opinions please!! what rifle and why??

jamesbilling

Well-Known Member
hi all,
I am looking to apply for my FAC and am getting a .22LR a .308 and a .204 rugger.

i know which .22 i want and am stuck with the other two...

i was looking at getting a tikka t3 for the .204 but have no idea about the .308 any help guys?

I have about 3 grand for both rifles scopes and mods so please fire away with opinions!

Cheers
 
Good choice on the tikka, I'd look at either cz or howa and spend the rest of your budget on decent glass, or find a good second hand tikka or sako.
Most factory rifles with out shoot the person pulling the trigger, but a decent scope will give you the advantage.
 
If it was me and I had £3k in my pocket I'd buy two rifles of the same make and model unless you want a v light gun for stalking and a v heavy long rang fox/varmint gun. Howas with an upgraded laminate stock are a good option at a price point that allows you to buy decent glass. If you are minded to I'd go for second hand but vgc glass as you will be able to get higher spec but if you want new then look 'mid-range' at Vortex, Sightron etc. If you can get away with one mod then do so. You're unlikely to store a rifle with the mod on so no bother as you have to screw on/off anyway. I have no experience of .204 and don't know if the sound attenuation is good enough with a .30 cal mod. Plenty of people here that will know. As stated above, factory rifles now may well shoot better than you so spend the money on two good scopes then find factory ammo that the rifle likes, practice like anything and you'll be on the right track. :thumb:
 
cheers guys, any idea on where to look out for second hand glass and rifles that are decent?
gun traders usually guessing game as can't get much info on rifles!

cheers again!
 
The SD usually has plenty of second hand scopes. The community here is very helpful and honest and so far my experience of buying from other members has been excellent. With regard to rifles, ask around for a good gun shop in your area. I know nothing about dealers in East Sussex. A dealer with a good track record and endorsed by members on here is highly likely to offer you good service and advice. They will help you get setup and may even throw in a box of ammo free. (the dealer near me always is extremely helpful).
 
If it was me and I had £3k in my pocket I'd buy two rifles of the same make and model unless you want a v light gun for stalking and a v heavy long rang fox/varmint gun. Howas with an upgraded laminate stock are a good option at a price point that allows you to buy decent glass. If you are minded to I'd go for second hand but vgc glass as you will be able to get higher spec but if you want new then look 'mid-range' at Vortex, Sightron etc. If you can get away with one mod then do so. You're unlikely to store a rifle with the mod on so no bother as you have to screw on/off anyway. I have no experience of .204 and don't know if the sound attenuation is good enough with a .30 cal mod. Plenty of people here that will know. As stated above, factory rifles now may well shoot better than you so spend the money on two good scopes then find factory ammo that the rifle likes, practice like anything and you'll be on the right track. :thumb:

I agree with the advice to go for a budget rifle such as a Howa and use the spare cash for a good scope and in particular good bino's, the stalking tool you will use more than anything else.
As far as the 'one moderator' is concerned, I tried a .308W moderator (and a top-of-the-range one it was) on a .243W rifle and the noise was deafening, so that is not such a good idea.
 
My recommendation would be to buy one .30 cal moderator and use it on all your centrefires. AU-SL5 would be my pick. It works fine for me on a variety of 6mm and 260 Rem rifles.

Regards

JCS
 
I think I would be tempted to get a new Sako 308 with a good German scope and just shoot that for a while. Then later on perhaps look into a 204 you will do everything with a 308.

I wasted a lot of money when I first started out as I felt the need to buy everything on my ticket. What I in fact done was buy a lot of crap.
 
What I in fact done was buy a lot of crap.

I've seen a lot of people do that and they always seem to be buying and selling rifles and scopes for one reason or another.

In the end the exact rifle you buy doesn't matter much as there are lots of quality rifles out there. I personally went for Blaser in 308W for a range of reasons but your circumstances might differ. However buying the one good, quality, rifle at the outset has turned out to be a great decision for me. I've only ever owned one rifle and have no desire to change it after maybe 7 or more years now.

I can say the same about a scope - buy good quality and stay away from marketing "features" that you don't really need and you will be set up for life. I went with an S&B 8X56 it it is ideally suited to my needs. I bought well second hand and it is worth more than I paid for it and it has never let me down and I've never felt that I need any other scope.

My advice would be to put your cash into one well made, well engineered rifle that is robust, simple and designed to go stalking in the rain and, if you will require it, that will be easy to transport. The same goes for scopes - buy good Euro glass with the absolute least number of features you require. Keep to simple, fixed mag scopes if you can and put the cash into good glass and good engineering rather that marketing and magazine adverts. If you do that the setup will do you for a lifetime of stalking and will always deliver when you need it.
 
looking at your choice it looks like a rifle for deer, a rifle for long range fox etc and a 22 for bunnies?..
As you as just starting , you may find that shooting often often improves with lots of practice, maybe 40+ shots a week with a center fire
preferably with one rifle.
I would look at the 243 if i had my time over, suitable for fox and deer and master the reloading process to keep cost down.
For bunnies the 17 hmr will generally get you bigger bags or allow more challenging shots whilst being i believe safer than 22
 
I would agree 100 percent on one of the comments about buying everything then chop and change, a tikka 243 or 308 will do you along with a cz 452 22 rimfire with subs, dont bother with that 17 hmr load of poo
 
243 will kill mostly any deer it will also do for foxing so 1 rifle instead of 2

rimfire can be cheap and chearful a cz with scope and mod can be had S/H for £300-£350


or go .308 , .223/.222 and .22 LR all use factory ammo thats cheap and chearfull and plentifull
 
FWIW, I have a CZ 527 Varmint in 204. It shot half MOA right from the box and just keeps getting better. For 308 I am most recently enamored of my Tikka T-3 lite. Shoots great with any number of handloads, accuracy is great no matter how hot the barrel gets, and it's easy to carry.~Muir
 
Howa is the way to go. I had a .223 which put 3 shots on a 20p piece at 100 yards from the box. They are solid. If you dammage it you can buy another and you wont be too hurt.
.22 i would buy anschutz top class and very accurate and will last for life.
 
Have a semi custom built by a reputable gunsmith, careful who you choose as some have different skills and ethics to others.

you can tailor it to suit your needs and it will more than likely be cheaper than a mid range factory rifle, but will be more accurate and consistent.

glass, buy the best you can afford. 8x56 is a good beginners scope, but you may progress to a variable in time if your hunting requires it.

.30 cal moderators work fine on smaller calibres.

best advice of all is, find someone who does a fair bit (a real person) who you feel you can trust, listen to them, and follow their advice. Dont believe half of what you read on here, most people do very little and just talk rubbish!
 
Have a semi custom built by a reputable gunsmith, careful who you choose as some have different skills and ethics to others.

you can tailor it to suit your needs and it will more than likely be cheaper than a mid range factory rifle, but will be more accurate and consistent.

glass, buy the best you can afford. 8x56 is a good beginners scope, but you may progress to a variable in time if your hunting requires it.

.30 cal moderators work fine on smaller calibres.

best advice of all is, find someone who does a fair bit (a real person) who you feel you can trust, listen to them, and follow their advice. Dont believe half of what you read on here, most people do very little and just talk rubbish!

I think the semi custom route is very good for a more experienced shooter who knows exactly what they want but for a person new to stalking they may buy what the think they want or need but then quickly realise it doesn't suit them and they'll lose a lot of money moving it on. Definitely keep the custom option open but I'd suggest waiting until you've shot a fair few things and know what you really want.
 
I own Sako 85 ss ,scope Swaro .308 gun for all inc boar or 270 semi custom on a Sako 75 . small cal CZ .22,as for the hmr yuc been there had Sako rifle good rifle but i hated the round, wished i got a 204 or 21 fireball . what ever you get think if you still would own it in 5 yrs . good glass good mounts will make a good rifle better ,buy cheap buy twice, been down the rem's and lesser names apart bla bla, try'd most of them .
its only a choice you can make and how deep you wish to dig in your pockets A Sako new £1500,hardy mod £400 rings £160, glass £2k cleaning kit £100 more or less so to invest over 3.5 k you need to be happy with you own choice. Semi is nice i have a 6.5x47 on a Sako 75 action i am very happy built by Anglo custom in Kent, that feels the same as the standard factory one but hand made/ finnished .
but lets not forget the tikka very nice work horse and good out of the box.
 
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Just get a good .22 LR first, with iron sights, like a CZ.

Get in with a good group of hunters, or at least one, who will show you what they use, why, and tell you what they used to use. Listen more to the cartridges and bullets than the brand of rifle and scope.

Get something between the .243 and .308, like a 6.5x55 or 7mm-08. A Tikka T3 would be a great rifle in those.

Don't think you have to spend a fortune on a scope. Just get a quality 6x, second hand if possible, (Kahles, Meopta, Zeiss, Swaro, Leupold), and forget about all the knob twiddling. Keep your shots well under 200 yards.

Get a little reloading outfit and make up some mild light bullet loads for varmints, roe deer, and lots of practice from field positions.
 
When I went through the learning curve I thought about what I wanted to shoot and where ?
Asumming you're looking at rabbit, fox and deer as I was, I went for a .22LR for Bugs, .223 for Charles and .270 for Bambi (and his parents)
Ammo plentyful for each...........no regrets !
I did own a 17HMR and a .204 at one stage but surrended them finally ending up with the above.

Scopes; S&B 3-12x50, Zeiss 3-10x50IC and a Zeiss 2.5-12x56 in same running order.
 
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