Darwinism. Is Tikka the King

[k80Titus]

Tikka Tikka Tikka.

Price, Weight, Aftermarket upgradability, Out of Box accuracy, QA, Drop test

Any negatives? Old Euro Twist Rates, not CRF and Lighter trigger pull possibly

Anything beat it?

Thanks

 

[Southernfriedwerewolf]

Great discussion start
I have several REM 700s both precision and hunting - they work but their nothing special as far as actions go and certainly refreshed / upgraded since their born date

I’m trying a Tikka t3x , waiting to receive
And I have three Steyrs, 2 Scouts and one Pro Hunter in 30-06 so I guess I like European style rifles - heck I like all rifles, lol. not sure why many folks don’t use Steyr… maybe price?
I never see reviews , they’re the red headed step child for sure
Action and function features are nice and updated - locking bolt but still remove from rifle, short bolt lift with 3 locking lugs, lightweight - 6.5 pounds badger rifle, multi position safety, most are magazine fed,
hammer forged barrels and they shoot

The pro hunter I snagged from a dealer in Culver City CALI of all places, new close out for a deal

Cons ? Not many options for after market is any, certainly no pre fit barrels like tikka , what you see you get

 

[Mountainrancher]

Downsides to a tikka? The only downside in my opinion is it’s not made in America. I try to go American with as much as I can. The simple fact of the matter is there is not another rifle and/or action in the world that does/offers what a tikka does. I tried for a long time to not drink the tikka kool aid, but there’s just nothing wrong with them. Reliable, simple, great triggers, prefit barrels, plenty of stock options, 60 degree bolt throw, bolt locks on safe, integral rail for scope rings, plus the whole thing costs about 800 bucks.

 

[Southernfriedwerewolf]

700s Not refreshed I meant

 

[Cant hit em]

Some would say a con is they are all built on a long action.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

I’m not even a tikka fan and I have 3 of them. Not much else out there for the $$$ that is as reliable.

 

[CCH]

There is very little Darwinism when it comes to bolt action rifles. The trajectory has been towards reduced manufacturing costs and increased accuracy— shades of the Remington 721 and eventually 700 — the original economy rifle that stole tremendous market share from Winchester.

Tikkas are great, my brother in law has one of the first from the ‘90s as I knew he wasn’t a gun guy, and was confident he’d have a light, reliable, accurate rifle in his chosen cartridge of .270. I wasn’t wrong, but have yet to think it’s the ultimate in any sort of evolutionary chain.

When you contrast evolutionary theory with economics, I suspect you might end up at different branches. Tikkas are definitely good, but what if they weren’t European or gasp! just a U.S. made Ruger American?

 

[Rob5589]

Slow (ish) twist rates; short on coal if running a magnum with longer bullets. Other than those, I have nothing negative to say about mine. The longer action lends itself to using longer coal's with standard sa rounds. I do with one of my 7/08's with a simple la bolt stop and la mags.

 

[vonb]

I grew up on Remington and they still feel best in my hands. However, I’ve owned Remington, Ruger, Winchester, Savage, Tikka, Mauser and Sako. With that said, hands down, the Tikka is what I reach for 9/10 times.

Nothing compares to the smoothness of the bolt and the trigger out of the box. Accuracy is top shelf with nothing needed. Others needed something.

 

[rifletuner]

I love Tikkas, had a lot and still have a few. Coned bolt really helps feeding. Lack of CRF is a non issue in almost all cases. My only gripe is the recoil lug. If it had an integral lug it would be about perfect. I guess the other issue is any cartridge bigger than a 30-06 or WSM is getting to be a single feed proposition with any kind of high BC bullet, so a full length action would be nice.

 

[ElPollo]

I love Tikkas, had a lot and still have a few. Coned bolt really helps feeding. Lack of CRF is a non issue in almost all cases. My only gripe is the recoil lug. If it had an integral lug it would be about perfect. I guess the other issue is any cartridge bigger than a 30-06 or WSM is getting to be a single feed proposition with any kind of high BC bullet, so a full length action would be nice.

Under what circumstances is the Tikka recoil lug a problem? I would suggest this is one of those things that we get used to having but never really ask ourselves why it matters. I also was raised on integral lugs, but have not experienced a single time when the Tikka lug system has failed. The action length is an issue if you need a long action magnum, but 99% of people frankly don’t.

 

[rifletuner]

Tha

Under what circumstances is the Tikka recoil lug a problem? I would suggest this is one of those things that we get used to having but never really ask ourselves why it matters. I also was raised on integral lugs, but have not experienced a single time when the Tikka lug system has failed. The action length is an issue if you need a long action magnum, but 99% of people frankly don’t.

I have seen some pretty beaten up lugs on Tikkas and it can cause accuracy to drop off. I dont think the aluminium lug in the current arrangement is great, and I usually swap them to a stainless aftermarket lug. I also think an integral lug is better for a switch barrel setup, which is how I use some of my rifles.

Not saying the recoil lug is a show stopper as I like the Tikka a lot, but its an area they could be improved.

 

[Rob5589]

Tha

I have seen some pretty beaten up lugs on Tikkas and it can cause accuracy to drop off. I dont think the aluminium lug in the current arrangement is great, and I usually swap them to a stainless aftermarket lug. I also think an integral lug is better for a switch barrel setup, which is how I use some of my rifles.

Not saying the recoil lug is a show stopper as I like the Tikka a lot, but its an area they could be improved.

Newer lugs are steel. The older aluminum did get peened pretty good. I replaced the one I have with steel.

 

[4th_point]

As already mentioned, some slow twist rates and skimpy max COAL for L/A.

Less common is bolt stop pin failure but that seems to only be with some competition shooters. In other words operating the bolt hard and fast for many cycles but there might be another cause like out of spec material for the pins.

Stray gas handling would be my main gripe though. With the original T3 there were numerous reports online of the plastic bolt shroud getting blown off and hitting the shooter in the face during a stray gas event. Some questioned the integrity of the plastic shroud, implying that the owners possibly damaged it during disassembly which is not crazy to suggest.

The fact that the plastic shroud got blown off is more telling though as the gas went straight back towards the shooter.

We just had a member of this forum get a face full of gas shooting factory ammo in a Tikka.

With the T3 or newer T3X, remove the bolt shroud and install the bolt in the locked battery position. Look down the left raceway. That is a potential gas path. Reinstall the shroud and examine how it will stop gas down that path.

There are at least two gunsmiths that I recall who said that they have seen T3 shooters sustain severe injury from stray gas events. Not catastrophic action failures which are a different topic. One lost an eyeball.

A local shooter had a stray gas event but fortunately he was wearing glasses. He got metal particles to the face which caused bleeding. Who knows if something would have hit his eyes if he didn't have glasses?

I've owned five Tikkas and totally get the fascination with them. Just wear glasses if shooting one, would be my suggestion.

 

[ETtikka]

Short answer is NO, tikka has almost put sako out of business, kinda ironic

Sauer 100 is closest thing for the price and I actually think it is an extremely well built gun for same $, but much less aftermarket stuff

 

[JGRaider]

I've owned five Tikkas and totally get the fascination with them. Just wear glasses if shooting one, would be my suggestion.

Thats ridiculous IME. Been shooting them since 1978 and never, not once have I had any blowback issues, broken shrouds, etc. They can't be beat by anything close to $750.

 

[Pharmseller]

They’re all I buy.



P

 

[ElPollo]

Tha

I have seen some pretty beaten up lugs on Tikkas and it can cause accuracy to drop off. I dont think the aluminium lug in the current arrangement is great, and I usually swap them to a stainless aftermarket lug. I also think an integral lug is better for a switch barrel setup, which is how I use some of my rifles.

Not saying the recoil lug is a show stopper as I like the Tikka a lot, but it’s an area they could be improved.

I replaced an aluminum lug on a t3 with a steel one once. It made me feel better about the gun, but it didn’t change the accuracy or reliability one bit. That gun is a 300 WSM and it still has the polymer cocking shroud and polymer floorplate and trigger guard. If I were to buy an old t3 now, I would shoot just shoot it until something didn’t work. I’ll wager I would go through enough ammo to buy a lot of guns before I had any problems.

 

[mapticon]

I've had multiple TIkka's in multiple calibers over the years. Profound value at that price point. Period.
Recently got a Sig Cross and I'm curious why more manufacturers aren't going this direction.
I'd buy a Tikka version of a Cross in a heartbeat.

 

[PNWGATOR]

I own Tikkas. They’re functional tools.

Blaser is the rifle I’d like.