I have been a Rem 700 guy for most of my life. I purchased my first Tikka (a 595) about 20 years ago and all I had to do was scope it and go shoot, no messing around with bedding, trigger adjustment or replacement. I mostly kept on using and trying to get the Rems to shoot as well as the Tikka. I ended you buying a T-3 a few years ago but sold it because it had "no soul" although it shot even better than my 595. I tried T-3's a couple of more times and ended up selling them for the same reason "no soul", even though they shot great.
Recently I purchased a new 700 and a new T-3 within days of each other, I to replace the trigger ($125) in the 700, I spent quite a few dollars in components trying to find a load that would group 5 under an inch consistently (never happened), and the action was rough (SPS finish). With the Tikka I put a scope on it, backed the trigger adjustment screw out for a 2# trigger pull, picked up 4 different loads I had developed for another rifle in the same caliber and proceeded to shoot under one-inch 5 shot groups with all four loads. And the action is slicker than Montana gumbo.
Soul or "no soul" I am a Tikka fan.
drover
