  We investigate reliability of Gamow-Teller transition strengths computed in
the proton-neutron random phase approximation, comparing with exact results
from diagonalization in full $0\hbar\omega$ shell-model spaces. By allowing the
Hartree-Fock state to be deformed, we obtain good results for a wide variety of
nuclides, even though we do not project onto good angular momentum. We suggest
that deformation is as important or more so than pairing for Gamow-Teller
transitions.
