Great thread. Read it through. Thanks for sharing your stories!
My first few deer and antelope, I used a tang safety Ruger 77 in 243 Win with a Leupold 2.5-8. Beautiful dark, shiny bluing. It was a Christmas gift or some such from my dad to my mom around the time I was born. All I knew about the gun back then was that the thing shot right where I put the crosshairs, and that my step-dad considered it borderline powerwise for big game. I never had any problems, and I never missed with that rifle: bang, flop! We only shot 100gr factory ammo. I recall a preference for the Winchester PP. Mom still has that gun. Keep trying to talk her into parting with it, but she has a weird attachment to it, though it hasn't been shot or cleaned in decades. The last hunt I took it on, I noticed the firing pin spring would light strike the 1st round. Never could convince my stepdad not to keep guns stored loaded. It is easy enough to release the spring tension too.
At 15 I moved on to my dad's goto big game gun the last few years he hunted: another M77 with a 2.5-8 in 257 Roberts, shooting his handloaded 100grn Partitions at about 2850. He killed elk with that gun and load. I killed a few deer, but didn't get a shot at any elk, though I drew a few permits. My dad sold or traded it at some point to get another gun. He was always wheeling and dealing in those days.
My first 'Mine' rifle was another tang safety M77 in 270 Win. with a Leupold 3-9, which I got at 16. It shot unbelievably poorly with all ammo I tried. I was happy to get under 5" groups at 100. I took it hunting a few times, but never did get any shots at big game with it. Never had any confidence in it either, since it shot so poorly compared to what I'd previously used. It went toward car repairs when I was 20. I don't miss it.
