my first hunting rifle

I also like the multi-barrel types like NEF, Handi-rifle,my son has one in .270 win,(which is accurate) and he's got a .223 barrel for it, along with a 45-70 barrel. He wouldn't hesitate for a millisecond to suit up for any of those critters mentioned.;) Including scopes on the .270, .223, he has about 800.00 total in all.:)
 
171,

If you are going to be shooting a LOT, you will probably want to get into loading your own rounds. I have been doing this for years with the .308. I can load 110 grain rounds for smaller game and 180 grains for larger game. All the other calibers mentioned are good choices, but since we only have a couple of places to buy ammunition here, I got tired of only being able to get a couple of different grain loads with factory ammo, so I started loading my own. Costs about a 3rd of factory, and shoots a lot better in my rifles.

If you are NOT going to be doing anything but hunting with the rifle, then you probably don't want to go into the expense of loading equipment, although it only takes a few boxes of loads to re-coop your investment.
 
.270 Win would be my choice. Go into a ballistics program and you'll find it's super flat shooting and ammo is much cheaper and easier to find then most of the other selections other then 30-06 etc.
 
What calibers have you shot?

171Raven--Do you have any experience with any centerfire calibers? Just a thought, if you can get your hands on various rifles and maybe find out what you might enjoy, that could help you with your decision.

308 ammo is pretty cheap compared to others, along with 243 and '06. For coyotes they ain't no such thing as overkill. So that may not be of concern. 243 using factory Hornady 58 gr. v-max gives great range and will knock the stuffin out of yotes. There are several 95-100 gr rounds in that caliber that will work fine for black bear and deer.

In looking over the prices for factory ammo it makes me very thankful I hand load. Dang---kinda felt guilty when that addiction nabbed me, but now it looks like it is definately worth the cost of equipment etc. :D
 
if you truly are concerned about price and have never used a rifle before, get yourself a remington 770 in 243. recoil is less then a marlin 336 in 3030.

its easy to consider a handi rifle or encore, but when you realize the cost of a second barrel, scope rings, and scope you can by a whole entire rifle.

Gosh darn, i once calculated the price as being the same for a scoped encore barrel in 30-30 as it was for my factory scoped 770
 
Seeing a lot of 30-06s on here so I thought I'd throw in an odd caliber. You could always buy a mosin nagant and get a scope mounted on it. The ammo is pretty cheap to and is a little bigger than a .308. Its a 7.62x54r. Not to mention the gun is really cheap, too
 
My first recommendation would be a 308 bolt gun.
It will do anything you need done and ammo is widely available and price is reasonable.
 
270

What you ask for is the 30-6 and 270.
A better choice is the 280 Remington but you will have to hunt ammo which is not too hard. For hunting purpose ammo cost is cheap. A box of shells will last a year once you sight it in. Just buy a 22 to pratice.
 
raven,

Welcome to the forum.

Most of us have many guns. Just buy some reasonable gun where ammo is available say in Walmart.
 
ive decided

thankyou everyone for your valuable opinions after your responces opinions on other forems and a bit of my own resurch i have decided to go with the 25-06 again thankyou for the help:D
 
.25-06

Sounds like a good choice to me. Works just fine for yotes, and it will reach up for the bigger critters, too. Have fun, and post lots of pictures :D
 
first hunting rifle

If your looking for a rifle that can take both small and large game, then you truly are limited to certain calibers. people are going to tell you that any caliber will take large game, they are going to say a .22 can kill a bear; and there are right a .22 can kill a bear along with anything else you shoot with it, but there is a reason other calibers were designed. for large game (elk, bear, and such) i would consider a 7mm Rem mag. i have experience with the caliber and can honestly say that it will make a good, long range, small and large game rifle. people will tell you that using a 7mm on small game would be overkill, but when your buying a rifle for both small/large game, its always going to be overkill/underkill to someone, it all depends on what your comfortable shooting. my personal load out for large game is:
RIfle: Remington 700 BDL 7mm Rem Mag.
HANDGUN: S&W 629 .44 Magnum

For small game my Loadout is:
RIFLE: Remington 700 .243
HANDGUN: Ruger 22/45 .22Lr
No caliber is perfect but this is just my 2 cents on the subject.
-Corey
 
You will never regret starting with 25-06

My son has one, and it shoots great! I took a 4X4 mulie last fall with that gun, and I am really tempted to use it every time I go from now on! 100 gr. ballistic tips at 3250 fps will take deer and antelope, and 120 gr bullets are suited for elk. Lots of people will beller about the 25-06 being light for elk, but many elk are reportedly taken with 243's. Enjoy!:D
 
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For my money, a .30-06.

Most flexible in terms of bullet weights and what is likely to be sold.

Can be tailored for your needs so is a lot of gun in one.

My advice would be try and find a good second hand Mauser 98 type rifle with a decent length tube (avoid the recent fad for short barrels).

My pick would be a Brno or a CZ. Get a Tinmey trigger installed and away you go. Leave some cash for a flexible zoom optic, something like 3-9 ish (no need for a huge objective lens) but remember with optics you really get what you pay for. Ideally spend more on your optic than your rifle.

ATB and good luck with your choice!

Scrummy
 
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