Tikka or Savage???
 

Im gonna but a smaller caliber ( .243, .25-06, or .308 ) rifle in the very near future. any thoughts on which brand ??? Theres not much difference in the price ..... Any thoughts?

Savage works for me, and works well. Though I'm sure Tikka shooters would say the same.

Having owned both a Savage 16 Weather Warrior in 270 WSM and a Tikka T3 Lite in .25-06, the Tikka is a little better gun, especially if they are priced the same IMO. The Tikka has an accuracy guarantee, a better trigger, has scope rings included, and has a much better stock(synthetic anyway).

The Savage has a good trigger but I just could not get used to the accu-trigger. The synthetic stock that was on my Savage was probably the cheapest synthetic stock I have ever seen. However, it is my understanding that Savage has improved their synthetic stocks recently. You can find a lot more aftermarket parts for the Savage as well if that is a consideration.

So it all boils down to which feels better to you, as it is your hard earned money!

If you plan to keep the rifle stock - Tikka. If you like to tinker, replace the trigger, barrel, etc. - Savage.

I just bought a .270 Tikka T3 lite. It's well made, and more accurate than my Remington or Browning. The only drawback with the T3 Lite, is that it's very light weight, for larger claibers. Perfect in .243. Short barrel for a .25-06. In .308 good for hunting, light for the shooting range. If you plan to shoot over 20 rounds at a time, I would get the T3 Hunter (walnut stock), or the Savage.

If the Savage has the accustock that is the way I would lean. I think they are two very good choices. A win/win either way most likely.

Lately the Savages seem to really shoot well for most owners and they weight in at around 6.5lbs which is pretty light like the Tikka.

+1 for the weather warrior


Here is what I have in .204


http://www.savagearms.com/firearms/model/16FCSS


Love it !!!

I feel them both out and then make up your mind.:fighting0007:

Thank you for all the responses. I must say that this is an excellant forum..... Responses are well stated and make sense. I should have stated that I was looking at both with Waknut stocks (I'm old school). Leaning towards the .25-06 or .308 right now. I would use it for deer and coyotes . I have to take a trip to Gander Mountain or Bass Pro I guess. Thanks again for reading and responding and please continue to respond as I can ALWAYS learn more!

Oh... I have always bought Leupold scopes but think I will try a Zeiss Conquest. Am I messing up?

Roll the -06 with either chassis...none better :D

I have a Tikka T-3 in 243 and it is the only gun I have that has never been to a gunsmith for any type of work. All my other guns, Browning BAR and A-Bolt, Savage MLII, Benelli M-1's and Thompson Encore have had at least trigger jobs. My Tikka has shot all ammo from cheap to premimun ammo sub MOA. The action is very smooth and fit and fininsh are good. The only bad part was a seam in the synthic stock and that was minor. My Savage ML with Accu-Trigger was another story. I hate the Accu-Trigger for hunting, great off the bench but for hunting it sucks. Fit and finish on the Savage was below average, I would grade a C-, the factory barrel was replaced by the factory once and I finally got an after market barrel and discarded the replaced factory barrel. Action on the Savage was sloppy.
If it were my call it would be Tikka all the way.

Tikka with Talley rings and (insert favorite scope here), don't look back. These guns are sleepers.... Superlight, this rig is under 6.5 lbs. Drop those factory rings. I'd go 270, which is between the 25-06 and 308. It would be like a heavier hitting 25-06 and a flatter shooting 308.

Thanks everyone for all the responses. Sound advice from all. Almost made up my mind on the Tikka. I have considered it in .270 but think I would prefer the smaller caliber to hone my marksmanship. I will only be using it for whitetails and hopefully a coyote or two

On a side note I did receive the scope I will be using today from Cabelas.( Zeiss 3-9x40 ) First departure from Leupold on any centerfire rifle for me.

I am also seeing a few Vanguard sporters out there. Anyone want to comment on those ( I would be interested in the 25-06 )

There are only 21 caliber choices available.....tough to pick just one!

I've never owned a Tikka and I wil never have another Savage as my personal hunting rifle. The only way I would buy another Savage is, if I thought I could make a good profit selling it. I love my rifles and I don't want one that looks cheap on the inside and out. I should also say that my Savage shot pretty good and I had success big game hunting with my Savage 30.06.

As stated in an earlier post, I owned a T3 Lite in .25-06. I thought I would mention a something for you to ponder that I should have stated in my first post.

IMO the .25-06 really performs best with atleast a 24" barrel. Tikkas have a 22 7/16" barrel. My .25-06 was always 50 to 150 fps or so slower than rifles from Ruger and Remington that had 24" barrels. I did not experiment as much as I would have liked with different load combinations, so it is possible I could have found a load that was faster.

I have a T3 Lite stainless in 7mm-08. All I can say is that it's a shooter and a dream to walk the mountains of PA with. As light as this gun is, in 7mm-08 the recoil is more than managable. My eight year old son has shot it and wants to continue shooting it everytime I go to the range. Dump the factory rings and put something decent on it, I went with Leupold rings and bases.

What exactly is lost by 2-3% velocity?

...............Ever see those decals on Jeep products..."It's a Jeep thing...You wouldn't understand...", byrd?? Since you admittedly don't reload rifle cartridges and strive for the ultimate load combo for your gun, the same statement applies to you...."It's a reloader's thing....you're not expected to understand"....

First off, I would never waste my money on anything Jeep. Maybe you could explain exactly what an "ultimate load combo" is, since you are the king of all reloaders. So far is appears the answer to the question is "not much". Unless you think you can explain 2-3%?

.................Just as I previously stated, you're not expected to understand. Again you prove my point.

Nice cop-out. Once again, you can't back it up. Tell us about your ultimate load combos.

"not much" is starting to sound like "nothing"

If you mean effectiveness on game, then nothing. However, had I wanted what were essentially 257 Roberts velocities, then I would have bought one instead.

................Good for you. You should probably buy one anyhow.... You argue with yourself a lot, don't you???

Thanks again to all.... Ordered a Tikka T3 Hunter in .25-06 this morning. Cannot wait until it gets here.

Any advice on optimum factory ammo????

Start with a box of Core-Snots and see what you get. Then move to some of the higher end stuff if you like. Federal TSX's are pretty sweet. Ignore wildman and huntr, they're too busy figuring out what "is" is.

.......and don't forget the friggin Talleys!

Like you really have all the answers?

I hope you have my post confused with vabyrd?

Why don't you offer the lad some of your vast experiences on all things 25-06?

The Federal Premium Vital Shocks with 117 grain Sierra GK's were very accurate in my .25-06. The Hornady 117 grain BTSP's shot within and inch of the Federal's.

Thanks for the suggestions... I am ready to squeeze off a couple of rounds

..............Oooops.....Sorry 'bout that.......

I'm sure he's curious, as I am, as to the performance of these compared to your handloads.

A 150 fps loss in velocity out of a .25-06 makes it a .257 roberts.
Understand ?

And you can tell the difference?

yes............................

Other than with a chronograph and a target that prints little low.

and the hole it puts in deer
once you get above 3k fps theres a noticable difference in the hole

This was over 2 years ago, so I don't have the actual #'s but here is what I can tell you. I was very happy with the Tikka accuracy wise, but at the same time disappointed with its speed. It would not duplicate the factory published numbers. My friends' Ruger M77 and Rem 700 would. In fact the Ruger, with its 26" barrel exceeded the published velocities. When we switched over to handloads the Tikka still lagged behind.

Based on these observations, it is my opinion that the shorter barreled Tikka is just slower. I have read on other reloading forums that Tikka and Sako barrels tend to run slower than some other makes. Why this happens I have no idea and like I said, had I played around more, I might have found a "speedier" load.

I have nothing against Tikka and would buy another in a heartbeat, in fact I looked at a .308 Win the other day but the shop would not budge on their inflated price.

So a 110 grain pill going 3,400 out of a 270 might get a little messy?


Can you switch to a faster burning powder or are you stuck with the 3% loss?