Tikka T3 Lite .300 win

[robm300winmag]

I'm a huge fan of the .300 win and have a Winchester mod 70 xtr that my dad gave me when I graduated high school. It is still a great gun and I have killed a lot of deer with it but I'm starting to do more backpacking/high country hunting so I'm looking to retire the 'ol girl until I can pass her on to one of my kids. I've got my mind 95% made up to buy a Tikka T3 Lite Stainless in the .300 win. They are very accurate out of the box, light weight, durable, and reasonably priced. I'd love to hear what guys on here have to say about my decision, and if anyone has a better suggestion or make me change my mind.

 

[sp260]

I have several tikkas .300 WSSM,6.5x55 and a 223 all shoot 3/8 to 3/4 "

 

[pyroducksx3]

It's great choice for a lightweight rifle. I use the t3 lite in 300 wsm. I would say be prepared to get a muzzle break installed if you plan on utilizing the full benifit of the 300 win mag, ie heavy bullets. I ran the 300 wsm with 180 and 168 gr bullets and it was pretty substantial recoil. I've toned it down to 150gr bullets and shooting it really isn't that big of a deal now. I only use it for high buck hunting anymore so the performance of the 150's is satisfactory for me. Tikkas from my expierence like to be run hard and anytime I tried loading down for it the groups really opened up. Also the limbs aver recoil pad was a big improvement for me.

 

[FEENIX]

Welcome to LRH and enjoy!

My friend has one and it's quite the shooter; he's extremely pleased. His only complain it that it has a shorter magazine coal.

The TC Venture is also very comparable with the T3 Lite and cost less. I helped 3 friends set up their Ventures (2 .300 Win Mags and 1 .270 Win). Both are excellent rifles for the money.

Good luck!

 

[robm300winmag]

Thanks for the responses. So I pulled the trigger and will be picking up the rifle next week. Now more decisions to make like scope, brake, etc....HA! I'm leaning towards a Holland side discharge brake and a vortex viper hslr 4-16x50 scope.

 

[FEENIX]

Thanks for the responses. So I pulled the trigger and will be picking up the rifle next week. Now more decisions to make like scope, brake, etc....HA! I'm leaning towards a Holland side discharge brake and a vortex viper hslr 4-16x50 scope.

I think your scope choice is very good esp. if it meets your budget and intended use.

You have plenty of very good choices in effective muscle brakes (muscle brake, assassin, JP Enterprise Beenie Cooley, APS pain killer, Schuler, Harrell's, etc ...). I have Holland's older QD MB on one of my .300 Win Mag and it works as advertised. My other .300 Win Mag has a custom MB similar to the QD but with 4 side ports. I do not have hands on experience but the newer Holland design MB is supposed to better.

My last 2 MB installs are JP Enterprise Beenie Cooley (JP - Compensators - Bennie Cooley Signature Series) and Benchmark's tactical mini (Benchmark Barrels - Muzzle Brakes) and they are simply amazing.

Good luck!

Ed

 

[robm300winmag]

FEENIX, The scope does fit well for the intended use, and for that matter the Tikka T3 Stainless and overall build goal of the gun. I'm spending more time hunting muleys in steep rocky and rugged country where one step up the mtn results in sliding 2 steps back down. I don't care how in shape you are, you're just not going to keep the dings and scratches out of most wood stock finishes. The durability and lightweight of the rifle and no questions asked warranty from vortex are the main reasons for my decisions.

Budget is a big factor as well-my wife and I are expecting our third child in August so the fact that she is letting me put together a new mountain rifle with a baby on the way says a lot about her. I married way out of my league!

Have you heard anything about Elk Meadows Performance down in central Utah? Not much info on their site but it looks like they make a brake that may work well, and they're fairly close to home. Elk Meadow Performance - Home

 

[FEENIX]

FEENIX, The scope does fit well for the intended use, and for that matter the Tikka T3 Stainless and overall build goal of the gun. I'm spending more time hunting muleys in steep rocky and rugged country where one step up the mtn results in sliding 2 steps back down. I don't care how in shape you are, you're just not going to keep the dings and scratches out of most wood stock finishes. The durability and lightweight of the rifle and no questions asked warranty from vortex are the main reasons for my decisions.

Budget is a big factor as well-my wife and I are expecting our third child in August so the fact that she is letting me put together a new mountain rifle with a baby on the way says a lot about her. I married way out of my league!

Have you heard anything about Elk Meadows Performance down in central Utah? Not much info on their site but it looks like they make a brake that may work well, and they're fairly close to home. Elk Meadow Performance - Home

All it matters is that your happy with your decisions.

Sorry I have no hands on experience with Elk Meadow MB but I'm sure there are many happy end users here and hopefully they'll chime in.

 

[Timber338]

your Tikka T3 300wm along with your scope choice is going to make for a great light weight setup.

I also do not have any experience with the elk meadow brakes. Although I think they have a top port and I personally stay away from those. But they are very light, I think I would try one if they offered one without the top ports.

 

[bankbum]

I have a tikka superlight 7mm topped with a viper hs-lr 4-16x44. It's an awesome setup for high country hunting. I bought the rifle 2 years ago and the scope last summer. Right out of the truck it was a pleasure to carry when topped with a 4-16 Bushnell scope. I added a few ounces with the viper hs-lr and never noticed the added weight.
Also its a great long range setup for 500-700 yards. Took my first bear at 629 yards last year.

 

[FEENIX]

your Tikka T3 300wm along with your scope choice is going to make for a great light weight setup.

I also do not have any experience with the elk meadow brakes. Although I think they have a top port and I personally stay away from those. But they are very light, I think I would try one if they offered one without the top ports.

All my muzzle brakes has holes on top and don't have any problems with any of them. I have nothing against the design esp when I have no personal experience with them but am more concern with the port angles (esp. the 1st one ... directed towards the shooter ... all of mine are 90 degrees out -- muzzle blast is perpendicular to the shooter) than the holes on top, but that's just me.

Having said that, as noted on previous post, there are many happy end users, and that's all it matters, IMHO.

 

[Timber338]

So there are three reasons why I stay away from top ported brakes.

Number 1: I have been told by more than one very competent gunsmith that a top port can create unequal pressure which can cause bullet yaw which can effect accuracy at long range. It's not an absolute, but I take their experience that top brakes (or any brake that creates unequal pressure) are something that I personally want to avoid. I'm sure there are plenty of top ported brakes that shoot great.

Number 2: I have seen videos posted here showing rifles with top ported brakes where the top force is so great that the barrel slams down into the stock. If the top port were sized correctly, this could be avoided, but tuning for every barrel is something I want to avoid. The amount the barrel deflects downward is also going to be greater for thinner barrels since they are more whippy. The OP is shooting a Tikka T3 that has a thin barrel, so this would personally not be a gun I would want to put a top port brake on. With that said, I have never heard of a rifle being damaged from a top port brake, so maybe this is a totally invalid reason. Just something I don't want to deal with.

Number 3: I have a 4-port muscle brake that does not have any ports on the top. The muzzle rise is so small that as long as I am solid behind the rifle I can spot all of my shots. I don't feel that my rifle needs a top port to reduce muzzle rise... So I don't want to add a feature that could potentially cause a problem either from accuracy or from damaging the bedding from the barrel slamming into the stock.

I do agree that a happy end user is really all that matters. If the gun shoots great then there's not a problem regardless of brake design. But my experience is that my rifles shoot and recoil very mildly with side port brakes.

 

[FEENIX]

So there are three reasons why I stay away from top ported brakes.

Number 1: I have been told by more than one very competent gunsmith that a top port can create unequal pressure which can cause bullet yaw which can effect accuracy at long range. It's not an absolute, but I take their experience that top brakes (or any brake that creates unequal pressure) are something that I personally want to avoid. I'm sure there are plenty of top ported brakes that shoot great.

Number 2: I have seen videos posted here showing rifles with top ported brakes where the top force is so great that the barrel slams down into the stock. If the top port were sized correctly, this could be avoided, but tuning for every barrel is something I want to avoid. The amount the barrel deflects downward is also going to be greater for thinner barrels since they are more whippy. The OP is shooting a Tikka T3 that has a thin barrel, so this would personally not be a gun I would want to put a top port brake on. With that said, I have never heard of a rifle being damaged from a top port brake, so maybe this is a totally invalid reason. Just something I don't want to deal with.

Number 3: I have a 4-port muscle brake that does not have any ports on the top. The muzzle rise is so small that as long as I am solid behind the rifle I can spot all of my shots. I don't feel that my rifle needs a top port to reduce muzzle rise... So I don't want to add a feature that could potentially cause a problem either from accuracy or from damaging the bedding from the barrel slamming into the stock.

I do agree that a happy end user is really all that matters. If the gun shoots great then there's not a problem regardless of brake design. But my experience is that my rifles shoot and recoil very mildly with side port brakes.

I don't want to hijack the thread but since OP is still deciding on MB it is still relevant.

The latest MB I have is from Benchmark; it is the tactical mini (Benchmark Barrels - Muzzle Brakes) and it was benchmarked D) from the muscle brake with Jim See's permission. It is installed on .300 WSM and I'm very please with it.

Both of these muzzle brakes have holes on top ...



As you can see, it does not slam down but rather still rises but is reduced significantly.



Cheers!

 

[FEENIX]

The OP is shooting a Tikka T3 that has a thin barrel, so this would personally not be a gun I would want to put a top port brake on. With that said, I have never heard of a rifle being damaged from a top port brake, so maybe this is a totally invalid reason. Just something I don't want to deal with.

My Savage 111F in .300 Win Mag has a thinner barrel then the Tikka T3 Lite and it sports a Holland QD brake without any problem.