I like it when manufacturers name their products after things or people that have some significance to them. Being into cars, I see it with the Ferrari Enzo, McLaren Senna, and the Koenigsegg Jesko. In the vastness of Eurooptic’s product lines you will see one of my favorite examples of this in Blaser’s Selous barrels, named after British soldier and explorer Frederick C. Selous. The man was a major conservationist and hunting legend in Africa, as well as a Captain in the British Army. During WWI, Selous at the ripe age of 63 joined the British Army for the second time in his life. Unfortunately he was killed in Tanzania by German sniper while fighting in the East Africa Campaign. Naming the barrel the after him is a fitting homage considering Blaser is a German owned manufacturer. The other naming structure I have come to revere is GRS Stocks… Not to mention that their products are stellar as well.
Like many Americans - I bet, I have to embarrassingly admit that when it comes to Norse Mythology I get most of my exposure from the Marvel movies. So when I hear stock names like “Bifrost” and “Ragnarok” – I think rainbow space bridge (that is for some reason as far as hell away from anything useful) and that funny movie with Jeff Goldbloom, in that order.
Anyway, on to the task at hand. Tikka rifles are fantastic value and excellent shooters, as seen on this review here. When you buy one, most of your money goes into that cold hammer forged barrel and the action. The stock, due to the price point of the rifle, is given a lower priority. The good news is that makes them prime candidates for a stock swap. This time, I have got a GRS Warg. Pronounced with a V, like Varg, it is Old Norse for “Wolf”. It doesn’t really look like one but it certainly is kind of funky — and I like it. To quote Edgar Allen Poe, “There is no exquisite beauty… without some strangeness in the proportion.” The rear half is essentially the Bifrost, while the front is a Ragnarok that sports an M-Lok handguard with a top rail for night vision such as the popular PVS-30 or thermal clip-ons like the SNIPE-IR. I suppose iron sights are possible if you find ones that will work but I found the Nightforce rail A311 sits about 0.1” lower than the plane of the forend rail. This is a non-issue for the most part though but worth noting.
Being based off the Bifrost, it has the same stock adjustments for the length of pull and comb height. Push the button through the stock to free it up, and click it to the middle when it is set. Like all the GRS stocks, the grip dimensions are bang on, and feel very natural. That forend tube, though does more than host clip on night vision or thermal. Seeing as how this is the only difference between the Warg and the Bifrost, it is best to focus here. Since the bipod mounts so close to the center of the bore, the rifle becomes very stable. Generally speaking, the further away the bore the bipod is mounted, vertically, the less stable the rifle will likely be, all else being equal. Additionally, it is further out than a Bifrost or other stocks, enhancing stability even more. The forend also reinforces the front of the stock to avoid any sort of twist on it under load.
Installation is fairly straight forward. Remove the barreled action and bottom metal from the original stock by unscrewing the two bottom screws on the trigger guard. On this Tikka Varmint, there was also a small task of removing a little plastic protrusion from the rear-top of the newly removed bottom metal. It’s fairly easy, a set of nail clippers and a file made quick work of that. Ready the stock for the barreled action by removing the handguard which is held in by 8 screws. Set the barreled action in the stock, and press it down until it is seated. Put the bottom metal on and screw it in to a max of 45in/lbs per screw. The stock already has a bedding system in it so no other worries there. All that is left is to install the forend tube. To avoid leaving marks on the barrel, left by the tube as you install it you have two options. Number one, brush up on your “Operation” game skills and attempt to slide it over without touching the barrel. Number two, protect the barrel by sliding it in a sleeve, install the forend then remove the sleeve from the front. That’s it!
The Warg stock really is one to consider for your rifle. The ergonomics, quality, and feature set is incredibly appealing, especially for the price. You can pick up one of our newly in stock Wargs right now for Tikka, Savage, and Remington actions!