It's your $300 - your tell us ?!?!


All my rifles that I have brought in the past 15 years have stainless barrels.

If the tikka is significantly better I would probably buy it.

Tough call. Both are very good rifles. Any particular reason you're down to these specific ones?

Stainless will be more rust resistant, but I personally don't like them for their reflective quality. In my opinion that makes stainless a little impractical for hunting. Others would tell you it doesn't make any difference, but I feel like I stand out like a sore thumb with a stainless barrelled rifle in hand. I've had whitetails spook on the glare off my glasses.

I once found some really good camo tape for things like that. It stuck pretty well even to gun barrels and wouldn't leave a sticky mess afterward. Wish I could remember what it was called - I haven't seen any in years.

To the OP: I'm a Weatherby fan personally, but I've heard a lot of good about those Tikkas. If your local store has both in stock, see if you can shoulder both of them to see which one feels better in your hands.

What is your overall budget? Including optics, ammo, bipod, etc...

I already have a nikon monarch 4-16x50 to put on it and I am looking to spend less than $1000 on the gun.

I want a gun I can hunt in any kind of weather and something that has a good trigger and also something very accurate right out of the box.

Never owned a Tikka or a Vanguard (own a few Weatherby's but they are from way before Howa was in the picture) but I have shot and held a few of both. The Tikka by far has a smoother action. And as far as factory triggers go, they are pretty dang sporty on both with the nod going to Tikka as well.

I'm a big Howa fan....BUT...the new Ruger American Predator in 6mm Creed with the 1/7.7" twist deserves a look!!!

I've never shot a Tikka, so I won't comment either way on them.