Look at the Savage 7mm-08....I have one in the GNC model 11/111 in the wood stock.Great shooting Rifle with lighter recoil.Another sweet looking and we'll made Rifle would be the Savage Lady Hunter in a 7mm-08 also....1 Awesome looking Gun.

A lot of people mistakenly equate the venerable .243 with a "kids rifle" OT. I hear it all the time. "Why are you out here with that little ole pea shooter?" or them saying something to my daughter like "you do know you can't take a big deer with that little thing don't you?" She kinda looks at them and laughs then shows them the 256 pound field dressed buck she took with her little "pea shooter" at 197 yards in Canada the first year I took her up there. Has a tendency to shut them up pretty quick

I didn't mean to bash the .243. What I meant to say is that I'm buying it with my own money, rather than when my father bought it for me.

I loved my .243, I only shot one deer with it down in Alabama. I missed the vitals by a long shot, when someone else shot the deer they found my bullet in the bucks spine.

HP, having been hatched and raised not very far from you (Roane/Cumberland County about 30 miles west of Knoxville) I have a unique view of your rifle needs. As long as this is for whitetail in that neck of the woods, you could really expand your cartridge choices quite a good bit. Since I am older than dirt recoil is starting to become a bit of an issue with me. Age along with several injuries to my shoulders. Now granted the .30-06 or the .270 aren't that hard in the kicking department, but you could also benefit from other cartridge options such as the 7mm-08 which in my honest opinion is absolutely the BEST whitetail deer cartridge made. AND you can take it on an Elk hunt if you find yourself with enough money later on to go on one! Lots of good choices out there for factory ammo since I assume you don't reload. And if the reloading bug does hit you eventually, there are some fantastic reloading options for that particular cartridge. Not to mention the recoil is around half what a 30-06 loaded up with 180 grain bullets from a similar weight rifle. Not getting beat up at the practice bench will keep you shooting more and getting proficient with your rifle! Just a thought for ya to ponder on.

+1

Accuracy is everything !

I am not a rifle expert. I do have rifles in several calibers, 30-30, 7X57, 303, 6.5X55 and the 30-06. If I could have only one I would keep the 30-06, as has been said it will kill most anything a rifle is needed for in the US. I have a Leupold 3X9X40 on it and a detachable limbsaver when not shooting at game. If recoil is a problem, a good recoil pad like the limbsaver makes a world of difference.

As several mentioned....the .243 is a very good Caliber and it is plenty good to take down a Whitetail Deer,the 7mm-08 is very close to the same size and has more choices in a heavier grain bullet.I have both Caliber Rifles and have trouble choosing which to use when Hunting....the Browning A-bolt Hunter I used this year is very Accurate and has put down more nice Bucks and Doe's than any of the Rifles I have.The main thing as Sheridan mentioned is "Accuracy" and to Target Practice a lot with the Rifle of Your choice....a .223 is just as deadly to a Deer in the right Persons hand that knows how to make a good shot placement.

Savage is among the worst buy in a rifle you could make.....find a decent used Remington 700 ADL on gunbroker....you'll not regret it!

That there is just plain old funny. As far as factory rifles go, Savage is one of the most accurate and dependable rifles out of the box out there! Not to mention value. Dollar for dollar I'd put a new Savage up against ANY new Rem, Win, or Ruger made!

I agree accu trigger and stock all for just a few hundred dollars makes a nice cheap gun that shoots great out of the box. There are better but you will pay much more for them.