I guess one question you should also ask yourself is why do I need an extra 200 fps over what a 25-06 can do? Its a pretty fast stepping and flat shooting round as it is. Those that own them seem to praise them greatly for deer sized game. If you are taking shots inside 300 yds ( which is longer than probably 75% of normal deer shots ) the extra expense and muzzle blast would basically give you nothing. On the other hand a 25-06 should be a peach to shoot with little recoil. I would stick to the 25-06 and use the extra money to upgrade your scope to a VXIII or Conquest.