RE: Gettin my first deer rifle.
Too easy a question - as long as you' re a normal sized adult, you' ll have no problem handling a .270, and it' s probably the second-most-popular caliber in the world, after the .30-06. The .243 is a fine gun, but for bigger whitetails and mulies, I' d prefer a little more umph. The only problem with the 7mm-08 is that you' ll be paying more and travelling further to find ammo for it. Get a .270, and when you' re buying $12 boxes of ammo from any Wal-Mart in America, you' ll thank me.