New hunting rifle
 

Hey everyone. I decided for tax season I will get myself a nice hunting rifle. I have looked around and gone a thousand ways of what I want but have narrowed it down to 3 rifles. I have a few things I'm looking for. I'm looking for something that will serve as my main deer rifle. I live and hunt in upstate NY. I would like something I can teach my son to hunt with and pass down when the time is right. My budget is 600 dollars. 600 has to get me a rifle and scope set up.

The three choices of rifle are the following; Howa 1500, ruger American or predator, savage 11 trophy hunter. As for caliber I am thinking 6.5 creedmore, 308, 7mm-08. I have a rifle in 270 so I'm open to that caliber as well.

B/C you mentioned handing down to the son when he's ready, I'd advise the 7mm/08 as it will be about the best combination of effective killing potency combined with easy recoil. The Creedmore is wonderful too, but finding the ammo easily could be a challenge .. much more so than the 7mm/08. My second pick would be the 308.

I can see your son starting out with such a rifle and keeping it his entire life, ... just because!

My pick is the Howa. But you might end up a bit higher than $600.00 depending on the scope you choose.

Being 100% honest, you aren't going to get a scope/rifle combo for $600 that is worth diddly squat on the scope side. All 3 rifles are okay beginner rifles for the most part. Add a couple hundred to your budget and you could come up with a reasonably good scope to put on your rifle. The only one of those 3 that I've seen even halfway good glass on them is the Savage 111 TH with Nikon glass. 3-9x40. It's fairly good glass I just don't particularly care for BDC rets myself.

The Savage 11 Trophy hunter, while having a good barreled action and trigger, is sunk into a pretty shoddy stock. It's cheap and functions okay in a pinch but it's not a stock I would want at all. Actually, all 3 of them, cheap Howa 1500 models too, have crappy tupperware stocks. Between the three choices in the cheapest models, I would go for the Savage as you can change things out easier when you want to improve your rifle at a later date..Get one of them and look to spend around 200 (sales going on all the time on good glass) for a decent scope. 99% of those scope/rifle package deals have complete crap scopes on them that I wouldn't trust to hold up on a .22 rim fire with the exception of the previously mentioned deal with Savage.

As far as your caliber/cartridge choices, I am in 100% agreement with 8mm/06...I've worked with 7mm.08 cartridges since WAY before 85 when Rem legitimized them. It's probably the best whitetail cartridge ever made and has plenty of power to take Elk as well. Taken a few with a couple of mine so yep that is from personal experience. And all that with moderate recoil that wont bring about snot bubbles from your kid every time he sits at the bench with it.

If you get the Ruger American and go with a new Redfield scope you'll keep your budget and be well set up.

I have heard the savage 11 is the better gun by many people and reviews. The howa is good but the package scope I've never heard of. The savage If I get the package scope it would be the Nikon. If I went with a rifle and bought the scope separate I would most likely go with a Nikon pro staff.

As for caliber it seems 7mm-08 and 6.5 are in the lead. Part of me thinks I might try the 6.5 but I'm going to see what the local stores have for ammo availability. The local Walmart only had one box of 7mm-08 when I looked the other day

The Nikko Sterling on the Howa isn't a bad scope at all, and I haven't seen a Howa with a Tupperware stock in a while either, they most all come with a Hogue.

I vote for a Howa 1500 in .270 since that's what you shoot. I liked "sharing" ammo with my Dad when I was growing up.

All good recommendations.

All good entry level rifles.

I like the idea of sharing ammo (.270).

I like the .270 & the availability of ammo for it.


I HIGHLY recommend, as you heard here already, to buy a "good" scope ($600 will NOT get you both) !!!

Sorry

Jeep, just because it's a Hogue doesn't make it good. Hogue makes some cheap tupperware junk just like all the others do for these cheap package deal rifles.

As far as the Nikko Sterling glass goes, never used them and the reviews on them are indifferent to say the least. I've looked through a couple myself at the store and wasn't impressed in the least. But I am fairly hard to impress when it comes to glass.

I stopped off at the box store that has a large supply of ammo. They had no 6.5 and lots of 7mm-08 and 308. If I don't go with a 270 I will go with 7mm-08 or a 308. I have also narrowed it down with a savage 11 or 10, or the ruger American

Getting it all done - buying a NEW rifle and NEW scope - for $600 is getting tough. A guy almost has to buy a package set, or has to be satisfied with a pretty low-end scope.

The bottom end for bolt rifles tends to be camping around $375-400, which only leaves you about $185 for the optic when you account for taxes, which really puts you in a pretty poor class of optics. They'll kill deer, but they'll often leave you hanging. Bushnell Banner is really the only scope in this class which draws my attention.

Add $100 to your total budget and you'll be able to step up considerably in scope quality. In the $250-300 ballpark, I am a fan of Bushnell Elite 3500's.

Personally, out of your three, now two options, I would buy the Savage, fix the stock or change to a laminate, and drop a Bushnell Elite on top.