When I was 16 in 1968, I bought my first hunting rifle with the help of my uncle at Brooks Brothers, a 1908 Model Mannlicher Shoenauer, 6.5 x 54, 155 gram bullets, and it's the only gun I use for hunting. It's compact and light to carry, feels like a toy, packs a wallop, and brings back enough memories to last a lifetime. Granted, finding ammo for it has been a b-otch, but it will always be in my hands when I down a deer. My son, for his first gun, bought a browning A-bolt 270 bout 7 years ago, and he swears by his choice.