I saw a tikka with the fluted barrels and was intrigued.
I have a Stainless .270 T3 Lite, but am always playing with new ideas and weight saving options. Could be used for fun, deer, elk, antelope, who knows what else, but that is all at this point.
Have a few options and questions
.308 in blued barrel, black stock.
.308 in stainless barrel and black stock

.30-06 in stainless barrel and black stock

Questions: I am pretty sure they don't make a short action, so how do they deal with a short action cartridge? Is there just a spacer in the action to take up the extra space? If going for weight savings, does it make sense to get an -06 and use up the entire action space available.

How much more recoil will a light weight 30-06 have compared to a .270 or .308?

I know it will be more, just wondering if most find it comfortable in a 30-06 in a gun weighing in at 5.8 lbs. I like to shoot and don't like to shoot guns that punch you pretty hard. I would plan on putting a limbsaver on it or something else comparable as the hard chunks of plastic on their rifles seem silly.

I am not a weenie, but prefer not to get punched repeatedly, at 6'4" and dropping from 225 pounds, I don't get punched often.
Anyone have any experience with them, heard problems with the fluting hurting their excellent accuracy?

Thanks

While we are talking, which ones are the lightest, as in do they get lighter as the bore gets larger or is a 270 lighter than a 300 WM?

Does McMillan make an edge for them and if so, how much weight will you save?

Cabelas lists them all at approx. 6 lbs any actual weights?

I have 2 T3s, a Superlight(fluted) in 22-250 and a Lite(non-fluted) in 25-06. I guess the flutes save a few ounces but not really enough to notice. They are both very accurate and a joy to carry and shoot, even with the original pad. But they are both smaller calibers. Personally, I'd want to shoot one in 30-06 on up before purchasing just to know the recoil in that light of a rifle. I've seen a couple of SL's in 300WM for sale in the classifieds on here and I can understand the sellers' motivation. That would have to be brutal from a bench!

300 Super Lite is no problem from a bench. Prone can be a bit much, but it depends on your tolerance to recoil.

Can't speak for the Tikka, but I have a 1st Gen Ti in '06 that is even lighter. I don't find it objectionable to shoot, for what that's worth. So much depends on how the rifle stock fits, though.

If you like to shoot a lot and don't care for unessasary recoil I seriously doubt you will like the 30/06 more than your 270.

Have you had any trouble whatsoever killing anything with your 270?

Shod

I have several Tikkas a 6.5 Swede and a stainless 308 lite. The 308 was pretty sharp on the shoulder until I put a limbsaver on the stock. As an FYI I own a 35 Whelen, a 280 Ackley that is 7 lbs and they have less sharpness in the kick than the 308 until I added the better butt pad. I don't know that I would want to spend any bench time with an 06.

There's and Edge stocked T-3 SL in 30-06 floating around that goes 6#9oz with a 3.5X10 Leupie. Pun intended......

Seems like a good alternative to a Kimber which may not shoot , or a Forbes, which may not be produced. Do you know how much weight was shaved by the addition of the Edge?

Never owned a Kimber that didn't shoot. Always my first choice for a light rifle.

I'm convinced that the poor shooting was the result of the owner not knowing how to handle such a lightweight from the bench, not the rifle.

That said, I do own 3 Tikka T3s. Like them very much. Easy to shoot from the bench. Don't like the funky plastic feel and the less adroit handling, but get past that with practice.

And yes, Jon, the SA and 223 chambered Tikkas use various spacers or fillers in the magazine and various length bolt stops to facilitate cartridge length and feeding. Rather clever and cost effective way to accommodate, but you don't get any weight savings or different/better handling characteristics of a rifle with the SAs.

Bottom line for me is the price difference between the T3 ultra LW and the Kimber Montana isn't enough to change my mind if one fits of feels better than the other. In addition, extra mags for the T3s are rather expensive and sometimes hard to find. I've bought a few here when they came up.

Enjoy your search.

Jon,

I've owned T3 rifles in: 300WSM, 300 Win, 300 Win (SuperLight), 270 Win, and 223 (Varmint). All shot great. Both 300 Wins shot equally well, so no, I didn't see the flutes affect accuracy.

I just don't see what you'd gain or lose by going from a 270 T3 to a 308 or 30-06 T3. Unless you just want another T3?

Jason

Got two SL in .223 and .308. They're both fantastic rifles and very accurate. You can see some of my groups on the Tikka thread here. I put a Limbsaver on the .308. Can't say as I would care for anything bigger in that platform. Even my .308,while not brutal, jumps enough to make spotting shots tricky.

If they had made one in 7-08 I probably would've gotten that but I had a 5R Milspec and wanted a LW .308 to go along with it. If I wasn't trying to cut down on the herd, I'd probably buy a 7-08 Lite, anyway. And if they ever offered a fast twist 22-250 or .243' they might follow me home as well!

Anyway, I can't recommend the .308 SL highly enough. Super accurate, easy to carry and tough as nails. I like the balance and heavier barrel much more than the Kimber I had.

The .308 was exactly 5.8 lbs with rings and the .223 was a few ozs more (about 3 or 4, IIRC.

The .308 with Limbsaver, aluminum shroud, Leupy 6x36 with BC's weighs 6lbs 10 oz.
The .223 with aluminum shroud, Vortex Viper 2-7x32 with BC's weighs 7 lbs even.

My brother now owns my T3 Laminate in 270 win . He complains about the recoil all the time. It has the standard recoil pad.

I like the SS Superlite Tikka and have been toying between it and a standard SS t3 in 7mm rem mag. I think SW sells the superlite for 675 and one can get the standard 7mm rem mag t3 for low 600's.

I have a tikka t3 lit ss in 270wsm. It is very accurate, i shoot 140 grain bullets for the most part. I dont find recoil to be bad with 140 and 150 grain bullets, and i am using the factory stock. I am 13 years old.
Never heard of the ultralite, am i missing something?

It's called the super lite, I mistyped and called it the ultra light.
Same action and stock as the t3 lite, but the barrel is fluted and shaved a few ounces. I am looking at saving a few ounces and debating eliminating calibers, but fear I will regret getting rid of that troubling .270 that helped me harvest an elk and 3 antelope so far this year

Keep enjoying that 270 wsm and stay warm,
Jon

The Super Lite comes with the Sako Finlite barrel.

Heres another opinion on the 270 and 30-06
http://www.chuckhawks.com/perfect_pair.htm

If the super light uses the same barrel as the Finlite why is the Finlite 0.8 pounds heavier? Is it because the stock is heavier? I see the Finlite uses a steel mag. Is the Finlite in 308 a true short action?

I would buy a super light if they had 1 in 7mm-08.

Oh good gracious.... People who are scared of a 30-06 in a T3 lite or Montana need a check up or need to learn better shooting mechanics.... I have a T3 lite in 30-06 and 168s are my normal bullet preference... Never been any issue with recoil at all...

Everyone has a different tolerance when it comes to recoil. Some people feel a 270 or 30-06 has "excessive" recoil. My 06, a Rem 78 with a plastic butt plate didn't bother me.
But now I hunt with a 243 because it seems to kill whitetails as good as my 06.

Yes, it's a short action. I believe Sako uses 4 different action sizes.

The Sakos are Tikkas are two completely different animals. They just share the same barrels.

Dog,

You ever get that Sako hunter mounted up?

When you get the chance please post some pics and specs(weight). Wondering if they got the inletting fixed.

Do they make the ultralights in left hand?

Can't say that I agree with you, here. Everyone is different and the last thing we should be doing is encouraging people to shoot more gun than they're comfortable with by chiding them. We've all seen the guy at a shooting range who has way more gun than he can handle. Heck with the results or consequences; he's a MAN, damn it!

Comparing apples and oranges ..magazine box on the finnlite is steel not plastic , bottom metal is aluminum if not mistaken. Sako makes 4 actions sizes

If I wanted an off the shelf mt. gun seems like the Tikka super lite may be a better option if low weight is the primary goal. What would it take to get the Sako to the weight of the Tikka? I am assuming a new $500 stock so that probably puts the total price of the Sako at double the Tikka super lite. I don't have either but though of getting 1 or the other.

If weight alone was the main consideration, there is no need to get the Sako. I bought a Sako Finnlight because I don't like plastic trigger guards and plastic magazines. They probably work fine but don't give me any pride of ownership.

Are they still making the Super Lites in 223? stainless? what twist?

I don't know if they're still making them but they're available, SL SS 223 with 8" twist. I've been playing with the 62gr and 70gr TSX's which it shoots very well.

Sportmans Warehouse is still selling the superlite in 223; not sure if 1:8 or 1:10. Call the one in Bozeman to find out.

If you could buy a .308 used blued barrel and plastic stock for $550 or a new stainless barrel plastic stock for $700, what would you do?

I don't tend to prefer recoil myself. Just a personal preference. Does that mean I'm a woosy? We'll......I'm the undefeated northwest welterweight ultimate fighting champion so you tell me. You can shoot a bigger gun but I could whip your ass in less than ten seconds. Hows that all add up. Life can be decieving.

Shod

Hi. I test fit it and the inletting was correct. The bottom plastic seemed to be the right depth too. I actually sold the stock already. I needed the funds now, and just went ahead and ordered another Mcmillan to replace that one.

Since there a couple guys talking about the 223 versions of the T3 light maybe someone can help me out with the mag box length or mods to increase it. I am about to jump on the 223ai train and what to make an educated decision. Sorry to the OP for the detour.

Any thoughts or words of wisdom?

I'd go stainless every time, but I'll admit a strong bias toward stainless rifles in the first place. If you're out in the field for a few days at a time (pack-in type of hunt), stainless can buy you more time before nasty things start happening to metal. If you're home every day after hunting, it probably won't matter much.

I bought blued and sent to Karl getting cerekoted now.

If you own the rifle for 10 years that's $15 per year extra over blued.

I pay more than that for a half case of beer.



P