New deer rifle

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Nikon Prostaff or Redfield Revolution. Anything more expensive is not needed to get into deer hunting. Target shooting is a different beast all together.
 
Spend as much as you can on the scope. At $300.00 you can get a very nice scope. A VX 2 and Vortex Viper are in your price range and are excellent, I own both. You might be able to find a Zeiss Conquest close out in your price range.
 
One more scope recommendation.

I have been well served by the Burris Fullfield II. Choose the magnification range that fits your usage best. I have two 3-9x40s.
 
The last two Leupolds i have purchased had tracking issues so i will never buy another. However i have never had a issue with Vortex, Burris, or my personal fave Nightforce. The biggest thing i can think of when getting into hunting is take the distance you will be shooting and make sure you have the correct magnification range to cover that distance. Kind of sucks having a 1-4 scope and having to shoot 350 yards or so but not being able to see the vitals of a deer around the crosshairs. Then again kind of sucks to have a 8-32 and having a deer run in front of you at 50 yards. Just match your optics to the style of hunting you do.
 
Shameless plug for the Tikka rifle here, that is a remarkably accurate rifle, and very refined for it's price range, Tikka has THE smoothest action of any rifle at any price and their trigger is simply the best this side of a Timney. Unlike Savage/Ruger/Marlin/Remington Tikka makes a fantastic synthetic stock (fiber/matrix not mold injected).
 
Get something you can shoot well

I think the .30-06 is too much for newer shooters in lighter weight deer rifles. Get something like a .260 or 7mm-08 that are optimal for deer and easy on the shoulder during long range sessions.
Get a good scope with a good record for warranty work. You don't really need anything more than a simple 4X.
I might even suggest not zeroing your rifle in at 100 yards. Zero at 300 makes for less guesswork and error at long range.
 
I'm still using three Leupold Vari-X IIs that are around forty years old. Zero trouble. On the good-used market, they run about $150 or less. Any old Weaver K-4 will work just fine, and they don't cost much. When deer hunting, I set my variables at 2X or 3X more often than not. Field of view is much more important than magnification, IMO.

Zeroing for a 150-grain load in a .308? I'd sight in for two inches high at 100 yards, which is right at dead on at 200 and around six inches low at 300. The great majority of all deer are killed inside of 200 yards, anyway.

Until there has been a lot of trigger time, my own opinion is that folks should pretty much stay about halfway "up close and personal" for their shots. Lots of open-field shooting from field rest positions at guesstimated distances is needed before playing in Ma Bell country. :)
 
If I was going to buy a new rifle just for deer I would look into the 6.5 Creedmore. They are pretty good i hear and have been taking african game since it came out. So a deer should be just fine inside its effectiveness. Savage and Remington both chamber for that round and i think Ruger as well. Not sure about the Tikka. I would probably even guess that it would be fine on elk with in reason.
 
My last rifle had a Leupold and have had no problems with it at all. I just bought a Weatherby Vanguard 30-06, cash was a little tight so I did some homework and bought a Redfield Revenge 4x12x42 with the Accu-ranger hunter reticle. I was impressed with the clarity and since Leupold bought Redfield it has a great warranty. All for $220.00. Take a look at the reviews from other shooters who have used the Redfield. BTW the Revolution is made in the USA! I would have bought that one but liked the reticle in the Revenge better.
 
I'm with hooligan. I've got a Vortex Crossfire II sitting on my CZ 550 in .270 win. It's crystal clear, holds it's zero, and definitely falls in your price range. Vortex also has a fantastic lifetime warranty.
 
Also, if caliber/rifle is still up for debate. I'd recommend looking at 257 Roberts, 6.5 Creed or Swede, 7mm-08, or a 280 Rem.
I'm a huge CZ fan. Their rifles definitely hit the mark on value. They have a couple chambered for 6.5 Swede. It's also hard to go wrong with a Savage, a Winchester, or a Browning (among others).
 
I'm looking for a new deer rifle I want a rifle I can sight in at 100yards and never have to worry about missing ever again. 400yards is a max
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Seems like you want a flat cartridge that'll have a good MPBR to minimize, range calculation errors, and the amount of holdover you need at longer ranges.
I'd recommend the .270win.

You can sight it in at 200yards, shooting 1.7'' high @ 100, zero'd @ 200. Just over 6'' of drop @ 300 and 17.6'' @ 400. At 400 yards, with a 10mph crosswind, you're only dealing with about 10'' of wind drift with a decent BC 130 grain boat tail.
I bought a Ruger M77 for under $700 with cheap optics, a sling and 3 boxes of ammo. It'll put 3 rounds on top of each other @ 100 yards.
 
In light of several recent posts It might be time to bump POST #10!

Thanks everybody for helping now that I've got the ruger 308 rifle I need a scope but I don't want to spend more than 300.00 I also bought me a bushnell arc 1000 range finder so I won't be guessing anymore whats y'alls pick on a budget scope?
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