New to rifles, buying a tikka caliber selection?

[peterk123]

Ah the caliber paralysis analysis. I shoot a tikka 308. It's taken whitetail, mule deer, elk, antelope and bear. It's a very accurate and extremely reliable gun.

My wife shoots a 6 5cm. Everything she points that gun at dies. That caliber in a 143 grain bullet can hit a pinhead at 300 yds. And it's just a joy to shoot. Minimal recoil. For my first gun I would think long and hard about this caliber. It ticks off all the right boxes.

 

[evan711]

i should have been a little more clear i have shot a bit and have a couple rifles a 30-06 being one of them and i shot my first deer with it but i havent shot it much and its right handed i want a lefty. i just dont have a ton of trigger time though.

 

[evan711]

Thanks for all these replys everybody. I'll have to take a look into the 6.5cm i just dont know alot about it other than seeing memes about them lol. Im leaning towards a 308 but going to do more research on some of these other calibers too.

 

[tdluke90]

This is really a pretty easy answer. Get the 6.5 creed.
1. Plenty big enough to enough to kill anything you mentioned and get you out plenty far.
2. You’re not a reloader and it has tons of factory ammo options
3. Kills plenty good enough and is the on the upper end of recoil that most ppl will want to shoot regularly.
4. Easier to get accurate loads and shoot accurately than a larger caliber
5. Going 243 will not have as many good factory loads available.
6. All the memes and jokes about the 6.5 is just ppl trolling and because it’s such a popular round. Theres a reason it’s probably the best most popular selling deer size cartridge.

Consider 243 for even less recoil but less factory ammo options. 308 is great but I just can’t see enough upside to offset the additional recoil and slightly less range compared to a 6.5 creed. That’s why the 6.5 creed has overtaken it in popularity.

 

[peterk123]

Thanks for all these replys everybody. I'll have to take a look into the 6.5cm i just dont know alot about it other than seeing memes about them lol. Im leaning towards a 308 but going to do more research on some of these other calibers too.

I love my 308. It will take any game in North America. There is always ammo for it. Always. If you ever get into reloading you will be thrilled to know the loading data is endless. And it is so versatile if you do reload it.

If you get it in the tikka t3x lite, get a limbsaver recoil pad. It eliminates any recoil. Unless they've changed it, the recoil pad blows.

 

[Brandon_AZ]

My vote is 243 with a 8 twist.
Fun to shoot minimal recoil, bad medicine for deer and bears
You said your plan is to practice a lot and with a light weight tikka the .243 will actually be enjoyable to shoot. The 8 twist really just gives you more bullet options down the road.

Also most importantly if your first rifle is a .243 Whiskey Myers-ballad of a southern man, sounds 10x better.

 

[mt terry d]

so?

Not everyone is comfortable with their masculinity.

223 is the easy button all around and you'll become a better shooter quicker and cheaper.
Wear a John Wayne button to the range if you feel intimidated.