weather warrior vs tikka (and 308-7mag)

G

grey_pilgrim

New member
TL, DR:
1) Tikka T3 Stainless vs Savage Weather Warrior
2) 308vs30-06vs7mm mag (less important)
3) Truthfully, no matter what I get, I think i'll be happy.

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I'm getting my first 'big' centerfire rifle. Realistically, it will be used for deer and paper. Perhaps sometime in the future, I would go sheep hunting (or elk hunting if I get a job out west). I've narrowed it down to a Tikka T3 stainless or Savage Weather warrior.

I played around with both in the gun store last weekend....the tikka felt better in terms of balance, and the bolt throw was 'slightly' better than the savage. The savage stock felt better. Triggers were different, but I liked them both. The savage loads from the top, and the action is pretty 'exposed'. The Tikka takes a magazine and is covered at the top. I'm not sure I like this in the Tikka, because while it protects the action and bolt, it also means that its harder to get inside and clean. The tikkas have the same action length for 308, 30-06, and 7mag. A well maintained gun lasts a lifetime, so I want to choose carefully. Any perspectives on what gun to get?

Edit: One other difference is that the Tikka has 1/11" twist, whereas the savage has 1/10" twist.

I was debating between 308 or 7mm mag for this gun. There's lots of posts on TFL about this, and my takeway is that it really boils down to if i'm going to reload, to which the answer is 'maybe'. I was talking about this with my dad, and when he heard that there was no difference between short and long action Tikkas, he said 'you'd be crazy to not just get a 30-06 over 308 in that case'. If anyone has any burning comments on this, I'm all ears as well. The gun is mostly for punching paper and deer, with the potential for a sheep or elk hunt someday. I really want a 280, but good luck finding an inexpensive leftie gun in that, and finding cheap ammo for it.

Thoughts?
 
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Own both and love both, but if I could have just one it would be the Tikka. Unless you are shooting VERY long range I would get the 308 OR consider a 270 Win which is a great fit for the Tikka platform and ballisticly almost identical to the 280 you were wanting.
 
Get the Tikka. While the Savage stock might have felt better in the store, the Tikka synthetic is one of the best factory synthetics out there and much better quality than the Savage.

You are right, caliber doesn't matter much. I'd avoid 7 mag. It can be a good round, but not a good choice for a 1st centerfire, especially from a light rifle. I like the 308 best for your use. Ammo is cheaper, easier to find and it will recoil less than the others.

Nothing at all wrong with the 270 recommendation. It will truly do anything the 280 will do except on paper. Even then it is hair splitting.

I was talking about this with my dad, and when he heard that there was no difference between short and long action Tikkas, he said 'you'd be crazy to not just get a 30-06 over 308 in that case'
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With most guns there might be some merit to this. But if you compare the Tikka side by side with the Savage, the long action Tikka has almost exactly the same length in the loading/ejection port as a short action Savage. With most guns the short actions are lighter and more compact than long actions. The Tikka is light and compact enough regardless. Especially compared to Savage. If you were looking at almost any other gun it might matter. Savage long actions are insanely long and difficult to mount some scopes on.

Also modern 308 loads will equal or beat 30-06 loads of a generation ago, and do it with about 25% less recoil. Unless you really need that tiny bit of extra performance offered by a 30-06 ,only available with hot handloads, the added recoil and expense is just not worth the trouble regardless of action length.
 
1) Tikka T3 Stainless vs Savage Weather Warrior
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Both are fine rifles and have something to offer the other does not. I would get the one that feels best to you. Shoulder them, make a choice and never look back.


2) 308vs30-06vs7mm mag (less important)
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For punching paper and deer hunting I'd pick the 308. It is easier to shoot, easier on your wallet, and easier on your shoulder.


3) Truthfully, no matter what I get, I think i'll be happy.
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It's tough not to be happy when you have a brand new rifle:D

Good luck with your choice and be sure to let us know what you decide on.
 
If you do go with the Savage do yourself a favor and get a short action, as mentioned their long action is LONG! I had to buy a Leopold VXII for mine since the Nikon I had picked out would not work for me, I had to strain my neck forward to get full light even with the scope all the way back, the VXII was a tad longer and had a bit more eye relief, nice scope but twice what I was wanting to spend.
If you want a magnum cartridge I would advise you to look REAL hard at a 270 WSM, take it from someone who has owned four 7mm Rem Mags the WSM is superior at everything except 1,000 yd paper punching, considerably lighter recoil too. My Savage 270 WSM shoots cloverleafs with boring regularity, second most accurate cartridge I have ever worked with and I work with A LOT.
 
Keep the responses coming. I keep coming back to the tikka; it was a nice gun and felt pretty natural to hold. I'm not sure why, for some reason I'm not really feeling the 06 and 270, even though for what I want, the 'practical' choice is probably 270 (decent for deer hunting, but can be used for sheep if the opportunity arises, recoil is not insane). It's just a 'feelings' thing...

AllenJ, you can be assured that once I get it, there will be a range report.

ETA: Also, because it's amusing given the topic of conversation, here was my first post on TFL:
http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1363685#post1363685
I was apparently wanting to get a savage in 7mm-08, 308, or 30-06, or a saiga in 308. Wound up getting neither, and saved up to build an AR. And I did get a CZ-452. :cool:
 
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I love the .308, but don't discount the 270 and 30-06. When ammo was scarce, these cartridges were on the shelf where the .308 wasn't. I'm not a big fan of beating my shoulder up, so I'd probably not be interested in the 7mm.

Both your rifle choices are great rifles. I borrowed one of my father's rifles (because I didn't want the hassle of flying up to WI with a rifle) and took a deer at 150 yds this year with a Savage Weather Warrior in .308 this year. I didn't use his Tikka Lite SS .308 because he wouldn't part with it. ;)
 
Have you ever owned a 270 Win before? Rarely ever met anyone who was not thrilled with their performance on game. External ballistics are so close to 7mm Rem Mag the difference is hardly worth mentioning, and recoil is reasonable. Just a good darn cartridge, I am a 6.5mm guy mostly but the 270 still makes my A-List especially in a light rifle.
 
For hunting and general shooting the 30 06 is hard to beat. As for the rifle, the Tikka T3 is a good gun, a guy I shoot with has 3 and absolutely loves them. I have (among other guns) a Savage 110 in 270 and it is excellent in every way. I am currently on a 'Buy American' whenever possible, get the Savage.
 
Get the Weather Warrior, in .270 winchester,lots of ammo available and it wont beatbyou up practicing with the rifle.
My daughterbhas one, and she loves the out of box accuracy and the waybit handles invthe field.
 
Not a leftie here, but I just went through basically the same thing you are. I was wanting to add a stainless rifle to mount my night vision on and ended up deciding on the Savage in .308. I'm an old guy and remember back when
Savage was a cheap made rifle and had a so/so reputation. I think they have really cleaned up their act and are giving Remington a run for their money. I like to buy American where ever possible and that entered into my decision also.
 
7mm Rem is a barrel-burner, like all magnums.
.308win and .30-06 offer about the best characteristics for long barrel life.
Like 1000rds fired life of the magnum vs 5k for the 06 or .308.

Gonna handload? You should. Best way to learn your rifle and make it do many things factory ammo won't.

Tikka is a very fine rifle, plus you get a Sako barrel. Probably the best factory barrels going. Better than many custom barrelmakers stuff. That's a consideration.

Owned about 6 .270win rifles over the years. Drank that Outdoor Life Book Club Jack O'Connor Kool-aid when I was in 7th/8th grade. It was the hotrod ctg of its era, but its era was the 20s and 30s. The Win model 54 in .270win was the factory hotrod ctg. Jack always bemoaned the passing of the Western 130gr bullet. I shot Sierra 130 boattails. Sold all my .270s.


Gonna shoot deer and targets? A .308win is your ticket to success. Think you might want to shoot elk or mule deer? Maybe choose the .30-06... .308 will serve for those animals too, but maybe you want a bit more power?

.30-06 will have noticeably more recoil. Unless you handload, then it is very versatile. More versatile than the .308 or the .270win.

.308 does have more cheap surplus ammo available if you just want plinking rounds and won't be rolling your own. Then again, if you study the loading manuals and review the available bullet selection, not to mention cast bullet molds, you will see the spectrum of performance handloading can enable.

If you're gonna shoot groups, may as well shoot the best ammo you can get; and that will be what you craft yourself. Unless you are rolling in clover and don't mind $20-$30/box for match ammo.

.308win offers better range results than the .30-06spg for several reasons, but the .30-06 offers more versatility with heavy weight bullets, or higher velocity potentials. Either one has lots of brass available, and there are more bullet weights in .30cal than any other. .308win probably all you will ever need.
 
Weather Warrior!! That gun is sweet! Tikka is a nice gun but the weather warriors accustock is much better. Either really will make great hunters.
But go with the 30-06. Ammo is always in stock over the counter (at least where i live), Hunting Loads range from $20 a box -$50 a box, Cartridge does great on deer,hog,bear,elk. It is a great big game caliber.
 
30-06 vs 308 vs 270 vs 7mm Rem Mag, having owned all of the above (several actually) I will say that the 30-06 is far and away the most versatile especially if you roll your own. The 308 is the most efficient (by A LOT) and the 7mm Rem Mag shoots the flattest. While the 06 is more versitle it is also overpowered if all you hunt is deer, I only take my 30-06 out if I am hunting the river bottoms where I might run across large hogs, for deer it is overkill and all that energy is either wasted out the far side or if you are using a fast expanding bullet will make a nasty mess of a deer at close range, the 7mm Rem Mag suffers from the same dilemma and has extra recoil to boot. The 270 is amongst the most logical cartridges for a deer hunter, not the ideal IMHO but it is the closest you can buy ammo for at Wal-Mart at 2 AM. The 7mm Rem Mag is a speciality cartridge, and unless you are hunting a large bean field I would avoid it, kicks hard, burns barrels, and for real world hunting a 3" flatter trajectory at 500 yards does not mean much. The 308 is by far the best target cartridge of the four seeing as it is really easy on barrels and you can buy several different brands of factory match ammo for it. Unless you plan on hunting trophy elk or monster hogs in the near future my vote it 270 if you are going to be doing more hunting then plinking and the 308 if you are going to be killing paper more then hunting.
 
I wouldn't say that the Tikka is a better rifle, just a different set of compromises than the Tikka, but it is the one I would recommend of the two options listed for hunting.

It feels better on the shoulder, that's the stuff that you can't measure with data specs comparing products. Feel is important.

Jimro
 
Tikka has a stronger stock, fiber composite rather then mold injected. Smoother action often considered the smoothest in the industry. And while Savage has their Accutrigger the Tikka has a fantastic conventional looking trigger that is every bit as good if not better. All that is great but what I really love about my Tikka is it is accurate with EVERYTHING while my Savages are very bullet picky, both shoot really good when you find what they like but that is a whole lot easier with the Tikka. The Tikka does cost a little more but well worth the $$$ IMHO. The Tikkas uses Sako barrels which have a smoother finish in the bore and are much easier to clean, maybe that is just because my Tikka is stainless but it is the easiest cleaning barrel I have ever seen.
The advantage of the Savage is in it's customization Savages are stupid easy to re-barrel or re-stock yourself.
 
For those who have tikkas, how is the reliability? I'm actually starting to gravitate more towards the 30-06. IT seems like that extra 100 fps is nice for things like sheep hunting, and you can load it down the rest of the time. The only issue with the tikka is (IMO) the plastic parts, the slightly weaker lugs, and the potential for the magazine to be lost ($60 for a replacement).
 
All those "plastic" parts are a fiber/matrix composite just like the body on a high end sports car, tougher then what you think. I shoot mine a lot and never had any of them break.
 
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