Just a thought--while on a gun buying spree awhile back, I noticed, at several gun stores in Northern Indiana, used 30-06's were plentiful and relatively inexpensive. Here in Indiana, we can not use a big bore rifle on deer, only handguns, shotguns and bows. As a result, it seems a number of hunters in this area have traded in the big bores for shotguns and leverguns chambered for handgun cartridges and as a result, this creats a good selection of used deer rifles. I've always been an o6 fan due to reasonable recoil, decent ballistics and enough power for almost any hunting in this country. I've seen a number of used Remingtons, Brownings, Marlins, Rugers etc, in great condition, in .270, .308, 7mm mag, and 30-06 in the $350 to $500 range. I'd start checking the gun stores in your area-----------john