It took me till my late 40's before I figured out that I had only once taken a shot over 200 yards, and that I really didn't like the recoil from my 30-06. Two years ago I bought a Marlin 336SS in 30-30 and topped it with a Bushnell elite 3200 2-7x32mm. With Hornady Leverevolution ammo it's a 250 yard deer rifle and the rest of the year I shoot cast bullets for cheap plinking. Don't believe guys who say you can't shoot cast out of a micro-groove barrel, as long as they're sized properly for your barrel they work great. Be sure to check out the marlinowners.com website.