Tikka

This week, I got my hands on a rifle for review that was a long time in the making. The Tikka T1X, first announced at SHOT Show 2018, has finally hit the shelves. Now despite my own giddiness about rimfires, I know that they aren’t the most popular reviews we publish. But hear me out on this one, I think you are really going to dig it. Why, pray tell, have I been anxiously awaiting a bolt action in 17 HMR?

Oh, those crafty Finns. Apparently not content to just mop the floor with the competition in centerfire rifles, this year have introduced a rimfire called the T1x. How can I be so sure this is a winner since I haven’t shot it yet? It’s simple. The features are insane.

Normally, I am a buy American kind of guy. I drive a Ford truck, I drink Coors, and go out of my way to buy work boots made in the USA. Sometimes, however, we want something a little bit exotic. And the Finnish Tikka T3X TAC A1 is quite possibly the most impressive rifle I have ever picked up. And I have shot a couple rifles in my day.

Tikka got my attention this year with several new rifles, and one deserving of some praise is the Artic. This gun was purpose-built for the Canadian Rangers, who know a thing or two about being cold. These poor bastards train in some of the most inhospitable terrain on earth, and they needed a no-frills rifle that would stand up to that. Tikka stepped up to the plate.

Based on their advanced T3x action the TAC A1 model is a fully adjustable, modular bolt-action rifle with a sleek rail system, new for 2017.

I cut my teeth on Remington rifles and have owned my fair share of custom and factory offerings but I kept hearing how superior the Tikka rifles were. There was a time when I just considered that big talk and now that I’ve had a Tikka T3X Compact Tactical in my hands, I don’t think it’s all talk.