Rifles 105: Tikka Setup
Configuring the Tikka T3x for hunting
The Rational Hunting Rifle
There is one rifle action which is broadly available, inexpensive, and supported well by the aftermarket. It has an integral scope rail, an excellent drop-safe trigger, smooth reliable feeding, a foolproof lightweight detachable magazine, and one of the smoothest bolt cycles money can buy. It’s the Tikka T3X, and it forms the basis of the most rational hunting rifle build. We covered the basics of choosing your projectile, cartridge, and optics, in sections 101-104. Below we’ll get deeper into T3x-specific setup.
The Trigger.
Do not replace the trigger spring in the stock Tikka. By rotating the small 2.5mm Allen out until it impinges on the 5mm Allen, you should be able to achieve a crisp 2 pound pull without compromising drop resistance or cold weather performance. Aftermarket reduced-power springs from YoDave, MTN Tactical, and the like are prone to shifting weights over time, resulting in cold weather performance issues as well as dangerous slam fire or drop fire conditions. They are made of substantially less durable materials and are no longer recommended.
Aftermarket triggers are available from Timney and KRG (Midas) which can safely reduce pulls below 2 pounds for those users requiring an extremely light trigger. We still recommend drop testing these fully assembled rifles and cycling the bolt hard to check for slam fire resistance.
The Stock.
There is nothing inherently wrong with the factory Tikka stock, but it does require modifications to become truly useful. If you decide to keep the factory stock due to budget constraints, make the following modifications:
Hog out the barrel channel to aggressively free-float the barrel all the way back to the recoil lug.
Install the Tikka factory vertical grip.
Install the LimbSaver Airtech recoil pad.
Use an adjustable cheek riser to create a negative drop at comb.
You may choose to replace the factory stock with one of the following:
Rokstok
Optimized ergonomics.
Bedding not required.
Available with or without various rails in various positions.
Medium weight (~32 oz with rail).
Inconsistent availability.
Poor fit and finish relative to competitors.
McMillan Mountain Tracker LR
Optimized ergonomics
Includes balance point and scalloped Arca & pic rails respectively
Expensive
Medium weight
High end fit and finish
Wildcat Composites
Expensive, does not have a vertical grip - traditional ergonomics.
Requires extensive fitting and bedding
Exceptionally light (~18 oz)
KRG Bravo
Inexpensive, heavy, no bedding required
Add ARCA, Picatinny, or other attachments via M-Lok
Adapts the rifle for AICS magazines
XLR 4.0
Medium expense, light, requires careful stock choice, folding, built-in ARCA and M-Lok
Long wait time
Adapts the rifle for AICS magazines
MDT HNT 26
Expensive
Somewhat light for feature set
folding, built-in ARCA and M-Lok, nice carbon feel
Stocky’s Carbon VG2
Inexpensive, light, usually does not require bedding
Reach to trigger is long for most hands
Adding ARCA or other attachments requires gunsmith to drill and bed into stock
Uses factory bottom metal and magazines
Allterra Tikka Stock
Expensive, Light, requires bedding
Adding ARCA or other attachments requires gunsmith to drill and bed into stock
Uses factory bottom metal and magazines
Ergonomics as advertised are in line with modern standards, but in reality the grip results in a reach to the trigger that’s not viable for most shooters
CF Versa Echelon
Optimized Ergonomics
Extremely light
Can be fitted with full length ARCA
Expensive
Requires bedding
Peak 44 Bastion
Optimized Ergonomics
Quite light
No provisions for mounting rails
Expensive
No bedding required
Optics Mount
Attach your optic to the integral rail using Unknown Munitions or SportsMatch Rings. If you require 20 MOA of adjustment due to your scope and shooting distance, permanently bond a rail with recoil bosses (like the Area 419) to your action using a rubberized CA glue or a bedding epoxy.
Muzzle Device
If you’ll be wearing double hearing protection and live in a state where suppressors are illegal, you may choose to reduce the recoil with a titanium muzzle brake of a directional (not radial) design of two or more ports.
Common choices include the TiPro and APA little bastard.
If you’ll be suppressing your gun, choose a light mid-length titanium suppressor 6-7” long and >1.5” wide.
Excellent choices include the CGS Hyperion K, Otter Creek Labs Hydrogen S, and cans with similar specifications from reliable manufacturers with good warranties.
Bolt Handle
Unknown Munitions has produced a short bolt handle threaded for common bolt knobs. The best of these is the simple round knob. Longer bolt handles increase leverage and decrease perceived force of bolt lift. However, for a field rifle, it’s more important to reduce the possibility of causing a malfunction by impinging upwards on an extended bolt. Competitors may prefer the swept and extended Sterk bolt handles with integral round bolt knobs.
Barrel
Factory Tikka barrels are exceptionally accurate with factory ammo. You may see accuracy improvements from an aftermarket barrel if you handload. For non-handloaders, common Tikka barrel replacement reasons include:
Attainment of a cartridge not available stock (such as the 6mm Creedmoor)
Attainment of a profile unavailable stock (like M24 for competition)
Attainment of a particular length, profile, and muzzle thread size combination (such as the popular 18” tikka lite profile with flares to 5/8x24 muzzle threads).
Being a badass and shooting out your barrel, meaning enough rounds have been through it (usually 3,000 for a 6.5CM or 5,000 for a .308) that accuracy has degraded to unacceptable levels (e.g. growth from 1.3 to >2.0 MOA)
Replace your barrel, only if you desire.
“Pre-Fit” barrels with fixed shoulders are available for the Tikka, just like many custom actions, due to the tight manufacturer tolerances Tikka holds. This means you can easily order a barrel to your specifications of length, cartridge, and profile (thickness). This barrel can be installed to the fixed shoulder instead of requiring a Savage-style barrel nut.
Sometimes, this results in cost savings, as when using providers like Preferred Barrel Blanks or PVA Ospreys during sales. However, a barrel chambered to your specific action by an excellent gunsmith with a reputation for benchrest precision (like bugholes, Kampfeld, or LRI) will always have a greater likelihood of producing extreme accuracy.
The primary reason to do a pre-fit barrel, assuming you need a new barrel in the first place, is timing. In-stock pre-fits confer flexibility on installation which make them attractive relative to the at-times extensive waits for top gunsmith slots.
Carbon barrels are only lighter than steel barrels for a given thickness. That thickness is irrelevant to barrel performance, simply making suppressor attachment a bit easier. Carbon can trap heat against the inner steel thin barrel blank, degrading life and performance. While many carbon barrels shoot well (Proof, Benchmark, etc), many are inconsistent (Carbon6, Bergara) and all are unnecessary for the hunter who can happily use a #3 sporter contour steel barrel with a flare to 5/8x24 for less weight and cost.
Factory Tikka barrels tend to be 100 fps slow on average due to their excessive freebore (room before the rifling starts which contributes to accuracy with a large range of factory cartridges). Because removing an inch of barrel can reduce muzzle velocity by 25-50 fps, another reason to replace the factory barrel would be to reduce barrel length for identical performance or keep barrel length the same and increase maximum hunting distance.
Removing a factory Tikka barrel is part brute strength, part equipment setup, and part dark art. A competent gunsmith can help break it loose, or you can research proper technique and buy roughly $200 equipment. Spinning new barrels on to 70 ft-lbs and off once the factory is removed the first time will not be difficult.
If you wish to change your chambering, ensure your new cartridge uses the bolt face for a bolt that you have. Your bolt faces will either be .223 sized, .308 sized, or magnum sized. Additional bolts can be purchased only on the aftermarket.
Any factory take-off barrels should headspace properly on any Tikka action. If you have concerns after chambering an empty case, take your rifle to a competent gunsmith. Same for any third-party pre-fit barrels ordered. It is good practice to “headspace” barrels regardless of guarantees made, using inexpensive cartridge-specific headspace gauges.
Bottom Metal
The factory Tikka bottom plastic is excellent and should not require replacement.
If 55 in-lb of torque pulls your action screws through your bottom plastic, you may choose to replace your bottom plastic with metal, or try again with another bottom plastic (cheap), or add washers underneath the bottom plastic to safeguard from pull-throughs.
If you do elect to replace your bottom plastic with metal, consider an option with additional benefits such as large trigger guards. High Desert’s Linear model and Lumley’s Arctic version are excellent.
Ensure the fit between your action, stock, and bottom metal is proper. Small differences result in “tolerance” stacking that can affect the trigger shoe, cocking piece, safety, and other important action elements.
You may torque to 65 in-lb of torque when using an aftermarket bottom metal (this is the torque spec for the metal Sako versions of the Tikka rifle).
Drop test your rifle extensively to ensure no impingement with trigger or safety components. If there is impingement, you may add small (included) shims under your bottom metal to create more clearance. In extreme cases you may have to file the top of the trigger shoe relief cut.
Avoid
It’s equally important to recognize common modifications which do not improve the Tikka T3x:
Aftermarket trigger springs.
Enough said.
Skeletonizing, fluting, and other lightening attempts.
Lightness in a rifle comes down to choice of stock, barrel length, and barrel profile. Fluting the barrel and bolt, or milling in “sheep ports” are problematic from a number of perspectives.
Barrels weigh roughly 1.5-2 oz per inch.
Fluting can introduce stress into a properly stress relieved blank, and it is difficult to predict the effects it will have on accuracy unless it is stress relieved again (as with factory-fluted barrels).
Fluting a bolt is largely an aesthetic choice. Unduly deep flutes can cause a bolt to feel rough. The common myth that flutes help to clear out debris and ice from the action is false. A flat bolt-to-port interface is best for keeping debris out of the action.
Machining an action without conducting an engineering assessment on the reduction to strength and rigidity is foolish. The 5 oz that are possible to reduce are also in the best possible place for the balance of the rifle and don’t contribute to “heavy feeling” as much as excessive barrel far away from the shoulder.
Conclusion
There is a solution for almost any Tikka owner desiring almost any configuration. The most glaring deficiency in the Tikka aftermarket used to be the availability of properly designed stocks. The emergence in the last year of the Rokstok, Peak 44 Bastion, and CF Versa Echelon has rendered this final argument in favor of the Remington 700 moot.