Requesting advice - first rifle purchase

[Gprince]

Hello fellow Calgunners,

I tend to browse more than ask questions but I figured I would post my question.

I am looking to make my way into the rifle arena (buy in the next 6 months) and would like to get your opinions on what you believe is a good all around fit for what I am looking for...

First off, I am budget oriented. I want to get something I can use out of the box, but also improve over the years...

Second, I do not plan to build up my arsenal, so I would like to get something in a larger caliber (30-06 or .308) so I can progress up to longer distances. I have shot before, so i'm not starting from scratch, but this will be my first personal setup.

I have been leaning towards a .308 chambered Tikka T3 lite with a 24" barrel. This is what I have narrowed in on based on a bunch of comments on the boards and after browsing around on SinperCentral.

Any opinions on what setup or starting rifle I should get? I would like to try for 1000+ yards at some point once I get the setup tuned...

Thanks much!

[osis32]

Tikka t3 is a great choice for what you want. Looks like you did your research. People are going to say look at savage and remington. It's all personal preference and how much you wanna spend at that point. I think tikka is what you want from my similar research.

[brassburnz]

If it's your first rifle, I say get a .22 rimfire. Seems like you want a bolt gun, so I would go for something like a CZ 455 American.

http://www.cz-usa.com/products/view/455-american/

With a rimfire you can learn how to properly shoot a rifle and it won't cost you an arm and a leg. For the price of 40 rounds of .308 or 30-16, you can shoot 500 rounds of decent .22 rimfire ammo. Plus you should master the fundamentals of shooting a rifle faster if you start out with a rimfire.

[wjc]

What do plan to do with it?

Hunt? Target? Self Defense?

The answers could help decide your best course of action.

Hunting usually dictates a bolt gun with varmint hunting being the exception. Big game hunters usually prefer a bolt gun whereas varmint hunters prefer an AR style rifle.

brassburnz offers an excellent suggestion in picking up a .22 to aid in your skills development.

[high_revs]

gprince doesn't want to build up an arsenal though. the learning curve will be more expensive getting a tikka t3 vs. a bolt action rimfire. as long as he is OK with that....

tikka seems to play third fiddle to remy and savage but plenty of happy users who posted here.

[Gprince]

Gotcha - thanks guys. I plan to use this for target only. I want to enjoy my shooting and I dont have any plans for hunting use.

My thought on the .22 route is that while it will help with the fundamentals, I am just going to want to add more to my collection as I begin to have the desire to shoot further distances...

[Irish Gunner]

IMO. Every rifle shooter should have a .22 and the Ruger 10/22 is good bang for the buck.

I have a Savage axis 30-06 and with good quality ammo shoots about 1 - 1.5 MOA groups out of the box. Factory Winchester of Federal American Eagle that goes to about 3 MOA consistently. I am going to put in a Timney trigger soon, because the factory one is stiff as hell and I expect the groups will get better. With some better optics I would think that 1000-yds could be done, but not with my factory 3-9x40. All in it was less than $450 (gun, tax, dros, etc.).

You can spend a lot more than that, but as a first gun, I would recommend against it.

[atakacorp]

I have Savage and Tikka ,love them both, Tikka has better action and looks ,1" out of the box ,both. If you thinking reloading in the future, look at the 6.5X55 SE much better round than .308. 6.5 great long distance/hunting round

[Steelheader]

Get 'er done right the first time. Remington Model 700- Select your caliber.

[wjc]

Oh no you din't

Winchester Model 70 30-06