Best hunting rifle?

[GM.Chief]

My wife and I are looking to purchase a hunting rifle in the near future for deer and/or hogs. What are yall's opinion for the best decent low to medium priced rifles/calibers?

 

[dbgun]

Remington/Mossberg/Savage in .243 or 25-06 for a first rifle.

 

[M. Sage]

Depends on terrain and some other things. How big are the deer in your area? What are you comfortable with? How long are the shots you'll likely take?

 

[Bullseye Shooter]

My first deer rifle was a .243 Winchester. I still have it and have shot lots of deer with it. All one shot kills. And I had a friend in Montana (he passed on) who used a .243 on elk, but he was able to get relatively close and place his shots. Having said that, if you're talking only one rifle for both deer and hogs, I would look at a .308 Winchester. A little easier on recoil than a .30-06 and cartridges with varying bullet weights and styles are available. The .308 will do pretty much anything a .30-06 will do with less powder.

I'm a big fan of Savage bolt actions. Excellent rifle with an inexpensive price compared to Remington and Winchester models.

 

[dee]

There's no one perfect cartridge. I've used .223, .22-250, .243 and .30-06. I've had animals run with all four even with the .30-06 and hit was a perfect hit right through the vitals( heart and lungs were toast ). So I think it just depends on what the shooter wants personally. But keep in mind the smaller the caliber the less forgiving it is about shoot placement.

 

[country_boy]

I use a semi auto sks with soft points. Always takes down a buck in one shot.
Not really a fan of bolt action rifles.

 

[dbgun]

There's no one perfect cartridge

Agree, but if this is your first rifle & your wife is also going to shoot it, then IMHO the .243 is the way to start off with. If it's just you that's going to do the shooting, then I recommend the Win. 270 (in any name brand).

 

[Posit]

Given the lack of more specific information - and probably even with more info: Savage or Tikka in 25-06. Low to medium price, both accurate out of the box, 25-06 will drop anything you're likely to run into in Texas, and most other places as well.

 

[kingofwylietx]

My wife loved taking hogs & deer with her brothers .243. When it was time for her own rifle, she went with the 25-06. Either of those are great starters and either will kill anything native to Texas. We know a lady that shoots a 30-06, but it does have more kick. I think it's easier to learn on something that doesn't intimidate you with its recoil. Due to that reason alone, I'd start with .243 or 25-06.

 

[dee]

I would also try and find people who have a few models of rifles cause different models and makes recoil different aven though they may be the same caliber.