Since I didn't see the caliber mentioned, I absolutely have to toss this in the mix....the timeless 30-06.
My first center fire caliber was the .35 marlin which I considered the big brother to the 30-30. At the time, the Revolution rounds had not been on the market and I accepted it as a great deer round perferctly suited to the woods I hunted which never offered shots over 75 yards much less out to a few hundred. The Marlin 336c (like the Winchester 30-30 was short, light and easy to carry in thick woods. I preferred the factory sights of the 336c and curved grib on the butt stock over the Winchester straight english-style stock and factory sights.
When the moose lottery came into focus, I knew I needed to upgrade. The 270 and 7mm were the calibers I was considering. It was only because of a great deal on a lefty Winchester Model 70 in 30-06 that I went this way.
The biggest advantage to the '06 is its general availability. Any shop that sells any ammo will most likely have at least one flavor of the '06. while it might be a bit light for the largest North American game and probably not suited as an all purpose African cartridge, I firmly believe it is capable for any species of big game in New England. It also have the advantage of a specialized "Accelerator" cartridge which is a 55 grain bullet in the full sized '06 casing designed for varmiters. Also pretty much any manufacturer builds rifles in this round.
...just my .02, I also am 100% behind the 30-30, .35, 243 (especially for smaller shooters), 270, 7mm, 300 WinMag and 300 WinMag short as all being terrific cartridges. The .22 offers the inexpensive advantage for targets and the 223 is an awesome varmit round with the unique and popular AR-15 platform to build on that offers many customization options.
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