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T3 not shooting well…suspect rings. Help!
Question to any who might help. I have a T3 25-06 and it used to shoot well like 1 inch groups at 200 yards. Then it fell apart like 2 inch groups at 100 yards. I am now thinking it is the original rings. I have changed scopes, ammo, and stocks. What set up is best. I am thinking of the Warne Tikka rings, but the rail system looks good too. I have had good luck on other rifles with Warne rings. I also like USA made steel. I have read some good reviews about DNZ game reapers also. So what does everyone think. I am about to just get rid of the rifle if it doesn't return to its good accuracy. Oh and yes I did clean the barrel it is in great shape. Thanks
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12 Replies
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Last January I bought a T3 stainless in 25-06. Started off great, but groups quickly went downhill, with lots of vertical stringing. I removed the factory scope rings that I was using and found that the ring that has the recoil lug in it was the culprit. The hole in the ring that the lug sits in was egg-holed badly, and the lug was bent at a considerable angle. I had those rings torqued down tight, and this happened anyway.
I immediately replaced the factory rings with a one-piece DNZ mount. That brought my groups down to just within 1 MOA. Then I built my own laminate stock and bedded the action. Ever since, I have a phenomenal 1/2 MOA rifle that I have used to tie first in one varmint competition I competed in.
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thanks for the reply.
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I would get a set of Talley lightweight rings and be done.
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Just a quick update…I put the Warne rings for Tikka's on the 25-06 and have seen a dramatic improvement in the accuracy. It is now printing at 1 MOA, not quite as good as when I first purchased the rifle but better than a week ago with the Tikka rings. I am going to try some reloading next or try some different rings. Thanks for all the help and useful comments.
Does anyone have a pet 25-06 load they like for the T3, maybe using the Hornady 117 SST bullets?
I was using Hornady 117g SSTs with RL17 and Hornady brass.
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I really like the DNZ 1 piece mount/rings due to the fact that they bolt to the action, instead of clamping on the action's rails. The T3 Lite in 25-06 produces some pretty considerable recoil. Another thing that may help your shooting is a Limbsaver recoil pad. At one point I put that on the factory synthetic stock and it really reduced my “shooter's fatigue”.
Regarding loads: I have three pet loads using Sierra's 90gr BlitzKing, their 100gr MatchKing, and Nosler's 100gr Hunting Ballistic Tip. All shoot half MOA with my bedded stock. All three loads are loaded with IMR4831 at the high end of the Hodgdon's online tables. I have not tried any 117gr bullets.
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Thanks for the intel. I just ordered some DNZ mounts. I think you are right the Warne rings are good just not inherently gripping as much as the DNZ design. Thanks for the loading thoughts. How do the lighter bullets work on deer? Also how did you bed your Tikka?
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I have only used the 100gr Nosler Ballistic Tip on deer (since it is designed for it). It's lightning.
Regarding bedding… I used the same old standard procedure everybody does, except with the tikka, you need to use a very thin line of superglue to hold the recoil lug into the action slot. Once that dries make sure the gaps between the lug and the action on the sides are filled at an angle with putty. I stole some of my kid's play-doh. Regardless, the recoil lug got locked in to the bedding job, but that was ok, since I used an aftermarket steel recoil lug that I purchased from this site's sponsors. It turned out to be a very clean and easy job. The superglue only serves to ensure that when you put the action and lug down into the wet epoxy, it stays in the correct place.
I used a dremel prior to laying in the wet epoxy to ensure I would have a thick enough layer of epoxy around the action and the recoil lug.
You will hear naysayers say you cannot bed tikka T3's. I have done two now, with perfect success. You just need a spare lug, so you may as well get a steel aftermarket lug for each stock you do.
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Thanks for the explanation that really helps. My DNZ rings came and the testing with some Rem 100 grain core-lokts will commence tomorrow. Hope is not a strategy, but I am hopping that this is the final fixes needed to get my T3 shooting again. I need to send in some pictures it looks great. The only problem no one cares about a good looking rifle that doesn't shoot good. Thanks for all the advice. I am sure I will be asking for more in the future.
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Range time today did not go as expected. The T3 25-06 with Rem 100grain and Hornady 117 ammo did not produce the desired MOA or better results. The gun shot ok (2 inch) and better than it has in the last few outings but still not the 1/2 MOA it produced the first 100 rounds. Next step will be to reload and see if fine tuning a load for this will work. After that bedding the B&C stock. The DNZ rings seem to be really strong. The B&C stock looks and feels great not sure yet if it is really helping in the accuracy department.
Does anyone have some suggestions on 25-06 loads that are good? Maybe using Hornady 117 SST bullets. Thanks for any help.
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Sorry to bring back an old topic.
I just wanted to say thanks for the help….this same T3 is now after following tips I got here a consistent .5 MOA rifle test at 100/200/300 yards. Again thanks. I will try to post some pictures.
T3 25-06 now bedded with JB weld in a B&C stock, DNZ rings, and totally free floated.
Current load
115 Nosler BT
IMR 4350 48.5g
WLR primers
Fed BrassAgain thanks for all the great advice….this is also about being patient.
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Watch using the Std Tikka rings as they are 26mm diameter not 1″.
If you take the small bottom piece and place it onto the scope tube, it will move/wobble also showing a visible clearance at the sides. Not the right fit to support the scope tube!!
The top piece conforms easily with screw tension.
Do the same on a old 26mm tube and the bottom piece fits perfectly, no movement or clearance.
Why?? I think Tikka want a multi fit mount. -
Dnz rings or mounts are quite good, but will still need lapping. (My experience).
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