What the heck, I'll throw in my two cents. I'm fairly new to hunting myself, and my first deer rifle was the Remington 700 ADL synthetic in .30-06. If you've been shooting for a while and don't mind the recoil (assuming you like the .30-30, it shouldn't be a problem), the .30-06 a great caliber. You can take deer, elk, black bear, and even caribou, moose, and grizzlies with the heavier loads.

You can certainly get the job done with smaller calibers (.243, .25-06, .270, etc.), but the power and versatility of the .30-06 is there when you need it. Ammo's easy to find in various loads, and you can hit hard out past 300 yards with good shot placement.

By the way, I paid just over $450 for my 700, but it came with a Skyline Excel camo stock and Leupold mounts and rings. I've seen synthetics with open sights for around $400, so you should be able to meet your budget.