A friend of mine is looking to get a new bolt action rifle for deer hunting in Michigan, but he has some stipulations on the cartridge...

* The rifle cannot be chambered for a cartridge he already owns
* The rifle has to be 7mm or larger
* $600-700 maximum (cost of rifle and scope rings together; he already has a new 3-9 Leupold for the rifle)
* Would prefer to stay away from 30-06 derivatives

He currently owns a 30-06, 308 Win, 44 Rem mag, 30-30 and 348 Winchester. The rifle will be used for whitetail with shots out to perhaps 100 yards, but he would prefer something capable of going out to 200 yards if called upon. He has no plans to hunt anything larger than whitetail with the rifle.

He' s a hefty guy and he isn' t aftaid of a little recoil. He shows some interest in the 35 Remington, but I haven' t personally seen a bolt action offered for this load. My next suggestion was the 35 Whelen, but he batted an eye when I mentioned it is a resized `06. The 7mm Mag and 300' s strike some interest but are a little overkill for the hunting he does. Conversely, he really fancies big bores in the .35+ category.

In our conversation, I mentioned the cost of shells - he' s not too concerned about price as he doesn' t plan on shooting more than a box of shells/year from the rifle... range and hunting together.

Any suggestions?

Could try the venerable 7mm-06 but that might be too close to an ' 06 config for him. Why not just go with the 30-378 Weatherby?

Sounds like he likes the big bores and doesn' t need speed. How about the 45-70?

Does someone chamber the 45-70 in a bolt action? I almost mentioned the 444 Marlin to him, pending availability in a bolt.

30-378? We' re not looking to knock large birds from the sky with the muzzle blast...

I would suggest a 7mm mag of some variation, but if he likes big bores than I wouldnt be right to not suggest the Marlin 45/70. All kinds of power, in a fine lever gun. That thing is just a hoot to shoot. Not that I am partial or anything.

I don' t think anyone is chambering it, but the .358 Win looks perfect. So does the 8mm Mauser.

Welcome to the forum Quack Addict, Sounds like your friend isn' t sure what he wants.The 7mm Rem Mag is a flat shooting cartridge. It might be a little over kill at short ranges,but it will reach out and find it' s mark at several hundred yards..If the 7mm RM is over kill then the 300Win Mag is out of the question.I would suggest a 270 Win but he wants a bullet of .284 or better.I guess the balls in his court.
Ruger Redhawk

I know winchester makes a Custom Compact bolt action rifle in .450 Marlin and 358 win,but it is way out of his price range.

I realy like the .338 win mag for deer,it is not over kill it dose wonders.

How about Remington' s new model-673 chambered in 350-Remington mag???

I wouldn,t worry much about what this guy wants. He has the bases more that covered already. He could put all the options in a hat and draw one out.

.300 WSM