My daughter wants to buy her new hubby a rifle for his birthday. They are in Utah so it will be used for Mulies and Elk.She also does not have a ton to spend so looking for a basic but accurate rifle.What says the Aldeer peanut gallery?

I’ve got a Ruger American in 30-06 and it’s a good gun for a little money. A 180gr partition would take anything in North America. For a little more a Remington SPS in 7mm Rem Mag would be a great choice too.

Since elk are on the menu, I would suggest either a 30-06 or 300 win mag. If he isn't an experienced shooter, stay away from the magnum. A Ruger American is a good rifle at a good price.

Remington Model Seven in 7-08 or 308.

Check out eurooptic they had sum tikkas on clearance but won't last long I think I bought the last 30-06 but saw a 300 today if not the ruger American and Mossberg patriot would be my next 2

Something that hasn't been mentioned yet is Howa.
They make a nice rifle for the dollar.

Everything previously mentioned would be a great budget rifle. The Model 7 and the Howa are gonna be a little more than the American. I love a Model 7, but honestly all your gaining there is a gun that is shorter and lighter than the Ruger American. It will not shoot any better.

Personally since he's gonna be shooting at elk I like the ability to shoot 180's from the 30-06 or the .308. The 30-06 would still have a little more horsepower than the 308 though.

The Ruger American 30-06 will have a 22 inch barrel and honestly isn't that heavy. I hunted with one for about 3 years and other than wishing I had a shorter barrel when sitting in a very tight shooting house, I never wished I had a different gun.

The above replies all offer solid options but since I assume the new hubby is a grown man, and one that hunts, I would suggest she make it clear that he should pick the rifle he wants rather than pull something off the shelf with, no input from the end user, as a surprise.

I agree soundly with MDees.

I have to ask whats wrong with his old rifle, and what is his old rifle, something to be said for an old rifle, especially if its his only rifle.

If the budget is $500 or less, Ruger American. Calibers that would work well out there are .30-06, .270, 7mm-08, .308

If she can go low $600, Tikka T3. Now you can add 7mm mag, .300 Win mag, and .25-06 to the possibles.

If she can stretch to $725, the Kimber 84L/84M Hunter is the finest new rifle currently available without going over $1200, and opens up the possibility of the .280 Ackley. Very near 7mm Rem Mag performance with .308 level recoil. I can point her (or anyone else) to a couple of dealers on Gunbroker who will sell for this price

Tell her she might want to check her local Wally-Mart.I've seen some reports of rifles at 75% off in an inventory reduction.Ruger Americans are being had at $195.Just make sure she gets them to scan the barcode...

Since it's Utah I'm saying 30-06 and 165s for mulies and 180 Partitions for elk. Rifle brand Isn't as important as good scope&sling

I'm going to through in savage models 110,111,116 for the stainless, they'll all be priced fairly right. I'm no complaining on the roger american my brother loves his and it'll drive tacs. We both shoot 30/06.

Budget mountain rifle? I'd say savage also. For a little bit more, maybe a Tikka.

I assume weight will be a consideration, but maybe not.

30-06 is a good choice. 300 WM and 300WSM are also strong considerations.

It's a great gesture but I'm not sure I'd want my OL buying me a rifle.

I’ve never seen where weight or mountains was a factor. I tote a Ruger Guide gun on altitude trips but my shoes only weigh 1 lb.

Drag a browning 7 mag up and down the mountains of choccolocco and get back with me.... ...

We can do gear calculations if you want. There are over 2,000 steps per mile, I’ve learned in the world’s most harsh conditions that footwear, ammo, and water is what will drag you down the most. So for every extra pound of gear thats one ton of non essential weight moved per mile. You wanna know how many calories that is per day, water intake, or MRE’s to eat?

I’ll drag any rifle up ALMOST any mountain without trouble, its who I am.

Don’t get me wrong, girly men need light rifles. I choose the Ruger 77 Guide because there is NOTHING that can put it out of commission.

The OP never specified anything other than price and his intentions with the last two words of his post.

Got us a badass here.

I'd say so if he's killed men with a knife..

Only as last resort and I made a sound like a baby kitten before I pushed the blade in.

The Ruger in 06 will be perfect for Utah Elk and Mulies, this elk was taken between Blanding and Monticello with a thirty ought, hand loaded with a 180 grain Nosler partitions. Mount a good Leopold 3x9 and some practice and good to go.

You watching too many movies or it's that dang rainbow 6 loco.... Dang nitro that's a biggun.... ...Chuck Norris aint got Sit on you...

This is a buddy of mine from Blanding, he was the lucky guy who drew out on a tag for Elk in an area that had been closed to elk hunting for 25 years, so I made up all of his ammo for that hunt. I weighted out the bullets we dug out of the elk and they all retained 80 percent of their starting weight just like they were advertised to do.

Thanks for all the input.Her husband is actually a new hunter. They have just settled down in Utah and he has some buddies who hunt and will hopefully show him the ropes.You guys have provided some great info.

I like the Ruger American too but I’d take .308 over 30-06. Might just be me. I shot 06s for years and years. But I’m a short action man now.
I’ve had 7-08, .308, .243 and now 6.5 Creedmoor. The .308 might just be the best of all of em. But I ain’t let the air out of nothing yet with the Creedmoor.

That guy in the picture looks like he’s responding to Johnny loco saying something about Powermax in 30-30. I believe the translation is “I’ll whip your ass”.

I love my X-bolt they don't get much love and I don't know why. Super accurate, light, low recoil and feels good. Tons of options.

I think the A-bolt was so popular that people just don't like new stuff sometimes.

All these rifles would work but they're all so blasé and boring. This fella obviously needs a FWT Model 70 in 7x57 with a 6x42 Meopta mounted in a set of Talley LW's loaded with 175gr Nosler Partitions or 160gr Barnes TSX

OR maybe that's just what I'd want my ol' lady to buy me

Only if you roll your own ammo. I've had a ruger m77 7X57 since '84 and shoot 150 partitions in it. My brother got a M70 featherweight super grade a couple years ago and I'm loading 139 gr Hornady SP for him.

Always been a fan of the 275 Rigby.

One of the very few rifles I truly regretted selling was a stainless M77 RSI in 7x57 that was barrel stamped .275 Rigby
Sounds like your brother has a really nice rifle. A supergrade 7x57 is real high on my rifle bucket list.

I'm howling.

7mm-08 is the modern version of the 7x57, and it's a lot easier to find good ammo

So you wear shoes ? pffftttt. . I go bare foot. Saves that extra pound for when I carry my 45 -70 at 10,000 feet. But that's just me. But I also don't carry bullets and beat the Dahl sheep with my butt stock after sneaking up on them.


To the o.p. in all seriousness if your gonna be hiking and climbing every pound will count. Lot's of options there just go light as you can without sacrificing accuracy.

For $500 a new Weatherby Vanguard would be my pick. Under that price - Ruger American. Over that price the options are pretty endless you can get a very nice used rifle for $600 that anyone would be proud to own. Not some beat up piece.

If i were to pick a caliber on a new rifle for this dynamic duo of game animals it would be the 7 Mag. Without a doubt. This has got 7 Mag written all over it.

CDNN has a couple Ruger M77's sub $500 that would work. They have a .280 and 30-06. I would probably go for the .270 with Green Hogue stock. $449 you'll be in that under $500 with shipping and transfer fee. I can't remember what CDNN charges to ship.

If those calibers work... For the money you can't beat a M77 Ruger at those prices.

Some of us are not interested in the modern version...

If it were me id go with either a 7mm or 300. If he had the coin I am selling my 300 sender, with the break it kicks about like a 223.