I have recently bought my Dad a T3 .300 win Mag and set him up with a Zeiss 4.5-14X44. Right out of the box that gun was a sweet shooter. Beings that they are a division of Sako, it has a great action and extractor. As far as shoot ability goes, it's a great shooting gun. Even with factory loads he can shoot 3/4" groups at 100 yards all day through this gun. I'm not sure why but between this gun and a Remington 700 BDL .300 Win, the Tikka in my opinion packs a lot more kick. I would have to check on the weight differences, as I do not know that off the top of my head. Just know it has a bigger punch on the shoulder.

I have had a M77 30.06, and there is no comparison between the two guns. Night and day in my opinion. Better action, better feel. After buying the T3 .300 Win for my Dad, I took a guy that I work with down and he got a T3 30.06 with the same scope. Absolute tack drivers.

In my opinion, these are probably $ for $ the best straight out of the box shooters.