TC Venture vs ?

I have its ugly half-brother (the Dimension). Great accuracy, good single-stage trigger, and TC has good customer support should you ever need it. I would buy one if it aligned with my personal preferences. TC also sells a compact version in 7mm-08 if I recall correctly, which has a shorter length of pull if that interests you. I'd pick a 308 because I don't reload (the cheapest 7mm-08 ammo cost about twice as much as the cheapest 308 ammo, so the 308 is cheaper to practice with, if that matters to you)

Very well made, good customer support and most of them shoot better than the shooter. Plus, the $75 rebate puts it down to Axis' and Ruger American prices. I would jump on it if I needed another rifle. Come to think about it, I do.

i have a blued TC Venture in 7mm08 it is a nice rifle, i had a little trouble getting mine to shoot good groups with my reloads at first but it settled down when i got better at shooting and found the correct reloads. my go to load is 42.5 gr of IMR 4064 and 140 rem core loct or 140 g Sierra prohunter. i got a tip on THR that a flat base bullet may shoot more accurately at 100yds than a boat tail. i tried flat base and it worked. mine shoots less than an inch groups at 100yds off the bench.

i have shot several deer with the Venture and it is a good rifle, i have a Bushnell compact elite scope 3x10x40 on it with warne rings.

I found out that the light contour barrel on the Venture will heat up quickly so i advise you to let it cool after every 6 rounds or so.

Good luck,

Bull

I've heard nothing but great things about them and came close to buying one a year or 2 ago. I have better rifles and was just looking for an inexpensive gun. After looking at all the options the Ruger American suited my needs better. But I don't think you'll have a bad gun in the TC.

I have a T/C Venture in 270W. Pros: Very accurate, floated barrel. good customer service,5R rifling. trigger is adjustable without removing the stock Cons: Plastic magazines, rather stiff to cock, magazines cost about 45$. DO NOT clean with brake cleaner or any solvent that will affect plastic or remove magazine before cleaning and be judicious with the cleaner if it damages plastic. Would I buy another? Absolutely. I paid 325$ after 75$ rebate. I also have a 270 in a Winchester M70. I prefer the M70, but it cost a LOT more. I also have a Savage 110, but I prefer the Venture.

The TC Venture seems to have a very good reputation.

I too am looking, even though I don't 'need' another gun. I'm tossing around the Venture, the Weatherby Vanguard S2 and the Tikka T3 Lite. With the $75 rebate, the Venture is probably the least expensive. But that Tikka sounds like a fine rifle for being in the 'budget rifle' ranks. I go back and forth. But no hurry for me since I don't need another one.

wbwanzer said:

The TC Venture seems to have a very good reputation.

I too am looking, even though I don't 'need' another gun. I'm tossing around the Venture, the Weatherby Vanguard S2 and the Tikka T3 Lite. With the $75 rebate, the Venture is probably the least expensive. But that Tikka sounds like a fine rifle for being in the 'budget rifle' ranks. I go back and forth. But no hurry for me since I don't need another one.

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I don't know about a Tikka being in the econogun class. Davidson's wholesale is over $550 and a Vanguard is pretty pricey too at about $100 less. Hardly economy guns when compared to the Axix, American, Marlin's X7, or Mossberg's Patriot. I would have to put them in a different class.

I know what you mean Captcurt, but it's subjective. I think the T3 and the Vanguard are probably a cut above the others based on price. But I read a review of Bolt Action Economy Rifles written by Chuck Hawks which included among others, the Axis, Ruger American, Tikka T3 and the Weatherby Vanguard. Here is a link to that article: http://www.chuckhawks.com/compared_bolt_action_economy_rifles.htm

His ranking though, had the Weatherby and the Tikka as better than the rest. The T/C Venture was not included in that review. I wish it had been.

wbwanzer said:

I know what you mean Captcurt, but it's subjective. I think the T3 and the Vanguard are probably a cut above the others based on price. But I read a review of Bolt Action Economy Rifles written by Chuck Hawks which included among others, the Axis, Ruger American, Tikka T3 and the Weatherby Vanguard. Here is a link to that article: http://www.chuckhawks.com/compared_bolt_action_economy_rifles.htm

His ranking though, had the Weatherby and the Tikka as better than the rest. The T/C Venture was not included in that review. I wish it had been.

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I have had a couple of Vanguards. One old one in 257 WM and a S2 in 223. Both shot very well. The 223 was plumb boring under 300 yards. My only gripe was the weight. The Tikkas, I must agree, are topnotch.

I was lucky to get a couple of TC Icons back in the day. Great products, and I hear nothing but good things about the Venture. I was actually looking at the Venture before I decided to go Icon, the difference in stocks and the integral bedding block in the Icons sent me down the more expensive path. Love me some Icons.

Tikka T3 lites went on sale around here recently for father's day and I managed to resist the tempation ($469 @ SW). A fairly recent article in Sporting Classics lumps the T3 in the same catagory as the other entry level econoguns, yet somehow omitted the Venture from the group. Don't know if that was intentional or not.

Stopped in at my LGS today. They had a Weatherby Vanguard on the shelf in some caliber other than .223, but I got to play with it a little. I liked it a lot. I still have time to change my mind a couple hundred more times, but as of now, that would be my pick. Based how it felt to me, combined with the Chuck Hawks review that I linked in post #10, that will probably be my next purchase. Just need to get some money together. Might have to thin the herd.

I own a Weatherby S2, Tikka T3 Lite, and a TC Venture and the Tikka is better than the other two. It beats them in all categories: weight, accuracy, trigger, bolt smoothness, etc.

Don't get me started on Weatherby's I can never reccomend them for the $ though the TC Venture is a tough rifle to beat my 7-08 Venture shoots 140g Core-Lokts all day into MOA 3 shot groups and my 139gr Interlock with IMR4350 reloads slightly better.

I mentioned in post #13 that I was in the LGS the other day and liked the Weatherby. Now, so far I had not been considering the CZ-527, but they had a slightly used 527 with a Zeiss scope mounted for $900. Now that's a good bit more than I had been planning to spend, but I am considering it. CZs have excellent reputations also. You (OP) may want to consider them as well.

red rick said:

This has been a great thread so far and is helping me a lot on choosing a hunting rifle .

I am not on any budget , but like that commercial , I don't want to spend more than I have to for a good hunting rifle .

Right now I am between the Venture and Sako Lite in 7mm-08 .

Most of my hunting will be deer , but I would like to take a Elk hunt one day , so I like the light weight of the Tikka , but maybe the caliber is wrong for that . I might need to buy another rifle if I ever get a chance to go . When I hunt deer , I stand hunt , so weight is really not an issue there .

The difference in price between the Venture & Tikka Lite for me is $282 dollars . Is the Tikka Lite worth the difference in price ?

I have not made up my mind yet , so keep the suggestion coming .

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Ask yourself how much will you shoot. If you plan on getting serious you should probably go with the Tikka or the SAko. If it is an occasional range session and a few days in the field I would go with the T/C. $282 would buy a good quality scope.

A Tikka T3 IMO is worth the $282 price difference to me for every reason I've mentioned in my first post. And it has hands down the best synthetic stock on a rifle costing less than $600.

I like my TC Venture it shoots well and has a nice trigger but the stock just doesn't fit me or my wife very well. I'll hunt with it on bad weather days and when I have children I'll let them use it.

BTW OP a 7mm-08 with a premium bullet like a Barnes TTSX, Partition, GMX, Swift Scirrocco etc. Will kill Elk size game easily at 300yds or less with proper shot placement

I would have to cast my vote for the Tikka, I just got my 4th one so I guess I'm a little partial. I sold numbers 1 and 2 to buy a couple guns I just had to have at the time a couple years ago. Number 3 is the heavier, more target oriented CTR. The latest one, a Superlite in .270 is reminding me why I liked the original two so much as do all hunting rifles. The Tikkas really strike a nice balance of being lightweight, ergonomic, affordable and very accurate. 7mm-08 shouldn't recoil too badly, but if it is uncomfortable, adding a Limbsaver really tames things down.

The pdf cut sheet says LOP is a minimum of 13.2", but is expandable with spacers. Obviously that would change if you added a limbsaver pad, but I'm not sure by how much.

Link to the pdf:
http://cdn.tikka.fi/sites/default/files/Lite.pdf

See if you can find a Weatherby Vanguard nearby. I fell in love with the one I held the other day. It just felt right for me. Of course, your mileage may vary.

I've settled on the Vanguard for myself. I know that CarJunkie didn't care for his. But I loved the feel and it has a good reputation. I just need to get the money together.

After looking for a good budget rifle

I went to my local gun shop a few weeks ago to look at a T/C in a .270 win. All they had was it in .270 wsm. I then looked at a CZ, Tikka, and Weatherby Vanguard s2. I wanted the synthetic stock, 24 inch barrel, 270win. and the T/C , Vanguard were more in my price range. I went with the Vanguard s2. I have found it shoots moa at 100yards. The trigger is good. I think the Venture is a good rifle, I think I got more with the Vanguard. JMO

One more thing to keep in mind is Tikka uses one action length for all chambers so a 223 rem will be sporting a 30-06/300 win mag action length. This is a major drawback for me, however I understand it may not bother others in the least.

I have researched the TC some, however I have a TC Icon, from my understanding they streamlined production to reduce cost making the venture action easier to produce reducing cost (you can research this as well) one of the main things on the action was doing away with integral weaver base, and having normal receiver accepting scope/ring bases via screws. The TC action is more in line with Sako, Cooper etc, the 3 locking lug bolt will increase cocking some because the ramp on the bolt to receiver has to cock the action in a shorter distance which causes a steeper ramp than a two lug design, however the benefits attained from the 3 lug bolt are more numerous. TC makes an accurate rifle, and backs it up with warranty I'm not sure to specific models, if I remember correctly TC sets a standard of MOA on the venture, a 22" barrel, and a 3.5-5 pound trigger. A lot of gun buyers will have to pay an extra $100 (around) for a trigger in this category, and it's a nice trigger, shoe feels good to my finger, breaks clean etc. The full body bolt is silk compared to other actions which TC took from custom actions, you have to cycle a TC to know.

The TC just has not took off good yet, once they do price will not stay this low forever.