Question on caliber....

[The Oregonian]

My brain says go with a 30-06 but my heart says to go with something a little less boring. But boring has killed plenty of animals. I would bet that with good shot placement, nothing inside of 500 yds would know the difference between a 30-06 and another fairly similar caliber....

 

[COBrad]

If you're not going to reload, '06. As was stated earlier, another great caliber to consider is the 7 mag. Ammo is just as available as the '06, and your range potential is higher with higher BC bullets going faster.
I would think hard about stepping up to the .300. Recoil will be significantly greater, and it sounds like over kill for the use described.
If you're having a custom built, you may well want to take up reloading. You can tailor your loads to wring all the performance and accuracy out of your rifle.
I started reloading 38 years ago as a teenager because it was so much cheaper.

 

[TOM H]

My brain says go with a 30-06 but my heart says to go with something a little less boring. But boring has killed plenty of animals. I would bet that with good shot placement, nothing inside of 500 yds would know the difference between a 30-06 and another fairly similar caliber....

Why don't you ask Darrell they do the schools on LR I'm sure he give you the right answer.

 

[FEENIX]

Excellent recommendations thus far from everybody, esp.TOM H and varmintH8R.

Good luck!

Ed