New elk rifle

[Ucsdryder]

I am putting together a lightweight stainless steel mountain rig. I bought a vortex viper pst 4x16 scope at cabelas for a price I couldn\'t pass up. I know it\'s not the lightest scope but the quality and price made the trade off worth it for me. After doing some internet reseat and fondling some guns at cabelas I had my mind made up. Tikka T3 stainless in 300 win mag. It\'s light weight, has a moa guarantee and the reviews were almost all very positive. Priced around 700 it was economical as well.

Fast forward to the other day I went to sportsmans to check their pricing and the guy showed me a Sako 85 finnlight in 300wsm. Why did he do that?!?!? The gun felt like an extension of my body. It came up soooo smooth, fit right and was overall perfect. The wsm has a shorter action which decreases overall length and weight over the 300wm. Only one small problem...well actually 1550 problems.

I am struggling to justify the extra 800 dollars. I blame the guy at sportsmans for saying \"if you like the tikka check this one out\".

 

[cohunter14]

$1,550 is a lot to spend on an over the counter rifle in my opinion. You could have a semi-custom built for that price with the exact parts you want. The 1:11 twist barrel could potentially cause you some issues with the higher BC bullets as well.

But then again, if the gun fits and it\'s exactly what you want, no one can tell you it\'s the wrong choice :upthumb:

 

[Ucsdryder]

Any suggestions if I decided to go that route? All customs I have seen are starting at 3k.

My preferred bullet is 180gr with a high bc. Obviously if that\'s a problem with 1:11 twist that\'s something to consider.

 

[Billy Goat]

that Tikka is plenty, and a darned fine rifle on its own.

I had a 300WSM SAvage but eventually sold it because it just didnt shoot as well as I\'d have liked. I monkeyed with several powders and projectiles, but couldn\'t get \"stellar\" and that\'s what I want in an elk rifle.

Oddly enough, I found \"stellar\" accuracy from a 308 Savage LWH. carries like a toothpick.

that Sako is a great gun, but you wont kill more elk with it than you would that Tikka, methinks. I don\'t know anyone who has had a bad Tikka.

 

[cnelk]

I know what I would do.

That\'s quite a difference in price.
I think any gun will become an extension of your body with continued handling.

Both are gonna kill elk dead and they ain\'t gonna care what you used.

I would take the savings, work up a terrific load, and go hunt.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Billy your arguments make a lot of sense. I am leaning toward the tikka in 300 win mag. Plenty of time to make a decision though. Maybe something goes on sale and makes my decision easier.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Thanks for the input Brad. That\'s true. An extra few hundred bucks would go a long way toward gear or goodies.

 

[iccyman001]

Im ordering a .300 WSM Tikka here in a few weeks. I\'ve also never met anyone who had anything bad to say about tikkas. :mg:

 

[cohunter14]

Any suggestions if I decided to go that route? All customs I have seen are starting at 3k.

My preferred bullet is 180gr with a high bc. Obviously if that\'s a problem with 1:11 twist that\'s something to consider.

Here\'s an example of what I\'ve done:
Remington SPS: $535
Bell & Carlson Alaskan II Stock: $250
Timney Trigger: $115
Bedding Kit: $30

That right there puts you at $930. I was able to get a 1/2 MOA shooter with this, but let\'s say for some reason it didn\'t shoot. Add a $300 barrel and approximately $300 for a gunsmith to install the barrel and true the action and you are at roughly $1,530 with a complete custom build. The nice thing is that if it does shoot, you have a solid rifle for under $1,000 and when you shoot the barrel out, you spend $600 and have a custom rifle.

Now I know this is Remington, but you could do this with other brands as well. Remington just seems to have the most accessories readily available, although Savage is up there now as well.

 

[Deertick]

Real tough to go wrong with a Tikka.

 

[elky McElkerson]

this is a rifle.

i (my opinion only) kinda give FIT less merit with a bolt action rifle. especially when i\'m just holding one up at the store, without a scope mounted. sure, the length of the parts make reach feel good, but without a scope on there...;.

they all fit me. i can shoot a tiny Ruger 10-22 just as well as my neighbors freakishly long, SAKO 375 H&H mag. i can tuck up right behind any scope.

TIKKA is a damn accurate rifle from ALL the ones i have seen. right out of the box. i bet Tikka is the favorite out of the box rifle for all the newb long range guys.

 

[Ol' Arky]

I got my Tikka several years ago... It\'s a 270 and shoots better than me... I\'ve got around $650 in rifle scope, sling and case... I bought a Leopold used on ebay and bought the rifle online and had it shipped to a good friend that had a FFL... He didn\'t charge me anything except a small amout of sales tax to do the paper work...

As for a shooter... Like I said it can shoot a lot better than I can... I\'ve killed a lot of deer with it but never used it on anything else...