Tikka t3 problems

[Dinosaur1]

Okay, got a new t3 some weeks ago. Factory rings are crap. Could be be made better for a nickel but apparently tikka choses not to. Tried the factory rings tho and couldn't get it to group. Checked everything for tight, new Weaver bases and rings, several types of ammo, still minute of 5 gallon pail groups. It's a .243 so I have tried to find the weight and type of bullet they test with at the factory but apparently it's the Finnish national secret. I don't reload so I just want to buy a box of ammo and snipe at the vermin behind the house. I know there are guys who love to own rifles that will only shoot rounds that have been hand loaded by the Pope, kissed by Selma Hayek and polished with pixie dust, but not me. I have a CZ and several Savages that will group anything I run through'em but I wanted a .243 so I went off the reservation and bought a Tikka. So far it's a POS. I'd love to know the factory rounds if anyone knows.

 

[Water-Man]

You need to call customer service.

 

[25cschaefer]

My mother's Tikka T3 in 270 consistently makes cloverleaves at 100 yards. I would say you need to call CS.

 

[Abel]

What cartridges have you tried so far?

 

[rbernie]

I have never seen nor heard of a Tikka that wouldn't group well with dang near anything. It may be that yours is defective in some way.

Any 243 should give reasonable accuracy with an 75gr-100gr load.

 

[YZ]

hand loaded by the Pope, kissed by Selma Hayek and polished with pixie dust

Great line.

Okay, I have had a 223 Tikka Varmint that would do fine for 15 rounds leisure pace and then I wouldn't hit a billboard. Mentioned it in another forum. I am still unsure if it wanted to be cleaned or cooled between the strings, or both. Those are the two things to look at. (I even brought ice packs to the range; cleaning the barrel all the time did not smile at me so I traded the Tikka for a CZ; this one had slimmer barrel and did not get tired of the bullseye)
Most Tikka owners are happy owners. I can only report what I saw. It may be that most Tikkas are excellent but the production line is inconsistent. Some manufacturers arer like that, hit or miss. Again, just the other day I was recalling my new Benelli Supernova that ejected the next round every cycle and was eventually fixed by Benelli.

 

[Kachok]

I have hunted with a Tikka for some years now, never had any issues with my factory Tikka rings, the only time I have even changed my zero was when I switched to a faster handload. People say they are not as nice as the Sako rings but honestly as far as functional use goes the Tikka rings are as good as any if they can survive my hunting. I did have mine professionally mounted.
My Tikka is not bullet picky AT ALL I can run SSTs, Game Kings, Pro Hunters, Ballistic Tips with fantastic accuracy heck that rifle shoots factory Power Points well under and inch it is the first and only rifle I have ever shot that would group with those things.
If your Tikka is not shooting well I would question how well the scope is mounted or the quality of the ammo. What scope are you using, a poor scope will screw up the accuracy of any rifle including my Savages as I have seen twice before. How many types of ammo have you tried? Some rifles love one bullet type or another, I have seen this over and over. My Winchester loves 150gr but simply won't group with 165s, my Savage loves boat tail polly tips but won't shoot well at all with flat base bullets.
Tikka is in general the most accurate light rifle I have ever seen, the owner of the local shooting range owns seven rifles, ALL of them are Tikkas, he competes at 600yd events with factory Tikkas.

 

[jmr40]

The Tikka rings are as good as anything made. The screws can be a little soft, but $3 for hardened steel replacement screws from a hardware store fixed that.

Between my brother and I we've had 4 of them in various calibers. All have shot great with anything we've put in them.

 

[SilentStalker]

No offense, but I have to question the validity of your post seeing as how this is apparently your first one and you just joined. Tikka rifles are made by Sako and while not Sako quality they are still high quality rifles. I have owned quite a few of both and still own some and they have all shot remarkably well with no problems. In fact, from my experience all of my rifles from Sako or Tikka have been 1/4 MOA rifles right out of the box with just about any ammo I could feed them. That says something. There is not many manufacturers I know of that can say that.

In most cases, where I have heard of people having issues with groupings 99% of the time it was the shooter doing something wrong. I am not saying that you are doing something wrong but it is possible. if you know for a fact it is not you then yes I would be on the phone with CS because I have never seen a POS tikka or Sako or even heard or read anyone say that about them. Have you checked the crown over real well, looked at the rifling, etc.? Loctited all fasteners or better yet make sure the scope isn't a piece of junk. Speaking of that, what scope are you using? we need more information to help out rather than just Tikka bashing.

 

[shaggy430]

I think there may be something wrong with your scope. Every Tikka I've ever seen (there are 3 in my family) are all sub-MOA out of the box. Might I ask what kind of scope you are using?

 

[viking499]

Mine are all good too. Could it be the scope?

Or maybe just a lemon........all companies have that problem from time to time....

 

[Hummer70]

Shaggy is most likely closest to the Holy Grail because if the internal mechanism is loose on a scope then its curtains for performance.

Next time you are at the range get a known good shot to try your rifle for you.

Also check your action screws.

Case in point, I was at a match about 30 years ago and this guy was complaining his Mod 70 Target was crap and he had the identical rifle as mine and within 100 in the serial number range.

I asked him if I might shoot it and I laid down at 200 yards and shot a 5 shot group under an inch with iron sights from prone with sling for support. I checked the group in my scope and got up, took my forearm stop off (I shoot left handed) and handed his rifle back and asked him if he wanted to sell it.

He had a puzzled look. We walked down to take down the targets and he saw the group but wouldn't sell me the rifle.

There is a link. My 70 Target was a reported non shooter and guy I worked with told me he saw it in a gun shop the previous day Saturday and it was for sale for 200.00 with Redfield Sights. I started making calls to highpower shooters in that area and learned there was this guy who had a 30.06 target who said it wouldn't shoot.

Monday morning at 8:45 I was sitting in my car when they arrived to open up and walked right to the consignment rack, picked it up and walked to counter and laid down $208.00 and walked out.

I got home and pulled it down and figured out why it did not shoot. The stock had a crack between the trigger and mag well so I pinned it with 1/4X20 all thread screw. The entire action area oozed of some kind of oil so I sat in front of open oven for a couple of hours and gently heated it and as the oil came to the surface I wiped and wiped and wiped it off. I then put it in tub and scrubbed it with soapy water and let it dry.

I bedded it and took it to range and it did nicely. Won 9 matches in a row with it.
Still have it, stock still looks black from the oil in it and it is now on its third barrel. It is a post 64 860,000 range and I have changed the follower to a pre 64 follower and it now loads like a pre 64. Could not ask for a better shooter.

 

[dubbleA]

Okay, got a new t3 some weeks ago. Factory rings are crap. Could be be made better for a nickel but apparently tikka choses not to. Tried the factory rings tho and couldn't get it to group. Checked everything for tight, new Weaver bases and rings, several types of ammo, still minute of 5 gallon pail groups. It's a .243 so I have tried to find the weight and type of bullet they test with at the factory but apparently it's the Finnish national secret. I don't reload so I just want to buy a box of ammo and snipe at the vermin behind the house. I know there are guys who love to own rifles that will only shoot rounds that have been hand loaded by the Pope, kissed by Selma Hayek and polished with pixie dust, but not me. I have a CZ and several Savages that will group anything I run through'em but I wanted a .243 so I went off the reservation and bought a Tikka. So far it's a POS. I'd love to know the factory rounds if anyone knows.

My experience with a Tikka T3 Lite mirrors yours Dino. The factory rings are pretty worthless being soft aluminum. Kachok,it's just my opinion but they are not anywhere close to Sako's Opti-Lok system. I tossed the factory rings and used Warne's. I used new Zeiss glass in my efforts to get the gun to perform as advertised. That same scope went on it's replacement, a Sako.
My T3 shot patterns not groups at 100yds with many factory rounds as well as countless handloads.

You can always do what I did and that was to take it back to the dealer and get a refund and purchase something else.

 

[SilentStalker]

I am still going with the idea that is may be the scope. I mean I can't say for sure without it being in my hands but it is unusual for Tikka to have issues from my experience. However, as with anything mass produced it is certainly possible. I think more testing is needed. If it still doesn't work out then I certainly would not hesitate to take it back where I got it and have them send it off or something.

 

[HexHead]

You can always do what I did and that was to take it back to the dealer and get a refund and purchase something else.

Dealer? REFUND? Around here, once you walk out of the shop with a gun, there's No Returns. You either arrange, perhaps through the dealer, to return it to the manufacturer for repair or you sell it. The dealer will at best give you a "used gun" value for it.

 

[YZ]

That's industry standard in gun retail. (Those are rather low. Where else do you get charged for using a credit card?)
The dealer did you a favor.

 

[Dinosaur1]

Tikka t3 problem

Okay, Some history. Sixty years of firearm ownership. Doesn't make an expert. Fired the only clean score in basic training out of 260 gi's on the first day of qualification. Qualified for the Ft. Bragg rifle team but did not join (had to re-up to get on). Forty yrs. law enforcement, expert with handgun and rifle. Still doesn't make me a gunsmith but it eliminates the basics. Had a jim dandy Sako many yrs ago in .243 with a Redfield over that was a tack driver which led me to buy the Tikka. Not the same gun. Scopes were Nikon and Simmons. Rounds were Win. 80 gr., Fed. 80 & 100, Horn. 58's. All spray and pray. What is evident is that no one knows the Finnish National Secret, what weight and type of bullet do they use to test at the factory. AND their mounts are still crap.

 

[viking499]

Yes on the mounts. Mine wear Warne rings. Great compared to factory.

My tikka 243 loved 100 grain bullets. As I went down, the group opened up. Did not like the 62 grain stuff. 80 was so-so. 100's could easily be covered with small pocket change.

Ammo was Federal and Hornady except for the 62's which were reloads.

 

[YZ]

I have long suspected that there must be a reason, more than an extra locking lug or wood finish, why a Sako is $1600 and a lookalike Tikka $600.

 

[hoghunting]

I bought a .243 T3 Lite just before Christmas 2012 and the barrel was not free floated. One of the ribs in the barrel channel was putting pressure on the barrel so I sanded it down. 1/2 MOA shooter with anything from Federal, Hornady and my reloads. You might check the free floating of your barrel.

My T3 Lite in 300 WSM with factory rings has just over 500 full power reloads fired through it, and the scope or rings have never moved or needed any adjustments after the rifle was sighted in.

 

[SilentStalker]

Okay, Some history. Sixty years of firearm ownership. Doesn't make an expert. Fired the only clean score in basic training out of 260 gi's on the first day of qualification. Qualified for the Ft. Bragg rifle team but did not join (had to re-up to get on). Forty yrs. law enforcement, expert with handgun and rifle. Still doesn't make me a gunsmith but it eliminates the basics. Had a jim dandy Sako many yrs ago in .243 with a Redfield over that was a tack driver which led me to buy the Tikka. Not the same gun. Scopes were Nikon and Simmons. Rounds were Win. 80 gr., Fed. 80 & 100, Horn. 58's. All spray and pray. What is evident is that no one knows the Finnish National Secret, what weight and type of bullet do they use to test at the factory. AND their mounts are still crap.

Originally posted by Dinoasur1

if this is truly the case then I would be on the phone with CS and sending it off. Or, selling it. It sounds like you got one that is messed up, but I to have wondered how they make Tikkas so cheap when my Sako's were like $2800+. I mean, again, I have never experienced a bad Tikka or read about one until now but that doesn't mean anything. Again, call CS and see what they say. it definitely sounds like something may be up. Send them the whole thing as is and let them sort it out or replace it.

 

[jmr40]

What is evident is that no one knows the Finnish National Secret, what weight and type of bullet do they use to test at the factory. AND their mounts are still crap.

In the back of the owners manual there is a list of the calibers and the loads they test them with. At least there was in mine.

If you screw the mounts on correctly they work as well as anything. Maybe not the best looking, but they work just fine.

 

[dubbleA]

"In fact, from my experience all of my rifles from Sako or Tikka have been 1/4 MOA rifles right out of the box with just about any ammo I could feed them. That says something. There is not many manufacturers I know of that can say that."

From another post...." Well, I am a precision shooter but relatively new to it and since these rifles cost much more than say AR's I tend to take a lot more care in doing anything with them."

SilentStalker please expound on your 1/4 moa Tikka with just about any ammo. What model, caliber etc?? There are very few custom builders that will say their rifles are .25 moa shooters much less factory ones.

 

[SilentStalker]

Sure thing. I have two Tikkas between me and my father in law, one is a .308win and the other is in .243, both are T3's. Both have quality scopes on them. If we do our part they both are capable of 1/4 MOA with all of the match ammo I have tried. One of them does have a different aftermarket stock but I don't see how that makes any difference.

I personally have two Sako TRGs, one is a TRG22 and the other is a 42. One is .308Win and the other .338. One is black and one is green with an adjustable stock. One has a premier scope on it and the other has a leupold pro shop scope. Anyways, again if we do our part with match ammo they are 1/4 MOA rifles. If they aren't then it is usually user error. Inexperienced shooters are generally capable of 1/2 MOA with these same rifles. Maybe I am just incredibly lucky but based on the fact I have four solid performers from basically the same company then I say it's more likely consistency but it could be all luck. I can tell you that one of the .308's likes 168 grain Hornady Amax match ammo and the other prefers 175 grain FGMM. But are pretty consistent no matter what I out through them. The other two rifles do not really seem to care as much. Again, maybe I am just incredibly lucky.

And yes I am relatively new to long range shooting but am not necessarily new to shooting in general. The rifles I am talking about that are much more than typical ARs are the two TRGs. I think I paid $3100 for the TRG22 without the bipod, scope, mount, etc. The TRG42 was more with the folding stock. I must also mention that my 1/4 MOA findings were done from a prone position at 200 yards. 3-5 shots can all be covered with a dime. The same goes for the Tikkas. However, those are not shot near as much as they are hunting rigs. I may even still have the target around here somewhere from one of them. unfortunately, i dint keep all of my targets. And I totally agree with you about some custom builders not even being able to guarantee that kind of accuracy but then again as much as these factory rifles cost I expected them to shoot well. I did a ton of research before buying them and in the end for what I have in the .338 I could have easily built a nice custom rifle as I have probably well over $7000 in that one. Probably about the same in the .308 once you factor in everything with it.

P.S. If you research any of these rifles you will find that I am not the only one to experience this.

 

[CB900F]

Fella's;

For those who don't like the Tikka mounts, go Talley. You'll save a significant amount of weight over Warne's, and IMHO, they look a lot better too.

I've got several Tikka's. Even built a full custom gun on a Tikka action. All shoot just fine thenkyouveddymuch. Tikka's are made in the same facory on the same equipment that Sako's are. What you don't get is the high polish, fine adjustment, and hand work.

900F