.308 Win to about 250 yards, 7mm Rem Mag past that.

Great combination...I use a 7mm Rem Mag for longer distance shooting and use a Remington Model 700 Sendero.  Most accurate rifle I've ever owned.

What caliber rifle are you hunting with there?  Kinda looks like a Henry.

Joe,

I would stay with a bolt action, mainly because of what commercial cartridge choices are available for it.

As far as caliber goes, since you're just starting out, I'd go with a .308 Win.  Its a very good all-around caliber plus it doesn't kick extremely hard.  In fact, my son went right to it without problems right from a .22.  And, there's a lot of ammunition choices out there for varying hunting conditions.  Another potential choice is the .25-06, though I think the .308 is more flexible.

One of the most common choices you'll hear for starting deer hunters is the .243 Win (which is a decendent of the .308).  Yes, when an animal is shot right it will go down with a .243.  But, I've had to chase more than one deer that didn't go down because of a less-than-optimal hit.  Another choice you'll hear is the .270 Win, and it is a pretty good roound.  But, it does kick more than the .308, and if you want to use the .270 for its flat-shooting abilities the 7mm Remington Mag does a much better job.

If I were going to buy a rifle today I'd try to get a Remington Model 700 stainless (several models to choose from).  Problem is, not all 700s come in a 24" stainless barrel. And, if you're like me where you're not going to buy 5 rifles to hunt with, getting one that does just about everything is a key.  Both my son and I have Weatherby Vanguards in stainless.  At the time we couldn't get a Remington in stainless in 24" barrels and this was the next best thing.  These Vanguards aren't made by Weatherby but Howa, and their a real cost-effective, reliable alternative to a Remington.

I also wouldn't skimp on a scope.

I've shot a 7mm Mag for years and its a great deer rifle, especially at distance.  And frankly I've been looking at the same situation as you due to the rifle's capabilities and my aging eyes.  I'm leaning more towards a 4.5 x 14 50mm more because of low light needs and long shots.

Here is a useful site with some basic information.  This site is a little more cerebral and you'll have to do some reading to determine what all this output means.  But, it does give you a realistic assessment of what you can gain with the larger objective lens. 

BH,

Other than weight reduction is there any other reason you'd like to stay with the short action?  And, is it the quick second shot you like in the 308 ME?

If so, and you're concerned about a 24" barrel, have you thought about the Remington 7600?  Its a pump action rifle with a 22" barrel, and comes in .308 Win (and other) calibers.  Remingtons are hard to beat for accuracy, and these come in synthetic as well as standard models.  A friend of mine had one in .308 for a very long time and loved it.  Link here.

Michael,

I've had to track a couple deer after being shot with a .25-06 (Not very far mind you) and there's always been a pretty good blood trail.  But, I won't shoot smaller than a 117 grain bullet for whitetail, and that may have something to do with it. 

I did shoot a 100 grain in the .25-06 for everal years (which is also the largest commercially-loaded round for a .243 unless something's changed recently) but had to switch when I had one literally blow-up on a deer's shoulder.  For some reason the added bullet weight keeps that from happening.  But, even with that unless you're shooting a partition, triple shock, or similar bullet you'll never recover a bullet in a deer when its shot with a .25-06...let's say at least I haven't.  The thing just comes apart.  I think you'll find that common for all smaller deer rifle calibers (6mm, .243, .25-06, etc)

A 7mm-08 is a great round, but I've found there's a limited choice for commercially manufactured ammunition.