New to the Hobby. Tikka or Savage?

Tikka.

Honestly you get what you pay for... everything has gone up... including Savage.... A Savage 110 Hunter and Tikka T3 lite are within a few dollars of each other now, and the Tikka is a much nicer rifle. Over a lifetime, the cost difference is nothing.
 
IvoB said:
I would get a Savage
I sold off all my Tikkas
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^and I would get a Tikka-I've sold-off my Savages. Well, I have a rimfire in 17M2 made by Savage but at one point, there were a few in the safe. 223, .243, etc.

blasted_saber said:
Go to a gun shop and handle different guns.

Is recommend starting with a 22.
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^great advice if the OP is starting out, and unsure of the caliber. 22s are great either way, but an excellent way to practice at a relatively low cost. I'd still recommend a Tikka 22 (T1x with a 20" barrel) as a great option, but lot of new/used rifles will fit the bill. Savage, Marlin, CZ, BRNO etc. Stick with bolt-actions to start.
 
Savages are like Chevrolets; there are decent models and there are terrible models. Tikka is like Toyota; they simply don't make a really terrible product to hit the lowest price point possible.

That said: new Savages and Tikkas are overpriced now. You should be able to find a good used Savage off the EE for the $500 to $600 mark, sometimes less. Tikkas never go for cheap because they were never low priced to begin with. But a Tikka has a smoooooth bolt. And a long action receiver even for short action cartridges. Seems silly to me.

If I was buying new right now, I'd go for a Weatherby Vanguard / Howa 1500. It's better engineering: flat bottom receiver with integral recoil lug, like a Mauser. Triggers on the ones I've used are nearly as good as a Tikka. Decent aftermarket although nothing compares to the Remington 700 in that respect.


Edit: To be clear, the Savage Axis is a firearm that I would not purchase nor recommend. When I speak of decent Savages, it is the Model 10-based rifle.
 
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I have two Savages - an older Mark II and the newer Axis 2 Precision Rifle.

I have found both to be very accurate out of the box. From a value perspective, I found the value for the performance excellent.

Many if not all Savages are made in Canada in Lakefield, Ontario, so warranty may be easier.
 
Once you run the bolt on a Tikka it’s hard to like a savage. In general both of them shoot really well it’s possible that Savage might even edge out the tikka. I would also suggest starting off with a 22lr bolt action Cz or tikka. The next gun I would suggest would be a bolt action 223 in a 1-8 twist. In my experience it’s easier to sell a used Tikka then a savage too.
 
Here is a barely used stainless steel Savage 16 308 "Weather Warrior" on the EE for $675 shipped:

https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/for...e-16FCSS-Weather-Warrior-308?highlight=Savage

My main hunting rifle is the same thing but a long action in 300 WM. It is a decent firearm with a good stock (full length aluminum block) and a good trigger. Yes, a Tikka is a bit better for smoothness. But how much will you pay for a stainless steel Tikka T3 with a flimsy stock? Over $1000, anyways.

I'd buy that 308 right now if I didn't already have 3 different 308 Win rifles...
 
Thank you to everyone in this thread. I think what it comes down to is I need to get my hands on a few and see what I like. That's my next step. Appreciate everyone's feedback.
 
Not sure where you plan on hunting, but one thing to consider is the “caliber limit” for Southern Ontario. Anything over .270 is a no-go, if you’re including that area…And I’d also agree, go to a LGS and touch, feel, cycle, and shoulder many brands. You’ll see the difference in quality (fit and finish), between the manufacturers. That’s being said... I went with a .243 Tikka T3 Laminate Stainless. IMHO, great rifle, covers all my current hunting needs.
 
I really have a hard time with new savage OR Tikka rifles, the older ones however are very nice.
I have owned far more Savage rifles than Tikkas, and have never owned a T3 all the ones I had were older. If you can find one for a good price grab it.
Lots of guys like to modify their rifles after a while and Savage has lots of great aftermarket parts.
BTW ,I compete with Savage rifles so that tells you were I stand on the matter.
Cat
 
iron cat said:
I really have a hard time with new savage OR Tikka rifles, the older ones however are very nice.
I have owned far more Savage rifles than Tikkas, and have never owned a T3 all the ones I had were older. If you can find one for a good price grab it.
Lots of guys like to modify their rifles after a while and Savage has lots of great aftermarket parts.
BTW ,I compete with Savage rifles so that tells you were I stand on the matter.
Cat
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Appreciate the comment iron cat!
 
Of the two, I think Tikka is a better rifle.The price creep with them recently is going up significantly.I think papa Sako and great grandpa Beretta think they have the golden goose.
If you can find a newish, but older Tikka you can get best value for $.Stainless black costs less then the new paint jobs..
 
aprilfoolsme said:
I wouldn't argue with you once he has some experience but first rifle for practice he should save the money for ammo and once he knows what is what he can buy once cry once. Personally I have a wide variety of brands and models and I wouldnt have it any other way
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Great point on ammo and I would add this:
Following my PERSONAL experiences with a Weatherby Vanguard .308; a Browning .30-06 BAR; a Weatherby Vanguard .30-06 and TIKKA M695s in .30-06 and .338WM, spend the money and buy good quality Federal ammo.
With all of the above rifles I have or had, I tried Winchester; Remington and a number of other factory loads and always came back to Federal because of the accuracy, consistency from box to box and year to year purchases, even from different lot numbers.
If you load you own, of course, that's an entirely different matter.
 
I have a couple Savage 10/110's and a Tikka t3x. Either option is more than accurate enough for a first rifle. Between the two I recommend the Tikka because they always seem to work and run smoothly out of the box. My Savage has required some (inexpensive, fairly simple) tinkering to get it to run smoothly. Once you know how they work the tinkering is nothing to worry about, but for a first rifle you won't want to be wondering "is it supposed to be doing this? Am I doing something wrong or is the rifle malfunctioning?". Not all Savages have issues, but it's much more likely than with a Tikka.

Cartridge choice is going to be the next decision for you. I would suggest something in the short action non-magnum variety. 308 is great because it's available everywhere and you can hunt almost anything with it, but it doesn't kick so hard that it will prevent you from learning to shoot it. 6.5 Creedmoor is fairly versatile and available lots of places. Something like a 243 would be great for low recoil training and deer hunting, but not really a big game cartridge. 223 would be a good rifle to learn to shoot on, but you won't be able to hunt much with it.
 
WiseCanuck said:
I know it's not very specific. But I have heard a first hunting rifle to start with price wise and performance wise is Savage or Tikka. I am hoping for everyone's opinion.
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Check out the EE on this forum. You can find a good used remington 700 or a winchester m70 for $800ish. You will be further ahead and if you decide it's not your thing you could sell it and recoup your money. Out of the two rifles you mentioned, tikka is the better rifle. There's lots of choices out there.
 
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