Tikka T3X Go with Sportsmatch or Rail and Rings?

Mine broke at some point after assembly. I had a zero shift that didn’t make sense. Investigating I found the culprit
I’m not sure mine weren’t them same case. I had used nail polish as witness marks which I’m sure was holding the screw heads just enough. It look next to no effort to “break” them so I was thinking they were already broken as well. I honestly did not pay attention if the witness marks were broken because I did not see a noticeable change and I cleaned it off as I was getting ready to swap scopes, failure on my part there as well.

That particular rifle had been used mainly for unsupported practice at sub 200yds for the last 1000+ rounds so I’m not sure if I would have truly been able to tell a loss of zero unless it was a huge shift.
 
I’m not sure mine weren’t them same case. I had used nail polish as witness marks which I’m sure was holding the screw heads just enough. It look next to no effort to “break” them so I was thinking they were already broken as well. I honestly did not pay attention if the witness marks were broken because I did not see a noticeable change and I cleaned it off as I was getting ready to swap scopes, failure on my part there as well.

That particular rifle had been used mainly for unsupported practice at sub 200yds for the last 1000+ rounds so I’m not sure if I would have truly been able to tell a loss of zero unless it was a huge shift.
My rifle has about 240 rounds thru it. 25creed so nothing that’s got a ton of recoil. Had a trij credo scope. I think my group moved an inch
 
My rifle has about 240 rounds thru it. 25creed so nothing that’s got a ton of recoil. Had a trij credo scope. I think my group moved an inch
Mine is a 223 so same deal no recoil, scope was an Swfa 6x. No way would I ever see an inch shift with the type of shooting I was doing. The rifle had maybe 2-300 rounds through it before where I was checking zero on occasion and had no issues. No drops to the rifle or anything the whole time I was using the setup, I swapped the scope prior to hunting season and found the issue then.
 
I’m still using sportsmatch on half of my tikkas and will continue to do so, UM on the rest. More than likely I will buy UM rings in the future as needed but for now I don’t plan to switch out any of my sportsmatch but I will be checking up on them more often I guess. If the screws continue to fail the will be switched out for UM rings. I used sportsmatch for thousands of rounds on multiple rifles with zero issue both the t084 and ht073s so a one off doesn’t have me wanting to switch out right away.
 
I guess any of them could fail tho. Once you’ve had a failure you change what you use.
That is a fastener issue. Most ring manufacturers don’t make their own fasteners. You can get a faulty screw with just about any rings out there. It’s not common but it happens.

The UM rings are marginally better because they have a pin for both rings instead of the front one and they are definitely cooler looking with the decorative machining, but for me they aren’t worth $70 more than the Sportsmatch. I’ve got three sets of the latter that haven’t lost zero over the last 6 years. One has about 2500 rounds through them in the last year and probably the same number of miles riding on the floor of the back seat of my truck on desert washboard roads. They work, they are durable, and they are inexpensive. And the fact that they don’t require a rail means you have 2 less potential fasteners to fail.
 
That is a fastener issue. Most ring manufacturers don’t make their own fasteners. You can get a faulty screw with just about any rings out there. It’s not common but it happens.

The UM rings are marginally better because they have a pin for both rings instead of the front one and they are definitely cooler looking with the decorative machining, but for me they aren’t worth $70 more than the Sportsmatch. I’ve got three sets of the latter that haven’t lost zero over the last 6 years. One has about 2500 rounds through them in the last year and probably the same number of miles riding on the floor of the back seat of my truck on desert washboard roads. They work, they are durable, and they are inexpensive. And the fact that they don’t require a rail means you have 2 less potential fasteners to fail.
But not all fasteners are created equal. They used an inferior screw. It failed. It could have been much worse and I’m glad it wasn’t.

I waited much longer for the sportsmatch to come in stock than I ever did for the UM to get to my door. There’s a lot more adjustability in the UM rings. The screws feel beefier and may be bigger. It’s been a bit since I’ve had them apart. Not having to worry about the next cap screw flying off is worth the little extra you pay. You pay a bunch for a rifle, another good bit for a scope but skimp on rings. Nope. Just buy good stuff from the start.
 
I have sportsmatch on several and haven’t had any problems.
I bought all mine before the UM rings were available.
If I was starting from scratch now I would buy UM’s.
 
He mentioned TO84 and they are limited. But yes you can get the higher mounts. But I would still choose thr UM rings.
It’s bizarre you’d focus on the model in one case and a brand in the other. Each height of UM rings has its various limitations too. But sorry for misunderstanding you specifically meant TO84.

Nothing wrong with the UM rings for the record. The sportsmatch are cheaper, lighter, have worked for me and are what the OP was asking about.
 
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