Help me sort thru all of the bolt action options

Keep in mind that any Savage with a barrel nut can be rebarreled at home in about 15min at a cost less than $250. Some of that was toolin cost but once you have those you can bounce back and forth between .308, 7mm-08, .260 and .243 with nothing more than the purchase of new barrels ($175). Used savages are all over the place. You can also have any gun chopped down, cost anywhere from $25 to $75 depending on the smith. You'll lose the front sight unless you pay extra to have it re-installed. Sometimes it's easier to get exactly what you want going those routes. Paying extra for the "Compact" moniker is sometimes pointless.

I like carbine length barrels and went 18.5" on my last Savage build.
 
You can't go wrong with Savage, it's going to be the best rifle for the money. Since you want iron sights I'd say that the Savage Hog Hunter that PawPaw recommended is hard to beat. I'd definitely go with .308 unless you want to go beyond 800 yards (not likely with iron sights).
 
Thanks for all of the input.
No specific use...mostly a range toy. Wanted a harder hitting common caliber to extend the range beyond what my ARs can do. I'm not a reloader.
Looks like the leaders in the clubhouse are:

Savage Hog Hunter
CZ 550 Carbine Kevlar (might be slightly above my price point)
Savage 10 FCM Scout (says "Law Enforcement Series" but I assume a civilian can purchase)

I think I'm going to focus on .308s with 20 inch barrels
 
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CZ also has has the 550 FS in .308 win. It has a 20.5" barrel and can be found right around your price range. CZs generally have very nice wood on them and I'm personally a fan of the Mannlicher style stocks.
 
if all you are looking for is a gun to outshoot your ARs at long range then you may consider going with something standard like a 24-26 inch barrel, you get a lot less muzzle blast and more velocity and bullet stabilization with the longer barrels, especially with 30-06 and 308.
 
The .308 was designed to work well in barrels of 18" to 20". Basically, for most uses, longer merely = less muzzle blast. The '06 doesn't really shine until you're in barrel lengths of 24" to 26".
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For a variety of reasons I'd still go with the 308, but if your goal is to keep some speed stay with a 30-06. While a 308 loses less speed from short barrels, it starts out with less speed. A 20" 30-06 still beats a 308 with a 24" barrel. My 30-06 hand loads still get 2900-2950 fps with 150's from a 20" barrel, about 3025-3050 from a 22" barrel. My best 308 loads are only 2880 fps from a 22" barrel and around 2820 from a 20" barrel.

I wouldn't go below 20" with either, not because of velocity, but because of balance and muzzle blast.

The Savage Hog hunter comes closest to meeting your criteria. You don't mention weight, the hog hunter is heavy for what it is. Personally, I'd look at a lot of other rifles and forget some of your criteria. Barrels can easily be cut shorter and iron sights can be added. Both jobs are easy and cheap for a good gunsmith. Looking for a factroy rifle with a barrel that short and with irons really limits you options. Lots of better rifles that could easily be modified.
 
Art comments:
The .308 was designed to work well in barrels of 18" to 20".
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Not from what I've gleaned form those "in the know."

22 inch and 21.5 inch ones were used by the arsenals modifying the .300 Savage case to the 7.62 NATO. Winchester used a 21.75" barrel developing their commercial loads for the .308 Win after the arsenals gave them permission to do so. 21.5 inch test barrels were the norm at Lake City and Frankfort arsenals testing both service and match ammo for accuracy.

tahuna mentions:
if all you are looking for is a gun to outshoot your ARs at long range then you may consider going with something standard like a 24-26 inch barrel, you get a lot less muzzle blast and more velocity and bullet stabilization with the longer barrels, especially with 30-06 and 308.
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The US Army used 20 inch barrels in their AR10's chambered for the .308 Win. to do well in competition setting some records along the way. They used that one 'cause nothing in 22 caliber shot as well at 1000 yards.

Barrel length has nothing to do with bullet stabilization; just muzzle velocity and twist rate. The right rpm speed for a given bullet is the critical number. Any combination of muzzle velocity and twist rate that does it works best. Folks use 1:13 twists in 30 inch barrels to shoot M80 7.62 NATO ammo most accurate while 22 inch ones need a 1:12 twist.
 
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Bart, correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that rpm remains constant, regardless of barrel length. I wish I could remember where I read this, but it seems reasonable to me.

I had a Physics professor in college, this was back in '74, after DEROS. He was a retired artillery officer, and I was a novice reloader, and an avid lifelong shooter. He taught me lot ,corrected many of my ideas about ballistics, and was an excellent mentor. We actually became shooting buddies. I was very lucky!

I think there's an optimal barrel length, where you burn all the available powder. Any length of barrel over that is just drag. The 1-13" of the 30" barrel might be due to barrel harmonics or a slower twist could delay the point where all propellant is consumed. Or I may be all mixed up.
 
Just wondering but is there a specific reason you need a short barrel?

The shorter the barrel the slower the bullet and the more the perceived recoil unless you install one of the Smith compesators.

As Bart points out 22" is a good min barrel length.

What kind of range are you thinking about needing to use it?

Bart and me have similar backgrounds and we know lots of the same people and we tend to think performance capability for long range applications. After all if you can hit up close you sure can't hit at long range but on the other hand if you can shoot long range you are really effective at short range.
 
Seems like I've zeroed in on rifles with 20" barrels.
Got to check out a Hog Hunter yesterday. Balanced nicely and not too heavy. Doubt I'll find a Savage 10 FCM Scout in a store to check out but will make the rounds to see.
The store where I found the Hog Hunter also had a Steyr (Mauser) and Mauser in .308. They felt awesome. Did some research because I had never heard of a Mauser in .308. Based on internet research, it looks like they may have been Chilean army rebuilds. For a price of $250 each, it was awful tempting.
 
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