Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Tikka negatives

Is Your mind Closed ?

A sincere question.
You’ve ‘read’ about SOME Tikka’s rusting. Ok, I get it.

You’ve ALSO read MANY here, including myself say WE have had NO rust
problems.

Regardless, you’ll decide without Personal Experience ?

Jerry

The “extra” cost for a Tikka gets made up in chasing loads that “shoot”. Pretty quick too....

Off the rack and factory fodder, I can’t imagine the Kimber Hunter could hang with a Tikka.

now imma preface this with i'm about the biggest or one of the biggest tikka nuts you will find. TO ME they just check more boxes than the rest of the pack. but, when i pulled the barreled action outta my fluted stainless hunter 260 rem there was some "staining" of the stainless/silver. it didn't appear to be rust as i couldn't feel it on the surface best i can remember. the gun was at that time still new and never shot cept by the factory. it didn't make me happy but once i shot it i quickly forgot about the "issue". i did as i do all of my new to me rifles in that while i had the barreled action outta the stock i layed the eezox on heavy and assembled the barreled action back into the stock and as far as i can tell i've not had rust issues. now, i've not put a wet gun back into the case for days or even hours though. thought that was just common sense though......... heres a tip:cut you some 2"x2" section off on old t-shirt or gun barrel patches or whatever and go ahead a saturate them with your choice of protectant.i like above mentioned eezox or ballistol personally,and put em in a ziplock bag and put em in your day pack or truck toolbox or whatever you will be in when you are hunting and when rain hits when you get back to your truck wipe the exterior of the gun down before you put it in the gun case. if your feeling really froggy buy you a patch worm kit and keep that with you then you can pull a cleaning patch thru the bore also to be sho nuff protected.
just my thoughts fellas,
Big Ed

Excellent advice! Good post👍

Great thread! I took delivery of my first new Tikka T3x lite stainless in the rain yesterday. Haven't seen any rust yet, but I wiped it down with Ballistol when I pulled the plastic off. I fondled it quite a bit yesterday evening, and couldn't find any negatives for this thread.

Waiting on rings now. They should arrive with the next batch of rain. Our range is covered. Think I'll live a little and see how she shoots in the rain. I'll post back if it rusts on the way home.

+1

I have had several since 2000 including the Whitetail Hunter. It's too bad they have gone up in price.

Even if they are all $725, there's nothing I'd buy instead of.

With that price increase could have came a true short action and/or a hinged floorplate for those of us that want options.

Given an short action and hinged floorplate or blind mag I would be all over one.

Damn sure good shooters but those are the things that kill it for me.

It's not just stainless Tikkas that rust. I went on a Nilgai quest with James and Roger in Tx, and took my 338 Fed with Douglas stainless barrel. Walking the mud flat on the inner coastal waterway was enough to lightly pit the barrel, despite a few squirts of Remoil (All I had with me) before and after the hike to the island. I used some fine steel wool and oil when I got home ans was able to "almost" get rid of all the pitting, but rust on stainless is not a Tikka exclusive.

I love the short action complaint.

You’re talking about less than 1/2” and four ounces. Like it matters.



P

You are correct, it's peanuts.

Just preferences of mine and when I buy a rifle I am the only one I have to please.

To each his own.

Like I say, I just like options.

Never know, I could drink the Kool Aid and change my mind by the weekend, maybe sooner, nothing is set in stone.

That Super Lite in the classifieds sure is a nice looking rig.

But the plastic trigger guards. I mean....damn man, I can’t tell you how many trigger guards I’ve broken over the years. I puke them ALL the time.

Long action for all chamberings, including 223, just bugs the heck out of me. But then again....I hate long actions in any flavor.

It matters. Is it only 1/2" longer bolt pull for a 223?

I’d be curious how many Tikka owners have found themselves inconvenienced by the lack of a true short action. And how many people who criticize the Tikka for this buy Remington 700’s in 223 when the Howa Mini Action is available?

I get it, though. It’s a cost saving measure. I held off on buying a Tikka for a while because I didn’t want to feel like I had a budget gun. When I finally got a Tikka and took it to the range, all the little things stopped bothering me pretty quick.

I have several tikkas, all in SA chamberings, including a 223. Action length doesn’t bother me, though if I were building a 223 I’d use something else in a true short action for sure. It’s a preference thing and I won’t argue with anyone that doesn’t like the one size fits all action length

Bitching about the trigger guard or the detachable mags make very little sense to me though. They work great, No way I’d rather have a blind mag or floor plate from a functionality perspective .

I know it's a personal thing. I can't like Rem 700 long actions. No real reason why. Rem 700 SA 223's and 223AI's? I'll love them all day long. Never tried a Howa Mini...but I don't have a need for it. Wanted to try a Fieldcraft 223 action, but I don't guess that will ever come to fruition. I've had several Tikka's, including 1-8" 223 lite, 1-8" 223 SS Superlite, 25-06, and 260. They all went down the road, because I have an aversion to LA's. But again....it's just me. And I can't get over it. Give me short action....or nothing.

NOT I !! I don't have or WANT a S A for any reason.
BobinNH, " I like long legged cartridges ". Hear ! Hear !





I have divested myself of ALL blind magazines but 1 ! You have NO access to the mag well W/O removing the
barrelled action FROM the stock.

D Ms ( CLIPS ) have advantages. Blind mags have NONE. to me.


Jerry

I was shooting one day and a bystander was laughing because I was shooting 223 ammo in a 30-06 gun and was ashamed.

Yeah, the laughing turned to tears of joy (I think) from my competitors, after I shot a perfect at the last centerfire shoot:


I was sure wishing my CTR was a short action that day....