Thread: Which Rifle

People are talking about shooting hundreds of metres here but when you first start, if you can fire at a deer 100m away and it falls down, that's good shooting. Most hunters never go to be able to reliably shoot past 200m, which is why it doesn't matter too much which calibre you use. You just need at least 2000 ft.lb energy at the muzzle (This will be on the ammo box.) Buy once is a good strategy. Good standard cartridges are:
.308
7mm08
6.5x55
270
.3006
Those will be good all rounders and able to be used for a long time, even when you develop skills for longer range shooting (if ever needed). Short range shooting can also be difficult and a good scope and rifle fit help a lot there. Developing shooting skill is where the .22LR comes in. An air rifle will also get you off to a start as its very cheap and in a lot of places can be used at home, but is a bit limited in accuracy for honing higher skill levels.

Ones to avoid for your first rifle are:
.243
.260
.223, .22-250
300 WSM & .300 WIn Mag & 7mm Rem Mag
7.62x39, .44mag
.303
.25-06
anything semi auto, lever or single shot
(all have their merits but aren't all rounders)

Good basic scope brands for a starter are:
Bushnell
Redfield
Leupold
Burris
Weaver
Some would say Nikko Stirling is OK too but if you plan to "buy once" then go for the ones above.
Leupold have the best reputation overall.

Rifles have been covered above.
Second hand can be OK if less than 5 yr old.

Finally, budget for 100 rounds of ammo all the same batch when you start and keep the brass for reloading.
I'm sure others will offer advice on ammo brands if asked