I like the 270,it has a heavier bullet but can still reach on out there.

I shoot a 7mm Mag,it can go down to 145's and up to 175's for the big game.............Not much recoil either...

I like the 7mm-08, its mild to shoot and a great flat shooter.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7mm-08_Remington

The 25-06 is a great choice. Now of course it might be a little small for very large game, but for whitetail, mule deer and antelope I think it is the perfect choice. It is a flat shooting and fast round to use.

I just recently purchased a Marlin XL7 bolt action in 25-06. I have it shooting a 3 shot group the size of a dime at 100 yards, dead center the bulls eye. The Marlin XL7 would be an excellent choice in a rifle if you are looking to save some money.

I purchased my XL7 for $339. It does not have iron sites but does come with a weaver base for mounting a scope. Marlin uses what they call the Pro Fire trigger system, which strangley looks like the Savage Accu-Trigger. The bolt is fluted, the barrel is parkerized and it comes with a synthetic stock.

I do my own reloading and have been working up a load for it.

The 25-06 has many, if you reload, brands and types of bullets to use. You can hunt anything from varmints up to the whitetail and mule deer.

the 25-06 is a good choice, especially if long range shooting is being done. for comparable ballistics in a smaller rifle (the 25 needs a 24" barrel to perform well) a 7mm-08 provides comparable recoil, better sd and can perform from a short action with a 20" barrel. much better overall if you're hunting in cover, but not as good if you're hunting open country... if you hunt out west, the 25 is the better of the two.

I love my old 6.5 Swede, but if I ever lost it and couldn't get another, I'd take a long hard look at the 7mm-08.