What cartridge for Tikka build

[opdinkslayer]

For killing animals I'm a big fan of 30 cal projectiles.  This wouldn't even be a question in my mind. 300 wsm. On a tikka you wont have any length issues so seat them bergers out long and run em hard

Well she ain’t gonna be a safe queen & letting the air out of critters is it’s purpose!   Decisions Decisions!

[opdinkslayer]

Is barrel life about the same in the 300 as the 7? Also who all is making brass for the 300wsm & what is everyone’s preference?

[b23]

Is barrel life about the same in the 300 as the 7? Also who all is making brass for the 300wsm & what is everyone’s preference?

Considering neither really burns all that much powder, both should have pretty good barrel/throat life, with the 300 WSM being slightly better of the two.

[Matth]

ya it’s purely an aesthetic thing & I really like the look of Mike’s wraps. You guys are making a compelling argument for the 300 & 215’s🤔

Dollars and cents wise, they don't make a whole lot of sense, but, I do think they look good and I just put a Proof Research CF barrel on my brand new Seekins SP10, and it's chambered in, of all things, 6.5 Creedmoor. 

I think any of the bullets in the 180-215 range would suit your needs very well.

Dollars and cents wise does ANY of this stuff make sense?!   

Nope but it sure is fun.

[hogslayer]

300 wsm or 7 saum would be my vote. 180 7mm at 2930-2980 is very accurate.  But the 300 wsm is a known easy to tune cartridge.  If I did a 300 wsm I would run the 200.20x.  Very high bc.  Same as a 215 but a little cut off the back.  Should perform like a 215 on animals.

[Bushcraft]

Go with the 300 WSM.

Brass is more readily available and you can always load up some heavy pills if you want, but there's really no need to run a heavier bullet than 180ish in them for your intended purposes.

I'm not a fan of lead grenades going off in meat intended for the dinner table and I like exit holes, so I run a Barnes 168 gr. TTSX over 66ish grains of H4350 in my semi-custom Tikka and max out the COAL for magazine length. The combo is stupid-easy accurate, carries more than enough velocity to open reliably out to 600-650 yards and puts critters down with more than enough authority an minimal meat waste.

NOTE: When you surgically blow off the top of a deer/elk/bear's heart, they tend to depart this mortal plane very quickly. Strangest thing. 

[Karl Blanchard]

Except he wants to shoot 215 hybrids

[opdinkslayer]

Not tied to the 215’s but I do like their proven track record of accuracy,especially out to distance.🤷‍♂️Have never had any luck with accuracy in my limited experiments with Barnes solids. I’ve always found with Bergers in the boiler room there isn’t much for shrapnel in my meat & they expire rather quickly.

I am getting more & more convinced to go 300 wsm tho. Appreciate everyone’s input on this & look forward to even more. Thanks guys

[opdinkslayer]

300 wsm or 7 saum would be my vote. 180 7mm at 2930-2980 is very accurate.  But the 300 wsm is a known easy to tune cartridge.  If I did a 300 wsm I would run the 200.20x.  Very high bc.  Same as a 215 but a little cut off the back.  Should perform like a 215 on animals.

Any reports of the 200.20x performance on game? Are they constructed the same as the 215’s?

[Karl Blanchard]

200+ there is no other bullet I would use over the 215's

[jasnt]

200+ there is no other bullet I would use over the 215's

  if I were to go back to lil 30’s

[b23]

200+ there is no other bullet I would use over the 215's

  if I were to go back to lil 30’s

Oh, now that’s just downright hurtful to all us little 30 cal lovers. LOL

[jasnt]

200+ there is no other bullet I would use over the 215's

  if I were to go back to lil 30’s

Oh, now that’s just downright hurtful to all us little 30 cal lovers. LOL

[opdinkslayer]

Well I’d go with a 375 cheytac but something tells me there could be some issues getting that baby in the tikka action?

[Bofire]

I had a 300WM Tikka lite stainless, great gun. Had a brake on it otherwise stock. very accurate, 23.5 barrel with brake is close to 26, got about 2950 out of 180 grain.  I had two other 300 WM's , I sold the Winchester BOSS first, then the Tikka and kept the Custom my Brother built me.  300WM is a killing machine, I see no reason for bigger bullets then 180, killed animals all over the USA since 1972 for me almost all were one shot kills. All on big game Bears, deer, elk, antelope, moose.
Carl