[Travis McGee]

I'd get a Ruger 10/22 and a Ruger Standard Model .22 pistol, and then put a gazillion fun rounds through them.

Then you will be a shooter, and you will know what appeals to you for your next purchase.

A Savage 110 would be hard to beat for a .308 bolt action that "does it all" for little cost.

[harpseal]

I agree with the 10/22 recommendation but for cost effectveness I persionally prefer the Browning Buck mark for the .22 handgun it is a matter of personal taste. S&W also makes a good .22 cal semi-auto and there are others including Beretta's that can be excellent.

Agree on the inexpensive .308

[wardaddy]

Good advice. The Ruger 10/22 is a work horse.

I would note that for me at least as a boy, making the transition from BB to .177 pellet to .22 pellet to .22 LR was a lot easier and more graduated than the leap from .22LR to .270 or .30-06 or .308 or even .30-30 which is the standard jump up for southern boys after say 5th or 6th grade.

We usually had already gotten a good dose of scatterguns from Stevens .410 and 20 to eventually 12 before we were introduced to what was referred to as high powered rifles.

Oddly, pistols usually came last with wheelguns first naturally.

A comprehensive graduated instruction of firearms as a boy is a boon which cannot be overvalued.

If money is no object, one might look a Kimber .22 or Browning (Belgian of course).

[Squantos]

am not a stranger to handguns, or to military rifles, I qualified expert on both a .45 and an M16, so I am not starting from scratch, but I am looking for a rifle for deer hunting basically that will not set me back too much money, yet still be a decent value

I read s/he's shot before thus I didn't start with suggesting the .22's........

Stay Safe !