into a stock, the finish on their wood, some of their barrels, and probably a few things thatI haven't even heard about.

Beretta, as well, has some knocks against them. Once upon a time, some Sako and Tikka rifles literally came apart in people's hands upon firing. It is hard to remember the exact details, butI think that the problem had to do with the way that their stainless steel actions were manufactured. Tikka rifles do have an overabundance of plastic on and in them. They are made by a bunch of foreigners. ((They took our jobs!!! Blah, blah, blah, prattle, prattle) You probably don't watch South Park, but that was a good episode)

In conclusion, it is my opinion that a Tikka rifle will usually outshoot a Ruger. I'll still buy a Ruger. I guess that I'm retarded for Ruger rifles

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

I quess you could say some Tikkas shoot as good or better than Rugers, But I think the Rugers biggest proplem is the trigger, meaning that the Tikka is probably easier to shoot more accurate. I did the trigger on this one myself and it has a AccurateInnovations stock on it It shoot sub moa.
http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g184/Morgan5_2006/rifle_0151resized.jpg

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

I have two Tikkas (.243 & .30-06) and one Ruger 77 MKII. Both Tikkas were great right out of the box. You just can't beat the trigger! The Ruger shoots real well now that the barrel has been freefloated and the trigger replaced with an aftermarket (Dayton Trister). At this point I'm not sure the difference between the Tikkas and the Ruger are the rifle or me.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Yea, I quess your ability to shoot one well ( if its an accurate rifle) has a lot to do with the confidence you have in that particular rifle. Ive seen my cousins Tikkas shoot very very well with factory ammo, probably could do better with some good hand loads. Ive never held one with a wooden stock, and I am a wood person, I dont like the plastic on either brand.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

All the rugers that I have owned were great rifles after some trigger work.All the tikkas that I have been around ( never owned one ) were ok and after some trigger work they were -- ok. Take the ruger any day.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Tikka.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Tikka out of the box with a quality scope and premimum ammo with outshoot any rifle for the price and a whole lot more several times their price.

Not only is their floating barrel superior (it's the same barrel as Sako), the adjustable trigger assembly is far better (smoother, no slop), well designes and excellent quality manufacturing. What other rifle at the price is test fire for 1" group of shots at 100 yards at the factory?

"Plastic"?! Nearly every manufacturer offers synethetic and/or composite these days. For those who want their rifles that take hard use to hold up in only makes sense. By the way DoD has companies make high performance jet fighters and bombers partly out of synthetic and composites. You can drive a nail (figuratively) with a synthetic stock. That is not a bad thing!

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

I lean more towards American products and guns. Rugers though are hit and miss in the accuracy dept in my experience. Plenty of other American firearms though. A Savage, out of the box, will outshoot both of them.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

If you want to pull the rifle out of the box and not have to worry about adjusting the trigger, free floating the barrel, and awesome accuracy, get the Tikka. Rugers have been a hit and miss type deal for alot of guys. I personally have owned 2 Ruger M77MKIIs, and neither was less than a 1.5MOA gun. On the other hand, I have a buddy that bought a used M77 with the tang safety in 243 and it will make a ragged hole at 100 yards with any ammo you put in it, and another buddy owned a M77KII in 25-06 that would put 3 under 1" all day long.

I prefer the M77 action to the Tikka, as I love the way the Ruger locks up. Both actions are smooth as glass, and I really don't think you could make a bad decision between either gun. Another nice thing, both come with scope rings.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

That may be the first time I've ever seen the Ruger action described as "smooth as glass". The ones I've owned, including the current one, haven't come close to being "smooth as glass". Rough as 60 grit sandpaper would be more accurate.

Nevertheless, quick cycling of thebolt is not a majorconcern of mine because of how and what I hunt.So, rough bolt or notI like Rugers. However, in my experience with them they are not typically as accurate as Tikkas. I was once embarrassed at the range by a guy (from Trinidad of all places) shooting a bone stock Tikka .300 Win mag with factory ammo. His groups were about half the size of what I was doing with my bedded Sako shooting meticulously prepared handloads. It was a humbling.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

I think you may be the first person to say a Ruger action is not smooth, at least the first I have ever heard. If you are talking 60grit sandpaper and a bolt action rifle, I think you meant to refer to Savage......

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Nope, though you could probably say that of Savage also, at least the ones I've handled (never owned one).

Now maybe I've been spoiled somewhat by some of my other rifles, the Sakos and pre 64 model 70 for example, but there's no way the Rugers I have owned come close to being described as glass smooth and that goes double for the one I own right now. It's considerably rougher than anything else I've got.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

To those who think "Savages will out shoot them both": Are Savages test fired at the factory to make 3 shots within 1" at 100 yards? Tikkas are. I have 2 of them. With a high quality scope, the solid rings that come with the Tikkas and Premium factory loads I shot within 1" at 200 yards on a rest with the .300 WM and at 100 yards sub 1" groups with no other adjustments gunsmithing done to them out of the box. You may be able to match that with a Savage, but I doubt you'll "out shoot that".

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Actually it’s 5 shots within 1” group at 100 yards for both Tikka and Sako...:eek:

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

All the more testimony to their accuracy! :D

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

They are both pleanty accurate so just pick the one you like the best.....Personally, I would pick the Tikka for the trigger. Regards, Rick.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Sparks you've got to be from Wisconsin... "frozen tundra" and "even if the Tikka shot more accurately, I'd still buy the Ruger"!?!?

What thae Hey?

So many posts I read about Rugers are qualified by "after I replaced the trigger assembly" or "had it rebedded". That's not "out of the box" accuracy. You could probably buy just about any rifle and put enough custom work into it and have an acceptable or possibly even pretty accurate rifle.

You get a high quality rifle, very accurate, reasonably priced, well designed, smooth action, smooth trigger, etc. etc. "out of the box" with a Tikka. No kidding, no replacing this or that. The choice is clear to me and a whole lot of other Tikka owners. The head man at a gun shop I bought 2 from in the last 3 years told me they sell more Tikka rifles every year than any other firearm brand or type (handguns, shotguns, rifles). That says a lot to me.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

This pretty much sums up what I say as well. I came here and started this thread because I had a clan of Ruger lovers all over my @$$ at this one particular website. All of them talking about how Ruger made just as accurate a rifle as Tikka. Problem was that when you got them nailed down to specifics they had replaced the factory trigger with a custom trigger, free floated the barrel, glass bedded the action and worked up a custom handload specific to that rifle. Well I'm sorry. That's not a rifle that Ruger made accurate. That's a rifle that you made accurate.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

I just bought a tikka a few months ago and still haven't got it to shoot to my expectations yet.
Did have a ruger in 260 that would shoot and just bought a used one in 7 mag that will shoot.Haven't figured out what is wrong with the tikka yet,but have tried many different loads and bullets in it.The only thing done to the rugers was adjusting the triggers to 3 lbs.
Below is the 260 ruger and 7 mag ruger and last the tikka anyone want to buy tikka ???

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Herman, great groups.

Seems like since Al invented the internet that group sizes have been going down down down . Maybe its my imagination. I don't see a lot of people shooting Tikkas but when they do I take notice and I am not seeing these great groups everyone raves about, I see groups one would be proud of at times but see the same with a number of comparable makes. .They are generally good rifles if you can get past the plastic magazine and floorplate and the plastic bolt end cover. Found out the other day this thing is not even needed since the bolt shroud is metal and apparently works well. I think a guy at another site cracked his by using a bore cleaner or degreaser or something along those lines. My question is a.) why make a cheap bolt cover ..how much money do you save b.) why make a plastic triggerguard and magazine ? If they made the durn things out of metal as well as the triggerguard and magazine there is a very good chance 1 or more of them will find their way into my gun safe. Maybe someone should contact Beretta and tell them this(have fun trying).

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Had a T3. Traded it for a stainless A-Bolt. Never looked back. I hate all the plastic especially the clip. Just feels like a cheap gun. Always heard the accuracy was good though. Personally I would pick a good ruger.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

First, I want to make it clear that I'm talking about Tikka model T3. This is nearly completely remodeled firearm. What some of you are describing might have been some characteristics some years ago, but they don't resemble the T3.

As I said before "plastic" is what they make tupperware and little toys out of. Tikka's aren't made of "plastic".

Some parts on Tikka are synethic and/or composite. TheUS militaryincorporates many synethic and compositeparts in many weapons systems.Composites and synthetic can and usuallyare made as strong as or stronger by weight than metal. Synthetics can be madeto resist solvents. Synthetics don't rust or corrode. They take significant rough useshowingless where than their traditional counterpartsSo, please spare those cheap shots about Tikka's T3 made out of material that won't stand up.

I can't say why the fellow with the pics had trouble getting good groups with what he "says is hisTikka.

I don't know what kind of scope he had on it. If it wasn’t a good quality or not properly mounted, you can't get any rifle to shoot tight groups. Also, not all standard factory ammo shoots the same out of every rifle.Don’t know the conditions, he was shooting under.

I have Nikon Monarchs on both my Tikkas .300 WM and .30-06. With Premium Winchester ammo I've shot consistently 1 MOA and less at both 100 and 200 yards with mine. That’s what they test shoot Tikka T3 at the factory to insure they’re capable of doing going out the door, provided the operator is capable of it.

They are a very popular a rifle in the U.S. for many reason. One of the most important is that they ARE accurate.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

First off I wasn't knocking tikka or anything else,I have many rifles in winchester,remington,browning and savage.Some shoot very good out of the box some didn't.I was referring to the tikka I bought.
I have tried it with many loads that I reloaded myself,I very seldom even shoot factory loads.The tikka has been tried with different scopes like Burris signature,nikon,and lepould.The group in the pic wasn't the best group I have shot with it,it was the group I shot at the same time as I did the ruger.But the best group wasn't as good as I wanted it.
For mr. minnfinn I am very capable of shooting tiny groups,if the rifle will shoot them.Maybe I can get you to come down and give me some lessons.I usually shoot one to three days aweek.
This is not the first tikka that I have shot,a fellow at the range let me shoot his tikka varmit in 308 a couple weeks ago and I shot four 3-shot groups at 100 yds and all four were one holers.He has 2 sakos and 2 tikkas in 300 wsm I have never shot the sakos or the tikkas much but have shot a couple one holers with his 300wsm tikkas,they shot better than his sakos.
Seriously I would like to get the tikka to shoot good,I like the feel and how it handles.But to me they are no better than the remingtons,brownings,and savage that I have.
Below is the first group shot after the scope was zeroed in with a out of the box browning useing factory ammo.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Sorry to hear you are having trouble getting yours to group well Herman. All I can tell you is that your experience is the exception that I have encountered and not the rule. Most people I know who own one report much better out of the box accuracy on average than they get with a Ruger, Winchester or Remington. Not saying that you don't sometimes get a good shooter with them or that they can't be made to shoot well but it's been my experience that it's much more hit or miss these days. And you very often have to work on their guns to make them shoot well. I have a Tikka in 25-06 and it will shoot 117 grain Hornady ammo amazingly well for a straight factory firearm. Three shots will generally land as below. And allmy friends and family that own a T-3 have all foundtheirs to be just as accurate.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Can't tell you Herman why you're having problems. The target you were shooting seemed rather odd. Where's the aiming point reference, grid, etc.?

All I say is don't judge Tikkas as a whole by your one experience.

For those who were asking about examples of Tikka's T3 accuracy by objective testers. The F&S article tester shot "average group size was .880 inch; the smallest went into .330 inch".
Here are a few. The one article also speaks to what some of the synethic parts are made of.
Excerpts from F&S article: http://www.ozarkguns.com/rifles/tikka/tikka_FS_review.htm
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQY/is_4_50/ai_113853244

Google Tikka T3 and you'll find many more.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

I don't care what the parts are made of they aren't steel and no convincing on your part is going to make people that don't like that feature buy them. Have you ever heard of a steelbolt shroud or "bolt cover" break on a conventional rifle ? I'll bet not but I know of at least 2 people that have had that happen. One used to post here and there is a thread on 24hourcampfire talking about this same problem. A lot of people don't buy glocks because they are plastic/polymer and I don't like them for that same reason as well.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Polymer parts haven't been an issue in 3 seasons of hunting for me. No one else I personally know has had a problem either. I did read the guys post at 24 campfire but he got some type of bore cleaning solvent on his that caused it to become brittle. I disassemble my rifles for cleaning and can't imagine that happening. Hell, most of that stuffs bad news for almost any type surface except the one it's intended for. Honestly for 99 percent of the people in this country I doubt seriously that they would ever have a problem with a Tikka part.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

No dispute on that whatsoever..they have excellent barrels,excellent synthetic stock and are put together the right way.

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

Tikka for me, no contest. purely on quality control issues. Ruger still seem to be suffering from a dodgy reputation with regards to getting a lemon. some are great, some are not. most need trigger work. the skinny polymer stocks don't feel right ( for me, that is. but i note with interest that a Hogues stocked ruger is now available in australia, which may solve my stock reservations). it's a shame, because i want something in a classic cartridge - either 257 roberts, or 7mm x 57 - and bill's mob are the only ones who chamber those rounds in reasonably priced rigs. but i just don't feel like the odds of getting a keeper are high enough. if they can regain the reputation for accuracy, i'll spend the money. ( anecdote: early this year, a lad at our local range purchased a new Ruger No1, only to discover that the chamber was out-of-round! the damn thing was oval! it was rectified by the importer - dare i suggest that they probably just reamed it out, creating an oversize problem -, but those sorts of happenings destroy reputations in a field where precision is everything ).

tikka's biggest advantage is that they can truthfully claim to use Sako's know-how and quality processes, in a "budget" priced setup. sure, you get polymer where steel would be preferable, but they still largely shoot great. I have a Tikka T3 Varmint in 22/250, and it shoots 5 into 1/2 MOA regularly with handloads with no mods to the rifle at all.

of course, all things are relative. if leo is about to chewmy arm off, andi need guaranteed extraction ofmy 458 lott, the ruger ( or even better, the CZ) suddenly seems more appealing. pick your usage, then pick your rifle.

PS - to all those who posted Ruger, coz they're american made, i'm still pissing myself laughing. the rest of the world is still out here, you know. cheers .;)

RE: Tikka vs Ruger
 

[quote]ORIGINAL: oldelkhunter

Cliff actually. Get your facts straight man. It was Cliff Claven.[8D]