I would buy the Ruger over the Browning any day!!!! For one thing, alot of people dont seem to care about, the Ruger is made in the U.S.A. the Browning is made in Japan. I say support America's economy and buy American!!!! I have two Ruger rifles and love them both, one is a 280 the other is a 223. I have some Brownings but the only ones I own are older Belgium made.

I own;

Marlin,Stoeger, Berretta, Browning, Savage, Sako & Remington.


I wish all my guns were as good as my Brownings !

BTW - My X-Bolt is a Stanless Stalker in .338 Win Mag.

If no decision ... here's my vote. And this is part personal preference and part field performance. I am a huge fan of the 308 Win. Factory ammo abounds. It is a hand loader's dream as far as options. Every rifle that I have owned in 308 Win. and every rifle in 308 Win. that have helped folks set-up have "loved" bullets in the 165 - 168 gr. weight range.

I hunt white tails, feral hogs and mule deer. I have made clean, quick kills at what I consider long shots on both mule deer and white tails .... in the range of 375-400 yards. Had a great rest mind you and very little cross wind to contend with. Also dropped a coyote at I am guessing about 450-500. Took me 2 shots ... correcting on the second tom make the kill. As far as which manufacturer? That is a persoanal choice for you. Go with what feels food. There are so many very good to excellent factory rifles being made these days that you can hardly go bad wrong. And practically every one is at worst "affordable".

My No.1 hunting rifle is the Styer Mountain that I mentioned previously. Lord only knows how many deer I ahve kiled with it. Well over 200 I suppose. It shoots lights out. A good buddy of mine has a Browning A-Bolt that is a great shooter too. Anotehr has a Ruger Mk II 77 that is a great shooter.

As far as stainless or blued ? Keep it clean and doesn't matter much. Don't get the idea that stainless will not stain, corrode or pit. It will, just not as readily as blued. If you do a lot of foul weather hunting or hunt near a salt water coast line, I'd go with the stainless and a synthetic stock.

Well it's done.......thank you all for your input. I think many are accurate when they say "you can't go wrong". I think I am already thinking about the next purchase but thats months down the road.

The Steyr was so tempting as it was the .243 i was looking at and it was a cool little gun. However, i think not only did I want wood but also at the end of the day a major brand just seems to have advantages when something goes wrong (if it does) and who knows where you are. I also heard that forearm stock can flex at times so...

At the end of the day I went to the Big Box store Bass Pro Shops (damm i like supporting the little guy) to look at the Ruger M77 and what do you know the Browning X-Bolt was on sale, I already had shouldered it and liked it and it was wood so it was just a matter of caliber. I think I would have prefered a .308 but the sale price of $599 was on the .270 or 06 so the .270 it was.

I'm sure no matter which way I went things would have been good
but this is my socond Browning long gun so there might be a trend.

this is a great forum and look forward to more chat down the road

thanks,

Tar Heal

Congratulations Tar Heal !

Hope you got a shooter !!!

Good deep cleaning and off to the range - take your time on the break-in proceedure.


Keep us posted......................

The Steyr Pro Hunter is a piece of junk...short barreled (which reduces accuracy), crappy trigger...and not a good hunting rifle, especially for a newbie! I know, I had one and it was as accurate as throwing rocks at the target!

As a few others have suggested I would also recommend 2 rifles...a plinker 22 (like the Savage Model 93) and a hunting rifle.

If I had to give up all but one of my guns and keep one for all my hunting needs...I'd have to say I'd keep the .308 or .270...really hard decision. But both calibers are easy to find ammo for relatively in-expensive too (well by today's standards). Both calibers will allow you the flexibility of hunting hogs or deer and have modest recoil.

Seeing how it is your first rifle, I suggest something less crappy than the Steyr Pro Hunter and less expensive than the Sako and a little more durable and friendly handling...

Rifles...there are many options for relatively inexpensive highly accurate (sub-MOA) off the shelf rifles that can be had for under say $600. Look at the Tikka T-3, the Browning A-Bold, Savage (model 116, 110, etc.), the Weatherby Vanguard Sub-MOA, or the Remington 700's. All will produce sub-MOA accuracy, have adjustable triggers, and all cost under $600 new and are available in most big-box stores off the shelf.

hahaha...I missed the post where you stated you made a purchase...I think you made a great choice...I have several Browning's (no X-Bolts tough) and love them all! The .270 cal is my favorite all time cal...I have 2...a .270 Win and a 270 WSM (my all time Fav). You will love the accuracy and mild recoil of the .270...enjoy!