What rifle should I get?

As others have said, both the Savage Axis II, and Ruger American are great rifles; .308, .270 or in 30-06.

A Rossi in .357 or .44 would be lots of fun, but I'm not sure you will find one under $400 new.

Walmart offers a Marlin 336 in 30-30 at $398, if I remember correctly.
 
PatientWolf said:
As others have said, both the Savage Axis II, and Ruger American are great rifles; .308, .270 or in 30-06.

A Rossi in .357 or .44 would be lots of fun, but I'm not sure you will find one under $400 new.

Walmart offers a Marlin 336 in 30-30 at $398, if I remember correctly.
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How much is 30-30 ammo compared to .308?

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Devon226 said:
How much is 30-30 ammo compared to .308?
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The easiest thing to do is to go on-line (e.g. Midwayusa.com) and compare .30-30 and .308 prices.

But look, I see this all the time - people get an über-tactical carbine or a lever rifle for some ostensibly good and logical reason. But when they get to the range, they don't use said rifle in a way that matches their original reason. Instead, they simply sit at a bench with it to shoot itty bitty tight groups. And often they're disappointed and/or frustrated.

There's nothing wrong with a lever rifle (or tactical carbine) per se. It's an excellent tool for the job it was designed for. By all means do your homework and buy the rifle you'll enjoy shooting the most, but IMO, it's just it's not a very good tool for what you likely have in mind.
 
Something in .243 might be good for you. A little more oomf than a .223, but a little less punishing than a .308.

As others have said, Ruger American and Savage Axis II's are your best bet in that $300-400 price range. However, I'm not a fan of how the actions and stocks feel on them. Go handle a few and also look at the Savage 11 package rifles. To me, the 11's feel way better. The Savage 11 packages also come with a good Nikon scope.
 
how much

If you've not done a lot with rifles, you might find a .308 a bit of a handfull, and develop some bad habits along the way. I'm with others and suggesting a bolt .223. A good step up from .22 lr, and currently, .223 ammo and components are common.

The Ruger American, or the Predator version are interesting, and supposedly shoot well. A Savage Hog Rifle in .223 might fall in your price range, heck, maybe the folks would spring for a new one, or you could make up the difference with them.

I liked the idea of a .357 carbine, but finding one (well, a Marlin anyhow) may be an issue. The Henry is an option, but those are both pretty expensive rifles. The .357 lever is a pretty useful rifle, though it does not have the reach of a .223, or even a 30-30 for that matter. But it can be loaded over a wide range of power options.
 
Forget the Savage Axis. There is a $100 rebate on some Savage rifles right now. Get this.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/SAVAG...ge&CQ_st=b
Fal 4 Me is offline
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I bought one of the above. Outstanding buy. It has a Varmint (heavy barrel) and Savage acu trigger (very good trigger, best one short of a target match I have shot). Cabellas only, Savage cost would be 650 or better for the same model.


Savage is generally better regard than Rugger for target but I have not shot any of the Rugger varmint aka heavy barrel rifles.

It also has an easy to change barrel system you can do at home with a few low cost tools. If you shoot a lot you will shoot it out. Nice thing about a 308 is you can ream it out to 30-06 (ammo is more expensive but if you have the reloading stuff you can lower that)

The Savage bolt head has a bit of flex that replaces the need to do a blue print type alignment of the bolt with the bore.


If you are going to target shoot that is by far the best choice.

It has a Heavy Barrel, you can shoot all day long without heating up the barrel and getting erratic whip as it gets hot.

Pencil barrel good for maybe 2 or 3 shots, then they start to get wild. fine for hunting but not target shooting.
 
I have several of both the American and axis and they are the best bang-for-buck values in their price class for sure. They both have great barrels--and I'd give a very slight edge to the accutrigger in adjustability--but the American's is still a fantastic trigger--in some ways I like it better for it's simple but rugged modular design--and still can be adjusted down low enough in pull weight for great shooting. I give the American's chassis the slight edge for rigidity and "power bed" over the axis--but theiy're both plasti-stocks so it's probably not that much of an advantage. I also like the American's safety better, easier for me to operate blind--but that's strictly an ergonomic preference. I do like Savage's barrel nut swap-out scheme and ease of working the action--but then again Ruger gives you a heavy-duty receiver with a gas-relief port in case of over-pressure, and they also feature the nice three-lug short throw bolt. Honestly you won't go wrong with either one. : )
 
I'm with Erno86. 6.5 Creedmore, very nice round,very accurate good barrel life, flat shooting 600 yards+ with low recoil, hits like a 300 win mag. This is going to be my next round.
 
You may also consider a Howa 1500 Lightning, it's a very solid gun. Howa makes the Vanguard for Weatherby. I got one a few weeks ago from Bud's, and my OTD price was under $400.
 
Keep in mind that the Savage 12 FV is currently $319!

If you want a great target rifle, that prices is lower than a Rugger or Axes.

The Cabeall only Savage 12T is another options, more tactical, rail, box mag but heavy barrel (and shorter)
 
I bought a Rossi M92 .357 last year for around $400.00 new. It is a well made gun and is a lot of fun to shoot. As a reloader you can shoot it pretty cheap especially using cast lead bullets.
 
Devon,

Find a shooting club near where your going to live.

Go there to see what they are shooting and what you might be interested in.

Many club members want to help new shooters.

Here is a site to help you.

http://findnra.nra.org/
 
Don't ignore the used racks. I picked up a Savage model 16 All Weather in 260 Remington for $349 a couple of years ago. It was in great shape and had a Burris scope. Since you reload, something like this would be perfect.

Nunya
 
Devon,

I'd buy a good quality used rifle that's in good condition before I bought an inexpensive new rifle. Especially with guns, you will get what you pay.
 
It's mainly up to my parents and how much they want to spend. You guys did give a lot of useful info though. I'll be sure to keep all of it in mind for any future purchases.

Thanks!

Devon

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