If you want to hunt this year and if you must stick to your stated limit of $500 with scope mounted, then you need to forget the Rem 700BDL! Unless, again as stated, you decide to go with a used firearm/scope combo, at which point the field is wide open when you have $500 burning in your pocket. You have reached an impasse, in terms of getting suggestions, because you return to a rifle that cost beyond your limit, after mounts, rings and scope! Add to that the fact that if you go "cheap" on mounts, rings and scope, you are defeating the purpose of buying a higher quality rifle! Since you've asked, my opinion would be to go cheap on the rifle and get high quality mounts, rings and scope. By doing that, you can stay within your $500 limit. As I see it, there is no other way to meet your price limit and end up with a decent rifle/scope rig! The Savage line has built a great rep for accuracy and serviceability. The ONLY thing that you give up with Savage, is "pretty"! You can buy the low cost Savage model of your choice and still have around $200 left to buy a scope rig. In a fixed power scope, you can come in right at $200 with good steel mounts and rings. OR, buy a "package" rifle rig, which will be mounted with an inexpensive scope rig, and figure on using the inexpensive scope and mounts for a year or two, before moving up to a quality scope and mounts. If, on the other hand, you go with a quality scope, it can be kept, if you later sell the rifle, and moved to the new rifle. So many options, so little time! <8^) Good luck.