which would you choose and why I absolutely love the tikka action what are the pros and cons of both? Does the Tikka Action need to be trued?
- Thread starter Semperfi87
- Start date
Tikka Pros vs Custom Action
Less expensive.
Already Trued.
Very Smooth.
Very Accurate.
Tikka Cons vs Custom
Two Lug bolt design requires more lift vs some three lug designs of some custom actions.
Most custom actions are patterned after Rem 700s which means more choices on aftermarket barrels, triggers, stocks, rails, rings, etc.
Just a few things I can think of off the top of my head.
Less expensive.
Already Trued.
Very Smooth.
Very Accurate.
Tikka Cons vs Custom
Two Lug bolt design requires more lift vs some three lug designs of some custom actions.
Most custom actions are patterned after Rem 700s which means more choices on aftermarket barrels, triggers, stocks, rails, rings, etc.
Just a few things I can think of off the top of my head.
I actually just finished my occasional perusal of my usual Tikka action sources. You can easily find a tikka rifle for $4-600, and then get about $100 or more back out of the parts. If cost is a concern, you've just paid for your Manners or chassis or gunsmithing in the difference in action cost alone. Bighorns are $1200+, Mausingfields are more. Don't get me wrong, those actions are outstanding, and the bolt lift is one of the main places you'll notice a difference: they're wonderfully smooth. But the $1100+ action category aside, the T3 probably has the nicest bolt manipulation out of anything on the market.
Palmetto-Pride is right about the accessories, but in a more nuanced way. All of the main stock/chassis and rail mfgs make Tikka products now, but they don't make them in the same quantity. Barrels are a moot point because you just turn the tenon down a hair. Triggers is a good point, as you're really stuck with the factory offering, but it's excellent. KRG and maybe one or two other companies are planning to release an aftermarket Tikka trigger this year, though. As far as rails and rings, they're easy to find. Spuhr even makes a few different direct mounts for the T3 that don't require a pic rail.
Most gunsmiths will tell you not to bother truing the T3 action.
hope this helps.
Palmetto-Pride is right about the accessories, but in a more nuanced way. All of the main stock/chassis and rail mfgs make Tikka products now, but they don't make them in the same quantity. Barrels are a moot point because you just turn the tenon down a hair. Triggers is a good point, as you're really stuck with the factory offering, but it's excellent. KRG and maybe one or two other companies are planning to release an aftermarket Tikka trigger this year, though. As far as rails and rings, they're easy to find. Spuhr even makes a few different direct mounts for the T3 that don't require a pic rail.
Most gunsmiths will tell you not to bother truing the T3 action.
hope this helps.
While I did really like my defiance action, my Tikka action is a lot smoother. I'd love to get into a mausingfield or surgeon one day, but for right now I am thoroughly happy with Tikka. I've also heard some pretty good reports about the Bergara action. Also very smooth and they can be had at a pretty decent price point too.
I plan on keeping my tikka and one day building a custom long action based off mausingfield or bighorn tl3. Tikka are great for the price, accurate smooth and enough aftermarket support though barrels are less available than rem or savage . But I like the two customs actions I mentioned for ease of customizing down the road. There are far fewer options in magazine set up stock/chassis for long actions in tikka. Also all in all the customizations are a bit more expensive than rem footprint actions on the tikka.
Have not shot but played with a bergara and those are nice for the money too (and footprint is good for later options)
As much as I like my Tikka, I will always prefer a custom action. They are more precise and that leads to more accuracy potential. If building off a Tikka action fits your budget or just floats your boat, there's no reason not to go for it; but comparing a Tikka to a custom action is silly. If they were equal, there wouldn't be much market for custom actions and you'd be seeing loads of successful competitors using them. I think they're great actions and a good choice for a budget build if you don't mind the limitations in available trigger and stock options. If you can afford a custom action, go that way. If you can't, build on a Tikka and enjoy it
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I really like my Tikka ctr. Im waiting for dallas rifles to start re stocking the hardy CF prefit barrels for the tikka. Criterion and patriot valley are also an options for prefits. Its already a shooter with the factory barrel, but i bought it b4 the 24" version was released, of course. I would like to pick up the fps that the 24" will allow. As far as mag options and such, mountain tactical has a bottom metal that fits the factory inlet and accepts AICS mags. Haven't put them on the market yet but they are super close. retail will be $200 the YoDave trigger spring for the factory trigger feels better than the timney 510 ive got on my Sendero .300 win. As far as stock options, ive got a GGS Raptor on my tikka and love it. Manners builds tikka stocks, other companies have hunting stocks made for tikkas, and the majority of chassis companies have tikka options as well. Mountain tactical also has the 20 moa pic rail at a good price. Bottom line, the options are out there, they are just a little bit more limited than a rem700 variant or some of the custom actions. I wouldn't change a thing as far as the performance of my tikka. I doubt i would shoot a custom action any better. With that said, ive been toying around with the idea of doing a custom action build. I think im going to wait until i get this prefit barrel on before i choose to go the custom action route, or another tikka. Hope that helps the OP.
snarkscarbine Wow guys thank you so much for the input!!! I sent you a PM concerning the Tikka Barrels
No prob.
BLKWLFK9 The prefits will pretty much always be special order for the time being. Shoot me a PM and we can get you what you want in pretty short order.
I did not know Tikka prefits was even a thing. That makes it much more appealing.
Honestly I like the bolt manipulation of my Remington over the My Tikka. The Remington has a lighter lift and tighter fit. That being said if I had to choose which to buy it would be a Tikka every time as I've had many issues with the remingtons.
Honestly I like the bolt manipulation of my Remington over the My Tikka. The Remington has a lighter lift and tighter fit. That being said if I had to choose which to buy it would be a Tikka every time as I've had many issues with the remingtons.
I went through this decision (Tikka action vs custom) for a build I have completed recently.
i chose the Tikka route because, as has been stated here already, the quality/performance vs cost for custom action couldn't be justified for where I am with my shooting. I took that cost difference and brought an excellent second hand NF NXS as my glass.
I purchased a new T3x in 260Rem and played with that while I sourced the custom components and saved the cash to build it up iteratively. The Tikkas are great performers straight out of the box.
i chose the Tikka route because, as has been stated here already, the quality/performance vs cost for custom action couldn't be justified for where I am with my shooting. I took that cost difference and brought an excellent second hand NF NXS as my glass.
I purchased a new T3x in 260Rem and played with that while I sourced the custom components and saved the cash to build it up iteratively. The Tikkas are great performers straight out of the box.
Only downside to a tikka is less part availability (still plenty out there though) and the bolt stop pins...they are weak af and break all the time, be gentle with them
I bought the latest Tikka, put it in a chassis, it shot great at the range, but ran into some inconsistencies at 600yrds+. I didnt have too many rounds down the tube but I wasnt sure if it was the rifle or the shooter,. Expert spotter, zero wind day and inconsistent misses shooting MOA sized targets. Granted this could have easily been worked out with load development and time behind the rifle. I happened to get lucky and snagged a custom MPA BA for not that much more than what I had invested in the tikka. Same shooter a few weeks later and it was almost point and shoot with factory ammo. The tikkas are fantastic bang for the buck but I was happy to pay a bit more for guaranteed accuracy.
The way I chalk it up is there will always be some folks with factory rifles that shoot lights out, there will be far fewer folks with well built customs that shoot poorly.
The way I chalk it up is there will always be some folks with factory rifles that shoot lights out, there will be far fewer folks with well built customs that shoot poorly.
Owned a pair of tikka t3's and then bought a bighorn tl3. The bighorn is nice don't get me wrong but the tikka T3 is awesome for not only the price but it would be for a price much higher than it commands.
The only reason I got the bighorn was because of a want, definitely not a need. You won't be missing out on anything much by saving 1k $ and going with the tikka.
However, if you have an itch for a custom action to see what it's all about then you might as well do it sooner than later because you will have to fill the void eventually anyways.
The only reason I got the bighorn was because of a want, definitely not a need. You won't be missing out on anything much by saving 1k $ and going with the tikka.
However, if you have an itch for a custom action to see what it's all about then you might as well do it sooner than later because you will have to fill the void eventually anyways.
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Hi,
i suppose it depends on what you intend to do? Long range precision competition, PRS type matches, hunting, plinking? What size targets? Will you reload?
for what it's worth I have a tikka t3x Ctr in 260 R.E.M., dropped in an Ai stock, put a heathen muzzle break on it. I did some load development and with a final result of Berger 130gn OTM at a mv of 2604, SD of 9 I am able to hold consistent 0.15mil (1/2 MOA) out to 1000m shooting prone from bipod and a rear bag from a hill across the paddocks on the farm.
Its a great gun
i suppose it depends on what you intend to do? Long range precision competition, PRS type matches, hunting, plinking? What size targets? Will you reload?
for what it's worth I have a tikka t3x Ctr in 260 R.E.M., dropped in an Ai stock, put a heathen muzzle break on it. I did some load development and with a final result of Berger 130gn OTM at a mv of 2604, SD of 9 I am able to hold consistent 0.15mil (1/2 MOA) out to 1000m shooting prone from bipod and a rear bag from a hill across the paddocks on the farm.
Its a great gun
I bought a Tikka CTR .308 earlier this year that a friend was getting rid because he decided to have a custom 6.5 Creedmoor built. I had no intention of doing anything with the rifle, I just thought it'd be cool to have and the price was right. Then I stumbled on this forum and it piqued my interest in long range precision shooting. I'd love to have a custom rifle with $2k+ glass and all the accessories but after reading this post I think the prudent thing to do is upgrade the stock, put some decent glass on it, and shoot it. If it turns in to something more, I'll upgrade.
Now all I have to do is pick out a stock or chassis and some glass.
Thanks to all on this forum that contribute their knowledge and experiences.
Now all I have to do is pick out a stock or chassis and some glass.
Thanks to all on this forum that contribute their knowledge and experiences.
I have shot the CTR out of a KRG W-3 chassis and have my own Tikka in a W-3. It held under MOA at 600m. The W-3 provides excellent stability and good balance, they also look pretty sharp as well. Definitely worth considering.
How many rounds are you shooting?
Consistently shooting 1/2 MOA groups at 1000yds is no easy task whether it's a factory action or a high end one. There's a lot that comes into play when shooting extended distances and the action in my humble opinion is much lower on food chain then mainly like to think.
I decided to stay with the Tikka an I finally received an email from MANNERS my T4 in Elite Gap Camo is a week from finish i feel good about this set up
Congrats on your decision. I forgot to mention that with a spring upgrade the tikka trigger is really quite nice.
OZ: 5 rounds is good. Better than I can do most days. It's pretty windy where I usually shoot and sometimes it's challenging (for myself) to get the rounds 1-5 in MOA target when the wind is switching as it usually does. It would be a pleasure to have have 1-3mph winds as you described
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Comes down to $ for me . I'm not earning the big bucks overseas any more , so I'm shooting on a much
reduced budget . The last Tikka I picked up was $700 Aud , sold the barrel and stock for $ 300 , so ended
up with a new action for $400 . ( 300 WSM ) Given how inexpensive they are , I don't mind running them
like a rented car ...
The oldest T3 action I have is on its seventh barrel ( 308 for the first two then x47 the others ) , must have
cycled well over 25 k rounds . Gunsmith suggested it will be time at the next barrel fitting to regrind the lugs
due to me running it hard and dry in very dusty conditions ...
The Barnard action I like is around $2.2 k here . A GAP Tempest would be closer to $2.5 k landed including
freight and import taxes , plus import permit and ITAR dramas ... The $1800 + difference gets me a match barrel , and
enough components to wear it out . I miss the A I that I used to run on someone else's dime though , that is a nice
action ....
reduced budget . The last Tikka I picked up was $700 Aud , sold the barrel and stock for $ 300 , so ended
up with a new action for $400 . ( 300 WSM ) Given how inexpensive they are , I don't mind running them
like a rented car ...
The oldest T3 action I have is on its seventh barrel ( 308 for the first two then x47 the others ) , must have
cycled well over 25 k rounds . Gunsmith suggested it will be time at the next barrel fitting to regrind the lugs
due to me running it hard and dry in very dusty conditions ...
The Barnard action I like is around $2.2 k here . A GAP Tempest would be closer to $2.5 k landed including
freight and import taxes , plus import permit and ITAR dramas ... The $1800 + difference gets me a match barrel , and
enough components to wear it out . I miss the A I that I used to run on someone else's dime though , that is a nice
action ....
The Tikka is about as close to a free lunch as it gets in the shooting game. I have Surgeon and Nimrod custom actions, my four Tikka's give up very little to either.
You should have no problem. I've been running a 284win with 3.250"OAL out of a Tikka long action since last fall, with a 5rd Accurate 3006 mag and 2 modified 10rd AI long action mags. The Accurate mag was good to go for me right away, but I wanted 10rd capacity, so got to work on the AI mags. Did basically the same mods as the LR hunter thread, and also added my own spacer in the front of the mag, just like the 5rd Accuratemag. Turned out good and feeds like butter.
I ran Tikka's for years and still own a couple for hunting type rigs. When I found out the bolt stops are weak and easily broken I went with a Mausingfield for my main competition gun for a few reasons. The main reason was reliability and not having to worry about yanking my bolt out in the middle of a stage. The MF is a very smooth action, but that being said, the Tikka is STILL smoother in a variety of conditions. Even in very dusty conditions like you find in OK, the Tikka stayed smooth, and I never even cleaned it out from one day to the next of a two day comp. They would be a solid choice at twice their going rate.
I have a Bergara B14 6.5 CM and absolutely love it. My daughter has claimed it for her own so I am looking at a new rifle, potentially a Tikka. My only concern about my Bergara is the coned bolt and barrel, which will require gunsmithing to change in the future, since the barrel is not identical to the Remington 700 setup. I had always wanted to be able to change to a Bugnut or Remage barrel with it in the future. But I guess if that is my biggest gripe I'm doing pretty good with that rifle.
You should have no problem. I've been running a 284win with 3.250"OAL out of a Tikka long action since last fall, with a 5rd Accurate 3006 mag and 2 modified 10rd AI long action mags. The Accurate mag was good to go for me right away, but I wanted 10rd capacity, so got to work on the AI mags. Did basically the same mods as the LR hunter thread, and also added my own spacer in the front of the mag, just like the 5rd Accuratemag. Turned out good and feeds like butter.
Thanks for the info mate, can you tell us a bit about your 284? Projectiles, velocity etc?
So far I've run 180 Berger hybrids at 3.25", which is about .005" off the lands, exclusively. 500rds down the tube, 54.5gr H4831SC gets me right on 2780fps with SDs around 6 and ES around 14. I've only used Norma brass, just turned the necks down after 3rd firing. Very easy to tune this caliber, and I really like it in this Tikka action. The circled group is a 10rd group at 890yds, the rest was positional. It shoots better than I do lol..
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You would think at a minimum Bergara would offer pre-fit barrels in their store especially since they advertise the BMP as "user change barrel" due to the barrel nut on the BMP.
So far I've run 180 Berger hybrids at 3.25", which is about .005" off the lands, exclusively. 500rds down the tube, 54.5gr H4831SC gets me right on 2780fps with SDs around 6 and ES around 14. I've only used Norma brass, just turned the necks down after 3rd firing. Very easy to tune this caliber, and I really like it in this Tikka action. The circled group is a 10rd group at 890yds, the rest was positional. It shoots better than I do lol..
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You are making the 284 a tempting option mate, that's the performance I was chasing with the 180s. I'm guessing that the 280AI won't be much different. That grouping is excellent Thanks for the info.
I've tried most custom actions looking for the holy grail. Nothing beats a Tikka, but the Tikka is not the "sexy" choice, and that is one of the biggest reasons there is a market for custom actions (over a Tikka). So many Tikka rifles have proved they can hang right with the customs in PRS, NRL, Club matches and so on. That being said, I just built on a Curtis Custom, and it feels closest to the Tikka as any other action I have tried. It is awesome, but to be honest, it isn't any better than a Tikka in the accuracy department (accuracy pretty much comes down to the barrel and chambering as far as I'm concerned). As mentioned the weak link on the Tikka is the bolt stop. But I wouldn't let that deter one's decision. I'm actually hanging on to my Tikka incase I decide to sell my Curtis Custom build. The conclusion that I made a long time ago, still sits with me....the extra cash put into a custom is not providing the expected return on investment.
For those who like a little light reading, we did a write-up on the T3 awhile back just for this purpose. It doesn't cover the T3X but it's basically the same
https://kineticresearchgroup.com/intel/
Click on "KRG published resources" then you'll see the article, "The Case For and Against the Tikka T3". It might help some of you guys out a bit.
Justin
https://kineticresearchgroup.com/intel/
Click on "KRG published resources" then you'll see the article, "The Case For and Against the Tikka T3". It might help some of you guys out a bit.
Justin
Good write up guys. The nice thing is, the T3X/CTR/TacA1 addresses the majority of the cons you listed (at least for short action calibers).
While i prefer my customs, arguing accuracy on the basis of an action trued or barreled by a proper smith is redundant, the vast majority of shooters couldn't shoot the difference between a trued 700 with a good barrel and a 1600$ mausingfield with a good barrel. You're basically paying for tighter tolerances, various features, smoothness, improved reliability, and better resale value over factory actions. In reliability i'm mostly referring to remington. My point is that i will bet my life savings that Frank, Terry Cross, Brian Allen, Shannon Kay, etc etc. will out shoot me with a 700 based build than my 3500$ custom, you could hand them a Mosin Nagant with a proper barrel and i'll still lose.
Note i'm not saying don't go custom, because honestly if you have the budget i highly recommend it. There are perks to customs especially the most recent two that come to mind if your intention is to stick with one action and have multiple barrels. Both the Bighorn and Mausingfield have means of changing bolt heads and having a multi-cal switch barrel setup. That's pretty much why we have two bighorns, for hunting switch barrel builds.
I run a tempest for competition, which i don't think i'll ever change from that less George comes out with a Gen 2. I thoroughly love the action. It is slick as owl shit, feeds fine with AW mags, and i can run it much faster than i can any 90 degree 2-lug.
All in all i'd attest to Tikka being the best factory option you could build upon besides the Ruger RPR. I think the Tikka is nicer sure, but for the money the RPR is pretty hard to beat, especially with the added fact you can do all the mods yourself.
My vote is to pick whichever allows you more time on the range shooting.
Thats great news!
Do you have a link to your product to make it a little easier for those that are interested to find it?
Thank you. The Tikka is very hard to beat. A T3X in our new Bravo chassis with our 2-stage trigger would rival a TRG and outclass it in some ways. I haven't seen the Tac A1 trigger but that might be so good as to not need upgrading.
Justin
Could you expound on this a bit? CDI has had bottom metal for some time now. It sounds like you are introducing a new aspect to the system somehow, maybe you can elaborate. Is it that it doesn't need a special inlet?
Thank you,
Justin
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