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As an aging hunter that has not hunted all that much, I would agree with all of your points.  One other thing that might help is a good sling that doesn't slip as you walk.  I have Ultimate Rifle http://specialtyoutdoorproducts.net/RifleSlings_Shotguns_Pinckney_MI.html slings on all of my rifles.

Thank you for sharing this link…awesome sling!!!

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Any chance you can post some videos or experiments that maybe have to do with “Tikka” rifles… ::)

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The 8-twist in the tikka 223 has been proven to stabilize everything from 40-80.5gr projectiles without sacrificing too much speed with the lighter pills…I've always thought a 10-12 twist was ideal in a 223 as well but that was before I started realizing the 8 twist will stabilize just about any round you can buy off the self for short to long range shooting.  Something you can't do with a 10 or 12 twist. 
The 8 twist has also proven to be a hand loaders dream with the T3…

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Just because he's a young new owner to Tikka doesn't mean he has no gun experience.
Your level of “shoots good” might be less then what some of use expect from our rifles.
The amount of shooting you do will most likely dictate your thoughts on this…shooting 1″ groups might be acceptable for some, but consistent clovers or ragged holes are better for some of us who speed time accurizing our guns.

I'm only stating what Beretta suggest you do to get 100% accuracy out of the gun…out of the 7 Tikka's I've owned or currently own, only my 308 CTR had a 99% fully free floated barrel.  All others needed to have either the sling swivel area removed or material near the action.  Though all of these rifles could or would shoot MOA it did not do it consistently,…especially when string firing anything more than 3 shots or bipod shooting.  When free floated all rifles performed better and improved cold bore POI shift…

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DIRECTLY FROM THE T3 MANUEL….UNDER MAINTENANCE BEFORE SHOOTING!!!

I HOPE THIS PUTS AN END TO THE SO CALLED “PLANNED PINCH POINTS”….

Sorry this got off topic OP…

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Shoot the rifle first and see how it goes. If it shoots well out of the box don't grind the pressure point lugs away as you could ruin the accuracy. They are made that way on purpose and the warranty will be voided if you remove them. Removing them could improve accuracy a little, but it could also ruin it. Why do it if the rifle shoots well?

You are spreading false information…

Here we go again…this topic is like beating a dead horse…
Show me where its written or documented by Beretta that these guns are made with pressure points…it does not exist.  People please… stop saying that parts of the stock touching the barrel on a T3 is planned and it is there to improve accuracy…its a poorly designed reinforcing wall at the front sling swivel, whether it touches the barrel or not seems to vary,… and the moulded fit is tight near the action…it even stats in the T3 manuel to free float the barrel if the stock is effecting accuracy Or you want the best accuracy from the gun…AND they promote it (see attached).

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If on a budget…buy the T3x…just an improved version of the original T3…
Free float the barrel by sanding the stock,…its an easy job and thats pretty much all you need to do.

The T3x has an excellent feel with the vertical pistol grip…This would be my only mod to the rifle in addition to free floating the barrel.

Add the MT buttom metal and you got a excellent rifle…nothing else needed.

You can always pillar bed it or change the stock but honestly unless you are doing a complete custom build it's not worth it…

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That does not like like a new bolt from new rifle….looks like its rusting or corroded…?

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Free floating the barrel is the best free mod you can do for sure…

One of the best upgrades you can make to the factory stock in my opinion is a good bottom metal…it really helps to get consistent torque on the action even without pillar bedding. The soft plastic bottom is crap…the good thing is you can transfer the bottom metal to any future stock upgrade so its a good purchase.  I have the MT version sold here on 2 – 300wsm rifles and its awesome…The rifles are shooting so good I can't justify changing or upgrading anything else…

I have not noticed any measurable increase in accuracy switching the recoil lugs to steel…from 223 right up to 300wsm…all calibers leave the slight indent in the lug but it does nothing to degrade accuracy.  The upgrade is for more piece of mind and aesthetics then anything…steel is obviously stronger but the aluminum lug will perform well.  I did however find that when switching to a steel lug some of my loads had to be tweaked a little, guessing the steel on steel has a different harmonic frequency than aluminum on steel.  It was only a small tweak, a click or so on the scope or + / – to powder charge to get the rifle shooting same POI again…but there was a change.

See great picture attached from MT showing the indents from rifles on the aluminum lugs…versus steel.

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Another degrading example of Beretta's claim that all Tikka's are test fired for MOA group before they leave the factory….makes you wondering about their credibility…

Glad the seller is making the situation right for you.

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Good advice above…I open my barrel channels up all the way to the action so I have about 1/16″ clearance on either side…no pinch near the action, remove all that crap…its only been a positive improvement in the accuracy on all my rifles, for both Lite & Varmint barrels.

The wood stocks cannot take as much torque as the synthetic…I would be cautious going much over 35inlbs on the hunter stocks…

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You will love this gun…It's my go to rifle for hunting and LR target shooting.
I have both the Lite and the Stainless Varmint models, both shoot extremely well, especially with handholds.
If you hand load I can share some data.

Welcome to the forum.

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If its not properly seated, you have a problem with the depth on the recoil lug…may not be pressed in far enough…

When installing the action, slide the action from front to back over the lug to help get it aligned properly.
This should help it slide and drop right in place, should be able to squeeze it together quite easily with your hands.  Before you torque the screws, hold the gun vertical (barrel up) and tap the stock on the floor to help seat the action on the lug…sometimes this helps.

Good luck.  Sounds like your entire problem is revolving around the recoil lug not installed properly…to high.
Its not uncommon for this to happen if the lug peels off some of the stick and traps it underneath as its being inserted…this will cause it to be too high and give you the issue you seem to be having.

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Something seems to be off forsure…here's what i would do…

– Clean the barrel and take the action out of the stock.
– Check stock for cracks or signs of compression
– Check the barrel crown
– Pull the recoil lug from the stock and check to make sure its actually fully seated in the stock properly.
There should be no rocking of the action when its seated properly in the stock with proper lug height.
– Flip the recoil lug (action indent will now go down into the stock so up side is new) and install fully back into the stock, plastic mallet works great to seat it.
– Check barrel clearance in the stock…I personally free float all my Tikka's right to the action, its works for me but guys will debate whether is necessary.  I've only had positive results.
– Torque the rail & rings down to spec
– Reassemble and torque the action screws to 35in-lbs
– After you foul the bore, get your favourite ammo
– Shoot 1 group at 35in-lbs
– Shoot 1 group at 40in-lbs
– shoot 1 group at 45in-lbs

*shoot 3 as fast as you can before barrel heats up, or shoot 3 completely cold bore shots…choice its yours, whatever you feel more comfortable with…

My guns have not really varied much with group size on different torque setting but some guns will like one over the other…I use 40-45in-lbs on all my Tikka stocks.

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Thanks Al.  I appreciate you reaching out.
Lets talk off forum to work out details.

Cheers.