Thread: Good Rifle Brands

Hi all, recently gotten my firearms license and was wanting to buy a .270 or .308 rifle. Was wondering what you guys would consider to be good brands. Asked family but have received biased answers. Looking to spend around 2k so something reliable but doesn't have to be flashy (was looking into getting a 2nd hand Sako but want to see else I could get).

Sako and Tikka stand out - Winchester are good- more so what to avoid Remingtons from 2000 onwoods but in saying that some shot well just a few duds in amonst them - Ruger have always been well made - Mauser are good - Steyr are good - Howa are very popular - Sauer seem to cop the odd complaint but again it wont be all of them - my choice get yourself a Sako or Tikka from seventies eighties and nintys and away you go - just make up your mind wood blued or synthetic - dont get sucked into the bulldust that wood blued have bedding problems myth more than reality - its just they are heavier- seventies eighties Remingtons are a good buy -for a newer Tikka Sako with a scope think $3000 at least -Kimber are a nice rifle - Mossberg and Savage worth a look they certainly get good accuracy reports especially Savage - if you buy on here price will be good and you are unlikely to get a dud

Haven't gotten approved for the buy and sell on here yet but worth a go. How true is it that Howas tend to rust? heard that from someone as well. I'll keep my options open and hopefully will find one that stands out to me.

Originally Posted by fourzerofouronyourdoor

Haven't gotten approved for the buy and sell on here yet but worth a go. How true is it that Howas tend to rust? heard that from someone as well. I'll keep my options open and hopefully will find one that stands out to me.

All rifles will tend to rust if not wiped down and oiled after being in the weather, some more so than others.

I think the big thing is people think stainless mean no maintenance, but really it is 'stains-less' and still really needs to same attention albeit to a lesser extent.

Cant go wrong with a Tikka or Sako, they arent my cup of tea (Ive got rugers and Brownings) but Howa are also awesome value for money with a good aftermarket to build what you want in future without breaking the bank.

Originally Posted by fourzerofouronyourdoor

Haven't gotten approved for the buy and sell on here yet but worth a go. How true is it that Howas tend to rust? heard that from someone as well. I'll keep my options open and hopefully will find one that stands out to me.

All rifles rust if you put them away wet and never clean them. Try cleaning thouroughly and oiling inside, outside and under the (flaoting) barrel and that rust myht should disappear.

Originally Posted by fourzerofouronyourdoor

Haven't gotten approved for the buy and sell on here yet but worth a go. How true is it that Howas tend to rust? heard that from someone as well. I'll keep my options open and hopefully will find one that stands out to me.

My stainless Howa has only ever rusted where it was dirty or bloody.
As long as I wipe the gunk off it after use its perfectly fine like most rifles.
My blued Ruger M77 seems pretty damn resilient while my CZ 455 seems to rust if I even look at it.

For a starter rifle, I'm a big fan of Howas for a solid affordable option and theres all the options out there if you want to upgrade it in future.
I've had my Howa Mini for something like 7 years and the only thing left completely original is the bolt but its my #1 rifle that I'll never sell.

Originally Posted by Barry the hunter

Sako and Tikka stand out - Winchester are good- more so what to avoid Remingtons from 2000 onwoods but in saying that some shot well just a few duds in amonst them - Ruger have always been well made - Mauser are good - Steyr are good - Howa are very popular - Sauer seem to cop the odd complaint but again it wont be all of them - my choice get yourself a Sako or Tikka from seventies eighties and nintys and away you go - just make up your mind wood blued or synthetic - dont get sucked into the bulldust that wood blued have bedding problems myth more than reality - its just they are heavier- seventies eighties Remingtons are a good buy -for a newer Tikka Sako with a scope think $3000 at least -Kimber are a nice rifle - Mossberg and Savage worth a look they certainly get good accuracy reports especially Savage - if you buy on here price will be good and you are unlikely to get a dud

Well Barry you cover pretty much ALL the Brands! ROFL

Originally Posted by KERR

Well Barry you cover pretty much ALL the Brands! ROFL

well yes whats bad if it has a good barrell then what are we dealing with at 100yds 3 inch group versus under an inch- when on a budget you are not going to get a Sako 90 is one - all do it what do you like another way of putting all this what is genuinely bad - in my experience two stand out - the old semi auto Ruger mini matic shockers - the old jungle carbine 303 terrible - some of the early BSA especially the CF 2 did not shoot overly well - what else - and one has favourites for me Shultz and Larsen its all great fun

Originally Posted by KERR

Well Barry you cover pretty much ALL the Brands! ROFL

cheeky bugger have not even started - just what is in his budget - he is lucky its a buyers market

Had a stainless Howa - the barrel was fine but the receiver would rust up pretty quick.
Own a tikka now and it’s a much better rifle - but you pay near twice as much for a tikka.
For your first rifle. - much better to get a Howa I think - you may not like the calibre you choose - or more importantly better to have some budget left for a good scope to hold onto for a while!

Hard to find a rifle that doesn’t shoot well these days unless it’s really cheap. Be wary of a lot of scopes on “combo deals” usually they’re junk.

Both 270 and 308 are good. If you think you’ll mostly be public land bush hunting - go the 308 with a shorter barrel -16 to 20 inch work well (I like 18” but I have a buddy with a 14”)
If you’re confident you’ll get invited to hunt on farms or areas with open fields - a longer barrel 270 will be a better choice 20-22”

Originally Posted by SpeightsDrinker

Had a stainless Howa - the barrel was fine but the receiver would rust up pretty quick.
Own a tikka now and it’s a much better rifle - but you pay near twice as much for a tikka.
For your first rifle. - much better to get a Howa I think - you may not like the calibre you choose - or more importantly better to have some budget left for a good scope to hold onto for a while!

Hard to find a rifle that doesn’t shoot well these days unless it’s really cheap. Be wary of a lot of scopes on “combo deals” usually they’re junk.

Both 270 and 308 are good. If you think you’ll mostly be public land bush hunting - go the 308 with a shorter barrel -16 to 20 inch work well (I like 18” but I have a buddy with a 14”)
If you’re confident you’ll get invited to hunt on farms or areas with open fields - a longer barrel 270 will be a better choice 20-22”

Stain-less remember iv had tikkas rusty out of the box and defiances that rust as bad as howas, it’s the surface more than the brand and or quality of steel. A polished ruger mk11 will probably never ever get surface rust anything with a blasted more porous surface will suffer second hand sako it the pinnacle

Originally Posted by SpeightsDrinker

Had a stainless Howa - the barrel was fine but the receiver would rust up pretty quick.
Own a tikka now and it’s a much better rifle - but you pay near twice as much for a tikka.
For your first rifle. - much better to get a Howa I think - you may not like the calibre you choose - or more importantly better to have some budget left for a good scope to hold onto for a while!

Hard to find a rifle that doesn’t shoot well these days unless it’s really cheap. Be wary of a lot of scopes on “combo deals” usually they’re junk.

Both 270 and 308 are good. If you think you’ll mostly be public land bush hunting - go the 308 with a shorter barrel -16 to 20 inch work well (I like 18” but I have a buddy with a 14”)
If you’re confident you’ll get invited to hunt on farms or areas with open fields - a longer barrel 270 will be a better choice 20-22”

What would your opinion be on this one? Although I hear Nikko Stirling scopes are a hit or miss but the mini .300 is good for bush hunting. I'm not too picky as long as it fits within my price range.

https://www.shooterready.co.nz/shop/...-mini-300-aac/

Originally Posted by fourzerofouronyourdoor

What would your opinion be on this one? Although I hear Nikko Stirling scopes are a hit or miss but the mini .300 is good for bush hunting. I'm not too picky as long as it fits within my price range.

https://www.shooterready.co.nz/shop/...-mini-300-aac/

Not yet bit to specialized learn to shoot first 308/ 270 good

Sako or Tikka

Originally Posted by 7mmsaum

Sako or Tikka

You won't get THAT for under $5000 will you ?

If you look at second hand, its better to get one that's all original, even if its done a few miles and a couple of thousand rounds.
Some beautiful pieces have swapped stocks, barrels, new triggers, modified magazines and so on.
They hang around for ages and no one will buy them.
There's no certainty they will perform as well as a factory unit.

Bergara seem pretty well thought of too. Mid range prices that compare to Tikka.
My opinion is that plastic stocked Tikka are just fine.
It will be interesting to hear how the Tikka plastic magazines are going after 10 or 15 years.