Need help deciding on my first rifle

SovereignSpirit

SovereignSpirit

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Hi everyone,

Im a newbie to firearms but been reading and researching a lot in the last five months while waiting for my PAL. For my first rifle I'd like to get an accurate/reliable precision rifle for mostly competition and target shooting. However, I would like to get into hunting but I know I wont have the time for it, so may be hunt once a year.

After all the research It seems the Tikka Tac A1 in 6.5 CM ticks all the boxed for me. Problem is I have a strong weakness to well made European hunting rifles with nice wood and history/reputation behind it. The new Anschuts 1782 in 6.5 CM makes my knees really weak :cool:

Im not really sure how these two would compare in long range performance, but I understand the Anschutz is lighter (3.6 Kg) with a 22.8 inch barrel vs 5 Kg & 24 inch barrel for Tikka.

Does the lighter weight of the Anschutz mean a lighter barrel thus not as accurate for long range?

I just want to get a general idea of how these two might compare for long range shots (1500m) as Im planing to join a marksmanship school (Rob Furlong?) and thinking long term.
 
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WOW

Just looked up both..... And they are both ###y as hell. I don't know squat about either but if your going for the Look Cool Factor both win!!!
 
Those are both nice rifles, but did you consider starting with a 22 to develop the fundamentals of marksmanship, especially if your goal is competition. You can shoot 22 at a fraction of the price which means more shooting. You will be well served to learn proper fundamentals then get the centrfire.

There are also lots of 22 competition such as ORPS that would satisfy your desire to compete.
 
Tikka ctr in 6.5 with 24 inch barrel. If you want a chassis you have choices and a few Sako mags are the price of a chassis and aics mags.
 
Thanks for all the suggestion everyone. I found an article that answers a lot of my questions:

https://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/the-gun-nuts/the-65-creedmoor/

My hunch was correct, the 22.8 inch barrel of the Anschuts is fine up to 1000 meters and little more depending how much skill I can acquire. It seems for competitive shooting not even the Tikka will be sufficient to compete as the article mentioned Barrel lengths of 28 & 30 inches to maximize the 6.5 CM cartridge for competitive matches.

Looks like I will be going for the Anschutz as Im still new to this and don't want to limit myself with the added weight of the Tikka.
 
1782 if you don’t care about customizing, long range and so forth. You Want more of a hunting and carry rifle then the 1782. More target long range stuff? Then the tikka.
 
The thing you have for European engineering is clouding the issue for you.

If you are going to see Rob Furlong the Annie is not the right rifle for you. Nice as it is for hunting, it's not a long range rig.

Go with the TAC A1 and one day upgrade the stock. Even in the original stock, it will do the job just fine.
 
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Maple57 said:
The thing you have for European engineering is clouding the issue for you.

If you are going to see Rob Furlong the Annie is not the right rifle for you. Nice as it is for hunting, it's not a long range rig.

Go with the TAC A1 and one day upgrade the stock. Even in the original stock, it will do the job just fine.
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Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it. Can you give me a good guess from you experience what the maximum range of the Annie vs the Tikka would be? are we talking 900 vs 1500 yards? or is it a smaller difference? If im going for the nice wood and lighter weight I want to know how much long range performance Im sacrificing against the Tikka TAC A1
 
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Wood stocks are heavier than synthetic/plastic. The Anschutz is a beautiful rifle, frankly most Anshutz rifles are - but they are a tad pricey. Not necessarily the sort of rifle one wants to drag through the bush hunting with, though.

Let's face it, people who hunt tend to gravitate towards synthetic stocks due to the general lack of maintenance. Whereas a wood stock needs to be cared for more frequently, there's really very little you need to do with piece of plastic...

Anyhow, people seem to really like Tikka products; I think they're rather expensive for what one gets. One can take a "lesser" brand like a Remington or Savage, etc., and through some minor modifications/upgrades build up a rifle that is as or more capable than something that out of the box costs significantly more.
 
Before you spend any money on a rifle I would go out to a practice day hosted by your Provincial Rifle Association or if you don't mind the drive try Connaught Ranges in Ottawa when the NCCRA has an Introductory Day. It isn't often that one rifle will do everything you want to do without compromise. While a 15 lbs target rifle isn't something that you would not want to carry very far in the bush. A hunting rifle isn't something you would want to fire 50-100 rounds a day out of on the range.
 
Maple57 said:
If you are going to see Rob Furlong the Annie is not the right rifle for you. Nice as it is for hunting, it's not a long range rig.

Go with the TAC A1 and one day upgrade the stock. Even in the original stock, it will do the job just fine.
Click to expand...

I have the Tac A1 6.5CM, brought it to Rob's and even he was a fan. In a bad wind I was able to make hits on a plate at 1KM.

I have no regrets on purchasing the Tac A1. Don't even plan on upgrading the stock as it's awesome. If you want to hunt and target shoot I'd recommend the Tac A1 and get a used CTR stock for walking around hunting. If you hunt from a static location get a hog saddle and a tripod.

While lots get the CTR and then put it in a chassis, I'm a fan of the two-stage Tac A1 trigger which is why I'd say get the Tac A1.
 
I would not worry about barrel length and long range pperformance, they will be near identical. You might loose 50fps because of barrel length, but tikkas seem to run slow anyway. Even if there is a 50fps discrepency that's only maybe half a mill adjustment at over 1000m what's going to make you competitive is training. shooting, and actually going to comps.
What might slow things down is the magazine system on the 1782.

As
 
Tikka's are great platforms. From the factory they are excellent shooters and built well, with the stocks being considered the weakest link. The aftermarket support for Tikka is exploding, lots of great accessories out there to "dress them up". The barrels are known to be a bit on the slow side, but still shoot excellent so not really a big deal. Personally I would get a Tikka and put it in a KRG Bravo chassis.

I can't speak to the Annie, though I hear they make excellent rifles. Definitely a different beast then the Tikka. Sounds like you are gearing up more for long range and competition spectrum of shooting, which would lean me toward the Tikka.

Don't get too hung up on barrel lengths. No one shoots a 28"-30" 6.5 creedmoor barrel in competiton (well, NRL/PRS anyways). The average is 24-26", which is more then capable of going 1,000+ yards. I've taken a 26" 6.5 creedmoor to a mile plus, it did really well to 1,900 yards, but it did start to struggle from 1,900 to 2,200 yards. So I disagree that a 28-30" barrel is necessary for longer shots.

For training, I would personally go to C/S-66. Great group of guys that know their stuff.

My vote is Tikka. I don't think there's a better value proposition in the game right now then Tikka.
 
SovereignSpirit said:
Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it. Can you give me a good guess from you experience what the maximum range of the Annie vs the Tikka would be? are we talking 900 vs 1500 yards? or is it a smaller difference? If im going for the nice wood and lighter weight I want to know how much long range performance Im sacrificing against the Tikka TAC A1
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If they are both the same 6.5 Creed then technically the effective range is pretty much the same, except for perhaps a slight muzzle velocity difference due to barrel length.

It's not about focusing on that element. More along the line of ergonomics and practicality of purpose.

If you want to use the rifle for hunting deer or moose, you can buy any POS for that, but you mentioned Rob Furlong... so it sounds like you have bigger ideas.

If you want something pretty to look at, you might consider a violin. Since it dose not need to be kept in a safe, you can leave it out and admire the pretty wood.

If you just want the Annie, then you don't need our advice, go get the Annie.

If you are willing to accept that guys in this forum have a pretty good idea what works for long range shooting, then forget your ideas, and pay attention to what we are telling you.

Maynards advice above is solid. Every Province has a Provincial Rifle Association. You will learn more in a summer by attending these events than a lifetime on the internet or any 100 yard rifle range. You might realize that you don't need to go visit Rob Furlong either, at least not for a while.

Connaught range just outside Ottawa is a great range, here's video tour...

Before you ask.. No I don't actually drive that fast... I just sped up the video.

 
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SovereignSpirit said:
Hi everyone,

Im a newbie to firearms but been reading and researching a lot in the last five months while waiting for my PAL. For my first rifle I'd like to get an accurate/reliable precision rifle for mostly competition and target shooting. However, I would like to get into hunting but I know I wont have the time for it, so may be hunt once a year.

After all the research It seems the Tikka Tac A1 in 6.5 CM ticks all the boxed for me. Problem is I have a strong weakness to well made European hunting rifles with nice wood and history/reputation behind it. The new Anschuts 1782 in 6.5 CM makes my knees really weak :cool:

Im not really sure how these two would compare in long range performance, but I understand the Anschutz is lighter (3.6 Kg) with a 22.8 inch barrel vs 5 Kg & 24 inch barrel for Tikka.

Does the lighter weight of the Anschutz mean a lighter barrel thus not as accurate for long range?

I just want to get a general idea of how these two might compare for long range shots (1500m) as Im planing to join a marksmanship school (Rob Furlong?) and thinking long term.
Click to expand...

Buy the rifle you like, set it up properly, learn to load for it, understand that 1500m is a very long ways. Can a 6.5 CM launch a suitable bullet to make the trip? Absolutely but you will likely find on a windy day, shorter distances will be its forte.

Is there an advantage to either platform, not really. as long as you enjoy the rifle and it fits you, just shoot as many rds that the barrel can support then let it cool.

Barrel length, contour doesn't make it any more or less accurate... quality of barrel, set up and how well you load and shoot will.

Go have fun... this will not be your last rifle and the more you learn, the better informed you will be for your next project.

Jerry
 
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