New rifle decision

[haywoodhunter]

Thanks for the replies so far, I expected to see the votes of confidence in the tikka 243 option.
Was not quite expecting the response to the vortex that im seeing. Im not claiming its unwarranted just bummed that it seems I've thrown away money by purchasing it. (Was under the impression it was at least serviceable for my use case).

Does shooting this old Rem 722 in .300 savage with a better optic make more sense than the tikka with vortex? Will be without a suppressor.

Also slightly disappointed in no love for the howa/krg bravo combo. That one got me excited to shoot/own. Admittedly I often stray from what's popular. Must be a middle child thing.

Seems like there’s some love here for a Howa barreled action and chassis. But not like the tikka.

Far as my input- I’ve never hunted elk but within the last year I’ve sold leupolds and vortex’s and bought trijicons and a tikka. The trijicon purchases were based largely on the testing here.

I had one vortex that I was able to demonstrate that it would put a shot/ two shots/ a few shots- to poa. Then the next shot/ two shots/ a few shots - would be 3 inches low at 60 yards (all the room I had to shoot the day I realized what was happening). Then it would be back to poa. And no I didn’t sell this one, I wouldn’t do that to anyone lol it went in the trash.

 

[Chris in TN]

Thanks for the replies so far, I expected to see the votes of confidence in the tikka 243 option.
Was not quite expecting the response to the vortex that im seeing. Im not claiming its unwarranted just bummed that it seems I've thrown away money by purchasing it. (Was under the impression it was at least serviceable for my use case).

Does shooting this old Rem 722 in .300 savage with a better optic make more sense than the tikka with vortex? Will be without a suppressor.

You can likely sell the Vortex and get most of your money back from it. Even here, on this site, people regularly buy and sell scopes that fail the drop tests. The majority of the shooting world ignores such stuff - whether it's a good idea or not. You can look around here and see plenty of people ignoring or even flaunting the drop tests as if their own personal experience with a handful of scopes from any given brand, carried more weight than the constant failures some brands show in drop tests. You have to make that decision for yourself. I have numerous didn't-pass-the-drop scopes that I am not swapping out anytime soon.....but I'd no longer take a Vortex on an out of state hunt. YMMV, of course. I did shoot an elk with a Viper PST. Like most things, they work fine until they don't.

I'd far and away prefer the old 722 with a better scope, than the Tikka with a Vortex.

I'd prefer the Tikka with a good scope *and* a can but at the end of the day if I didn't already have suppressors I guess I wouldn't know what I was missing.

 

[Tobe_B]

If I were buying a new rifle today for what you’re describing, I’d be doing the Howa mini 6mm ARC barreled action in a mdt lss chassis, topped with an NXS 2.5-10.

I have a Howa mini in the kryptic stock and it’s a good shooter, but the stocks not the best. My wife loves it so it stays as her setup. Mine is also the 22” barrel which may very seriously get chopped and rethreaded to 16”. Tikka also makes a sweet rifle, so you wouldn’t be going wrong there at all.

 

[IDVortex]

Build a 6ARC. upper and top the AR off with a SWFA.

Or get a Howa Mini Action in 6arc, choose your stock and still stick a SWVA on it.

6arc is light recoil, even series with a can, meets the 6mm restrictions, and can still kill at range.

 

[wheels291x]

Ill definitely be upgrading my optic, thats going to be my first priority. As stated (which absolutely makes sense) it wouldn't matter the rifle if the optic doesnt hold zero in a worst case scenario. The diamondback will either get sold or mounted to a mostly target rifle where if it gets dropped and loses zero the only thing I'll be out is a few rounds and a piece of paper. Excited to dive down the optics rabbit hole. (Already started and liking the NF Nx8, Shv and trijicon credo and Huron lines) any input on FFP vs SFP?

I had been quite interested in howas 6mm arc offerings. Was a little concerned about that round in a gas gun and liked the extra performance from the bolt guns.

The goal is to get something within the next few months and get very accustomed to it and increasingly proficient with it to be confident with a 400-500 yd max shot.

 

[coyotekilla]

It's not odd, they're reducing price to move inventory. If you're budget conscious, check out the Sauer 100 6.5 Creed from eurooptic

Ive handled those sauer's. Butter smooth and cheaper than a savage axis rn @ euro. I think the creed is $430, can't beat that deal with 2 sticks.

 

[wheels291x]

Ive handled those sauer's. Butter smooth and cheaper than a savage axis rn @ euro. I think the creed is $430, can't beat that deal with 2 sticks.

Ive seriously considered one. My only concern is lack of aftermarket support, as that is one of my reasons I was looking to upgrade. Although at that price it seems hard to go wrong.

 

[JD Jones]

I didn't pick it up out of the original post nor did I read all the replies. Trash the scope and if you have not purchased the suppressor- don't until you have a better optic.

 

[Q_Sertorius]

Ive seriously considered one. My only concern is lack of aftermarket support, as that is one of my reasons I was looking to upgrade. Although at that price it seems hard to go wrong.

What aftermarket support is needed for the Sauer 100?

 

[wheels291x]

What aftermarket support is needed for the Sauer 100?

Maybe need isn't the right word. Mostly I was referencing different stock options. More specifically a krg bravo. Although other than LOP it seems most are satisfied with the factory stock.

 

[Davyalabama]

Just sold my savage axis in .308 and T/C venture in .300 wm. Both were sold because I didn't love either of them and self admitted am a little recoil shy. (Knowing there's work ahead to cure my flinch) I'm looking into a new rifle that will fill a few roles. I have AR rifles in 6.5 grendel (12.5 inch) and 16 inch 5.56 as well as a remington 722 chambered in .300 savage.

The new rifle will be a deer (east tn)/ range/ elk gun (2026 wyoming out of state cow) and must be .243 or larger due to caliber restrictions. It will host a suppressor. Currently torn between a howa barreled action 16.25 inch 6.5 creed in a krg bravo stock or a tikka t3x lite 20" .243 1:8 twist threaded. Price difference is within 100 dollars. Scope I already have is a vortex diamondback tactical ffp 4-16. I am able to handload.

I know this is rokslide so most answers will likely sway towards the tikka. If I get the tikka its unlikely I'll be upgrading the stock other than a cheek riser and pistol grip. Both seem ballisticaly (is that a word?) sufficient for killing elk out to 500 yds which is plenty for me.

Ok, .308 is too much recoil? You want to kill an elk at 500 yards, you are asking a lot without true shot placement, to me. Yes, I'm sure elk have been taken at that distance with small cartridges, but...... You plan on shooting it suppressed, so that mitigates some recoil. I think you need to reconsider a 6.5 prc or a 7mm rem mag. A 7 mag. with a suppressor will have less recoil than an unbraked or suppressorless .308. Now, if you bring that 500 yards down to 300-350, possibly 400, possibly is key here, -----that would open up a lot more cartridges to really consider.

Scopes, me, I would consider buying used Swaro z5, old zeiss diavari, etc (German made), Trijicon, Meopta (don't sleep on these scopes), even a nightforce (heavier scopes, but built like a tank).

 

[Tobe_B]

Maybe need isn't the right word. Mostly I was referencing different stock options. More specifically a krg bravo. Although other than LOP it seems most are satisfied with the factory stock.

If stock and length of pull is of concern, how comfortable are you with the AR platform rifles you have? Most states require a 16” barrel length for hunting. You could build a 6mm ARC upper to go on your AR15, top it with an NX8, spin a suppressor on the end and be capable out to 500 yards. My current hunting rifle is exactly that. It’s super fun to shoot, easier to reload for, and has very little recoil at all.

 

[wheels291x]

Ok, .308 is too much recoil? You want to kill an elk at 500 yards, you are asking a lot without true shot placement, to me. Yes, I'm sure elk have been taken at that distance with small cartridges, but...... You plan on shooting it suppressed, so that mitigates some recoil. I think you need to reconsider a 6.5 prc or a 7mm rem mag. A 7 mag. with a suppressor will have less recoil than an unbraked or suppressorless .308. Now, if you bring that 500 yards down to 300-350, possibly 400, possibly is key here, -----that would open up a lot more cartridges to really consider.

Scopes, me, I would consider buying used Swaro z5, old zeiss diavari, etc (German made), Trijicon, Meopta (don't sleep on these scopes), even a nightforce (heavier scopes, but built like a tank).

. 308 is the upper end of recoil that I am wanting for this next rifle. 500 yds is an absolute upper end limit based upon my shooting goals between now and the hunt. If im not shooting moa at 600 yds with a very high consistency I'll back my range down to whatever it needs to be to make an ethical shot.

As far as caliber goes there seems to be plenty of evidence on the effectiveness of 6 and 6.5 mm cartridges in the non magnum variety being effective on elk at the 500 yd range when utilizing the right projectile.

Thanks for the advice on scopes. Im keeping an eye out on trijicon and nightforce scopes as well as some offerings from swfa.

 

[wheels291x]

If stock and length of pull is of concern, how comfortable are you with the AR platform rifles you have? Most states require a 16” barrel length for hunting. You could build a 6mm ARC upper to go on your AR15, top it with an NX8, spin a suppressor on the end and be capable out to 500 yards. My current hunting rifle is exactly that. It’s super fun to shoot, easier to reload for, and has very little recoil at all.

I like the ar platform. Ive probably shot more rounds through that platform than any other. Ive been diving into the ballistics of the 6 arc from both gas and bolt guns. If I could get good terminal performance from a 18" 6 arc gas gun that would be a very intriguing option.

What bullets are you loading and what's your MV?

 

[Tobe_B]

There’s a few guys here using the 6arc in a gas gun platform. I’ve got a 14.5” barrel with a pinned and welded suppressor adapter, puts me over 16” for barrel length. I’m getting 2500ish on MV with 95gr tmk. Just started reloading for it a few weeks ago. Factory 103s were at 2620 out of the same barrel. Plenty good for 500 yards on both bullets.

 

[Chris in TN]

There’s a few guys here using the 6arc in a gas gun platform. I’ve got a 14.5” barrel with a pinned and welded suppressor adapter, puts me over 16” for barrel length. I’m getting 2500ish on MV with 95gr tmk. Just started reloading for it a few weeks ago. Factory 103s were at 2620 out of the same barrel. Plenty good for 500 yards on both bullets.

Just curious - what AR magazines are you using, and what cartridge length are they fitting?

I'm assuming there are steel 6arc AR magazines out there somewhere that allow close to 2.3" COAL?

 

[Tobe_B]

I’ve got some elander 10 round Grendel mags that work well for most of my use. For hunting I carry two ASC aluminum 5.56 mags. They hold 5 rounds without the need for a plug. I’m loading at 2.25 for mag length. The 2.26 length rounds catch the bullet tip on the magazine lips and make it slightly harder to load a mag. No feeding issues though.

 

[wheels291x]

There’s a few guys here using the 6arc in a gas gun platform. I’ve got a 14.5” barrel with a pinned and welded suppressor adapter, puts me over 16” for barrel length. I’m getting 2500ish on MV with 95gr tmk. Just started reloading for it a few weeks ago. Factory 103s were at 2620 out of the same barrel. Plenty good for 500 yards on both bullets.

What barrel manufacturer and what's accuracy like?

 

[Tobe_B]

Proof Research Barrel, factory was around 1-1.25 MOA for 10 round groups. I haven’t shot groups larger than 3 with my handloads yet. I was too scared of blowing myself up and had to get those first few rounds out of the way. But my 3 round groups were all .5 moa.