jerry d

Jimmy

What I would do is determine your budget then go handle as many rifles that fit your budget and see which one feels the best to YOU.
Then if you have friends or family that have rifles in different calibers and shoot as many as you can get your hands on to determine what YOU feel comfortable with recoil wise.
All of the calibers/cartridges mentioned will kill deer if you put the bullet through the vitals.If you don't reload take into consideration what ammo is available in your area.
Take into consideration as to what glass you want stick on top of it. You'll NEVER regret buying the best you can afford,so leave room in the budget for decent optics.

troutbum

In tight woods ,when I'm still hunting, I use a Marlin 336-30/30. When I'm stand hunting , I use my Savage 30-06. I like the 06 better for hunting out west, or more open ground. You can get a lot of bullet weights for the 06.

Father Forkhorn

Gotcha!

Squirrel hunting is great practice for deer, by the way. They live in the same places, you can use the same tactics: stand/blind hunting, stillhunting, etc. Squirrels are a good way to check out a piece of land.

The following is good advice, too:

That last statement is one many neglect. An old rule of thumb for hunting is to spend as much on the optics as the gun. That said, I have a relatively cheap scope on my Savage and get away with it.

I'll add that if budget is an issue, a rifle that at least gets you hunting is a Mosin Nagant. There are better choices, but they'll work if $150-200 is all you can swing. A few simple tweaks can greatly improve them.

alleyyooper

Were it me I would go to a local gun shop and handle, shoulder as many different brands as I could to see what felt best to me fit wise. As for caliber about ANY thing from 6 mm to 8mm works. If I could only have one rifle It would be some thing American made in 7 MM 08. 7MM 08 works well in about all conditions and ammo isn't real expensive like some. The 308 would be my second choice just for the fact just about every mom and pop store usually has some on their shelve. Well that was before this hording epidemic came about.

Al

Wilcam47

.270 is a great gun...you can get varmint loads and go up to deer and even elk.. Good overall gun...30-30 is good "brush" gun for around 100-150yd shots IMO. Either one would put a hurt/kill on a deer under 100yds..

Orphanbrg

30-30 in the woods......30/06 out of the woods. Can't go wrong with either.

UncleNorby

I'd concentrate on getting something that's handy and fits you well. You don't need any magnum cartridge or a gun with a heavy stock or a long barrel. For your hunting, the cartridge you shoot won't matter too much, just be sure to get a typical "deer cartridge", like a 308, 243, 260, 30/30, 35 Rem, etc. I'd most likley be looking at bolt action, short action gun instead of a long action like 30/06 or 270 Win.

redgreen

All have given you good advice on caliber selection. A 30 30 or 45 70 will do all that you ask in your terrain. A 270 will give you more reach should you decide to hunt in an area where you have to stretch out a shot. I am partial to the 45 70 myself for the timber. Works great for everything from mice to moose. Go to a shop and handle everything that they have and find the one that feels most comfortable. Short shots, you really don't need the scope. 100 to 200 yards is an easy poke with open sights. If you go plain barrel and scope route, don't cheap out on the scope. You get what you pay for. in the glass department.

cammogunner

in my opinion i would use a 30-30 or 243 i would give the nod to the 30-30 in this one though it has a little more "punch" imo and will be a fine cal for what you have stated as for gun brand you cant really go wrong with the tried and true marlin 336 just be careful of the new "remlins" they can be defective but if you check them out before buying then you will be alright

muzzleloader1

It really all comes down between personal preference. The 30-30 is a great gun, and is the first gun that I hunted with in Pennsylvania. After that, I used a 30-06 for a few years, and then bought a .260 Remington. Since you aren't shooting very far, I would recommend using something like a 243, 260, 7mm .08, or 270. There really isn't much need for you to go to a 30 caliber, unless you want to shoot further.

I know a lot of people that hunt with 243's because of the light recoil and weight of the rifle. Personally, that is what I think may be best for you. It has plenty of knock down power for any whitetail, and is extremely accurate.