Let's See Your Semi-Custom Tikka Builds

[TwoTikkas]

That's bad ass. I like it!

 

[unclericco]

Thanks! Love my Tikka

 

[ReddingArcher]

Here's my Tikka T3x custom. It’s a 6.5 PRC, 26” 1:8 twist with titanium brake. McMillan game hunter stock

Daaaaamn that thing looks good!!

 

[AirborneEScouter]

Something sweet arrived in the mail today

 

[khuber84]

Here's my Tikka T3x custom. It’s a 6.5 PRC, 26” 1:8 twist with titanium brake. McMillan game hunter stock

Who's brake is that @unclericco?

 

[unclericco]

It’s made from a tube of titanium by velocity in Las Vegas. He I don’t think is making them anymore though because they are pretty hard on his tools. I’ve got one on my 28 Nosler also

 

[Bearded]

Nothing really even Semi about it. Other than paint. But don't see too many Lefty SUPERLites. A Sportsman's snag.

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Could you share the brands/colors of the paints you used? Sponged? That looks great.

 

[AirborneEScouter]

I should have just bought a custom action

 

[TwoTikkas]

Sarcasm? Pretty darn nice rig I'd say.

 

[AirborneEScouter]

Sarcasm? Pretty darn nice rig I'd say.

Half joking - the only thing that’s original is the action frame, and even that has a notched feed ramp. Sure looks good, just got it back so hopeful it’s a shooter

 

[wind gypsy]

Sarcasm? Pretty darn nice rig I'd say.

Half joking - the only thing that’s original is the action frame, and even that has a notched feed ramp. Sure looks good, just got it back so hopeful it’s a shooter

Depends how much you spend on them.. After having mine trued and recoil lug added, there isn't a ton of savings over a custom action. I'd say it depends on what chambering you're using and what you want for a stock/bottom metal. While the action length is great for medium length cartridges like short mags, there isn't an optimized bottom metal/magazine option available for hunting builds IMO. Here's to hoping Mike's mags are a home run!

 

[Formidilosus]

I’ve had a lot of custom actions. I’d rather have one based on a Tikka now.

 

[deadwolf]

I’ve had a lot of custom actions. I’d rather have one based on a Tikka now.

Seems a lot of people are choosing that path as well, can you explain how you got to that point?


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[HellsCanyon]

Oh boy what do we have here?!

Got a new stock in for review of the inletting... it’s NICE and the lines flow super well with the tikka action profile. No more retrofitted R700 stocks....

Mike


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[Downeaster]

SE

Oh boy what do we have here?!

Got a new stock in for review of the inletting... it’s NICE and the lines flow super well with the tikka action profile. No more retrofitted R700 stocks....

Mike


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SEXY!!!

 

[Lawnboi]

Oh boy what do we have here?!

Got a new stock in for review of the inletting... it’s NICE and the lines flow super well with the tikka action profile. No more retrofitted R700 stocks....

Mike


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Can’t wait to send you mine, looking good

 

[JWP58]

• Caliber: 300WSM
• Action: Tikka T3x
• Barrel: 24” Hells Canyon Armory (benchmark core) 1:9.5
• Stock: McMillan gamescout sporter fill
• Scope: Zeiss HD5 turret 3-15x42

• Caliber: 280AI
• Action: Tikka M695
• Barrel: 24” Obermeyer 5R sporter 1:9
• Stock: Factory
• Scope: Vortex viper HS 4-16x44 (due for an upgrade)

Any preference of actions? M695 vs the T3?

 

[Capt_Craig]

Nice

 

[Formidilosus]

Seems a lot of people are choosing that path as well, can you explain how you got to that point?
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Using stock R700’s and blueprinting/trueing then is out all together anymore. By the time you fix everything on them, you absolutely would have been money ahead and with a better gun to just get a custom action.


With the vast majority of custom actions that are based on the 700-

Adverse weather and adverse conditions reliability. Number one is the trigger. Almost all use Remington 700 triggers. Up until the TriggerTech and Tubb, reliability was suspect with any of them. Trigger failures are easily the #1 issue that plague bolt actions. Have a group of rifles out in windy dusty/sandy conditions and it is good odds that all of the guns that have trigger issues will be Remington 700 based.
Next is most customs are built more like a bench action than a field action. Blowing dust/sand will show a bunch of rifles that don’t work. Then there is extraction and ejection. Some try to fix weak extraction with a Sako style, but a lot don’t. In any case it’s mostly a bandaid.


Last, is smoothness during rapid bolt manipulation. Americans don’t generally do speed shooting with bolt actions, and therefor do not really have an appreciation for how slick an action is when ran fast. Most Europeans are sensitive to this however. Between some of their rifle sports and driven game hunting- actions that cycle smoothly and without hitches are almost a requirement. I’ve shot with foreign people that are shocked with how a lot of our “custom” guns feel and that we tolerate it. I agree with them. This is shown in how most of the rifles feel- Tikka, Sako, Accuracy International, Blaser, Sauer, etc. They are all easy to run very fast.


In the end- reliability and feel. There are very few actions that the manufacturer designed from the outset to make as reliable and bombproof as possible. The notable exception is ARC. The Mousingfield is a 700 footprint done right- except for the trigger. Combine the ARC with a Tubb, and possibly a TT and you start to have something. With smoothnezs of the action... most American companies just don’t even know it’s a thing.



Now why Tikka-

1). Trigger

2). Action

3). Barrel


Trigger- The Tikka trigger is extremely reliable with sand/dust/debris/ice/snow. This is a big deal to me because I’ve seen a lot of problems with triggers. I’ve had a partner have an ND at sniper school when his 700 trigger failed and fired when the safety was disengaged (Walker trigger”). I’ve had multiple mates/buddy’s have triggers locked up due to sand or debris on work rifles. I and a partner lost a major match because his very highly regarded trigger totally failed during the match. Not too long ago I was on a range with quite a few issues sniper rifles. 6-7 were Surgeons, Stillers, etc. A couple 700’s, a few Tikkas and a couple AI’s. In the desert and the wind picked up to 25-30 mph with blowing sand. Within a short time- less than an hour I think, somewhere around half of the guns with 700 based triggers failed. Locked up from the blowing sand. They had to be completely taken apart and blown out to get functioning again. The Tikkas and AI’s had no issues.


Action- the T3 is does well in adverse conditions. Finland does generally have “extreme” weather after all. Like the way an action feels- Europeans are less tolerant of rifle malfunctions. I’ve seen a bunch of shooters that after thier customs fail in bad weather, shrugg it off to needing to be cleaned. The Europeans don’t do that. As a whole they expect even “budget” rifles to work correctly every time.

They are one of the smoothest rapid bolt manipulation actions on the market. Combined with a center-feed, single stack mag, and you have an action that works like it’s on ball bearings. I believe in rapid bolt manipulations and running a bolt fast to be ready for a second/third/fourth shot and they are far and away better than almost all custom actions at this.


Barrels- From the factory they are generally very, very good. 6-7 years ago I had a dozen plus custom actioned 700 based competition rifles because they all had to have Brux/Bartlien/Hart/etc barrel to be competitive. With Tikkas is the barrel is chambered and twisted correct I just shoot the factory barrels until they’re gone.


If Tikka T3’s were introduced to the US this year and were $1,000-1,200 people wouldn’t bat an eye. But because they were brought over at $450-500 years ago, people act like they are budget guns.


I prefer Tikkas if the cartridge fits because it’s hard to name an action from any of the US makers that is actually better. They almost all use a 700 trigger, they almost all are not as tolerant of debris and sand, and almost none/none are as good during rapid bolt manipulation. If it’s a hunting rifle, the integral rail in conjunction with Sportsmatch rings is one of the strongest mounting systems made, while still giving a good cheekweld.

 

[deadwolf]

Thanks a bunch for the reply, really appreciate you taking the time to type all that out!


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