Like others, I don't find it to be an exact science..and all the reading/research/video reviews only really help narrow-down the possibilities. Clearly...the wrong choice is always up to me. lol
The biggest variable will be how much I like the gun once set-up, how well I can shoot it, how well it does it's job, etc. THAT I can only know once I've had time with it. I've had uninteresting/old/beat-up guns become favorites...and I once had a brand new Cooper that I didn't really love when the dust settled. Two ends of the spectrum of course.
Other than very spooky grouse here in Ontario, I only hunt varmints so the criteria isn't overly complicated. Fast/flat/easy to reload/not too hot, etc. Even then, I've cycled through a handful of varmint guns, sold most of them off...and finally have (what I THINK will be
) the ultimate varmint rifle showing up in the mail today/tomorrow. Maybe it will, maybe it won't~I just think I've got it sorted out.
One thing that has never really changed is that I want the best tool for the job, not necessarily the most powerful thing I can legally shoot for a given task. When I factor in the distances I engage targets here (seldom over 200 yards) that also shapes the decision...and why, say, I sold my .243.
So yeah..it's a journey, not a destination...and a limited budget keeps the moves small/measured in my life. lol Good thing that I'm blessed with patience. lol