Imo the Marlin XL-7 or XS-7 is a good choice, however, not the best in that price range. IMO the Savage Model 10 or 110 depending on long or short action is a lot better choice in the same price range. Make sure you get the one with the Accu Trigger though. Walmart sells the Savage Model 10 and 110 for $387 at the one nearby us. The one in the next town over is $397, but they are always under $400. They come as a package deal with a Simmons 3-9x40 scope which is decent. When I say decent, the glass is decent, and they seem to work okay for the most part. They should get you by for a season or two until you can afford a better scope. This rifle also comes with a sling, and is the one that has the accu trigger. This really is a great rifle for a great price. IMO you can't beat the accu trigger with a factory trigger, and you get a great quality rifle, that's also easy to change barrels on should you ever want to all for under $400.
I'd stay away from the Savage Edge rifles though. IMO they are more along the lines of the Remington 770. Maybe slightly better. Those two are rifles I'd stay away from.
However, if you don't like the Savage for some reason the next best choice imo is the Marlin XL-7/XS-7 rifles you are looking at. These are decent rifles, but just not as good as the Savage imo.
As for the Mossberg, I've read some decent reports, and some bad reports. The issues with the bolt flying apart and injuring shooters concerned me enough that I wouldn't buy one. I hope that they have this fixed. Other than that issue, I still wouldn't buy one as while they may be decent, the Savage or Marlin rifles are just soo much better of a rifle for the price. There is no comparison in quality and the price is very similar.
Another popular option is the Stevens 200. This is the older Savage Model 10 before the accu trigger models came out. These are good guns, although the trigger isn't great. IMO though this isn't the best buy out there, just because they often run around $300-320 depending on where you get it. So for not much more you can get a much better trigger, a scope, and a sling. However, if you found one of these cheap enough, it might be a good deal. I think the Marlin is also a better buy than this.
As for calibers, it's really a personal preference. 30-06 is probably the most versatile caliber. You can take pretty much any game you could want to in North America. You get tons of bullet choices from both factory rounds or reloads. You can pretty much find ammo anywhere. Even most country stores that only have a couple of boxes of ammo usually have 30-06 ammo. It's just super popular and there is a good reason for it. Ammo prices are also pretty decent on it.
The 308 is very very close ballistic wise to the 30-06. They use the same bullet, just a difference case. One is often chambered in a long action one in a short action. Both are great choices, although I prefer the 30-06 just for ammo availability. The recoil on a 30-06 is there and it's not something I'd want to shoot all day long, but at the same time it's fine if you are just going to sight it in and then go hunting with it.
The .270 is also another very popular choice and is a good choice. Ammo is common for this also, but not as common as 30-06. The recoil on a .270 is more than what I'd want on a rifle I was going to shoot all day, but as said with the 30-06 it's fine for sighting it in then hunting with it.
The 25-06 is another caliber to consider. Recoil is heavy on some rifle, and mild on others. Just depends on the weight and stock style of the rifle. This is basically a 30-06 case necked down to hold a 25 caliber bullet. It's a very flat shooting round and good for long range.
Now if you want something you can target shoot all day long and still hunt with the two biggest calibers I'd look at would be the .243 Winchester, or the 7mm-08. Both are good calibers and based off of the 308. They are 308 cases necked down for a 7mm bullet or a 6mm bullet for the .243. They are plenty for deer sized game, although if planning a trip to Africa and hunting large game I'd want something more. I really like both of these calibers. Ammo is pretty common for the .243 and you can find it for the 7mm-08, but it's no where near as common as .243 much less something like a 30-06. Both have relatively light recoil.
So those are my opinions on several of the popular calibers. It's hard to say what the get as everyone likes something different. I have a friend that won't shoot anything but a .270, yet I have several friends that have switched from .270's to .243 just because of the lighter recoil. Then I've got guys that don't want anymore than a 30-30, or friends that only will shoot .280's, or 30-06's. It basically just all comes down to what you personally like. Most of them are good enough, and for deer it's not like one's a ton better than another.
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