Need some advice

[buck1]

My youngest is ready to move up to center fire rifles now. I want to get him set up with a open country smaller deer combo.
If I had the $$ I would get a Ruger in 7mm08 or .243 win. BUUUT dimes are few and far between at this time. So I am looking for a budget minded rig , but not junk.
I want to stay with a bolt action. I have owned 77 Rugers, mod 70 Winchesters, and Rem 700s but thats it. I am thinking savage or marlin but am unsure of thier quality. Any advice guys?? Thanks in advance...Buck

[Doc Highwall]

For a bolt gun the Savage is hard to beat on price vs accuracy and the Marlin is hands down the winner in lever gun dept.

[Tom W.]

Savage..... Great value and accurate.

[spqrzilla]

Keep an eye out for a loss leader bolt action on sale at a chain store. For example, the Savage mentioned above. One in .243 Winchester would be best for a youngster. I think that Gander Mountain has a good sale for the Thanksgiving ad as an example.

[smoked turkey]

+1 on the accuracy and value of the savage offering. I know some shy away from a used gun in circumstances like these. However if you look around at your local dealers you just might find a sleeper. I think the 243 is a good choice. Our grandson shot his first doe at age 10 and he took his second this year at age 12 with the same 243. I handloaded him some light loads and they have worked good for him.

[Throckmorton]

yep,go with Savage. it'll last a long long time,and shoot great.

[RugerFan]

Speaking just of caliber, I would go with the 7mm-08. You can load it light now so the recoil is light and when he gets older, he will appreciate the potency of a full power 175 gn load. Not much you can't kill with the later. When my boy was a youngster I loaded a 30-06 with 125 gn bullets at book minimum. It was a cream puff to shoot. Now he shoots the same gun at age 22 with full house 180 loads.

[btroj]

A Savage would be a fine choice.
I would look at a 308 Win. Easy to find good boolits for it. Easy to load for it. My daughter got her first deer at 13 with one. 130 condom bullet over enough 4895 to get 2300 to 2400 fps. This is a cartridge that is so easy to load up or down that it isn't even funny. And face it, what caliber has a better selection of boolit moulds than the 30's?

Brad

[Mk42gunner]

To tell the truth, with the price that Savage rifles are selling for it is awful hard to justify buying a used bolt action. One of the local toy stores had them advertised for $279.00. Savage 110 rifles generally shoot pretty good, too.

Robert

[home in oz]

Savage bolt.

Watch for used rifles AFTER deer season....

[Shooter6br]

+ 1 on the Savage Beat my 700 in the accuracy department.

[MtGun44]

Stevens is a Savage without the Accutrigger, VERY, VERY affordable and accurate guns.

http://www.gunblast.com/Stevens-200.htm

+1 on 7-08, too. Personally, I prefer 7x57 but you can't get them any more and the
7-08 is almost as good.

Bill

[buck1]

GREAT HELP GUYS!!! It looks like stevens / savage is the way to go!! I think I will try the deer season ending trick and keep a eye out for a month or so before I get a new one. Thanks again....Buck

[Echo]

Can't argue against the Savage/Stevens. We had a 110 in .308 that shot clover-leafs @ 100 yds w/125 gr J-words over a bunch of Bl-C2. Son's gun, and he sold it!

But I bought a Springfield -06 sporter at a gun show a few months ago. Bishop stock, commercial barrel - I added a scope I had, and have a good hunter for under $300. Could be another option.

[Thecyberguy]

I didn't read all the answers you got on this, but I have 3 of the Marlin bolt guns and they are far from "junk". the finish may not be fancy but they shoot.

Right out of the box the 25-06 3holes touching each other at 50 yards just trying it out.
The 270 is all easy a MOA if I do my part. they have a nice adjustable trigger , are light weight and did i say they are shooters? LOL

The 243 is also a nice shooter....I am very happy with all 3 of them...just wish I had got a 7mm-08 when they were easier to find...

Than is just my opinion though.
Here is a site you can read the in and outs..

http://www.marlinowners.com/forums/index.php?board=78.0

Have a good 'un, TCG

[Beekeeper]

Look for one in the 7x57MM caliber.
Isn't much in North America it will not kill and the recoil isn't as bad as a lot of the others.


Jim

[EDK]

Savage bolt.

Watch for used rifles AFTER deer season....

Gun deer season here in MO will end in several days AND Christmas is coming. Bad times for people without stable jobs means there are some bargains headed someone's way

Last year just before Christmas, a young guy with two small children came into the local gun shop and sold a stainless RUGER 10/22 with scope and an 870 Express REMINGTON 12 gauge for $175 each. I bought the 10/22 for $200 plus tax...if the shop hadn't bought it from him, I would have caught up with him in the parking lot. Similar story on a S&W 22A 22 LR pistol last May....the shop didn't want to buy and the clerk asked me if I was interested. You don't want a deal on someone else's bad luck, but they needed the money...I didn't argue price on either one FWIW. There's a million stories like this out there. Thank God that you aren't in a bad situation and might be able to help someone WITHOUT taking advantage of them.

:Fire::cbpour::redneck:

[HeavyMetal]

suggest you haunt the pawn shops in your area, They know Winchester and remington but savage and marlin don't move that well in that market.

Case in point I picked up a pair of Savage 340's for under 300 out the door 3 years ago.

One was a 30-30 the other a 222 both very nice shooters. The 222 will outperform my number 1 in22-250.

[parson48]

I've owned a Savage 110 .243 for well over 20 years. I've never been disappointed with it. I have a 10 shot target, shot at 100 yards that is well under 1".

Wish I could deer hunt with it here in Indiana

[buck1]

Great advice!! I in no way ment to say marlin or savage were junk. I just dont know them.
I looked at a mossberg at china mart a wile back. It had a stamped trigger a plastic stock that was sure enugh plain old plastic compleete with fins and the steel had tons of tool marks covered with something that i think was ment to be a blue job. so I have been cautious since.
Years ago I bought a marlin .22 for my nephew. It was and is a good gun . But that was 10+ years ago and a lot can happen in 10 years and it was a rimfire not center fire.
Again AWSOME HELP GUYS!!!....Buck

[Blammer]

the new marlin bolt guns are really cheap and pretty good too, you may want to look at them. Plus they are LIGHT!

[Thecyberguy]

"the new marlin bolt guns are really cheap and pretty good too, you may want to look at them. Plus they are LIGHT! "

Blammer.....
I bought mine at Cabelas, on sale and paid $279 each for 2 of them and $269 for the other one. It is true they do not have high luster bluing, they are just a cheap black finish and they have synthetic stocks...but out of the box they will shoot as good or better than most rifles costing double... they chamber them in 243, 7mm-08, 308 for the XS7(short action) and 25-06, 270, & 30-06 for the XL7 (long action).
If they ever decide to pop one out in 260 REM, I will be all over that too.....and since Remington and Marlin are both owned by the same parent company....it could happen....no I do not work for Marlin, but have been a Marlin lever fan for 40 years and when the bolts came out I had to try one at that price...I am convinced..they are a lot of rifle for about $300. Have a good 'un, TCG

[wistlepig1]

Stevens is a Savage without the Accutrigger, VERY, VERY affordable and accurate guns.

http://www.gunblast.com/Stevens-200.htm

+1 on 7-08, too. Personally, I prefer 7x57 but you can't get them any more and the
7-08 is almost as good.

Bill

+1 on the Stevens/Savage, got one for my Grandson to take elk hunting this year. Good gun for the money!

[BOOM BOOM]

HI,
The savage has a good reputation.
I would choose the 7MM/08 as they are more versital. 100 gr. to 175 gr bullets in jacketed.

[Blammer]

PLUS the Marlin bolt guns use Savage barrels! so you can use a savage barrel on the barrel nut to rebarrel no problem!

[MtGun44]

That is another point for the Savage design. I bought a .30-06 M110 cheap at a gun show
and it shoots fine. Found a deal on a 7x57 replacement barrel and put it on. Shoots fine,too.
I have swapped back and forth a few times. Never bothered with a headspace gage for
.30-06 (have one for 7x57), just set it snug on a loaded round and check a couple of different
brands of ammo to make sure they will chamber OK and good to go.

I got a bargain on the 110 because the guy selling it couldn't figure out why the bolt would
not close. I took a chance that I could figure it out, and because of the risk, lowballed the
price. He had no clue (neither did I) so took it. Turned out that the front action screw was too
long and hit the bolt. Cut about .050" off the bolt and good to go. Saved at least $100 off a
price if it wasn't "broken". :-)

Bill