Ill be the one that says Tikka first. The majority of my hunting is done via Archery, but I decided about 8-9 years ago that I needed to buy a rifle for those hunts with Dad (usually borrowed one of his). I shopped around for opinions, reviews, etc., for many months and ended up with a 30-06 in a stainless Tikka @ Sportsmans warehouse (was a new store then). Put a Conquest 3-9x40 on it, as well as a limbsaver pad and later painted the stock. Perhaps the story could wax a little more poetic, but I have a lot of confidence in that rifle, and have a handful of nifty hunts with my Dad (hopefully more to come). No regrets so far, and not likely to get another rifle until I inherit his pre-64 30-06 (took my first buck with it).
