I'm Trying to Decide on a New All Around Rifle.

[2rocky]

As a Ruger shooter...I'd recommend the Tikka

As a guy who does a lot of Horseback hunts I chose a 40 MM objective for less leg bulk in saddle scabbard.

As a one rifle guy, I chose a premium bonded bullet weight for elk and shoot everything with it. If you know your drop, velocity and energy you know your max range to be deadly. Now just practice to be deadly with accuracy to beyond that.

 

[N2TRKYS]

Tikka t3x lite stainless, Sportsmatch or UM rings, and a SWFA 3-9x42 for a bombproof setup.

 

[Chief-V]

Great choice on .270. Most of the new 'fad' calibers were designed to compete with the .270. Yet 270 still one of the best calibers made. Fast, flat, power etc. Kill anything in north america. That being said go with the Tikka. The action itself is worth the buy. Go stainless.

 

[Valley1320]

My begara shoots like a dream

 

[BernieBing]

I’m looking to get a good all-around hunting rifle setup that won’t break the bank. I’m deciding between a Tikka T3x in 270 or a Ruger American Gen II in 270. If you’ve used either one, I’d love to hear your experience with them and which you prefer.

I like the .270 because the ammo is inexpensive and I plan on shooting a lot. I mainly hunt mule deer and elk usually between 50–500 yards. In anything from thick timber to flat desert. I’m also open to other calibers if there’s something better in this price range.

I’d most likely put a Vortex Strike Eagle 3–18×44 on whichever rifle I choose.

What would you recommend for an affordable, accurate all-purpose setup?

I can't weigh in on the 270 caliber, but I've owned a Tikka Superlite for 7 yrs now and I LOVE it. Chambered for 7mm, and this weekend I'm actually getting it threaded to put a can on it. It shoots great, has taken a beating over the years of backcountry hunts, and is... like its name suggests... SUPERLITE! I don't think you can go wrong with the Tikka

 

[Brad]

A thread like this is one reason I like HT so much. On the other forums I visit at least 50% of the answers would be those deriding the 270 as some archaic, pointless cartridge.

For a non-handloader, I don't think the 270 can be beat. $23.99 ammo can be had anywhere. The 6.5 PRC is a "modernized" 270, and would be a cartridge I'd select as a handloader, but as a do-all Western cartridge that doesn't require handloading (of course you can if you want), you'd be hard pressed to use something other than an over-the-counter 270, 6.5 CM or 308 Win.

While I'm a crf snob (it's mostly irrational), when I'm asked about what to buy as a new rifle/cartridge for hunting here in MT, I always suggest the Tikka T3 in 270. Put a BDC scope on top, and you're good.

My "simplicity" rifles are 270 Win's with Leupold 3-9x40's on top with their LRD reticle. Among a few other cartridges, that reticle is designed around the ballistics of the 270/130 combo. Zero a 130 at 250, and the dots index at 350, 450, and 550 yards. How does it work? Works good... KISS.

 

[mtmuley]

A thread like this is one reason I like HT so much. On the other forums I visit at least 50% of the answers would be those deriding the 270 as some archaic, pointless cartridge.

For a non-handloader, I don't think the 270 can be beat. $23.99 ammo can be had anywhere. The 6.5 PRC is a "modernized" 270, and would be a cartridge I'd select as a handloader, but as a do-all Western cartridge that doesn't require handloading (of course you can if you want), you'd be hard pressed to use something other than an over-the-counter 270, 6.5 CM or 308 Win.

While I'm a crf snob (it's mostly irrational), when I'm asked about what to buy as a new rifle/cartridge for hunting here in MT, I always suggest the Tikka T3 in 270. Put a BDC scope on top, and you're good.

My "simplicity" rifles are 270 Win's with Leupold 3-9x40's on top with their LRD reticle. Among a few other cartridges, that reticle is designed around the ballistics of the 270/130 combo. Zero a 130 at 250, and the dots index at 350, 450, and 550 yards. How does it work? Works good... KISS.

I agree. And with today's bullets, ability to twist faster and new powders the .270 is one Hell of a cartridge. New shooters will pass it by because of the PRC and Creed craze. mtmuley

 

[brockel]

The ruger gen 2 isn’t a bad rifle but it’s not near as nice as a tikka

 

[elkduds]

I agree. And with today's bullets, ability to twist faster and new powders the .270 is one Hell of a cartridge. New shooters will pass it by because of the PRC and Creed craze. mtmuley

Indeed. From AI: . Because copper is less dense than lead, copper bullets are longer for their weight, requiring a faster twist to stabilize properly, such as moving from a 1:12 to a 1:8 or 1:9 twist. More AI: Tikka .270 Winchester rifles, including the T3x Lite, Superlite, and Hunter models, standardly use a 1:10" (1 in 10 inches) twist rate. This rate is designed to stabilize standard .270 caliber bullets (typically 130–150 grains) for hunting.

My Stevens 270 is 22 in. 1-10 twist, great for partition and bonded bullets. I'd love to load longer, lighter monos but would want a faster twist. I've had good success on elk with 160 NPs in this rifle. If I had to choose one bullet weight for my particular 270, it would be 140 in whatever construction shot best from my barrel. 270win was and is a genius of efficiency and effectiveness. Bet you love it.

 

[Mustangs Rule]

About three months ago I too decided I wanted another 270 Winchester. It would be my third one. My second 270 bought maybe 25 years ago, was the last time ever I bought a brand-new rifle. It was a CRF Model 70 Featherweight made in New Haven, Connecticut. It shot very well, especially so for lighter rifle, but the production shortcuts, at least 4, as compared to a pre-64 model 70 just really limited my pride of ownership and field comfort. I sold it.

What I wanted was superb workmanship. I scouted the online market, for these three months and found just what I was looking for.

FN, Fabricque National, from Belgium is regarded as one of the finest rifle makers ever. For about 20 years, say from the late 50's
on, they made a "Plain Jane" version of their best rifle model for both Sears Robuck and Montgomery Ward. The stock had simple straight grain walnut and very modest hand checkering, but all the metal work, the bedding and the wood to metal fit, and true CRF Mauser action was of the highest quality.

I just found and bought such a rifle a few weeks ago for $600. Add a $1,000 plus for a full-dress fancy used model. What was also of such high value to me, it has is a sporting version of the foolproof and very expensive Mauser safety which blocks the firing pin, not merely the trigger.

It shoots like a dream, has classic dangerous game total reliability, and of course it has an original Mauser flawless, non-boxed self-cleaning trigger.

New model 70's have compromised that traditional CRF Mauser super reliable feeding and extraction time tested action.

When I lived in Wyoming, I hunted Antelope in the high mountain meadows of Wyoming's Wind River Range, Grizzly country. I used 180 grain Barnes Originals round nosed bullets in my 270 "just in case".

Last point, I bought a used Sako Finnlight in 308 about 20 years ago. It is head and shoulders above any Tika in so many ways. One always gets what you pay for.