RE: .243 or .308
The 243 is a necked down 308, and is a good long range varmint cartridge. It will give you a lot more rock & roll excitement shooting. Savages are not sexy but they get the job done and the accutrigger is a nice feature. Go for it. Let us know how it does for you.
The 308 is only slightly less powerful than the 30 06 and kicks in the same class.