driftrider, actually Beretta Holding did in fact purchase Sako Ltd from Metso Corp. in 2000. So, Sako is indeed a member of the Beretta family of companies and Beretta USA handles the distribution in the U.S.

In response to the original poster, I'd be dissappointed too, but you run that risk buying sight-unseen over the internet. And keep in mind, it's a factory production rifle, not a custom job. I've got a couple of 75's and they're not perfect either, but overall I consider them to be better than any other rifle I own. I'll bet your's will be just fine in the catagories that really count, accuracy and reliability.

Speaking of buying over the internet, I bought a pre-64 Winchester Model 70 that way last year and I too was dissappointed in it for a while. The fit and finish were less than what I expected. I still own it and am quite happy with it, though. It's very accurate considering it hasn't had any kind of accurization done to it at all.

Good luck with the rifle. Hopefully it'll perform like you want it to.