Rebarrel vs buy a Tikka

Absolutely no way I would part with my model 70. The bolt on it runs slick as glass. It wears the original wood stock and it still looks new. It's a 270win and we have spent a lot of time together. It still shoots very well. I like the Tikka's but I wouldn't parts with my mod 70 to get one. I'd rebarrel her if she didn't shoot.

nksmfamjp said:

I'm thinking about rebarreling a rifle to 6.5 Creedmoor or buying a tikka.

When all is said and done, I can have a nice tikka for about $1300 or….

A rebarrelled and tru'd M70 for $1800….

Which would you do and why? What are the decision factors?

Is Tikka just the easy button? Are there bad ones? Warranty ok?

Also 6.5 creed vs prc….

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Well, I am not a big fan of the 6.5 Creedmoor, and while I have shot a few I still remain unimpressed. Out to 600 yards, the standard 270 Winchester shoots rings around the Creedmoor. Since that is apparently the farthest you intend to shoot I would toss the 6.5 thoughts into the recycle bin. I own Tikka T3x, Winchester Model 70 and Remington 700 rifles. They are chambered in 270, 308, 30-06 and 338 Win Mag. All shoot sub MOA with both factory ammo or reloads. The Tikka T3x in 270 shoots 0.21sub MOA groups at 300 yards using Federal Premium 140 gr ammo. It will do better than that with handloads. My recommendation would be to buy a Tikka T3x in 270 Win and if you are recoil sensitive get a Backstop Recoil pad


Currently on sale for $77 and well worth the money. It works better than a Limbsaver.

Teri Anne said:

Out to 600 yards, the standard 270 Winchester shoots rings around the Creedmoor

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what does this mean?

I love my tikka 6.5 with 130tmk, as of yet the furthest animal it has shot has not been far enough to be anything of note, but the closest was under 50 yards and the tmk performed perfectly.

The action has been fantastic, very resistant to binding, the mags are quiet and work flawlessly. I am a tikka convert, they work well.

Is your m70 a pre64 or a new model "classic"

10 shots in one sitting from a factory tikka lite barrel

If you're serious about sticking with the 6.5 idea go with the PRC. I only have knowledge with a 6.5x55 which is a little faster than a creedmoor and I know I'll make waves but for mule deer you want more Horsepower. It's not the deer or necessarily the range it's the environment you're in. You don't always get to dial and have it like the range. Plus there's the possibility of wind. What I'm getting at is the velocity helps smooth out the variables. I've shot about 20 mule deer and my favorite rifle is a 270. Which in the end is what I'd get in the Tikka. Get a stainless Tikka and a great scope. It's boring but will work great!

Many years ago my brother bought a Tikka and had problems but in time they made it right and it it shot well.
I stay away from Tikka all this time but recently fell in love with a 6.5 Creed Moor stainless 24.3 inch fluted barrel and bought it. WOW, It is a shooter. Not much recoil and can shoot a 5 shot group with all 5 touching at 100 yards.
I wish I had not waited so long and will buy another Tikka in a heartbeat if I need one.
Edit to add: Like Perman5 if I get another 6.5 caliber it will be a PRC as I will limit my shots on Mule deer to 300 yards with the Creed Moor.
But I will not get rid of the Creedmoor as it is my fun gun.

If you have a 300 Sherman in the M70, then you would have to go with 6.5 PRC as it is a magnum bolt face. If the 300 Sherman doesn't shoot, then what good is it really? You might as well rebarrel it. You could rebarrel to 6.5 PRC or even a 6.5 SST.

The 6.5 PRC is a Fine, HUNTING Cartridge,. BUT IF,. you LIKE to "Shoot" ( Practice, a LOT on, Steel Plates, Targets, etc. ) you Will, Burn the Barrel Out,..
in LESS than, 2,000 rounds and maybe, only get, 1,200 / 1,500 rounds of, "Accuracy" ( REMEMBER, It's, a 3,100 FPS,.. "Magnum" Cartridge !! ).
The 6.5 Creed with, 140 - 143gr Bullets @ 2,650 - 2,725 FPS, will Run around, 3,000 to 3,500 rounds of, accurate, Barrel "Life" !
( Something to,.. think about,. IMO ) The 6.5 Creedmoor, is, Popular,. FOR,.. 3,.. REASONS !
Barrel Life, LOW Recoil and,.. ACCURACY

My 24 y/o grandson, HAS, a wonderful, very Accurate, Semi Custom, 6.5 PRC Rifle and has used it On 3 Deer and a Yukon Billy Goat so far AND,..
Yup, It's, a DRT, "Killer" with, 140 gr Elite Hunter, Bergers or, 143 ELD-X's @ 3,100 FPS ! It Rivals, the .270 WSM, BUT with, Higher, BC Bullets !
DON'T Kid yourself about, the Low round count, Barrel Life, as they ARE about, the "Same" in almost,.. All,.. "Ways" !
Lotta Powder, through,. a Small Hole !
Pick,. "Your",.. Poison !!

I often wonder about the people who are so worried about recoil that they choose to use a rifle of a lesser caliber than they should to take big game. I am not all that recoil sensitive, but like everybody else, I have my limits, more as I get older. Unlike most I am not afraid to modify a heavy recoiling rifle to reduce the recoil to an amount that is humanly comfortable. Keep in mind that if you are out hunting and take a shot at game with a heavy recoiling rifle, you will never feel the recoil. The only place recoil comes into play is when you are sighting in the rifle or shooting competitively. I learned long ago that a 300 Win Mag, and the likes kick like a mule. Never did much like Mules, so really don't like getting kicked like one.

A few years ago I bought a 300 Win Mag to play with for lo target shooting. From previous experience, I knew to send it down to America's Gunsmith Shop in Burlington and had them thread the barrel and put on a target type muzzle brake. I also put on a pre fit Limbsaver air tech recoil pad.

When I got it back from the gunsmith, I went to the range to sight in the rifle an hour before I was to meet a pistol shooting student. I had just gotten set up and ready to shoot when my student showed up early for her lesson. She watched me sighting in the rifle and as I zeroed in to where I wanted it, she asked if she could try it. Keep in mind that she was about two inches shorter than me and weighed maybe 135 pounds soaking wet. She had never shot a rifle before and I was reluctant to let her try the 300 mag as her first attempt at rifle shooting. I instructed her how to hold the rifle, aim using a scope and how much more sensitive the trigger was compared to the handguns she was used to. I coached her into a good bench rest position, again reminded her that there was going to be some recoil and held my breath. I made sure that she was not creeping up on the scope, had good eye relief and knew what parallax was. She took her time and when she shot the first shot, after coming back out of recoil she looked over her shoulder at me and said, "That wasn't bad at all. I expected much more." Her first shot was 6 inches high and 6 inches right. She wanted to try again. I handed her another round, watched as she loaded it and settled back into a shooting position. The second shot was one inch from the first. From then on we did a split lesson, an hour with the pistol and an hour with the rifle.

The point here is recoil can be managed. It does not have to be uncomfortable. Over the years I have hunted with many men, most of them use big old rifles that kick like crazy. Any mention of trying to reduce the recoil is met with a comment, "I don't mind the recoil and I can handle it." When I watch them shoot on the range, I can't help but see the grimace every time they shoot, hurt from the recoil, and watch their accuracy go downhill with each and every shot. For the ones that I shoot with regularly, I always visit them after shoulder surgery. It's amazing that it's always their shooting shoulder that is giving them grief.

If you value your shoulder, you don't lose any of your macho image by admitting that recoil bothers you. It's OK to do things that help reduce recoil. A muzzle brake might be, a bit loud. A recoil pad does not ruin the lines of a rifle stock. I guess it's a good thing that these days everyone thinks a suppressor is Kool. While I don't like the added length (my barrels are all between 20 and 26 inches) or the added weight of a suppressor, not to mention the added cost. I find more and more people going to suppressed firearms, which is good for them. I do not however go along with sub-sonic ammo if you are going to be shooting over 150 yards. Bullets traveling at sub sonic speeds require more elevation and absolutely drift more than non non-suppressed ammo. Another consideration is to make sure there is enough energy left for the bullet to reliably expand upon impact.

Idaho Lefty said:

My 24 y/o grandson, HAS, a wonderful, very Accurate, Semi Custom, 6.5 PRC Rifle and has used it On 3 Deer and a Yukon Billy Goat so far AND,..
Yup, It's, a DRT, "Killer" with, 140 gr Elite Hunter, Bergers or, 143 ELD-X's @ 3,100 FPS ! It Rivals, the .270 WSM, BUT with, Higher, BC Bullets !
DON'T Kid yourself about, the Low round count, Barrel Life, as they ARE about, the "Same" in almost,.. All,.. "Ways" !
Lotta Powder, through,. a Small Hole !
Pick,. "Your",.. Poison !!

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Well put Lefty,I have 3 300 win mags to shoot elk and mule deer with at long range,270,2 30-6's and many others so I wanted a rifle caliber that had little recoil (I'm in my 70's) and accurate. The 264 caliber Creedmoor fits my bill.
A friend of ours dad is a retired gunsmith in North Montana and said to tell Mike to buy the 6.5 Creedmoor and not the 6.5 PRC as he is seeing many barrels being changed near 1000 rounds if loaded at or near max loads so I opted for the Creedmoor and could not be more happier.
If you need longer distance maybe the PRC is your best choice.

bultinkle said:

what does this mean?

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It means that the 270 outperforms a 6.5 Creedmoor, out to where the bullet goes sub sonic. This happens around 700 to 800 yards. The 270 shoots faster, shoots flatter, hits harder and has less wind drift not to mention retained energy than the 6.5. Beyond 700 to 800 yards the 6.5 performs better, but that is beyond normal hunting distance so it really doesn't matter.

1800 to put a new barrel on a Win? Keep shopping, barrel blank runs $400 and change.

Teri Anne said:

It means that the 270 outperforms a 6.5 Creedmoor, out to where the bullet goes sub sonic. This happens around 700 to 800 yards. The 270 shoots faster, shoots flatter, hits harder and has less wind drift not to mention retained energy than the 6.5. Beyond 700 to 800 yards the 6.5 performs better, but that is beyond normal hunting distance so it really doesn't matter.

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You mentioned federal premium 140 for 270, compared to factory federal premium 140 in 6.5 creedmoor (which is claimed125fps slower than bergers load) The 270 has 1 inch more wind drift at 500 at sea level in a 10 mph crosswind.

It is flatter. In the scenario that you need to snap shot a deer at 300 yards but can't dial or account for the extra 2" of drop at that stage that could be valuable. Past that I'm not sure it matters but I understand not everyone dials for elevation on long shots so I can see the point.

Hits "harder" and "energy" personally I think is meaningless but I understand the hunting community is still enamored with energy being a useful criteria, so maybe that 100-150ft lbs difference is a big deal to some.

Both have acceptable speed to retain adequate impact velocity for bullet upset out to your 600 mark at sea level at those speeds.


Slightly flatter, equal wind drift or worse at ranges wind plays an effect, 150ft lbs more energy but both have above threshold terminal velocity for bullet to work, more recoil, higher cost for practice and ammo.

Outperforms? Eh. Maybe

Shoots rings? Seems a bit exaggerated.

seems more that they are functionally the same for their purposes to me. One is just more fun to practice more with.