Tikka .308 Model Selection - CTR vs. Super Varmint

[jwo]

A local gun shop has a 20" CTR .308 in stock and it's a great, handy feeling gun. However, I have not been able to get my hands on the new Super Varmint to compare. The main appeal I have for the Super Varmint is that it has a thicker profile barrel, has Cerakote, and is stainless underneath the Cerakote. I would most likely get the stainless CTR anyway, so that part isn't a huge factor. Do you prefer the metal CTR mags, or the standard Tikka mags that the Super Varmint uses? Could anyone that has experience with both rifles chime in with your opinion on the two?

I will be using the rifle with a suppressor, so I think that a thicker barrel may be advantageous, but maybe not a huge difference between the barrel profiles of the two rifles? I plan to use the rifle for Idaho big game hunts up to and including elk.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Welcome.

Big tikka fan and I doubt you can go wrong with either one. thicker barrels have their place, but I find myself carrying my lighter guns into the woods more and more. I have a tikka tactical in 308 - predecessor of the CTR and it rarely gets into the woods these days and has become my loaner gun for new hunters. If you are looking for a pure hunting gun, plenty of folks have threaded the slimmer profile tikkas to run cans.

 

[JDBAK]

A local gun shop has a 20" CTR .308 in stock and it's a great, handy feeling gun. However, I have not been able to get my hands on the new Super Varmint to compare. The main appeal I have for the Super Varmint is that it has a thicker profile barrel, has Cerakote, and is stainless underneath the Cerakote. I would most likely get the stainless CTR anyway, so that part isn't a huge factor. Do you prefer the metal CTR mags, or the standard Tikka mags that the Super Varmint uses? Could anyone that has experience with both rifles chime in with your opinion on the two?

I will be using the rifle with a suppressor, so I think that a thicker barrel may be advantageous, but maybe not a huge difference between the barrel profiles of the two rifles? I plan to use the rifle for Idaho big game hunts up to and including elk.

I have a stainless CTR in .260 Rem. I wouldn't want to go heavier if packing in the mountains. It shoots really well, and has about a MOA shift between suppressed and unsuppressed.
I like the CTR mags, but they are pricey. They do limit my COAL to just about 2.9" max, so if you like to seat bullets way out there, might consider the standard bottom metal and Long Action magazines (30-06 mags with .308s).
Great rifle.

 

[hunting1]

I had a CTR and it was a 1-hole gun with everything you fed it. My only complaint was the magazine but I regret selling it. I wouldn't go heavier as mentioned.

 

[jwo]

Sounds like the heavier profile barrel isn't worth the extra weight. If the barrel of the Super Varmint was replaced with a Proof Carbon Fiber, would that change your opinion? Just to throw in another variable. I don't plan on changing the barrel anytime soon, but it could be an option down the road.

 

[mtnwrunner]

The CTR is heavy enough if you are going to do any kind of packing with it which you indicated you would hunt with. It's already threaded and they are unbelievably accurate and a hoot to shoot. If it were me, I would get the CTR and go kill stuff. If you can afford it, buy both.

Randy

 

[Macintosh]

I dont have a varmint model, but I have both sporter weight with the standard single-stack plastic mags and a CTR, so hopefully this is helpful.
The plastic single-stack mags make me nervous just because they are unreinforced plastic, but they've always worked flawlessly and are about the smoothest feeding mags I've ever used, bar none. I'd love to try one of the mtn tactical metal ones, but havent yet. The CTR mags, the one that came with my rifle was flawless and also exceptionally smooth. I got a spare and I did have a few failures to feed out of it until I had some words with the follower-spring--after that it has been reliable and smooth. My impression of these mags is that you may (likely?) find some need a bit of tweaking, but that once worked-on they are very smooth and reliable. One of the reasons I like tikkas is the smoothness of the action, and I think that applies to both the regular and ctr versions. My only real concern using it hunting would be that you cant get a 5-round version that I'm aware of, as my state and some others limit mag capacity for hunting.
Other than that, my CTR with a 24" barrel was just a hair over 9lb out of the box before adding rings, a scope, etc. By the time I add even a lighter-weight scope and rings that makes it a 10.5lb+ gun, minimum. I've made some other mods since, but with a big 34mm 4.5-30x scope and rings, a new pic rail and a muzzle brake, my gun was over 12lb. For my (lack of) skill and for a short-action caliber where my own personal comfort range on an elk would be limited, I don't feel like I need the stability of a heavy gun for hunting, and I certainly don't want to carry it around if I don't have to, so I have chosen to carry a gun with a hunting-weight barrel profile. For the range where I'm going to shoot 100+ rounds in a sitting the extra weight is great to soak up recoil and make spotting shots easier (mine now weighs over 15lb and is basically a range-only gun), so maybe that is something you are looking for. If you DO want the weight, the CTR is not super barrel-heavy, i.e. it balances near the action more similarly to what I consider a "hunting rifle", rather than in front of the mag-well where you'd sit it on a shooting bag. I have handled one of the varmint models, and the barrel profile is significantly thicker toward the muzzle--if it matters to you, that gun will balance further forward than the CTR for sure. If you were planning to use it mainly as a PRS gun and replace the stock and mags for that reason I might go with the varmint model for the added weight and balance-forward, but for a hunting gun I would personally lean toward one of the sporter-profile models, or if you want the added weight the CTR.
In all cases mine have been reasonably accurate compared to other similar-price guns I've used, but I would say to have realistic expectations here--none of my tikkas shoot 1moa 10-round groups.