Thread: Good first hunting rifle?

Originally Posted by Doch

Hey guys,

I'm looking at getting a good rifle that I can hunt with. Right now I've narrowed it down to a Howa 1500 and a Tikka T3, but what I want to know is what is the advantage of getting one of these over something like a Savage Axis?

From what I've heard and read the Axis shoots decently and with the right techniques can give some nice groupings, what does the extra $600-900 dollars on a T3 get me?

is it just a preference thing?

Cheers.

In the first sentence you say you want a "good" rifle and in the next you use the word "Tikka"...the two words hardly go hand-in-hand.
You say you want it for hunting and that it groups well...the only time you need it to group well when hunting is when you need to hammer the animal because of lack of calibre.
If you think that you will buy your ultimate rifle the first time out...forget it. Go to any gun shop and have a look at the collection of unwanted rifles in the racks. The buying and selling of rifles is what makes the industry go round. If we all had our ultimate rifle we wouldn't need the massive gun safes that we all have...let alone the bullshit we all tell the missus when we spot another "must have".
It wont matter what you buy for your first rifle...it wont be your last...pay your $'s...and start planning your bullshit story as to why you need another.
Whatever you do don't tell that salesman that you are a newbie at buying a gun...he will smile, rub his hands together [probably have an erection] and reach for that piece of shit that hasn't moved in the past 3 years...if he's good, you will buy.