high powered long range bolt action

[McRackin]

I'm pretty new with firearms in general I just took the NonRestricted and Restricted safety courses and I've been looking around for my first rifle that I want to buy for when I get my license in a couple months. I'm just wondering if anyone here could help me out and recommond some strong power bolt action rifles that have good long range accuracy.

Thanks

[Derek_Erickson]

Get a .22 first, then start wasting money

[brotherjack]

Ditto on the 22LR comment. Get one, and about 2,000 rounds of ammo, and shoot all of it. Rinse, lather, repeat on a weekly basis for a couple of months.

For a "first big rifle", it's hard to beat a Savage. They ain't pretty, but by and large they are the most accurate "off-the-shelf" rifle available at any price. They're also pretty affordable.

Caliber - I would recommend one of the "standard" (308, 30-06, 270, or maybe if you insist on a magnum, a 7mag). Any of the above will work just fine for anything you plan to shoot with it.

308 Winchester is my personal favourite - I like the short stubby cases, I like short action rifles, and I am a cheapskate and 308 Winchester ammo is the cheapest 'big gun' caliber there is. Appropriately loaded, a 308 Winchester is capable of smacking deer size stuff at ranges well beyond what you should ever consider shooting at one, and moose/elk size stuff out to 300-ish yards (which is probably also still beyond what you should consider shooting at a critter - unless you've got a really good rest and a lot of practice under your belt). But that's just my reasoning for my favorite caliber - any of the aforementioned calibers would be a great choice.

[RMG]

What brotherjack said, I repeat, with the exception of the 30-06 never ever will one of them be in my cabinet, if one does, I am sure the others there will mutiny or worst start a revolution.

[Scobo]

you have lots of time for research so go to chuckhawks.com. great info there in regards to caliber selection and rifle selection based on what you want to the gun to do which shoudl be the 1st question you need to ask yourself.
or what these guys said. this site for picking up a used gun or canadiangunnutz.com is great too. with gunnutz you will have to request for the exchange portion and wait a week or two.

[rishu_pepper]

It's no coincidence; I did pretty much exactly what brotherjack described. Half a year ago I was first exposed to shooting, then bought my first gun, the .22, and slowly moved on to my second gun (bought on CGN), a Savage .308. Six months have passed, and while I'm no sniper, I'm pretty comfortable with shooting at a decent/ethical range (~200 yards). A strong recoil from a "high powered" rifle could cause one to develop a flinch, especially beginners, and it'd be hard to "un-learn" it.

Trust these guys, they know what they're talking about!

[todbartell]

Remington, Browning, Savage, Tikka - all make heavy barrel magnum rifles that are ideal for long range shooting

22's are boring, buy a 223 as your first gun

[jjensen20]

What brotherjack said, I repeat, with the exception of the 30-06 never ever will one of them be in my cabinet, if one does, I am sure the others there will mutiny or worst start a revolution.

Way to hit the nail on the head!!!! Its 2007 why are people still using guns from WWI?

[brian]

I say get an idea of what you want then head down to a gun store and get a hold of the rifles and see which ones feel the best to you and fit your frame. Ask lots of questions and take the answers with a grain of salt.

.22 is a great rifle to have around, cheap as dirt ammo and lots of target practice!

[Mr. Dean]

Way to hit the nail on the head!!!! Its 2007 why are people still using guns from WWI?

30-06 is an extremely versitle round. It can be loaded 'down' to 308 levels and gives up little to a 300 Winmag balisticly, when hand-loaded. It's a tried and proven round that's been around since 1906.... Because it works. I seriously doubt that it'll be taken off the shelves anytime soon.

With that said, I don't own one but would suggest it to a fellow buying their 1st hunting rifle... Unless he/she wanted to go out and strictly hunt Bison and Grizzly Bears over all else.