Thoughts on current factory bolt rifles

[K22]

You don't need a tack driver if your need is strictly for a deer rifle unless you're shooting at extreme ranges which seems to be in vogue these days. I'm speaking from an Eastern deer hunter's point of view.

I own several Tikka's and they are excellent rifles and mine shoot well under 1 moa with tailored reloads. In fact, my varmint model in 223 Rem is one of the most accurate rifles that I own even when compared to a few of my rifles with aftermarket match barrels.

The only issue I have with Tikka's (T3's lite) is in the calibers heavier than 243 Win. The recoil on my 308 with even 150 grain bullets is intense, at least for me but I'm a small guy, under 170 lbs. However this isn't a real issue for a deer rifle unless you intend to do a lot of bench shooting / load development.

The other economy rifles I've seen at the range also seem to be light weight so the recoil issue with them is probably the same. Unless you get a lemon, most shoot well enough for deer hunting at reasonable distances.

Personally, I wouldn't spend the money on a custom barrel for a deer rifle given the terrain that I hunt where most shots are well under 200 yards.

As far as calibers, I've owned a bunch of them over the past 50 years and they all do the job. You can't go wrong with a 308, 270 or 30 06. This new 6.5 Creed might be an ideal balance between recoil and terminal performance. I've used a 243 Win for many years and with the correct shot placement and bullet, it's an effective deer rifle. I never lost a deer to the 243 that I hit.

To give you another perspective, my father shot 18 bucks with an open sight 30-30 in the big woods of north central PA where most shots are under 150 yards.

 

[john 800]

Hmmmm, lots of good points made. Sounds like what I have had on my radar all have their proponents. I own a couple savages and I like them just fine, just looking to see what else is out there, the tikka sure looks like a nice rifle as well, but its so light, almost too light, maybe…
Then there is the custom barrel thing, I could go with a slightly heavier contour and have it be just right. I have a savage 110 in 7 mag and the barrel is just a touch heavier than the Remington and to me its perfect. I also have a savage 308 with a 24” varmint barrel that is a very good shooter, but just a bit heavy and clumsy even for sitting in a stand unless it has a railing to rest on, somewhere in the middle would be nice, thinking out loud here but it beats watching the news. Haha
Also, I am not a guy that is going to go out looking for a long shot, bit there are places I can use it like you see below and other places I will not. I sat here with my 10yo daughter sat and shot a small buck at about 80 yds.

 

[WyleWD]

send it to stan at douglas if you like the rifle. the turnaround is awesome. you will be pleased.
idk about whats out there, but hard to beat a 700. my 2 cents

Best suggestion so far IMHO. You can get the twist, caliber, contour, and stainless if you'd like, and I bet it will shoot quite well.

New factory offerings are a crapshoot on accuracy IME. WD

 

[Adam in WI]

I think if you've got this rifle bedded in a good stock already you're making a strong case for having it rebarreled with a good tube. Like a 24" stainless fluted magnum contour 270 AI...

 

[SVT_Tactical]

So one thing that you brought up was feeding it with the loads you like seated to the depth you like. In my experience Tikka's have a very long mag box so that pushes them to the top given the other comments already made. Yes you could rebarrel your rifle but it seems that doesn't accomplish your goal. You want to load/use the rounds you have settled on.... Your current rifles box mag doesn't do that even with a new tube that will shoot better...... We've established you're ok with MOA accuracy which most factory offerings will give you. Tikka often exceeds that. I've not owned a tikka yet that hasn't shot less than 1MOA even with factory ammo. A previous owned 30-06 Tikka often printed in cloverleaf groups with rem corelok ammo.... should have never sold it.

to accomplish your goal... look for the best factory offering that will give you the largest mag box. A short action round in a tikka will do that..

 

[john 800]

So one thing that you brought up was feeding it with the loads you like seated to the depth you like. In my experience Tikka's have a very long mag box so that pushes them to the top given the other comments already made. Yes you could rebarrel your rifle but it seems that doesn't accomplish your goal. You want to load/use the rounds you have settled on.... Your current rifles box mag doesn't do that even with a new tube that will shoot better...... We've established you're ok with MOA accuracy which most factory offerings will give you. Tikka often exceeds that. I've not owned a tikka yet that hasn't shot less than 1MOA even with factory ammo. A previous owned 30-06 Tikka often printed in cloverleaf groups with rem corelok ammo.... should have never sold it.

to accomplish your goal... look for the best factory offering that will give you the largest mag box. A short action round in a tikka will do that..

In my opinion, on this rifle the issue is not the mag box, tbe issue is a very, very long, possibly shot or worn out throat. A 150 gr ballistic tip will barely have enough bullet in the case to hold it when seated close to the lands, that is way out there. I have considered doing a barrel set back, but I really don’t want to spend on that then have it still not shoot.

 

[lawman29]

John,
Do you like your current rifle (stock, action, caliber, etc) except for the fact that it won't shoot/throat?
If yes, then a re-barreling with custom barrel, chamber & 'trued' action the odds are in your favor that it will shoot better than an off the shelf factory rifle. You could also consider a trigger upgrade. You also have the option with a re-barrel of choosing a different caliber.
In addition to Douglas, Pac Nor will do the same (chrome moly or stainless). $275 - $330 for barrel and $300 for chambering, lapping and true action. Chrome moly you have an additional cost to blue and with stainless you can leave as is or cerakote.

Pricelist – Pac-Nor Barreling –

Good luck!

 

[divingin]

Another option that will get you close to a custom, smith-fitted barrel, is a RemAge setup (barrel nut, a la Savage.)

Buy a chambered barrel plus a barrel nut, screw it in to set headspace, tighten the nut, and you're good to go. Usually a few hundred cheaper than buying a blank and having it chambered and shouldered by the smith. Accuracy is generally much better than factory.

 

[SVT_Tactical]

Remage barrels shoot great and would be a do-it yourself project if you wanted. Heck I'd be willing to lend out the tools I used for it if you needed. Bought it from NSS and have used the remage system several times and all sub MOA guns.

 

[joshb]

In my opinion, on this rifle the issue is not the mag box, tbe issue is a very, very long, possibly shot or worn out throat. A 150 gr ballistic tip will barely have enough bullet in the case to hold it when seated close to the lands, that is way out there. I have considered doing a barrel set back, but I really don’t want to spend on that then have it still not shoot.

Given that, you should just do a rebarrel.

 

[Bill K]

John, you can invest in any number of other factory rifles, in the caliber you want, but your Rem 700 is one of the finest rifles, of which millions, own, from everyday shooter, hunters to military snipers.
Talk too Pacnor or one of the good gunsmiths around the country and have them re-barrel it in the caliber you want and the contour your desire. In the long run you will have as good a rifle as any, other than full bore custom, and will be very happy.
And in the long haul, have less money invested, for your needs.

 

[Cloudrepair]

Now if you just want another rifle get the Tikka and plan a rebarrel for the 700 later.

 

[Rsadams]

I am considering either re barreling a rem 700 I have or trading it. The gun will shoot minute of deer for my needs, however unfortunately it doesn’t like the loads or bullets that I want to shoot.
With that in mind, what should I be looking at for a reasonably priced factory deer rifle? Would like sporter barrel, prefer stainless, I want something that just shoots decent for hunting in 270win. (Maybe a 308) Maybee under $850ish before my trade, could go a bit higher if quality warrants but dont have the budget for a full custom.
Ruger American? Tikka? Savage? Winchester?

My thoughts are with modern machine work even a $350 rifle will shoot moa or close.... I see plenty of them since I work at a gun range.... In your price range I would buy a Tikka or even a Howa Tikka makes some nice stainless light weight hunting rifles for sure just add your optic of choice....

But before we do all that you should wonder why your rifle isn't doing better that what it is.... Bullets to heavy for twist , barrel plain old shot out , faulty optic etc.... Have you tried a new optic , playing with the action torque settings with a decent torque wrench , that can make alot of difference alone.... I would try and figure it out , if you haven't already before I just gave up.... But hey that's just me , I certainly wouldn't try to talk a person out of a nice new hunting rifle.... I know it's not exactly the same but here's a picture of three targets from a Ruger American Rimfire in .22lr with only action torque settings changed.... small things can add up.. picture is CCI standered velocity at 50 yards with a Nikon p-rimfire.... Definitely not a high dollar setup but playing around with things doesn't cost a penny....

 

[TheOtherZilla]

I had a TIKKA. was a turd. Sold it. It soured me on TIKKA.. Nuff said.

 

[cinch29433]

Went shooting with a friend who won a $750 weatherby. We were amazed that it shot so well in a gun that you can pack. A diamondback tactical and you could be in business for $1100.

I am getting ready to re-barrel my sons rifle with the 7mm Mauser Ackley reamer on my bench, so much for buying a 700.00 rifle...

 

[drop_point]

I had a TIKKA. was a turd. Sold it. It soured me on TIKKA.. Nuff said.

I've got one right now that USED to shoot 1/2 MOA that I can't get under 2 anymore. It is a .308 with around 1,000 rounds on it. I've scrubbed it clean and examined with a bore scope. Still no improvement.

I did have a 6.5 Creedmoor Tikka that would shoot 1/4 MOA consistently, but the velocity was only 2550 fps with a 140. I couldn't get the gun to shoot any faster.

My buddy just bought one of the Rough Tech .308s and he has a solid 1 1/4 minute gun no matter what he does.

Tikka makes a great action, but as a mass-producer, there are certainly many bad ones around.

 

[moorepower]

Just how bad does the .270 shoot?

 

[rebel]

I like Tikkas, rebarreling is relativity a good fix for your 700 and no one mentioned CZ rifles.
I have two 527s that hammer with handloads. Love the set trigger. Magazine isn't as generous as the Tikka.

 

[john 800]

Just how bad does the .270 shoot?

A few factory loads i tried were 1.5-2” at 100, handloads will shoot as good as 3/4” with 150 ballistic tips seated way, way out just off the lands and a low end charge of imr 4831, but they will not fit in the mag. The fact that it likes that combo makes me tgink it is not screwed up with a bedding issue or some other issue. There were a few loads that were around 1 1/4” that would feed, but it does not like imr 4350 or 130 partitions like my other 270.

 

[spudgun]

In my opinion, on this rifle the issue is not the mag box, tbe issue is a very, very long, possibly shot or worn out throat. A 150 gr ballistic tip will barely have enough bullet in the case to hold it when seated close to the lands, that is way out there. I have considered doing a barrel set back, but I really don’t want to spend on that then have it still not shoot.

Been there done that. Savage 6.5 CM. After shooting about 1200 rounds the throat was .100" over spec. Could not seat the bullets out far enough for my jump. Had the barrel cut and rechambered, new crown and muzzle brake. Done by Terry Baldwin at Terry's custom guns in Wi. Turn around time was 2 weeks and under $200 for everything.