Christensen Arms Mesa VS Browning X-Bolt Hells Canyon/ Western Hunter...

[Despotes]

Hells Canyon Speed/Long Range/Western Hunter Long Range vs Christensen Arms Mesa. 28 Nosler or 30 Nosler.
Do any of these have accuracy/QC problems? The Mesa has the sub MOA guarantee and great trigger, but the 60 degree bolt, tang safety and 1:8 twist of the Browning is a plus.
The Bergara Wilderness Ridge can't be found in stock in 28 Nosler anywhere.
Need to keep the cost under $1,200-ish. Mostly Deer hunting and some long range play.
The cheapest of all of them is the Western Hunter Long Range in 30 Nosler. Currently leaning in that direction. No 30 Nosler ammo anywhere.

 

[nmbarta]

I just went through this debate myself, I ended up going with a tikka roughtech, but I was looking for a 7 rem mag. They don't make what your looking for.
They had all three in stock at scheels here in Billings, MT so I could make a decent comparison.
I prefer the stock on the browning and tikka over the mesa. The grip angle on the mesa is too much for me, and it's really narrow. It's a higher quality stock, but just felt terrible in my hands.
The mesa comes with trigger tech trigger which is also nice.
The sales department told me that Browning has good service, but takes a very long time in comparison to Christensen. They sell a ton of both rifles and have had to deal with both of them.
I'm not sure where your from, but If you buy a rifle from Scheels here, Scheels guarantee's your satisfaction. You can take your rifle right back to them if your not happy. This makes the moa guarntee less advantageous. Just something to keep in mind.
The 8 twist is nice, but a 9 will stabilize 180 class bullets no problem in the .284, so unless you plan on shooting 195's I don't see this as much of an advantage.
Both companies have had some qc/accuracy issues, but I think your odds of getting a good one are pretty good with either one.
They must have had over a dozen Christensen rifles in stock and the same in Browning. I'd give the fit and finish to Christensen for sure, but the Brownings looked pretty nice as well.
Tough choice, but there isn't a wrong answer.

 

[Despotes]

I'm in Maine, so miss out on all the decent stores you guys have out west. I was just looking at the Tikka T3X Lite in Black/Veil camo and thought about settling for a 300 WM or 7mm, but they're also out of stock. Frustrating. I currently have a Tikka T3X lite compact in 308 and love it. I'm really bored of the plain black stocks and want something different. Seems odd Tikka makes slower twist rate barrels than most.

 

[nmbarta]

They have several colors/cammo now. Fluted barrels, and fluted bolts. I'd prefer if they would have used a 9 instead of 9.5, but again, for what this one is for, that doesn't matter to me.
How far are you planning on shooting?

 

[Despotes]

Out to 600 or so. These supply shortages are sickening. I might just wait and not settle. If I bought a 28 or 30 Nosler right now I wouldn't have any ammo to shoot it for who knows how long.

 

[DJ Fergus]

I haven't owned a Christensen but I've owned 3 xbolts. The good thing about the christensen is the availability of upgrades are hefty due to it's Remington 700 footprint. Personally, I would lean towards the Christensen.

 

[257Tony]

Bot my X-bolts shoot lights out with very little load dev, I'm sure the CA Mesa will also shoot. The short throw bolt is a favorite of mine, that's why I generally choose Browning/Weatherby over other factory hunting rifles.

 

[JRY46]

I picked up a Mesa in 28 Nosler back in late January and so far I am very happy with it. Im really close with 168 VLDS's just playing with length right now. I was lucky enough when I got the gun they had a lot of Hornaday Ammo loaded with the 162 ELDX to start with and then I got some brass from another member here. Good luck with what ever you choose....................................................JR

 

[Elkeater]

I have a browning x bolt hells canyon long range in .300wm. Love the 8 twist and it shoots pretty much everything around 1 MOA except my handloads with 199gr hammer hunters which it shoots into .5-.6 MOA.

 

[TxHeartShot]

Out to 600 or so. These supply shortages are sickening. I might just wait and not settle. If I bought a 28 or 30 Nosler right now I wouldn't have any ammo to shoot it for who knows how long.

If you're only going to shoot out to around 600 yds you might think about some other calibers besides the latest/greatest hotrod from the ammo manufacturers. Lots of 6.5 and 7mm options, especially for deer. That being said, there is nothing wrong with a tack-driver hotrod!

 

[Brownsfan]

Another vote for the Hells Canyon Long Range. Had it a year now and am very happy with the features and accuracy.
Elkeater...I have the same set up as you do. Would you be willing to share your load data for the Hammer bullets?

 

[Despotes]

Still deciding....lol. I'm looking at the Tikka Roughneck in 300WM and the possibility of getting a "Pre-fit" drop in carbon barrel in 28 Nosler if I'm not content. The bolt face should be the same, not sure about magazine function. ?
Are there any limitations with the Browning x bolt regarding the availability of carbon barrels or otherwise?

 

[JRY46]

The only downside that I can see right now is the 1 in 9 twist if you were planning on heavy bullets. I was only planning on using 168 to begin with so all good here. I may try the 175 Elites that I have for my LRM just to see if the will work also...........................................................JR

 

[Ga6570]

Hells Canyon Speed/Long Range/Western Hunter Long Range vs Christensen Arms Mesa. 28 Nosler or 30 Nosler.
Do any of these have accuracy/QC problems? The Mesa has the sub MOA guarantee and great trigger, but the 60 degree bolt, tang safety and 1:8 twist of the Browning is a plus.
The Bergara Wilderness Ridge can't be found in stock in 28 Nosler anywhere.
Need to keep the cost under $1,200-ish. Mostly Deer hunting and some long range play.
The cheapest of all of them is the Western Hunter Long Range in 30 Nosler. Currently leaning in that direction. No 30 Nosler ammo anywhere.

I love my two Xbolts bothe are HCLR. 6.5 Creedmoor and 6.5 PRC - I also have several tikkas, 6.5 Creedmoor, 270 wsm, 7mm rm and 300wm - I replaced the trigger springs on all of them rather easily and it made a big difference. Nice crisp clean trigger, lighter pull but still 4' drop safe and goes when I want it to.