Tikka T3 Hunter 223Rem

Load testing with new Nosler brass

[@KINGJULIANLIVES]

Hi mate, Stumbled across your channel while looking at Sambar hunting vids. Great channel mate keep em coming.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Thanks mate for your feed back new one uploading today hopefully.

[@rexwillmer759]

I love your work there is a lot that new hunters can learn from you, I’ve shared your channel with a young fella I’m mentoring ( I’m 74 years young and stopped counting) Great result mate on first fired brass, for your interest I’m running 55Vmax with max loads of 25.4gr AR 8208 federal primers Hornady brass .025 off the lands giving .5” all day out of believe it a Mossburg Partiat varmint with laminated stock over a bipod and rear bag No matter what I do it’s a 1/2 gun but hey it’s a cheapy Pls keep up the good work and sharing your hunting and stalking tips there is a lot we can all learn from you! Hunt safe - Regards Rex

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Thanks Rex. Its funny with the cheaper rifles sometimes they are shooters and other times they are dogs, just luck of the draw. However no matter what they are usually a load can be worked up to a satisfactory level for the purpose intended. Glad your enjoying the channel and keep watching as these restrictions ease ill be out after deer asap.

[@cloudattack3279]

Thanks, mate. Just grabbed one of these beauties today off of the shelf. Lefty, in 223. I was surprised that a box of 100 soft points cost me $120 I have to find a supplier to lower costs there in the short term. Took a nice Burris 4.5-14x42 as well. Man I can’t wait to pick it up next week. Subbed and all the best, Zeb.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Cheers there mate I hope she shoots as great as mine does. Thanks for the sub and taking the time to comment

[@jonsey300]

Hey mate ive got the same t3 hunter in .223, the most accurate gun in my cabinet. The 2208 is the best I’ve found and it loves the Sierra projectiles too, I did try some ball powder with some good results too. New brass is always good to play with after using the same old brass for a while keep the vids good to watch mate. 👍from me

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Thanks Jonesy. They're great little rifles.

[@tonyphillips7773]

I was 90% convinced to order a Tikka in .223 and then I found this video... order being placed tomorrow. Thanks for a super informative video.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey Tony awesome to hear you enjoyed the video. Please subscribe share and like so I can keep the videos coming. Cheers👍

[@tonyphillips7773]

Subscribed, liked and order placed...

[@BoltActionProductions]

I've never found a Tikka T3 that hasn't been a shooter. The rifle you have in a 223/204 is very hard to beat and fantastic value for money. Thanks again for putting these videos together👍👍

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

The Tikka action is so good a gunsmith recommended one for a custom build over a $2500 action that he sells! According to him they are as close to perfectly square as you can get without the need to blue print or true up.

[@BoltActionProductions]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures Yes mate, one of the biggest reasons I stuck with the Tikka for my main Sambar rifle. I looked at all options and just couldn't go past the T3 for more than just the value for money it offers. The carbon fiber stock that I run on my 7mm doesn't reduce the weight over the standard timber or plastic factory version but it absorbs the recoil so much better and makes it pretty good to shoot for a 7lb package. For all my smaller calibers I prefer to be able to top feed but for a deer hunting rifle the T3's always get the nod from me. Call me boring, I like simple things that just work.

[@damo250f]

Awesome vid mate. Some really good tests also. Youd be bloody cheeren bout the new brass and same old load shooten that superbly. 👍 Subcriber button smashed.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Thanks for the sub👍Yeah it was a relief the load worked saved a load of work!

[@frankjaegar1805]

Good stuff Zeb, gotta be happy with that first group mate. Only thing I would of done different is once you weight sorted and neck sized, I would of measured and trimmed them all to the same lengths. Keep it up mate 👍💪

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Not a bad idea, I'll give that a go next time.

[@robincoker225]

really informative vid mate. only found yr channel recently, you have some cool videos

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Glad you like them! hope you subscribed.

[@westesh]

Excellent video, excellent groups!

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

thanks mate

[@dogrunnerlive1]

A good watch mate, great rifle, cal and scope combo. I have the same setup in stainless synthetic and an old 77 Ruger also. Both shoot very well. I am not as finicky on my reloading and just throw the split necks, approx 4 out of every 300 reloads, then just buy a couple of boxes of Winchester bullets to top up and reload the fired brass. Normally get about 10 reloads to one shell using 55 grain Nosler Balistic tips and 24.5 grains of 2206H . Keep the vids coming mate👌

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Cheers mate glad you liked it. Yeah I do somethings over the top and let other stuff slide . Just whatever works if it shoots who cares how you get it there !

[@dogrunnerlive1]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures that's it mate, all good👍

[@paul-up5jy]

HI, like your stuff, i have a 300 win mag CT Edge, have already put on a T3, trying to work up a load when i can. I would love to heir or see more about the bedding job you did on the rear of the 338's action. keep it up good stuff. Paul.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey Paul all I did with the rear bedding was relieve the area around the pilla and rough it up to give the epoxy something to grip then used deacon aluminium putty to bed the area

[@paul-up5jy]

Thank's mate, happy hunting, cheer's. hope i can get a deer with mine soon.@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures

[@frankennis2947]

I’ve the Tikka t3 stainless hunter in 308. Clover leaf group at 100. Love the Tikka

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Very nice!

[@JB-yp6bd]

loving your videos mate! have you thought of trying a lee factory crimp die? extremely easy to do, the reason i use one is i was told by giving a consistent crimp to the round you will achieve a more consistent shot start pressure and consistancy is king with reloading for accuarcy. happy hunting

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey J B thanks for watching my vids and your feedback is appreciated. I havnt done anthing like the crimo purely because the rifle shoots that good there is no need to fiddle.

[@andrewmurphy7401]

Nice rifle mate and pretty impressive groups. Who says you need a heavy barreled rifle with a big scope to shoot small groups? Most accurate rifle I've ever seen was an M55 Tikka in 17rem with a factory stainless barrel that I used to own (wish I still did) that would put 5 shots into 1/4" at 100yds. Apart from Sako, the Tikka is next best factory rifle ever made and they're not even that far behind a Sako. I only put Sako 1st because of the floorplate magazine which is a bit easier to load in the dark when spotlighting. Great video mate, keep up the good work.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

thanks for your comments I love the little Tikka for walking with a light after foxes.. not many get away once they are in the scope.

[@DLN-ix6vf]

Canadian here: I shoot 223 only and use Rem. brass in one rifle with Lepua bullets and Lepua brass with Berger bullets in the other rifle. I tried weight sorting the bullets as the Lepua is suppose to be 69gr. but most are 69.3 to 69.8gr. Berger is 100% on posted weight. Sorting my bullets does help but maybe I will try sorting the brass also as it appears to affect your groups some.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey mate, yeah give it a trial 👍 you might get some better consistency.

[@tonygillahan]

Good stuff mate! You should try the OSA 55gr Blitzking factories though, you probably won't bother reloading 223 ever again haha 🍻👌

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Cheers Tony. Factory ammo is like store bought pasta.... Once you've made your own you never go back to the packet stuff. For me anyway reloading is something I can do on a shitty day in the shed with a stubbie, therapeutic in a way.

[@tonygillahan]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures That's fair mate, each to their own hey! I'm the opposite haha, once I found good factory ammo, I struggled to go back to handloading. Just not worth my time when I can shoot half inch 3 shot groups at 200yds with my 223 for less than a dollar a shot haha 👌 That first group was impressive mate, keep it up 👌

[@danstevens2204]

They do shoot well 👍

[@P.E.J.]

weighing brass dont give you anything. You have to sort by volume instead. But a very nice video and it gave me a lot info on the Tikka T3 ;-) good job!!

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Thanks for watching! Yes volume is definitely the go but very time consuming

[@adamthompson2686]

G'day, I've been following your vids for a bit now, quality like always. Thinking of buying myself a new rifle in .270 win, looking maybe the Tikka T3 or Weatherby Vangard what's your thought?

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey Adam I'd go with the Tikka purely because how good the trigger is.

[@BlueTJay]

Hi mate, I just got my 85 Sako .270 Classic, with Sako mounts, waiting for my new scope. Also I have a 85 Sako .223 1/12 twist on order for 45 to 55 gr loads. Most here come in 1/8 twist. What is your Tikka twist rate. Factory Nosler 55 gr is very inexpensive here is you buy when Nosler run specials. Glad you like the brass, as I am now staked up with factory loads. On foxes in NE Vic i used a Anschutz .22 Hornet and Sierra 40 gr soft point. Perfect for thin skin game when I sold the wet pelts to Sydney buyer!

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey Tom the twist on my Tikka is 1 in 12, I owned a brno fox 22 hornet years ago it was a good little rifle to start out with.

[@BlueTJay]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures I have a Brno .22lr with a 28 inch barrel, very accurate, I even had several time 10 shot into 1 inch at 100 yards in an indoor range. The only Sako .223 i can buy of the shelf here is a 1:8 twist. I did order a Sako .223 in the preferred 1:12 twist but wont be here till February.. so I am having second thoughts of the 1:8 twist.. I want to chase coyotes here and wild dogs in NE Vic. I think the 1:10 would be perfect for 40 gr to 60 gr, but they don't make that twist anymore.. I know that long range shooter prefer heavier bullets and so use buy the 1:8... but i want to use the lighter faster bullets.. we will see!

[@devinb3397]

Hey mate I’ve got an awesome load if you’re after it. 50gr vmax, 27.5gr AR2206H, 3425fps and half inch groups. Also 60gr Vmax with 26.0gr 2206H gets 3260fps. Could probably bush the 60gr load a bit quicker, deadly on roos though

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Thanks for the load John

[@devinb3397]

Zebra's Sambar hunting adventures. Just finished watching your video ( I commented at the start ) and realised you probably don’t need a load lol, can’t ask for much more accuracy than you have. Got to love how accurate the tikkas are

[@nedshead5906]

You should try full length sizing and see what kind of groups you get

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

I dont own a die but it would be interesting to see the difference

[@elviovalente5929]

Can you please do a review on Meopta scopes in both FFP & SFP

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey Elvio Im not able to get my hands on a first focal plane scope but Ill tell you the Meopta scope I have in sfp is awesome , very reliable great at night on foxes( fine recticle) and repeatable. My only criticism of it would be the eye box is not fine when looking through the scope (think black ring around image) and the eye relief is narrow.

[@ontarget765]

Hey mate, did you check the length of the case for the different sizes? Love the vid though, first the handloads out of my 308 ctr were half an inch. Now regularly getting under. 4". So impressed I grabbed a t3 hunter (love the traditional look) in 7mm08 so starting load development for that.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey Karl yeah I trimmed all to length before measuring their weight. The Tikka range of rifles are hard to beat for accuracy and reliability in an affordable factory rifle.

[@ontarget765]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures thanks for the reply. I don't usually bother trimming with virgin brass, now good to know! Keep up the great work.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

@@ontarget765 it's not necessary and probably a waste of time to be honest but when your trying to shoot sub 1/2" you end up trying to do everything you can to make everything the same

[@serverlan763]

Would you use a .270 on Sambar with say decent barnes bullets? Or do you recon it's too lite

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

270w is fine for sambar at reasonable ranges. Id use a bonded bullet like an accubond or interbond in a 150gn. Pick you shots and angle and the 270w will kill everything its pointed at. Im not a huge fan of the x bullets but they are effective if velocity is high.

[@AJXR6T]

Good groupings at 100

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Thanks mate. She's a straight shooter!

[@tdjohnsky]

Does tikka make this in 22-250 rem. , because I love the satin walnut stocks ?

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Yeah im sure they do.

[@BlueTJay]

Hi, what is the rifle twist for this Tikka t3? Have you tired the Nosler .223 55 gr E-tip Nosler loads?

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Hey Tom its a 1 in 12" and no I haven't tried the Nosler projectiles.

[@BlueTJay]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures Great twist for the lighter bullets. I have ordered a new 85 hunter SS in .223 1/12 twist. Yeah, I buy direct from Nosler the 55 gr E-Tip, very accurate and a great round. I nearly bought some 60 gr partition bullets here in USA. I still might, as the 1/12 will still be reasonably good with the 60 gr, although 55 would be the limit i think. I'm coming back to Wodonga soon, and will bring my Sako .270 with me. I have plenty 130 gr partition bullets. I prefer the smaller bullets on sambar, drops them on the spot. I never had a deer run after being shot. The higher speed does more hydraulic shock and lung hear damage is greater than with the slower heavier bullets. Plus, i never take sniper shots, i always get close and shoot under 100 meters. Happy hunting. Since i live here in Utah, i have recently watched every sambar hunting video.. I miss NE Vic, trout and deer, just not the same here!

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

@@BlueTJay yeah I think Sambar a pretty special and once you have the bug it never goes away .

[@Fulltang86]

I find the digital scale like the one you have is less accurate and consistent than the balance beam.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

I've since upgraded to a lab scale. No comparison to any other scale I've used before

[@westesh]

I like that target, do you remember what brand they were?

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

All my targets I use are free off the internet....just type printable rifle targets and do some searching. I download them so I can just print them off when needed.

[@DLN-ix6vf]

I use to print targets off the internet but know I just use the back side of letter size paper that I was going to throw out and put 6 - 1/2" black sticky circles on the paper and shoot at 200 yds. only. I find I can see my hits and more importantly my misses very easily thru my scope on the white paper. Give it a try and you will be surprised how clearer things become looking thru your scope.

[@3550rebel]

Buy a powder tickler. You will not regret it if you are weighing each load, you will save heaps of time.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

Yeah my mate in WA said it was so painful watching me with the spoon that he said he would buy me a trickler to end my misery. 20 years with the spoon so I suppose old habits die hard. Thanks for watching

[@Sisu2280]

Wait.. Did you say 250 cases will see out the life of the gun?

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

I might have said that sorry I meant the amount of use it will see with me over my life time. 250 new brass times say 5 to 10 loadings each is more shooting than Ill do in 20 years.

[@Sisu2280]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures Yep! Gotcha, mate... I just put down my deposit on stainless 223 Hunter today and picked up 300 Lapua cases to load some Super Roos. I'm thinking that's about 3000 rounds - close to 10 years of shooting for me I'd say. Maybe more if 22LR stays relatively cheap! Good videos by the way!

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

@@Sisu2280 Sound good great brass you should get heaps of reloads from them. Thanks

[@JLTantrum]

first group best because cold barrel. Hot sporter barrel = groups opening up.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

I was letting the barrel cool between groups so each group had a cold barrel shot.

[@JLTantrum]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures Thanks, I must have missed that.

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

@@JLTantrum it's the way the video is edited....I cut out the down time

[@JLTantrum]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures How often and how long do you find you need to let the barrel cool for the t3 hunter?

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

@@JLTantrum hey mate it all depends of the ambient temperature.....on a hot day I put it in the ute with the air-conditioning on for 5-10mins. Cool days propped up against the ute in the shade while I walk down to look at the target is enough. That's with 5 shot groups.

[@woldridgefencing9021]

Is this rifle a 1:8?

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

no its a 1 in 12 twist

[@woldridgefencing9021]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures I got my T3X Lite tonight. Its a 1:8

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

so you should be able to stabilize the longer projectiles with that barrel twist.

[@woldridgefencing9021]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures yes 🤙🏽

[@nigelbase1196]

Never weighed brass for any of the many calibres I've owned over the last 20 years...waste of time especially for fox/vermin shooting

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

If you've never done it, how do you know it's not worth it ? Weight sorting the extremes out halves my group size average. The brass that weighs heaps more or less would account for misses on rabbits without a doubt. I've got the time so I do it

[@nigelbase1196]

@@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures simple answer to that is that I've managed to get all my rifles to shoot sub 1/2" groups and even smaller without the need to weigh everything....used on rabbits /pigeons/crows out to 600yds ..provided I've got the wind call right so to me I can't see I would have gained anything 😉

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

@nigel base well if only I knew your method to achieve that accuracy 👍 better brass than what I'm using at a guess

[@garyjohns4711]

you cant beat a bipod for accuracy.....

[@ZebrasSambarhuntingAdventures]

I beg to differ with that Gary as you'll never find a benchrest shooter shooting from a bipod not to say great accuracy can't be had from shooting from a bipod but it really comes down to the rifle and bipod combination. Thin forends don't seem to do well from bipods but chassis or stiff forend stocks do quite well.