Hi all,
It's been a minute since I've been on this site and after years of the tactical game, I've started down the rabbit hole of scout rifles and "general purpose" rifles. My scout game is covered with both a Steyr Scout and a Ruger GSR and I recently purchased a Tikka T3x Arctic which is a lovely beast. However, I found myself with a left over West German Schmidt & Bender fixed 4x scope that is amazingly bright and sharp and thus the hunt began for a host rifle for this scope.
Last week I picked up a .308 Tikka T3x Lite. 22.4" Stainless, 1:11 twist, synthetic stock, etc. My initial thought is to have it cut back to either 18.5" or 20". I envision this rifle to be a handy "ranch" rifle so to speak. I plan to drop it into a used CTR stock I just bought off eBay so that I have 10 rd. mag compatibility with my Arctic. With a fixed 4x I don't imagine shots over 300-400m. I found a reputable gunsmith in the area who will cut my barrel back, thread and even mount his proprietary muzzle brake (Scott @ Live Oak Accuracy outside of Dallas). However, because the barrel diameter being pretty thin to begin with, he'd have to thread to 1/2x28 instead of the more common 5/8x24 for .308.
So now I'm waffling on which direction to go. Should I simply have it cut? If so...to what length? I'm leaning towards 20" to keep it the same as the Arctic, but 18.5" is kind of the old school "carbine" length.
Do I have it threaded...and then have to live with a very specific muzzle brake (albeit a very effective and well made one)? If this option, I'm thinking 18.5" which would put the finished length at 19.75" or thereabouts. Scott did offer to make a thread adaptor which would allow me to use other muzzle devices, but I'm hesitant to use a can with a thread adaptor. But it does provide options for other muzzle devices, flash hiders, etc.
Then there's the piece about gambling with accuracy. The Tikka is guaranteed MOA...do I risk negatively impacting accuracy by cutting? I have faith in Scott's work and reputation but I tend to follow the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach to life.
So, I'm torn...which direction would you go if faced with this dilemma?
It's been a minute since I've been on this site and after years of the tactical game, I've started down the rabbit hole of scout rifles and "general purpose" rifles. My scout game is covered with both a Steyr Scout and a Ruger GSR and I recently purchased a Tikka T3x Arctic which is a lovely beast. However, I found myself with a left over West German Schmidt & Bender fixed 4x scope that is amazingly bright and sharp and thus the hunt began for a host rifle for this scope.
Last week I picked up a .308 Tikka T3x Lite. 22.4" Stainless, 1:11 twist, synthetic stock, etc. My initial thought is to have it cut back to either 18.5" or 20". I envision this rifle to be a handy "ranch" rifle so to speak. I plan to drop it into a used CTR stock I just bought off eBay so that I have 10 rd. mag compatibility with my Arctic. With a fixed 4x I don't imagine shots over 300-400m. I found a reputable gunsmith in the area who will cut my barrel back, thread and even mount his proprietary muzzle brake (Scott @ Live Oak Accuracy outside of Dallas). However, because the barrel diameter being pretty thin to begin with, he'd have to thread to 1/2x28 instead of the more common 5/8x24 for .308.
So now I'm waffling on which direction to go. Should I simply have it cut? If so...to what length? I'm leaning towards 20" to keep it the same as the Arctic, but 18.5" is kind of the old school "carbine" length.
Do I have it threaded...and then have to live with a very specific muzzle brake (albeit a very effective and well made one)? If this option, I'm thinking 18.5" which would put the finished length at 19.75" or thereabouts. Scott did offer to make a thread adaptor which would allow me to use other muzzle devices, but I'm hesitant to use a can with a thread adaptor. But it does provide options for other muzzle devices, flash hiders, etc.
Then there's the piece about gambling with accuracy. The Tikka is guaranteed MOA...do I risk negatively impacting accuracy by cutting? I have faith in Scott's work and reputation but I tend to follow the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach to life.
So, I'm torn...which direction would you go if faced with this dilemma?
