This years target bolt action category of Ballistic’s Best is slimmer than it’s ever been, made even slimmer by one of the rifles not even showing up for the test. That leaves us at four rifles instead of an even five. But that’s ok because of these four we have four tough contenders. This pack of rifles is closer in features and capability than I feel they have ever been in the seven years of doing this comparison. While the number of entries is low, the decision will be the hardest one we’ve ever had to make.
Regardless of the outcome, the real winner here is the modern precision rifle shooter, especially the one who is looking to get started in the discipline but is having a hard time deciding where to spend their hard earned dollars. I’m almost jealous of said individual. And I should also note that as of this moment, although I’ve had all the rifles in hand for a while, I have not been able to come to an early conclusion of who I personally think the winner is. Again pointing to just how close this field is.
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This field is separated by roughly $1,100 from the least expensive to the most and even that’s a bit misleading because one of them, at the time of this writing, is being offered with a code that closes that gap to just $800, and a rifle that offers excellent features and upper tier components. Without further ado, lets figure out which rifle is this year’s Ballistic’s Best.
Ballistic’s Best Bolt Action Target Contenders
Aero Precision Solus Competition
Returning to defend its crown is Aero Precision’s Solus Competition rifle. I can’t say enough good things about this rifle and what it offers to the precision shooter. The platform as a whole is solid and well featured with an action that has a 700 footprint and will allow the user to swap out chassis and a prefit barrel system that will allow for caliber changes.
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The chassis is well designed with loads of easy adjustability in the stock, a thumb rest, long forend with RRS dovetail standard/Arca attachment built in. You can add weights thanks to the M-Look slots, which all the rifles have. And this may be the one sticking point with the Solus. The forend from top to bottom is a little short so you have to be careful when selecting forend weights as they may impede use of the dovetail for your bipod/tripod.
The action on the Solus has always been it’s strong point with smooth operation and feel and short throw. This is an early model being almost three years old at this point and it’s completely nailed down, with likely some 1,300 rounds through it and no cleaning all while swapping between 6.5 and 6mm Creedmoor barrels. Last year we tested it with the 6mm barrel and it shot sub half MOA. The 6.5 barrel doesn’t seem to be as precise although it shoots well into sub MOA land.
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I dubbed it the American Tikka and lo and behold I couldn’t have imagined how true those words would be at the time but when you see it side by side with the next rifle you’ll understand.
Tikka T3x Ace Target
Will the real Tikka please stand up? It has indeed. Last year we had the T3x Tac A1, a rifle that has been shooting ultra tight groups and a model that has made thousands of shooters happy over the years. In 2017 it shot an insane .3 inch group. It was a left handed model and I was so smitten by it, I kept it for myself. It’s been an incredible shooter although now with several customizations, it is now a proper target/competition rifle in look and feel. And that was one of the complaints about last year’s stock T3x Tac A1–it was getting long in the tooth. Enter Ace Target.
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The Tikka T3x Ace Target takes the magic of the T3x action and mates it with a bonafide target chassis, with nearly every feature you could want. M-Lok slots everywhere upfront including RRS Dovetail/Arca attachment, not to mention R-Lok for added security when using appropriate R-Lok accessories, flat and squared forend bottom, and a butt stock with a button-push, quick adjust cheek pad adjustment. My only gripe—the LOP is adjusted with spacers which means tools and time. And I’m not the smartest man on earth but I didn’t find adding spacers to be quick and simple.
Outside of that, you can add weights, a bag rider, as well as a NV rail thanks to optional Tikka parts and accessories. This test sample did not come with them but I did request some to be added on.
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As you might expect the action on the Tikka is smooth. It’s so smooth and works so well while maintaining an heir of simplicity. This new model has a spiral fluted bolt with some sort of chrome or melonite coating which gives it that extra 15% of smoothness over last year’s Tac A1.
The new gun is a handsome one too. It looks the part and acts the part of a true target focused rifle. No more quasi tactical looks. Solid job.
Ruger RPR Gen 3
I have to be upfront about myself and the RPR and past Ballistic’s Best comparisons; it has been tough. Or I should say I’ve been tough on the RPR. Why? Mainly because I’d heard so many great things about this rifle from those starting out with their first rifle, only to have the stock break from jump in the 2018 competition. On top of that it did not shoot well although one of the evaluators at that time had one that drove tacks night and day.
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We had a custom shop version a few years back and while it looked cool, it didn’t excite in the field of like-rifles. It’s performance was just “okay” in comparison as well. I have nothing against the RPR, in fact I’m always pulling for what may be an underdog of sorts. I want it to show up and show up the big dogs because like others, this rifle offers a lot for the price point, especially on paper.
I’m happy to say that initial run through of this now Gen 3 RPR is a good one. No—great one. At first glance and handling I really like this rifle. It’s clear that Ruger hasn’t slept on this rifle and has continued to quietly refine it over the years. It shows up this year in a gorgeous FDE/bronze color with all the right attachment points up front. M-Lok, dovetail—and I’m ecstatic to report a butt stock with amazing adjustability that is easy to use and secure without a bunch of weird knobs. It’s very clean in fact and this makes me happy. It’s clearly a refined and retouched rifle and performance showed too.
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The action is what it is. Yes it’s in a weird spot when you compare it to traditional bolt actions, but in all honesty it’s a bit more comfortable to operate for both left and right handed shooters. The action is smooth enough for a new rifle with few rounds on it and one at his price point. The safety is AR style as are the magazines. You can call it quirky but “proprietary” is likely the better word. Regardless it works and it came out swinging this year.
Kelbly’s Element Precision
While many people who are looking to dabble in precision shooting want a real bargain, especially when they haven’t yet realized how hard they want to pursue the discipline, it’s not always easy. “Bargain” to most means a set dollar amount. And after years of experience buying, using, and building rifles at every price point from $1,000 to $10,000, I can tell you that bargain is better defined by quality of what you get in the the end. In short, the components, the component quality, build quality, and experience of the manufacture all add up to a measurement of true quality and value. It might not always be as low of a price as you want but that doesn’t mean it’s any less of a bargain.
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Kelbly’s Element Precision rifle is the costliest of the bunch but in all honesty none of the others hold the level of quality and workmanship, in the action and components that the Kelbly’s does. And it should be this way. Kelbly’s typically builds custom rifles that start out in the $4,000 to $5,000 dollar range and moves up quickly to rifles that are made to compete at the highest levels of precision rifle competition. And I don’t mean PRS, I mean F-Class and benchrest where groups aren’t even measured with calipers. Kelbly’s rifles hold some 90 performance world records if that gives you some idea of what I mean.
Their Atlas Tactical action is the centerpiece of the Element precision and is mated with a Preferred Barrel blank that is wet lapped to extract maximum precision. The barrel is the beefiest of the bunch to say the least—heavy varmint contour and 26 inches.
To match the quality they added a Bix’n Andy TacSport Pro X single stage trigger. Let’s just say this trigger is ready to go when you are—and maybe a little before you are. It’s not unsafe, it’s just exact with no slop.
These top tier components are paired with an XLR Element chassis that is highly adjustable and again with all the right features to make it a true target-worthy/PRS style, shoot it all day rifle. While the chassis is good, it may be the fly in the ointment in this comparison and the weakest link in the Kelbly’s otherwise rock solid presentation. Remember, we are here to split the hairs.
All Quiet
All these rifles come with different options on their muzzle end. Some with brakes, some bare muzzle. This year we opted to suppress every rifle. Why? Because loud rifles suck and they suck more each year. We had a good variety of suppressors that were pretty much equally matched in overall recoil performance and that was taken into account when testing. Overall action feel, accuracy, fit and finish and value overshadow recoil and the suppressor can help you get a good feel for how the rifle responds over all. Some rifles performance falls apart with a suppressor attached. That wasn’t the case with any of these entrants. The suppressors used were: Elite Iron Thud Lite L with factory brake attached, Thunderbeast Magnus S RR with Recoil X brake, SilencerCo Scythe STM with Recoil X brake, and Dead Air/Ruger RXD 30 Ti which features it’s own radial-type ports/brake.
Bolt Action Target Results
Void of any doubt, this has been the most difficult Ballistics Best target bolt action compare to decide, at least for me. I can’t speak for my two evaluators. While this may seem like a copout I can assure you it’s not. You could close your eyes, point to any one of these rifles and walk off happy. No single rifle had a major advantage over another, it was give and take all they way, looking at every factor and even ones that may not be listed. It’s a good time to be a shooter looking in this price range because the options are plentiful.
4th Place Ruger RPR Gen 3
I stand amazed and happily so. This Ruger is impressive. It came in ready to fight and boy did it. The action. Smooth and fast giving you hero vibes when you run it. Even as a lefty I enjoyed the action the most by far thanks to the bolt knob location. It barely lost out in aesthetics to the Solus and it’s definitely a looker compared to the other two. I can’t believe this is the same model that I’ve evaluated before. The trigger may be a point of contention for some but I actually like it. Once you take up the safety mechanism, it’s a nice crisp single stage press that brakes around 2.5 pounds. It actually feels quite nice and builds confidence due to the take up.
3rd Place: Aero Precision
The Solus is getting long in the tooth but not too long. It’s placement and appearance in this match up shows just how phenomenal this rifle truly is. Aero has a real winner on their hands and with some massaging and refinement it could be a world class rifle much like Tikka’s are.
In this case, the Aero is the best looking of the bunch to me, with just the right lines and angles in the design. It looks bad ass and serious when fully decked out.
The action on this sample is second to no other rifle. Solid. Slick. Sure. Easy to run. The problems? Accuracy and trigger. I don’t think the accuracy suffers because of the trigger because the 6mm barrel shot well last year. This 6.5 has always been “acceptable” even with many groups being sub MOA. but .776 from two different types of ammo isn’t quite good enough to be accuracy king in this group. It’ll shoot, you’ll just have to work harder at it.
It’s a comfy rifle and easy to adjust. It’s just dang good and still at a good price. If you can find them.
The rifle is comfortable with a back end that likes adjustment. It came in handy for this bunch. Accuracy was good and sub MOA for everyone. Becca managed a .846-inch group with four of the impacts at .24 inches. Had it not been for that one, Ruger would have won the accuracy portion. I shot a .616 inches with Hornady’s 140-grain American Gunner with the Ruger. This was impressive considering the American Gunner is roughly $70 for 50 rounds.
The downside of the Ruger is modularity. And I mean beyond it’s chassis. Yes you can get better triggers and other parts but the action/receiver is what it is and you can’t really do much with it beyond it’s stock trim, or at lease not like the others which can be dropped into other chassis and stocks.
This is an excellent rifle and I’m glad Ruger has continued to improve it. If this were a lefty I’d be keeping it.
2nd Place: Tikka T3x Ace Target
The Tikka is the accuracy/precision winner, producing the smallest groups consistently across the board. Austin pulled out a .389-inch group for the best of the best. I mustered a .502” and we shot those groups with the Berger 144 gr. LRHT. The Tikka really liked that ammo while the other rifles did not. Rebecca managed .522 inches with the Hornady 140 BTHP.
The Tikka’s only short comings (that’s a stretch) are it’s looks, which while much better than that Tac A1, still give off the “euro” vibe and there’s always some softness with euro design. The stocks inability to produce rapid LOP adjustment didn’t help either since our evaluators were all quite a bit different in height and physical make up.
The action? Stellar. Comfort? Excellent. Trigger was not great but not bad in anyway and the groups speak for themselves.
1st Place: Kelbly’s Element Precision
We have to address how amazing it is that Kelbly’s can produce a rifle of this magnitude at this price point. With an MSRP of $2999.00 it’s the most expensive but again, Kelbly’s has nothing except custom components and know-how in this rifle. And while supplies last you can get one for $2699. That’s insane.
The Atlas action is first rate and the best of the bunch. Best in a different sort of way. Every evaluator commented on the action and how right the bolt knob is. The barrel is massive and heavy which is good and bad. The length of it coupled with the short forend of the XLR chassis hurt aesthetics rating, and the heft made it front heavy especially with suppressor and bipod attached. Rear weight will be a must with this rife.
That barrel didn’t hurt accuracy and my first group from the rifle was .524 inches with only 7 rounds on the barrel. Subsequent groups were larger for every shooter and my next best was .62. I was surprised that the Kelbly’s wasn’t easier to produce small groups with, like the Tikka. But my guess is the fault is in the chassis.
The Kelbly’s is a pure Remmy 700 footprint and with its build quality you’ll run that action for life which means replacing barrels and likely chassis at some point—which I’d suggest. For some reason I could not get comfortable on this chassis. I don’t know if it is the squared off cheek piece which thankfully is adjustable for left and right alignment. To be fair it adjusts cheek height and LOP quickly via knobs. But there is something in the XLR that’s holding the Kelbly’s back in my opinion. But as mentioned, you could change out the chassis later on if you desire and I wouldn’t let that stop me from buying.
Ultimately by the narrowest of margins, the Kelbly’s won and it simply came down to the most minute differences in these platforms. No matter which one you choose, you will be happy.
Good job to all manufacturers.
Specifications
Scoring
