Time for a new rig.

[Nicktoney]

Hey guys, new to the forum, so feel free to burn me in harshly. The time has come for a new rifle. In the past I’ve rang numerous groundhogs with the 6.5cm RPR, but after selling it when offered too much, I moved onto putting a 20” deadshot barrel into my scar 17. Now I’m feeling the thirst for 6.5 again. I’ve been pretty blind to Howas and Tikkas, and am going to stay far away from remington due to their awesome QC. Currently a few questions have arose.
All questions regarding 6.5cm

1). Are all of Savage rifles, in the same class, barreled with the same barrel? Between these :Stealth Evo, GRS, Ashbury chassis, or their desert tactical. Is that the same barrel being ran in these? All heavy 24” looks to be same profile.

2) never shooting the howas, is their chassis rifle or their new krg bravo rifle, up to RPR standards? I’m guessing other than barrel length of the bravos, being 26”, are both the hcr and bravo the same barreled actions? And they are tried and true I’m assuming?

After seeing all the trash from remington lately has me a bit spooked as I don’t really know who’s paying attention to fit.

any one else have any suggestions to add here? I’m looking for something accepting aics mags, something if later on I decide to get balls deep into this again, I can build on and go full retard. I don’t care about weight, rifle will just be a prone/bench gun 90% on a bipod.

 

[Nicktoney]

I will note, I have no brand loyalty either. I see Howa and Tikkas accurAcy guarantee. And hear Howa has awesome customer service. Never heard how customer service is with Tikka. Nor savage for that matter actually

 

[Mordamer]

Tikka Tikka Tikka. The best barrel's and actions are on a Tikka. The CTR's are excellent except for the stock, but now there is pretty decent support from aftermarket stock and chassis manufacturers. The Tac A1 is another great choice if your budget is that high.

The answer to your first question is yes.

The answer to your second question is yes, but some of this is going to come down to personal preference. Howa's actions are better than ruger's in my opinion, but Ruger's execution of integrating their action with their chassis is excellent.

If I was going to buy a new factory 6.5 Creedmoor rifle right now I would get a Tikka CTR and drop it in the chassis or stock of my choice.

These are all my opinions and I have been wrong before.

 

[b6graham]

mandatory plug for the Hancock, if you can wait and afford it

 

[Nicktoney]

I’ve been super curious about the tikkas. Accuracy in everything I’ve saw and heard is rediculous. The only draw on the ctr is magazines, but that’s not too much to handle. The tikka chassis rifle it as the top of my budget but doable. And no I really don’t have the patience for the Hancock rifle and its coin is a touch out of my price. I can get dealer cost on the tikka/howas/big 3 so that helps.

 

[Nicktoney]

Now the real question. Is the tikka barrel and action the same from the ctr to the tac? Only difference being the chassis?

 

[BigTex]

Now the real question. Is the tikka barrel and action the same from the ctr to the tac? Only difference being the chassis?

All the same except barrel length, and the 2 stage trigger in the Tac A1 vs single stage in the CTR.

 

[Thunderhorse]

Tikka Tikka Tikka. The best barrel's and actions are on a Tikka. The CTR's are excellent except for the stock, but now there is pretty decent support from aftermarket stock and chassis manufacturers. The Tac A1 is another great choice if your budget is that high.

The answer to your first question is yes.

The answer to your second question is yes, but some of this is going to come down to personal preference. Howa's actions are better than ruger's in my opinion, but Ruger's execution of integrating their action with their chassis is excellent.

If I was going to buy a new factory 6.5 Creedmoor rifle right now I would get a Tikka CTR and drop it in the chassis or stock of my choice.

These are all my opinions and I have been wrong before.

This. The Tikka action is just so much more smooth than competitors. It really is competitive against rifles above its price point

 

[j741]

All the same except barrel length, and the 2 stage trigger in the Tac A1 vs single stage in the CTR.

And 2 mags (+1 free with rebate) on the TAC A1 vs the CTR having only 1 mag.

In another thread here on the TAC A1, the difference in cost between the CTR and tac was less than getting a CTR + 2 magazines + 2 stage trigger + chassis.

 

[b6graham]

And 2 mags (+1 free with rebate) on the TAC A1 vs the CTR having only 1 mag.

In another thread here on the TAC A1, the difference in cost between the CTR and tac was less than getting a CTR + 2 magazines + 2 stage trigger + chassis.

no more 3rd mag

 

[Mordamer]

The 2 stage trigger isn't needed. The factory single stage on the CTR is crisp and can be adjusted down to 1.5 lbs safely. If you can't shoot with that then you need to work on the fundamentals.

The Tikka magazines are great and feed really well. I'd still say get a CTR, buy an extra mag, add chassis or stock of your choice. Also, the factory stock is very usable and does not hold the gun back in accuracy. I have witnessed amazing accuracy from Tikka CTR's in factory plastic stocks.

 

[Nicktoney]

Well I think this and numerous hours of google has settled me on the ctr. And a krg chassis probably. And down the road, swap to a prefit pva barrel for some added asskicking. Thanks for the quick replies guys. She’ll be here in no time.

 

[Thunderhorse]

The 2 stage trigger isn't needed. The factory single stage on the CTR is crisp and can be adjusted down to 1.5 lbs safely. If you can't shoot with that then you need to work on the fundamentals.

The Tikka magazines are great and feed really well. I'd still say get a CTR, buy an extra mag, add chassis or stock of your choice. Also, the factory stock is very usable and does not hold the gun back in accuracy. I have witnessed amazing accuracy from Tikka CTR's in factory plastic stocks.

Agreed, mine is at about 2 lbs and I have no desire for a two stage trigger. The one thing I like about the Timney is that it allows bolt manipulation with the safety on, whereas the factory one does not. I am waiting to see what the KRG trigger is like before I decide to get one or the other or nothing at all.

 

[j741]

no more 3rd mag

Actually, there is they extended it to Feb 29, 2019

https://www.cabelas.com/assets/pdfs/tikka_t3x_tac_a1_free_magazine_offer_2-28-19.pdf

 

[j741]

Well I think this and numerous hours of google has settled me on the ctr. And a krg chassis probably. And down the road, swap to a prefit pva barrel for some added asskicking. Thanks for the quick replies guys. She’ll be here in no time.

When you go with the KRG Chassis you will need to get different mags. The Mapgul AICS won't work. I tried the MDT polymer mags and they worked well for me. If you're interested in buying two at a good price send me a PM. I didn't like the KRG X-Ray chassis as much as I wanted to so I went back to factory stock and sold the KRG. Still have 2 MDT polymer mags though. Only 5 rounds through one of them and the other unused.

 

[el_cazador713]

I'm in the same position as you. Im going to buy a CTR, drop it in a Manners, put a 2 stage and go to town. Tikkas are phenomenal for the price and shoot lights on. I'll replace the barrel eventually but the factory barrel will get me all I need.

 

[pineoak]

No issues whatsoever with my current Tikka .223 barrel or trigger. Would buy or recommend Tikka easily. Can't say about the CS, as I've never had a problem with it. Will be keeping this rifle for my kids if it shoots the same or better after being rebarreled. At 800 rounds and it's still more accurate than me by a lot.

I would avoid Savage as their CS is snarky, rude, and quite frankly not there to help the customers at all. They're good at getting back to you, but not with a satisfactory answer. I'll never own another Savage.

I've never owned a Howa.