Christensen Arms Mesa first impressions and initial review

[FURMAN]

I am always interested in saving barrel life and components($). Yes the short mag boxes are a giant pet peeve of mine. This is not the 50s bullets are getting longer and so should the magazines.

 

[wannakillabigbull]

rfurman24: I've been very interested in the Mesa since it was announced. What are your thoughts on it compared to a Rem 700 Mountain rifle, or a Winchester 70 Extreme Weather, or even a Tikka or Savage with an aftermarket B&C stock? Thanks

 

[FURMAN]

I think a 700 mountain rifle is a gamble. I owned one and it was awesome. I purchased it from Red Hawk rifles. I actually called back to order another in a different caliber and he had quit carrying them because accuracy was so hit and miss. I have a Tikka now and have had a few others. They are great rifles as well. With a B&C stock it will not be as light as the Mesa. The other issue with the Tikka is the very short mag boxes. If you don't want a magnum with longer bullets you'll be fine. I used to love Savages and have played with more than I can think of off the top of my head. The problem with the Savages are the aftermarket stocks are just too heavy unless you step up to a Manners or McMillan. I have never been around an Extreme Weather. I have thought about it a few times. I have said it before and I will say it again. I don't see the need to spend a bunch of money to shoot under 300 yds. If you want the ability to shoot a little farther I really feel some of the features on a slightly more expensive rifle are worth the money. The Mesa checks a lot of boxes for a relatively low price.

 

[danmayland]

Great write up! Thank you for sharing your insight on the rifle. It's to bad you can't run any of the bullets you mentioned out to the lands as I think you would see a remarkable difference in accuracy. I've got a Howa in 6.5 Creed and I picked up two of the Tikka 24" CTR 6.5 Creeds for my buddies. I had to modify my Howa action to accept AICS mags and I can run the Hornady ELDM's .010 off the lands. It's incredibly accurate and shoots .1-.2moa out to 1000 yards. The Tikkas shoot incredibly well also using the handloads for my Howa. They shoot about .5 moa. Then nice thing about the Tikka is no modification was necessary to run the Hornady eldms at the same length in a factory mag. I can run the Berger Hybrids in both guns. The Bergers .010 off the land shoot the best in my gun and consistently shoot single hole groups but they won't feed unless I really butcher my action. Not worth it considering it still shoots .3 moa on a really bad day!

Have you thought about running a DBM in this gun to get some extra length? Magpul hunter 700 is a great polymer light and affordable option. I put one in my buddies Remington action gun and was very pleased with it. It actually had metal pillars in the polymers at the action screw holes for proper torque


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[Danny1788]

Great write up! Thank you for sharing your insight on the rifle. It's to bad you can't run any of the bullets you mentioned out to the lands as I think you would see a remarkable difference in accuracy. I've got a Howa in 6.5 Creed and I picked up two of the Tikka 24" CTR 6.5 Creeds for my buddies. I had to modify my Howa action to accept AICS mags and I can run the Hornady ELDM's .010 off the lands. It's incredibly accurate and shoots .1-.2moa out to 1000 yards. The Tikkas shoot incredibly well also using the handloads for my Howa. They shoot about .5 moa. Then nice thing about the Tikka is no modification was necessary to run the Hornady eldms at the same length in a factory mag. I can run the Berger Hybrids in both guns. The Bergers .010 off the land shoot the best in my gun and consistently shoot single hole groups but they won't feed unless I really butcher my action. Not worth it considering it still shoots .3 moa on a really bad day!

Have you thought about running a DBM in this gun to get some extra length? Magpul hunter 700 is a great polymer light and affordable option. I put one in my buddies Remington action gun and was very pleased with it. It actually had metal pillars in the polymers at the action screw holes for proper torque


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Are you saying your rifle can shoot 1" to 2" groups at 1000yards? Because 1moa at 1000yards is 10" so .1moa-.2moa is 1" to 2" groups? Ummm Id really like to witness this........... I have many custom built rifles and regularly shoot to 1000yards, I have many rifles capable of shooting .2moa at 200yards and have groups to prove it but I've never witnessed anyone that is capable of shooting .1moa -.2moa at 1000yards with a factory rifle. Fclass Br shooters maybe but ive never seen it personally. Just asking for some real true to your comment.

 

[danmayland]

Are you saying your rifle can shoot 1" to 2" groups at 1000yards? Because 1moa at 1000yards is 10" so .1moa-.2moa is 1" to 2" groups? Ummm Id really like to witness this........... I have many custom built rifles and regularly shoot to 1000yards, I have many rifles capable of shooting .2moa at 200yards and have groups to prove it but I've never witnessed anyone that is capable of shooting .1moa -.2moa at 1000yards with a factory rifle. Fclass Br shooters maybe but ive never seen it personally. Just asking for some real true to your comment.

Long range shooting Howa 6.5 Creedmoor - YouTube
724 yards. Watch point of impact. Those two shots were an inch apart.

I've got a match Sunday and if conditions are right I'll get you a video of a three shot group at 1000+ yards. It's calling for rain so might not happen. I've shot a 2.5" 3 shot group at 1K. I never said my Howa was factory
The two Tikkas are.


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[danmayland]

Are you saying your rifle can shoot 1" to 2" groups at 1000yards? Because 1moa at 1000yards is 10" so .1moa-.2moa is 1" to 2" groups? Ummm Id really like to witness this........... I have many custom built rifles and regularly shoot to 1000yards, I have many rifles capable of shooting .2moa at 200yards and have groups to prove it but I've never witnessed anyone that is capable of shooting .1moa -.2moa at 1000yards with a factory rifle. Fclass Br shooters maybe but ive never seen it personally. Just asking for some real true to your comment.

If it weren't for that one A-hole...there's one in every group


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[Justin Crossley]

Then they are way off. They shouldn't market the weight it they are a quarter pound off. I thought the mesa would be a hit at 6.5 pounds. That kind of stuff aggravates me.

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The one that I'm reviewing in 300wm is 2.4 oz heavier than advertised. Their website says 7.3 lbs. which is 116.8 oz. and mine weighs 119.2 oz.

Not too bad but still a little more than advertised.

 

[FURMAN]

Yes, but I always saw under-promise and over deliver. It is still a decent weight.

 

[FURMAN]

How is yours shooting, Justin? I have not seen any groups from it.

 

[Justin Crossley]

How is yours shooting, Justin? I have not seen any groups from it.

So far I'm seeing 1 moa groups from it with the cheapest ammo I could grab at my local sporting goods store. I ran 40 rounds through it to follow their break in procedure and will start hand loading for it soon. I've kinda been waiting because I have one of the new Sig Whiskey 5 scopes on the way for it.

 

[FURMAN]

I am looking forward to the review.

 

[Taonbacon]

Thanks for the review rfurman24, this is great. Between this and the review on long range only I'm thinking this is a very solid purchase for the money. I think they are going to sell a lot of these.

 

[Ryan7839]

Any update on this gun? I have been dragging my feet to order one in 7mm, waiting for more reviews!

 

[FURMAN]

I've been waiting for a calm day off work. This has been the windiest year I can remember in at least five or six years. I still need to do seating depth tests with the two combos I'm working on.


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[Scottyboy]

Great review! But, I'm going to be "that guy". I am going back and forth between the mesa and the tikka t3x super light. While I understand the tikka is not readily available for comparison...but it seems you know enough about tikkas to talk intelligently about them, so that being said..does the tikka super light do anything for you?

again I apologize for going off course on this topic and it's not meant to be a tikka topic - - moreso would a different rifle fill in the gaps where this one falls short type thing.

I'm going to go back and molest the mesa at my local shop tomorrow, but the tikka will still be on my mind

 

[FURMAN]

Great review! But, I'm going to be "that guy". I am going back and forth between the mesa and the tikka t3x super light. While I understand the tikka is not readily available for comparison...but it seems you know enough about tikkas to talk intelligently about them, so that being said..does the tikka super light do anything for you?

again I apologize for going off course on this topic and it's not meant to be a tikka topic - - moreso would a different rifle fill in the gaps where this one falls short type thing.

I'm going to go back and molest the mesa at my local shop tomorrow, but the tikka will still be on my mind

I may not be the best guy to ask due to me being very opinionated on what I want in a rifle. I think the Tikka Super light will be VERY popular and have no doubt it will be a great rifle. In a non magnum cartridge I would not hesitate to have a Tikka. I, however, can not warm up to tupperware stocks. I would have to swap the stock and that would add some weight and money. I also really enjoy rifles with brakes. I will say if your shots are going to be under 400 yards and weight is a primary concern the Tikka, being .5-.75lbs lighter would be the better option. You could spend the extra cash on optics or a big game tag. I personally feel the CA Mesa would be a better fit for me.

 

[Taonbacon]

This is again off topic, but has anyone had a chance to handle the Bergara B14? The "hunter" is supposed to be 6.8lbs and sub MOA. Non stainless barrel is a turn off, but around $900 could be solid competition for the Tikka's and Mesa. Any insights into their quality?

 

[FURMAN]

I am going to go ahead and wrap this up for now. I will most likely do a follow up later. The wind is not cooperating and I know a lot of people are waiting on my report. After spending some more time with the rifle nothing has really changed. I absolutely love it for the price. If you are not into long range hunting or don't need to take longer shots I do not feel you can get a better overall rifle. You can spend more money but the results will be the same. In my eyes the Tikka would be the closest competitor but its stock and short magazine hinder it. If you are after a cartridge that will not be limited by the Tikka magazine it may be a option for you for less money. This Mesa will be a great rifle for a majority of hunters. The 6.5 Creedmoor is very impressive. The trigger is one of the best hunting triggers out there. The brake makes this rifle a dream to shoot. I have had zero functional issues. The accuracy is impressive for a light contour barrel. I feel it would be even more accurate fully bedded. It is shooting two different factory loads under .5 moa for three shots and two different bullets in hand loads right at or under .5 moa. It will do better with a little more tweaking. I am disappointed it is over weight but it's still a great rifle to carry in the woods. The groups in the pictures are seating depth tests after doing an OCW test for powder charge. The 140 Berger Elite Hunter is under .5 and looks like adjusting another .005 could shrink the group. The 120 ELD-M was just over .5 moa with two different seating depths. If you are looking for a great all around rifle out of the box, with no tinkering, this rifle is going to be hard to beat.

 

[Dameon]

Thanks for the great review. I'm sold and saving up for one in 300 WSM.....unless I find a used LH Hoyt carbon spyder Turbo ZT. This seems like one heck of a deal for what your getting and has everything I could want in a mountain rifle. Even if it is over weight, it is still nearly half the weight of what I've been using.


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