Light Rifle Choice: Savage, T3 Lite or Forbes

[BigTex]

I want a light rifle for hunting. I am looking primarily at the following in 30-06 so i can drive bigger bullets if I ever want to:

Savage light weight hunter: $900 6#
Melvin Forbes 24B: $1300 5.5#
Tikka T3 Lite $600 6.2-6.3#

The Tikka always shoot well, are smooth plus 600$ but have a rather cheap stock!

The Savage will usually shoot great can be re-barreled easily if need be and trigger better than many factory offerings. Downside stock is wood.

The Melvin Forbes 24B is semi custom with timney trigger and awsome synthetic stock. Down side $1300.

I could outfit Tikka with $700 scope and be less than the Forbes.

Give me your 2 cents of what you have seen on these guns. Especially if you have shot both side by side

 

[Hntelk]

T3 hands down...it is an accurate rifle right out of the box....I think there is no better deal then the tikka t3

Here is my group from my my last week shooting some hand loaded bergers...but it will shoot the factory ammo just as well.



good luck which ever way you go..

 

[TOM H]

I want a light rifle for hunting. I am looking primarily at the following in 30-06 so i can drive bigger bullets if I ever want to:

Savage light weight hunter: $900 6#
Melvin Forbes 24B: $1300 5.5#
Tikka T3 Lite $600 6.2-6.3#

The Tikka always shoot well, are smooth plus 600$ but have a rather cheap stock!

The Savage will usually shoot great can be re-barreled easily if need be and trigger better than many factory offerings. Downside stock is wood.

The Melvin Forbes 24B is semi custom with timney trigger and awsome synthetic stock. Down side $1300.

I could outfit Tikka with $700 scope and be less than the Forbes.

Give me your 2 cents of what you have seen on these guns. Especially if you have shot both side by side

Friend of mine got T-3 light in 300WSM and I load for it great shooting rifle. I don't like the enclosed bolt you got to drop magazine just to unload one round but he likes it so that's whats important.

Only thing I know about savage rifles is what I read so no help there.

My wife shoot a Forbes Model 24 in 280AI and if that new 24B rifles shots half as good as my wife's well worth the money. If history repeats itself what was paid for my wife's rifle I can sell it today for that price so hopefully those new rifles will hold their value.

Well good luck

 

[BountyHunter]

If you can buy a Forbes 24b for $1300 jump on it and sell it easily got $1800-2000 and buy one of the other

 

[Lefty7mmstw]

Forbes are the same price here, but they aren't doing any lefty are they?? Not much value to me then. I'll buy a righty, but it's for a truck or beater gun for the most part. Tikka for me; the t3 ss lh is just under $700 here and they shoot well.

 

[Tjurgensen]

I have never owned a Tikka but I'm also thinking about buying one and everything I have heard about them is extremely positive. I own a savage axis in a .223 and being one of their cheaper guns it shoots very very well and I am pleased with it. Even so I would still go with the Tikka. Happy hunting and good luck on your decision!gun)

 

[Black Sheep]

Tikka all the way! Mine is a T3 Lite stainless. Bone stock, except for a little lightening of the factory adjustable trigger. Light, smooth, and accurate. Oh, and cheap!
http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f28/270-wsm-load-results-90878/

 

[motown]

I love my T3. I too didnt like the plastic stock on my 7-08 so i just bought a bell and carlson and glass bedded it and that rifle will shoot 1/2-3/4" all day long! The stock only ran me $225 so my total investment was on $800.

 

[Jrifle]

My two cents ---

When I considered ordering a custom/semi custom rifle I narrowed my choices
to a Kimber, which I was familiar with or the Forbes.

I chose the more expensive Forbes 24B in .280 Remington and I am totally disappointed.

The rifle basically feels good but right off I begin to have doubts due to the heavy machining marks on the fluted bolt; then roughness of the bolt when cycling.

I started shooting single rounds while breaking-in the barrel.
After about 10 rounds I decided to load the magazine to check cartridge cycling. It cycled rough and I noticed heavy scratch marks on the casings when ejected.

I disassembled the rifle and the first thing I noticed was that the magazine
follower spring was fitted improperly which I repaired with a dremmel tool.

I found the reason for the case scratches was due the roughness on the underside
of the action where the cartridge rubbed when loaded from the magazine.

I also found that the magazine follower rubbed hard on the under side of the bolt when cycled with no cartridge in the magazine.

After I worked on it for a while with emory paper I decided that after the amount I spent on it I would send it back to Forbes with ample documentation and shell casings.

I just got the rifle back after three months and the only thing that was addressed was the machine marks on the bolt.

Before I "clean-up" this rifle I will finish breaking-in the barrel and determine how it shoots.

In general the attention to detail is missing at Forbes or maybe just my rifle?

All I can say is Remington, Winchester and certainly Kimber rifles are finished much better, cycle more smoothly and they all cost considerably less!

Maybe I just got a "lemon" but Forbes service leaves something to be desired.

Has anyone else experienced these problems from their Forbes rifle?