SAVAGE VS TIKKA

[Savageshooter]

My Savage 110 in .223 or my 116 in .270 have always had smooth actions and are incredibly accurate. Since buying them I have restocked them with Boyd's Varminter stocks and changed the triggers (they are the only thing left to be desired) with SSS competition triggers. There are tons of after market upgrades if you want to build up over time.

 

[atblis]

SO

If you buy a Savage, you can plan on putting a new stock on it, and a new trigger?

 

[Savageshooter]

You can if you want.

 

[kumma]

I buy rifles to shot not upgrade. I would choose the Tikka over a Savage due to no work what so ever required . I prefer the whitetail over the T3. I have shot both and they were both tack drivers savage in 7-08 T3 in .308. To me it comes down to ease of use and triggers, the tikka bolt is so smooth and simple to remove and the trigger is perfect out of the box. The savage has a bolt that is rough and difficult to manipulate, I didnt like the fact I had to pull the trigger to remove the bolt on the savage. Now the savage was a bargain combo so im not sure how the nicer classics are but my preference is the Tikka, still I feel both are great shooters.

 

[Savageshooter]

Ok

I never said you had to change anything. The trigger and stock from the factory were OK, but like many others I enjoy customizing my rifles. I would upgrade any gun I buy.

 

[rockstar.esq]

atblis " I find the whole short action thing laughable."

So ignoring the reasons that add up to the .308 Winchester's reputation for accuracy over it's long action counterpart is somehow "laughable". Please note that the "short action thing" came as a result of experience and thoughtfull development. Generally I find people opposed to such things in the blackpowder column!

Just to further my point consider that the 1000yd bullseye at Camp Perry was reduced in diameter BY HALF following the debut of the .308 Winchester. Sort of hammers home the point that all those features make a difference doncha think?

 

[atblis]

Yes but

and then the 5.56 showed up. What happened then?

That would be the cartridge, not the action. The entire short action thing is overrated (totally in hunting guns).

Do you think a 308 sporter type rifle on a short action would shoot noticeably different than a 308 on a long action?

in anything less than a benchrest rifle, there's no measurable difference (and even then...). You don't need multiple length actions. Tikka/Sako is doing an excellent job of proving this.

I am a big fan of the 6.5x55. It goes on a moderate/long action. It has just as much a distinguished target shooting history as the 308 (it's been around quite a while longer).

BTW. People build NM target rifles on the Tikka actions. Savage, not so much.

You guys are forgetting to mention arguably the neatest thing about the Savage, The barrel nut. The ease with which you can swap barrels/calibers and set headspacing.

 

[YodaVader]

I'm looking for my first .223 varmint bolt gun and from the listed guns you can see i'm on a budget. I'm leaning towards savage but if i'm wrong let me know.

Not sure of your budget but I bought my first Savage last year - a laminated stock, stainless 12BVSS in .223 for $599. I always though this was the nicest looking rifle in the Savage line up.

It did not take long for the rifle to prove it's accuracy ability to me. These are some early load tests that went pretty well. Right target was shots 46-50 out of the rifle and left target was shots 51-55. And two totally different bullets - the 69 MatchKing and the 52 Berger match.

So with no real load development (no numerous powder charge tests or seating depth experiments) the Savage was shooting well under MOA for me.

The AccuTrigger is very good for an out of the box trigger - mine was at 2.25lbs and I could not get it to adjust any lower. Since my rifle is a bench gun only I went ahead and had a Sharp Shooter Supply trigger installed set at 13oz. But the targets were shot with the factory trigger still installed.

Have no experience with the Tikka but it sounds like they are quality product , also capable of extreme accuracy.

 

[Simple Man]

My Tikka T3 Hunter (wood stock) was $567 out the door and the factory trigger drops down to 2 pounds with a simple turn of a screw driver. It is one of the best triggers I have ever owned only being beat by the CZ.

Out of the bolt rifles that I have owned I would rate the factory triggers in this order

CZ
Tikka
Savage Accu-trigger
Remington
Ruger