Considering switching my .308 to a Tikka T3x Lite or superlite and wondering if I would be giving up anything on the cold bore shot accuracy wise? Also if I Would be giving up anything out between 500-1000 while target shooting.
I currently have one of the first gen 700 5r milspec rifles in .308. I've shot it to 1000 and shot great groups at 100 w/ FGMM 175gr and also Hornady Precision Hunter 178gr ELD-X. With the upgraded trigger it's a fantastic rifle and I know it shoots BUT, it's heavy for hunting with. I carried it on one mule deer hunt that was mostly out of a truck and even just taking it 1 mile was uncomfortable due to the balance (it did have a Gen 2 razor on it at the time at almost 3lbs for the scope alone).
I've started to place a higher value on weight though so I'm considering selling the 700 5r and picking up a T3x Lite or Superlite in .308 (not really looking to change calibers as I have .308 brass and appropriate powders). Hunting wise I'd use it mainly for deer/antelope. For elk I'd rather take a 30-06. I have a T3x in .223 so the thought is that it'd be nice to have 2 similar rifles.
For reference the bare rifle weight on the 700 is 8.3lbs w/ a 24" barrel, 1:11.25 twist. The Tikkas are advertised at 6.4 although people claim the superlite drops a few oz from that, 22.4" barrel, 1:11 twist.
My concern is how much would I give up on accuracy? Obviously the light barrel on the Tikka is going to be subject to heating up but I don't typically shoot more than a 5 shot string. Slowing down or shooting 3 shot groups wouldn't kill me.
Would I be giving up anything on the cold bore shot accuracy wise? Would I be giving up anything out between 500-1000 while target shooting if I slowed down the rate of fire?
Hopefully my dog wouldn't be too disappointed if I switched... She loved it.
I currently have one of the first gen 700 5r milspec rifles in .308. I've shot it to 1000 and shot great groups at 100 w/ FGMM 175gr and also Hornady Precision Hunter 178gr ELD-X. With the upgraded trigger it's a fantastic rifle and I know it shoots BUT, it's heavy for hunting with. I carried it on one mule deer hunt that was mostly out of a truck and even just taking it 1 mile was uncomfortable due to the balance (it did have a Gen 2 razor on it at the time at almost 3lbs for the scope alone).
I've started to place a higher value on weight though so I'm considering selling the 700 5r and picking up a T3x Lite or Superlite in .308 (not really looking to change calibers as I have .308 brass and appropriate powders). Hunting wise I'd use it mainly for deer/antelope. For elk I'd rather take a 30-06. I have a T3x in .223 so the thought is that it'd be nice to have 2 similar rifles.
For reference the bare rifle weight on the 700 is 8.3lbs w/ a 24" barrel, 1:11.25 twist. The Tikkas are advertised at 6.4 although people claim the superlite drops a few oz from that, 22.4" barrel, 1:11 twist.
My concern is how much would I give up on accuracy? Obviously the light barrel on the Tikka is going to be subject to heating up but I don't typically shoot more than a 5 shot string. Slowing down or shooting 3 shot groups wouldn't kill me.
Would I be giving up anything on the cold bore shot accuracy wise? Would I be giving up anything out between 500-1000 while target shooting if I slowed down the rate of fire?
Hopefully my dog wouldn't be too disappointed if I switched... She loved it.
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