From many people here, you'll hear horror stories about trading away a gun that became a collector piece or selling their [fill in the blank] and having to wait years and visit a shaman on top of a mountain to replace it. There's huge pressure to pick something that you can keep forever and never replace.
I've found this tactic to be untrue. I've sold and traded my way through a variety of guns. On the rifle front, I started with a 10/22, but then inherited an older Springfield .22, so I sold my 10/22. Somewhere around that time I bought Mosin Nagant (a really nice hex receiver version). It was fine, but not what I wanted and I traded it, and bought an SKS. SKS rifles are ok, too, however not very accurate. Got rid of my SKS and bought a Marlin 336. The Marlin was also a great gun, but it was fussy. When it wanted to be accurate, it was really accurate, but about half the time it didn't want to be accurate. Now I own a Springfield Trapdoor in 45-70 made in 1888, and we'll see how that goes.
I've done the same thing (to a lesser extent) with my handguns. I'm slowly learning what I like and the types of shooting I like to do. Unless, you have a million dollars and can just keep buying guns, trading and selling is a great way to figure out what you like.
And now I've put thousands of rounds downrange through a variety of weapons. During my first trip to the range with my 45-70, I put down a group just over 2" group offhand at 50 yards. I've learned the mechanics and fundamentals, which is WAY more important than what guns you own.
I was invited out to a farm to shoot with this group of engineers. They all had money and nice guns, but I outshot everyone of them, often with their own rifles. I was making shots offhand that they could barely make off the bench. I always want to spend my money on ammo and range time instead of a new gun. Just something to think about. Good luck with your search.