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Thread: Opinions on these Bolt Hunting Rifles ?

  1. #1
    Boolit Buddy
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    Opinions on these Bolt Hunting Rifles ?

    If you were going to buy a new bolt action in 270 Win which would you pick ? And why over the rest ?
    A) CZ 557
    B) Browning X - bolt
    C) Win 70
    D ) Weatherby Vanguard S2 / Howa 1500
    E) Tikka T3X

  2. #2
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    Tikka!

  3. #3
    Boolit Grand Master



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    The Tikka will have the smoothers action and they tend to shoot very well.
    2nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. - "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

    "Before you argue with someone, ask yourself, is that person even mentally mature enough to grasp the concept of different perspectives? Because if not, there’s absolutely no point."
    – Amber Veal

    "The Highest form of ignorance is when your reject something you don't know anything about".
    - Wayne Dyer

  4. #4
    Boolit Bub
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    For me it would be a hard decision, CZ or the Vanguard/Howa. Depending on calibre wanted, that could make the decision for me. Have 4 Vanguards that are excellent shooters, calibres from .270 to .223. Very little to ask for improvement. All my CZ's are 550's, but a couple of friends have bought the 557's and had excellent results. The current Model 70's leave me cold, Portugese made I believe, a cheezy metal box trigger, not something I want in a Model 70. While I've liked all the Tikka's I've shot over the years, I just don't warm up to them, and the $70 all plastic magazines leave me kinda gasping. But they do work! I also buy walnut, not plastic, and most Tikka's I see today are plastic. Again a personal thing.

  5. #5
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    The only thing wrong with the Tikka in my opinion is the boot heel reverse angle recoil pad. It matters on .270 on up cartridges from the bench. I’ve tried all kinds of bolt actions over the years, but The Tikka is my favorite. Light, ergonomic, smooth action and scary accurate with a real trigger. The 3 shot magazine is plastic; but it is also flawless.

  6. #6
    Cast Hunter

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    Another vote for Tikka. Light, great trigger, and accurate.


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  7. #7
    Boolit Mold
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    Win 70, but honestly the mix there is purely going to be either a personal preference or the decision will be price based once you get them compared.

  8. #8
    Boolit Master
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    From your list, Vanguard. But also consider the Winchester XPR. Not only does CDNN sell them for a really good price (1/2 what a local sporting goods dealer wants), but Dave Petzal of Field and Stream (Google "Gun Nuts") raves about them. I bought an XPR 30-06 last November that only cost me $275 after Winchester's $75 rebate and included a Weaver 3-9X scope. It was going to be a "truck gun" until I shot it. Darned thing interlocked bullets at 100 meters off shooting bags.
    I have a Tikka T3 that shoots any bullet I feed it very well. But a 270 in a Tikka Light will kick quickly and sharply. Mine is a 6.5X55. In my job as a range safety officer, I've seen CZ's shoot very well. and they are a bit heavier than the Tikka Light, so the recoil is more pleasant.


    Handle them all. Pick the one whose stock puts the scope in alignment with your eye without searching for it. Just like a shotgun that fits.

  9. #9
    Boolit Buddy
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    I bought a Tikka T3 Hunter on closeout when the T3X's were coming out . 6.5 X 55 SE . Upgraded recoil lug , pillared & Devcon bedded stock . I too am not enamored with the plastic parts & will likely replace them over time . Shame that Win 70 has slipped along with Rem 700 . The Howa / Vanguard in a decent stock ( non-tupperware ) rather wood or composite will get a good look . Browning ?? wonder if they feed from a clip like the A-bolt . CZ looks handsome & if they shoot as well would get the nod most likely .

  10. #10
    Boolit Master RKJ's Avatar
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    Winchester M70 Featherweight. That is one of the prettiest rifles I've seen. I've got 3 M70's and everyone of them is a shooter. I also prefer the 3 position safety.

  11. #11
    Boolit Bub
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    Tikka actions are light and smooth

  12. #12
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    CZs with hand lapped barrels and smooth actions. M70s with 3 position safeties, push or controlled round feeds, jeweled bolts. These are where its at for me. Purely they way they make me feel when I have mine in my hands. They also just function and function well.

    The M70 was my first and only centerfire bolt Ive owned, but shot many others. Had an RO interested in my cast loads so I let him shoot my it. He came away with a different view. He was my age, mid 30's, just out of the Army, said it was the only rifle that ran smoothly. Never a catch, slick throw. Put him behind my CZ rimfire and he went nuts over that too. To this day, if he's at the range and I have either rifle, I ask him to shoot. He never turns me down.

  13. #13
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    Winchester M70 Featherweight. I don't know about the new ones, but the 1993 controlled round feed 30-06 I have is the slickest action I have in the safe.

  14. #14
    Boolit Grand Master pietro's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rgmcfarland View Post
    Win 70, but honestly the mix there is purely going to be either a personal preference or the decision will be price based once you get them compared.
    +4

    A Model 70 Featherweight in .270 is a veritable magic wand - and it's the only one of the choices that's made in America by Americans...……..

    .
    Now I lay me down to sleep
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    If I awake, and you're inside
    The coroner's van is your next ride

  15. #15
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    My buddy has a .270 Tikka and it is very nice. It ticks him off that my $215 .308 T/C Compass will outshoot it. But I use handloads and he shoots factory. Might be the nut behind the trigger too...LOL.

    I would get the Tikka, but for a hunting rig, just get what fits you the best.

    BTW. I bought the Compass to get a lighter rifle than the M70 Coyote I was using. It was cheap, and I do not care if it gets wet or scratched in the woods. Nice that is shoots too! Hunting load below is its best groups with 165 gr GameKings, but consistently MOA

    Click image for larger version. 

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    Don Verna


  16. #16
    Boolit Master
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    tikka smooth and easy adjustable trigger.

  17. #17
    Boolit Grand Master



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    Quote Originally Posted by pietro View Post
    +4

    A Model 70 Featherweight in .270 is a veritable magic wand - and it's the only one of the choices that's made in America by Americans...……..

    .
    Since October 2007, the Winchester Model 70 Featherweight has been produced by the Belgian company FN Herstal. The grimaces of history – an American cult carbine manufactured by a European company.

    If the Winchester Model 70 was still US made that would have been my recommendation. It by far the best looking and i am a huge pre-64 Model 70 fan so I a bias towards the Model 70 but of the list the Tikka is the smoothest action and they tend to hold an accuracy edge.
    Last edited by M-Tecs; 06-07-2020 at 03:48 PM.
    2nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. - "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

    "Before you argue with someone, ask yourself, is that person even mentally mature enough to grasp the concept of different perspectives? Because if not, there’s absolutely no point."
    – Amber Veal

    "The Highest form of ignorance is when your reject something you don't know anything about".
    - Wayne Dyer

  18. #18
    Boolit Grand Master pietro's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by M-Tecs View Post
    Since October 2007, the Winchester Model 70 Featherweight has been produced by the Belgian company FN Herstal. The grimaces of history – an American cult carbine manufactured by a European company.

    If the Winchester Model 70 was still US made that would have been my recommendation. It by far the best looking and i am a huge pre-64 Model 70 fan so I a bias towards the Model 70 but of the list the Tikka is the smoothest action and they tend to hold an accuracy edge.

    As of 2012, new Winchester Model 70 rifles were being made by FN Herstal in Columbia, South Carolina. - which happens to be in the USA....

    Click & scroll: https://www.winchesterguns.com/suppo...ufactured.html

    .
    Now I lay me down to sleep
    A gun beside me is what I keep
    If I awake, and you're inside
    The coroner's van is your next ride

  19. #19
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    The South Carolina post 2012 " pre 64" rifles are a fitting continuation of the line. They may be the ONLY Winchester made "over here".

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  20. #20
    Boolit Grand Master



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    Quote Originally Posted by pietro View Post
    As of 2012, new Winchester Model 70 rifles were being made by FN Herstal in Columbia, South Carolina. - which happens to be in the USA....

    Click & scroll: https://www.winchesterguns.com/suppo...ufactured.html

    .
    Only thing I am seeing in your link is that they made them in the US for a couple of years after 2006. Not seeing any recent US production.

    https://www.winchesterguns.com/suppo...ufactured.html

    Winchester Model 70.
    It is no secret that Winchester Repeating Arms is part of the greater Herstal Group, with factories all around the world. The best factories are used for each model. Assembly and production of Model 70s have been shifted to our Viana, Portugal plant as indicated on the barrel inscription. Earlier production of USA-made guns is marked as such. For the first seventy years, production was in New Haven, Connecticut, the factory that closed in 2006. After 2006, a number of Model 70 bolt action rifles were produced at a Herstal Group factory (FNM) in South Carolina, U.S.A. over several years.

    Production was then moved to our factory in Viana, Portugal -- a factory which was already part of the Herstal Group (our parent company). Generally, today, key parts are likely sourced worldwide with the rifle made and assembled in Portugal.

    The "Made in USA" question.
    Some hunters and shooters have reasons for purchasing only Made In USA firearms. Some hunters only revere "Pre-64" Model 70s. We understand. But it would be incorrect to base your decision whether to buy a new Model 70 made at our Portugal plant due to a fear of poor performance. Model 70s made and/or assembled in Portugal have stellar quality, accuracy and overall performance that matches or exceeds any production Model 70s ever in our history.
    Last edited by M-Tecs; 06-07-2020 at 07:25 PM.
    2nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. - "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

    "Before you argue with someone, ask yourself, is that person even mentally mature enough to grasp the concept of different perspectives? Because if not, there’s absolutely no point."
    – Amber Veal

    "The Highest form of ignorance is when your reject something you don't know anything about".
    - Wayne Dyer

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check