Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Looking for new 7mm-08. Christianen or Bergara?

I have been struggling with a Tikka T3 for quite awhile now. Tried many different hand loads, factory ammo, scopes, etc. Pillar and glass bedding as well. Best she will do is 1.5 MOA. Going to trade her in for a new 708. Looking at a Bergara B14 or Christiansen Mesa. Any opinions or thoughts would be much appreciated. Thanks!

What mounts? That sounds pretty unusual.

Tikka's usually shoot pretty good.

Have you tried Pharmseller's 7-08 loads? Do a search.

I'd try that before getting rid of it.

DF

Yep. Nosler 120 Ballistic Tip, WLRM and Big Game (lots).

Works nicely in my No.1.

Unusual for a Tikka to not shoot.

Agree with eliminating all possible variables. May want to give them a call.

Generally Tikka rifles will shoot with your list of potential replacements.

DF

I have both rifles you mention. A Christenson in 7-08 and a Tikka in 7 mag. Love them both and use DNZ mounts on all my rifles

In your experience, am I pretty close on those two rifles being pretty close regarding accuracy?

DF

Talley bases and mounts. Since I pillar bedded the stock, devconed the action and floated the barrel I don't think the factory is an option. I also replaced the recoil lug with a titanium model. I've tried a mountain of loads and the best is 1.5 MOA. Tired of wasting time and money

Sounds like you’ve already eliminated variables. I’d call them.

DF

Do you have good luck with Tikkas out of the box? I have done everything possible such as pillars, bedding, free floating and the accuracy is mediocre at best

I have had great results from Tikkas out of the box. My T3 Super Lite in .260 shoots tiny groups--though I had to lengthen the magazine to allow even some standard hunting bullets to be seated long enough to shoot their best.

That said, have also had great luck with the 6.5 Creedmoor Bergara B-14 Ridge purchased a couple months ago--though it's heavier than the Tikka by about a pound.

Have not tried a Christiansen yet.

Literally millions of deer and other game were killed with rifles grouping at 1.5"".

True that.

BUT, the loony in me wants better. Sub inch beats 1 1/2”, IMO.

I find that to be a comforting, confidence builder.

Has nothing to do with logic.

DF

Did you re crown the barrel?

Send the bitch to me. I’ll have her straightened out in a week.

Your choice, 120 BT, 140 AB or PT, or 150 eldx.


From Sunday:

https://www.northwestfirearms.com/t...-this-this-and-this.306452/#post-2327199





P

^
👍

Learning lots of new ways to spell Christensen Arms. Too funny. My tikkas will keep up with my CA rifles all day long. Hope you figure something out.

How well do you shoot other light rifles? You could always try the Bergara, shoot it and see if it shoots better than the Tikka. Then if it does, sell theTikka to Pharm. He said he could get it to shoot. I've also seen some Tikka's that don't shoot as good as some say they do. One buddy struggled so much with a .223 rem superlite, that I thought he was going to cry when the best he could ever do was 1.5 moa. What some don't realize is, some Tikka's just don't shoot as well as others. Some live in a fantasy world too...

No truer words were ever spoken...^^^^^ If we were content with 1 1/2 moa, we'd just use lever actions for the rest of our lives...

I traded for a Bergara Premier Mountain rifle in 280AI a few months back, and the trade included some Nosler Accubond factory ammo the owner said it liked.

Put a Leupold 3.5-10 in Tally lightweights on it.

First 3-shot group at 100 went 5/8", so I know it's going to be a really good shooter once I put together a load for it.

Didn't go any further with it yet, as I am working with another rifle right now.

I like the fact that Bergara actions (and Christiansen too I believe) have a Remington 700 footprint, leaving stock and trigger options wide open.

I have been impressed by the quality of the B-14 series rifles too, and recently purchased a Bergara Ridge 308Win with a 20" barrel (special edition). I have not mounted a scope on it yet so can't comment on the performance, but the rifle is very well made.



Won't comment on Tikka, except to say my luck with them has not mirrored that of their biggest fans.

Have the crown checked for a chip. It doesn"t take much

I have a Savage Model 200 in .223 that is all over the place with everything except 68 grain Hornady match bullets and then it's well under an inch. As far as I can tell she's a one bullet rifle.

Have you tried adjusting the trigger to a lighter pull?

Tempting. Where you located, what do you charge? I am in SE Idaho.

Trigger adjusted, modified bolt stop and using long action magazine so I can lengthen OAL. Going to try H4350. Tried R15, R17, Varget, 4064, Big Game. Tried 140 AB,ELDX in 150 and 162, Sierra GK 150. Any other suggestions?

Someone posted about shooting a light weight rifle on a bench. That can sometimes be a challenge. Those guns are often more precise than what most shooters can deliver.

Nothing personal, but have you let others shoot it?

DF

The other trick, which I have mentioned numerous times before, is to pad the front rest with a folded towel when shooting real lightweights. I've found it usually really helps with scoped rifles weighing 7 pounds or less.

I’m in Oregon, close to Eugene. You pay the shipping and transfer fees ($35 for the transfer, dunno about shipping) here and back, I’ll take care of the rest, components and all.





P

You think you will.

No need to transfer it. He can ship it USPS to you for the load work, and then you can ship it right back to him. No change of ownership. No FFL involved.

Just like if he was coming out to hunt with you, and later you shipped his rifle back.

Maybe in Wisconsin.

Need a transfer in Oregon.




P

Hi Pharm,
Are you saying that Oregon has different ATF laws than the rest of the country? I have shipped Guns to a lot of different states to have them worked on and never was there a transfer involved. The only requirement was that the entity or person doing the work had to ship back to the same address from which it shipped. Not trying to be argumentative, but that’s how it has worked for me.

PacNor would be out of business.

PacNor has an FFL.

That trick is something i keep in mind. Never had to use it though. If i were really struggling with a rifle, id give it a try.

Yes, that is what I’m saying.



P

PJ,
After frustration builds up, it is easy to forget about some of the basics!

I would try dry firing with an empty chamber while at the range. Get the rifle all set on the bags with the cross hair dead on target and squeeze the trigger. After the snap see if your cross hairs are still on target, I'm suspecting it may have moved off.

Keep snapping and looking making adjustments with how your pulling the trigger in relationship to your grip technique, adjusting the grip and placement and bearing on the bags, until you can consistently dry snap and have the rifle come back to the same place.
Happy hunting

Straydog,
this is something I do every time I go to the range. Thanks for posting.

I still think I would try a different set of mounts ...

PJ65, my go-to load in any 7mm-08 is 43 grains of WW-748 under a 139 Hornady. However, a 140 grain Nosler, or even a 140 grain Barnes will work. I have had six 7mm-08s, and all shot that load well. It's from Ken Waters' Pet Loads.

I have owned five Tikkas, one of which was a 7mm-08, and all shot great. I sold the 7mm-08 even though it shot great. A friend just had to have it. I'm sorry I let it go.

I bet Pharmseller could get that rifle to shoot.

Good luck,

Marty

Yes, but after it is transferred to PacNor, you would have to pay to have it transferred back to you.

Try tightening the front and rear action screws per factory specs, put a different scope on it, and shoot a half box of Federal Premium 140 TSX loads through it. If it doesn’t shoot then; gun show time.

If you decide the Tikka must go, I can recommend a Bergara. I have one in 30-06 which shoots like a varmint rifle.

Don't own one, but the Bergara Premier I examined at the range looked very nice, as it should for the price. Still, I think you have a number of things left to check, so unless you're pressed for time, I suggest sweating those out. The joy you'll feel when the little light goes on is priceless. Have to admit I've pulled the plug on a problem child myself a time or two.

As others have said, you can always hunt it as-is and figger out the bug later when not in a rush.

Good luck.

No transfer involved; they log it in their A&P record book.

That's the point. No transfer involved unless ownership changes.

Unless you’re in Oregon.

Which I am.





P

You keep saying that, and I don't know why I don't believe it.

I've seen enough about Oregon to believe about anything.

I’m in sales. Plenty of people don’t believe me, so you’re not alone.




P

I believe you now. I've been to Portland.

Thanks for the input. 30MPH winds prevented me from hitting the range last few days. Hope to give her one more shot later in week.

Over-tightening the action screws can lead to accuracy issues. DNZ Game Reaper mounts work very very well on T3 and T3x models.