Which .223 rifle?
- Thread starter Eagleeye
- Start date
6.5-06 TIKKA
Well-Known Member
On a forum people give their own experience.
RFD sell the stock they want shifted.
If possible go along to a club and ask the shooters who have the rifle and caliber you want .
RFD sell the stock they want shifted.
If possible go along to a club and ask the shooters who have the rifle and caliber you want .
Hmmm...I think your budget will be the deciding factor, honestly.
I own many .223's. Savage Model 10, Tikka Varmint, Howa 1500, a half dozen AR-15's, and I'm probably forgetting at least one.
They all shoot well. Where the difference lies, is in fit/finish, as well as feeding.
The Savage is a tack driver, but it feels a bit clunky. And even with an Accu-trigger, while they can be tuned to be light, the issue is the triggers wear over time, so you'll end up having to re-tune it. It's just the nature of the trigger design. It won't inadvertently fire (by it's very nature it can't) but will begin to happen is when the bolt is run into battery, the sear will slip and be caught by the safety. Forcing you to reach up and lift the bolt handle to re-cock the rifle and slowly lower the bolt handle into battery.
The Howa I have, is also a tack driver. But the barrel twist is the older 1-12, so it was relegated to 40gr bullets for vermin. That being said, it was a slick and smooth feeding rifle from the internal magazine. Nice fit/finish, but the trigger was a bit mushy when you tried to take it down to less that 2.5lbs.
AR's I won't address, since those are fairly rare in the UK.
The Tikka Varmint has been my overall favorite. Primarily because there is a rapidly growing aftermarket support for the rifle, allowing you to customize it to whatever your liking might be. But beyond the aftermarket support, the bolt (with a swept AI style Sterk bolt handle) is probably the smoothest, most silky action of the ones mentioned. It's effortless and flawless in feeding (sitting in an MPA BA Comp chassis with AICS pattern mags), and has shoot many a target and vermin at long range, running 55-77 gr bullets. It's just a real pleasure to shoot.
So I would recommend in the order of highest to lowest:
Tikka Varmint
Howa (Miroku)
Savage
I don't have much experience with the Bergara rifles, save what I see at our local range and matches. They seem to be a good quality rifle ass well though....
MPA BA Comp Chassis, Sterk Swept bolt handle, MDT AICS .223 mags, KRG Midas two-stage trigger, Leupold MkV 5-25 TRMR 3
I own many .223's. Savage Model 10, Tikka Varmint, Howa 1500, a half dozen AR-15's, and I'm probably forgetting at least one.
They all shoot well. Where the difference lies, is in fit/finish, as well as feeding.
The Savage is a tack driver, but it feels a bit clunky. And even with an Accu-trigger, while they can be tuned to be light, the issue is the triggers wear over time, so you'll end up having to re-tune it. It's just the nature of the trigger design. It won't inadvertently fire (by it's very nature it can't) but will begin to happen is when the bolt is run into battery, the sear will slip and be caught by the safety. Forcing you to reach up and lift the bolt handle to re-cock the rifle and slowly lower the bolt handle into battery.
The Howa I have, is also a tack driver. But the barrel twist is the older 1-12, so it was relegated to 40gr bullets for vermin. That being said, it was a slick and smooth feeding rifle from the internal magazine. Nice fit/finish, but the trigger was a bit mushy when you tried to take it down to less that 2.5lbs.
AR's I won't address, since those are fairly rare in the UK.
The Tikka Varmint has been my overall favorite. Primarily because there is a rapidly growing aftermarket support for the rifle, allowing you to customize it to whatever your liking might be. But beyond the aftermarket support, the bolt (with a swept AI style Sterk bolt handle) is probably the smoothest, most silky action of the ones mentioned. It's effortless and flawless in feeding (sitting in an MPA BA Comp chassis with AICS pattern mags), and has shoot many a target and vermin at long range, running 55-77 gr bullets. It's just a real pleasure to shoot.
So I would recommend in the order of highest to lowest:
Tikka Varmint
Howa (Miroku)
Savage
I don't have much experience with the Bergara rifles, save what I see at our local range and matches. They seem to be a good quality rifle ass well though....
MPA BA Comp Chassis, Sterk Swept bolt handle, MDT AICS .223 mags, KRG Midas two-stage trigger, Leupold MkV 5-25 TRMR 3
Absolute brilliant explanation, thank you.
I was looking at Tikka T3X Tact A1 but as you suggested now Tikka varmint on my list as well.
You have a nice looking rifle.
6.5-06 TIKKA
Well-Known Member
5R Remington 700.
Stainless barrel and action, stock is very good with bedding block.
Stainless barrel and action, stock is very good with bedding block.
The "TikTac" is a good option if you're just wanting something out of the box that can run well on range targets or PRS style matches. That being said, the chassis is a bit dated (hence my recommending the Tikka Varmint; though you would need to have it's muzzle threaded if you are going to run a suppressor).Absolute brilliant explanation, thank you.
I was looking at Tikka T3X Tact A1 but as you suggested now Tikka varmint on my list as well.
You have a nice looking rifle.
TikTac
Pros: Comes threaded, in a chassis, with CTR double stack mags, and with a two stage trigger.
Cons: Chassis is slightly dated, doesn't support ARCA rail accessories, and is a bit pricier than the Varmint. If you go to a different chassis, you'll need to use AICS pattern mags (most aftermarket chassis do not support using CTR mags).
T-3 Varmint
Pros: Solid accuracy and great baseline for customization (of your preferred chassis, preferred trigger). Usually half the price (at least) of a TikTac.
Cons: It's pretty basic, doesn't come with double stack mags, comes in a basic plastic (but useable) stock, muzzle not threaded
It really depends on how customized you want to get with a range/target gun.
So far whatever I have seen or read for Tikka varmint is good will be doing more research on it.
Thanks once again explaining properly.
My target rifle is a Tikka TAC A1 in .308. I just bought a .223, a Tikka Varmint. Although it was sold as a Super Varmint it was actually a Varmint. It has a heavy barrel and a single stage trigger whereas the Super Varmint has a two stage trigger. I really like the two stage trigger on my TAC A1 so I bought a two stage trigger for it, a lighter spring to match my .308, and I put it in a GGS Reaper stock because I want to hunt with it as well as shoot targets and the TAC A1 chassis is heavy for a rifle that will be carried. If I were looking to just shoot targets another TAC A1 would be very good. The chassis adds weight and is very adjustable which is a plus for target shooting. Depending on budget, I might have gone for a different chassis for targets but there are a lot of options for stocks for the Tikka. If you're looking for 2nd hand there are plenty about to choose from and if you decide to sell it on you won't struggle and will get back most of what you paid. In .223 for target shooting a 1:8 twist gives you the choice to shoot heavy bullets which are less affected by wind at distance which is another plus. A 24" barrel also adds weight and gives higher velocity over a shorter barrel so I'd prefer that for a target rifle.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
Brilliant thanks for detailed answer.
Have a read of this whole thread too, the TAC A1 chassis is really good but there are also some excellent alternatives Tikka T3x Tac A1
jthyttin
Well-Known Member
Clipping a spring makes it heavier, since there's less coils acting when you compress it. But it does lessen the preload, when spring is compressed to certain length (b/c it's shorter to start with).
I'd try to find lighter spring in same length, diameter and amount of coils. I.e. made from slightly thinner wire. It would make the adjustability smoother.
6.5-06 TIKKA
Well-Known Member
Try an old fashioned jeweler who fixes clocks, my grandfather often got them from these shops
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