Thread: $1400....What would you get?

Originally Posted by Marty Henry

For something different have a look at some of graham champions 2nd hand scandanavian imports excellent guns a bit different to tikkas, remis etc

The .270 I have now is a beaut early 70s Husqvarna Model 1900, Graham had a Kriko 6.5x55 about a year ago that got snapped up from under my nose, still hurting over that one!

Cant go wrong with a number if spending around 1400.I like the Remington, nice action, shoot well and getting a upgrade on the stock etc is a breeze later on if you think you need it or any other after market parts.

Originally Posted by Spudattack

Let's be honest here blokes, he is after a rifle to carry around the hills hunting, arguing over one hundredth of an Moa difference in accuracy is pretty pointless.

If you are spending $1400 on a rifle you are pretty much going to be coming out with a winner no matter which one you like the feel of.

I dislike tikkas as much as the next bloke but I have to admit there is nothing wrong with them and they are very good rifles, they are just not to my taste.

Justifying your own purchase gets pretty tiresome....

In a nutshell.

Try anything and everything till you pick up something you don't want to hand back.

Originally Posted by NakiNewbie

So I'm looking to replace the .270 Husky with something a little newer and more traipsing round the hills friendly. I've been doing some research and there's a hell of a lot of options so thought it might help to get some ideas from guys who've used different gear.

So the question is this. What would you buy if you had $1400 to spend on a bare rifle, synthetic and preferably stainless and why's that you choice? and just to throw a spanner in the works, NOT a Tikka....

Use is for deer, goats out to 300m in scrub country

Any feedback appreciated!

I may as well chime in on this.
1400 can be spent more ways than I know how.
Keep the .270 Husky. cut and put a DPT can on it, you will find it a whole different beast and pleasing to shoot.
On working up a load for a friend of mines .270 Husky it was just a hard kicker on the shoulder, most just push this thing kicked.
Then he suppressed it and I was quite taken by the big transformation. Cost you a few hundred and still have change for more gear.
The .270 is a good all-rounder in any hunting in this country.
You won't be any better off spending 1400.00 a good scope will cost you that and some if you get sold another story.
If I had known what I know now I would have kept the 303 cut and canned it ten shot mag for goats and light if the wood is done right
Are the wheels starting to turn yet
KH

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Good group, those would certainly have some knockdown potential.

Keep the husky and get a DPT, trigger job and a limbsaver fitted. Spend the rest on glass and ammo and go do some shooting!

You will miss the husky one day...

Originally Posted by BRADS

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Aren't you overdue for a rifle change?

Originally Posted by NakiNewbie

Haha I somehow knew this would kick off the ol "Tikka vs the world" thing. Thanks for all the other suggestions gents, given me some food for thought! I was already leaning towards a Savage because of the out of the box accuracy or a Remmy 700 due to the aftermarket options like mentioned! Couple others to consider now as well. (And nope still not a Tikka!)

The after market options for Savage rifles are almost as plentiful as for the Rem 700 now days, so don't let that be a reason to not go Savage.

Originally Posted by tommygun

A mate's brother-in-law just bought a Howa Alpine rifle, I fondled and shot it a bit at the range, feels like a regular Howa 1500 in terms of the action and trigger, just a bit lighter weight. Honestly I'd go for a regular Howa instead of the Alpine and invest the $800 saved on a nice scope. All things being equal I'd rather go with a Savage, simply because I've found they shoot really well for me, and the accu-trigger is not for everyone but I really like it now that I've gotten used to it. Can't really go wrong with any of the above (except the Tikka, haha) Remington, Howa, Savage etc. Browning A-bolts are available as a package with a one-piece mount/ring thing and a Zeiss Terra 3-9x40 for $1499. Think about after-market/replacement stuff too: Remington 700; probably the most popular bolt-action centrefire rifle in the world, you can get mounts, stocks, trigger groups, anything you want for it, there are tons of options. With the Savage not quite as many, but their floating bolt head and barrel nut means you can buy and fit new barrels yourself, and also means the accuracy is generally excellent as they can set the headspace very precisely at the factory. Tikkas, well, should you need a new Tikka stock you may as well buy another rifle, I remember trying to get a price a few years ago from Beretta NZ for a replacement Tikka stock and the nett cost was something in the order of $800. Plastic bolt shroud? Plastic trigger guard? $160 for a spare mag? Tikkas also tend to have slow twist rates and short magazine lengths, e.g. I looked at one in .300WM a while back, but they were 1 in 11" twist and the mags are too short to load heavier bullets, only a concern if reloading I guess.

In short: Savage

Tikka stocks are a dime a dozen second hand.
They usually go for 50-100 dollars....there is even one for sale on here now.

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Originally Posted by veitnamcam

Tikka stocks are a dime a dozen second hand.
They usually go for 50-100 dollars....there is even one for sale on here now.

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I might buy that one and sell it for $700

Just sold my Savage 116 .270 as I'm heading overseas soon, but would definitely recommend one! In fact, I'll probably just buy another one once I get back to NZ. They shoot well straight out of the box- mine shot MOA with SSTs and PPU ammo. I thought the accustock was nice & found it comfortable to shoot.

In saying that though, definitely get out & hold a few before buying & see what suits you.

Man, I wish I had just gone with Tikka or Sako from the get go.

I had a couple of Savage rifles that shot really straight and I really wanted them to be amazing... I think I was just cursed with them as they wouldnt feed hollow points and, one of them wouldnt fire without a perfect trigger pull!

They both grouped really tight though.

Had a Howa and a couple of Remington's but the Tikka's are just that much better for me. They are accurate and flawless functional rifles that are well priced second hand.

If it were my money, I'd wait for a tidy deal to come up on here

Tikkas flawless?

The last T3 I used (probably only one actually) had a vague heavy trigger (squeeze... creep... squeeze harder... is it going to break anytime soon? SQUEEBANG) and grouped about 3" at 100yds. Presumably the accuracy could have been improved with different ammo and/or rifle tweaking and the trigger could have been adjusted better, but it sure as hell wasn't flawless.

Shot it back to back with a Savage and I can't think of a single thing the Savage didn't do better. Trigger, action smoothness, safety ergonomics, accuracy. Oh the T3 was lighter because I was comparing it with a wood/blued Savage, the synthetic versions are about the same weight.

No problems with fussy triggers or feeding hollow points for my Savages (probably only tried HPs in 22lr and 223 I think). Maybe you were unlucky with them and I was unlucky with Tikka, you can get the odd bad example from any manufacturer.

Yes exactly!

You don't know how bad I wanted it to work too... Have to love the accuracy out of the Savage. If I lived in the UsA I'd be all over Savage from a custom point of view.