Tikka T3 270WSM

[10/22shooter]

I'm looking at getting a hunting rifle in the next month or so, and I've found what seems to be a pretty good deal at one of the stores here in san luis obispo.

It's a used Tikka T3 Hunter with blued bbl and synthetic stock in 270wsm, with a leupold rifleman 4-12x scope. asking price is $625, but I can get it for $600.

For pigs and deer under 300 yds, is this a good investment for a first rifle, or should i be looking for something in a cheaper caliber?

Thanks for the help

[Evan03]

for yours or anyones first hunting rifle id sujest the 270win over the wsm chambering.

the 270win will o everything the wsm does. but ammo is more readily available, used rifles are everywhere.

theres just more options available to the hunter whos shooting the 270win

[fabsroman]

Personally, I'm not a big fan of all these new short magnum cartridges that have come out. Others would swear by them. If you were a reloader, I would say go for it because you could load your own rounds and save a bunch of money. Since you aren't, it will probably be a little tough for you to find the rounds on the shelf.

As far as the Tikka T3 goes, I used to think they were great rifles based upon the articles I had read, but somebody posted a thread on here not to long ago about one that blew up when fired. He even posted pics of the rifle.

[10/22shooter]

thanks for the input guys.

[srab]

First off, the Tikka T3 is a great little rifle: very smooth
action, great trigger, and remarkably accurate right out
of the box. The problem that
Beretta/Sako/Tikka is facing with barrels is exclusively a
problem with stainless steel, so, with the rifle that you are
considering, that's not an issue.

The 270WSM is currently a hot seller. And, it will certainly
excel as a pig/deer cartridge out to 300 yds. From a cost-of-
ammunition standpoint, you can expect to pay a little bit
more for the WSM than you would, say, for a 270Win
(Cabela's lists, for example, Federal Premium Vital-Shok
at $29.99 for 270WSM loaded with 150 gr. Nosler Partitions
versus $25.99 for 270Win loaded with same; and Winchester
Supreme at $26.99 for 270WSM loaded with 130 gr. bullets
versus $22.99 for 270Win loaded with same).
As a first rifle, though, you might find the recoil from the
270WSM a touch on the stiff side (probably why it's for
sale in the first place!).

As far as price, the Tikka T3's that I've seen have been running
in the $450-475 price range for "standard" cartridges and
maybe $50 more for one of the short magnums. I bought mine,
chambered for 300WSM, at a retail store for $525. Add to that
the Leupold scope (I've seen that scope alone priced in
the $250 range.), and I think that $600 is a pretty good
price!

Bottom line: great rifle and good scope, at least IMHO.
But, before you make a final decision, I'd recommend that
you beg/borrow/steal an opportunity to shoot a 270WSM
to see if recoil is going to be an issue with you.