Never owned a rifle before. Wanna get into hunting more. Need an ease of accessibility to ammo, and the capability of a far shot…
Its narrowed to a .243 .270 or possibly 30-06. Tell me which one and why
14’ Skiff-“Redfish Reaper”
Woo Hoo - have fun reading the replies while everyone justifies why their gun and caliber are the best, you’ll especially like the replies that explain why none of these 3 options is good and why their caliber is better, this question has been done a few times before
to save you the trouble, either 270 or 270 short mag
no need for me to justify why, just take my word 
Please don’t ask the, “What model gun”, or “What scope” questions. Those threads are painful to read. My sides still hurt from laughing so hard at the last one.
But just in case you have those questions, to clear that up: Winchester Model 70 topped with a Meopta, 87% of all knowledgeable hunters agree with this, statistics don’t lie, again no need to read other posts, would be best to just delete this topic and take this valuable information for yourself 
Pioneer 197SF
I have found that around here most folks idea of a ‘long shot’ are a bit different than mine. It would really help for you to define the normal & max range you expect to encounter.
I have always enjoyed shooting the .270 and think it is a great deer caliber. The 30-06 is probably the most common caliber out there and is very capable in its own right. The 6mm calibers are also popular, but may not have a huge following by long distant shooters.
Most of my deer hunting has been done with .223, .270, and 7mm. Believe it or not, I have killed more deer with the .223 than with the other two combined.
I own and shoot both the .270 and .270 wsm. I love both guns and rounds. One is a Savage 110 and the other a Winchester Model 70. Just remember get the gun you want, and get a quality scope not a 50 dollar walmart special.
Meopta is a good scope but a bit pricey for a young man getting his first rifle. You can find zeiss conquest scopes from 400 and up or even a Weaver Grandslam for right at 400. Go and look at different scopes then go home and look them up and read about them, find the one you want with the reticles you want and get it. The put it on the rifle of your choice and burn some powder. Good Luck.
Editted to say: .270 wsm is more expensive and harder to find then the standard .270. That is why I reload all of mine.
Going to Church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.
You are the offspring of 5 monkeys having But Secs with a retarded fish squirrel. CONGRADULATION!!!
Think of you choice for a first rifle this way, what cartridges am I going to be able to find on the shelf of any mom and pop, walmart or hardware store just about anywhere in the country? Next, how big is the game you are going to be after, if its whitetail sized, then keep the .243, larger discard it. It’ll work just not as well. I’m more biased towards the '06, more bullet weight offerings.
The .270wsm is about as useful as tits on a boar, all the SM cartridges are. They won’t do anything that the standard won’t do, ammo is harder to find and more expensive. Most of them are a PITA to load for as well.
The .270 is a fine cartridge, I just personally have no need for it. I’d rather have the .280 with its mirror image ballistics and bigger variety of loads. Plus its a .284/7mm bullet which goes with the 7mm08 and 7mmMag I already shoot.
Lots of decent scopes out there, budget as much for the scope as you do the rifle. Don’t get sucked in by reticles that have mil-dots or complex BDC systems, get a #4 or Plex Reticle and learn the ballistics of the gun to range with.
Mark
Pioneer 222 Sportfish Yamaha F300
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.
“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
30-06. You will never need a bigger round in N. America and even during the worst part of the Obama scare most places had some kind of 06 ammo. There are reduced power loads for starting out that work great even at 200 yards. Depending on the rifle, recoil of heavy rounds can be strong and with your first rifle, it could cause you to develop bad shooting habits.
My personal favorite long range is my 280 hand loaded for reasons that were explained before. Heavy brush and stalking is 45-70 lever.
Hydra-Sports 22 Bay Sport
225 Rude
I bought a .270, because that’s what my dad, brothers, friends, and cousins all shoot.
I have a Savage 111 and love it.
The 150 grain Winchester Super-X makes a big hole in a whitetail.
Semper Fi
18’ Sterling
115 Yamaha
Big Ugly Homemade Blue Push Pole
I think my name tells you you which caliber I prefer. I did inherit a .270 Remington bolt action from my dad, nice shooting as well
Although, I’ve probably taken more with my trusted old 30-30 back in the day than anything else.
I put my .308 on the shelf this year and started shooting a .243. I have killed 3 deer with it all from 20 to 175 yards none of them ran more that 30 feet but no major exit wounds/ blood loss either so if one did run it would be a gem to track it. The big question is recoil if its your first rifle get something that dosent kick very hard with an reasonable bullet weight(120 to 150 gr) .260/7mm-08 and learn to shoot it well. Sure to -06 family has some great rounds to it but is over kill for the lowcountry and a new shooter IMO. The last thing you want is to start getting jumpy when it comes time to pull the trigger and wound a deer. sometimes less is more.
Key West Stealth
150 V-max
I have killed numerous deer with each of those cartridges and 9 times out of 10 when I go in the safe for a rifle its the .243 that comes out. The majority of my kills are headshots as it doesnt mess up any meat. The rifle is sweet shooting and has also put numerous larger (for SC) deer down from shoulder shots. That being said a huge piece of the puzzle is what ammo are you going to be shooting. If you are gonna just go into walmart and buy the cheapest stuff better get the .270. If you dont mind spending more for the quality ammo like the winchester ballistic tips (black box around $30 with silver gray tips) then the .243 will be a rifle you will love. FOR SC A 30.06 is overkill.
25-06
30-06 NO QUESTIONS ABOUT IT.
If I could only choose on gun that would be it.
I owned a .270 and it did what I wanted it to do. Upgraded guns and ended up with a .30-06. Love it to death. Both kill deer. My dad had a .243 and when he replaced it he ended up with a .30-06. Happened to come across a small cabinet at the hardware store today with a few boxes of ammo inside. A couple different brands/types of .270, a couple boxes of .243, and about several different types of .30-06. I almost guarantee if a business sells ammo they’ll have the -06. Ditto everyone saying invest in a decent scope. Savage, Browning, Winchester…get what you like. Most rifles can outshoot the owner out of the box these days. I know mine can.
2012 Scout 177
Yamaha 70
so now you have some info, all totally unbiased 
there are pros and cons to all the calibers, it’s a balancing act
some say: the 243 is a little light, the 270 is hard to find, the '06 isn’t good for long range, then there is the 25-06, the 7mm’s, etc.
depends on what you plan to hunt: if just SC white tail then it’s easy, if you want to be able to hunt bigger stuff then more complicated
any weapon you choose will have shortcomings, pick one and learn to shoot it, study the different bullet types to understand what they’ll do, practice with the one for the species you’ll hunt
get a good scope, pick good quality glass then save until you can afford it, the best gun and a practiced shooter can’t succeed if they can’t clearly see the target, I’ve got a Leopold VarXIII 3.5-10X 40mm and a Meopta Meostar 3-10 with a 50mm, like the Meopta more
my personal experience with SC wtails has been with the 270s mentioned earlier, all neck shots, all except one fell over in their tracks - no trailing needed, one ran about 20 yards but that bullet went thru about 2" of tree before hitting the deer, using 130g PSP or ballistic tip rounds
pros and cons to the bullets and shot placement
do some reading and pick something, surveying here or talking to the gun shop guys will get you a variety of answers and will create confusion
Pioneer 197SF
Shoot a .270 when I gun hunt (which is once in a blue moon now that I’m hooked on bowhunting), but that’s only because I got a deal on that gun. X2 on blueskyguy’s comments about saving a little money on the rifle, and spending a little more on quality optics. Any one of the calibers mentioned will work just fine long as you hit what you are aiming at. Good shot placement=Brown down, regardless of whether you shoot a .243 or a 30-06.
“If you want any one thing too badly, it’s likely to turn out to be a disappointment. The only healthy way to live life is to learn to like all the little everyday things, like a sip of good whiskey in the evening, a soft bed, a glass of buttermilk, or a feisty gentleman like myself…”
I don’t get you Blueskyguy. I do understand that most have their own preference, but the majority of people on here do give sound advice. I believe Yakman can put on his oscillator and weed out the B.S. comments.
"some say: the 243 is a little light, the 270 is hard to find, the '06 isn’t good for long range, then there is the 25-06, the 7mm’s, "etc</font id=“blue”>.
Bluesky guy… Most say take a head or neck shot with a .243 it is not too light for that. .270 hard to find? no it is not. who says a 3006 is not good for long range? what do you think is long range? So you mention 25-06 and 7mm… what’s your thoughts?
Yakman I can’t give you my thoughts on the 25-06, never shot one. / On the 7mm awesome round and incredible knock down. I think a bit over kill in S.C. on white tail. / .243 excellent for someone that likes precision head or neck shots and does not like recoil. / .270 is what I currently use, I love it, Remington core lock 150 grain is what I use after trying numerous high dollar rounds. Cheap and dependable and my model 77 seems to like them. / On the 30-06 I’ll get another one, my personal favorite. I don’t know what bluesky is calling long range, but I’ve stretched it and taken deer past 500 yards with my 30-06. My experience in S.C. is not many stands are set up for over 200 yard shots.
Just remember Yakman, pretty much all advise you get in life is biased. You just have to know the source and if the bias is for you or against you. So great advise has been stated on this thread. Good optics are crucial, unless you are are good with iron sights. A 30-30 with iron sights out to 100 yards has killed many many many deer is S.C.
Tell us some more about what you consider a far shot. Wish you the best and don’t rush it.
i havent shot the other calibers to be a fair judge, but i own a 30-06 and love it.
accuracy: i have a savage 111 with the included nikon scope it came with and it puts 3 shots within an inch at 100 yards from a bench rest once dialed in.
ammo: when i was considering what caliber to get i was def paying attention to what was still available during the worst of the gun control trash going on and almost always found 30-06…at least the 20 for $20 core lokts anyways.
versatility: theres a multitude of rounds you can buy. you can get a light round that sure is a bit heavy but not total overkill for southern deer and still drop a big hog, but you could also get beefier rounds should you go on a big game hunt later in life without having to drop more money on a bigger rifle.
recoil: if you can handle a shotgun slug, you wont have any problem with a 30-06. actually i think the recoils a fair amount lighter than the slugs i use.
field test: ive only gotten to fire at 1 live target, but it performed well. not trying to open the core lokt can of worms but i was using those in 150 grain and had about a 175# hog come out at 150 yards. didnt have a great shot due to brush, moving sorta quick, having about 1 second to aim and fire, and a multitude of other excuses, but the bullet hit right where i had the crosshairs and sat it down pretty quickly. it did hit it hard but didnt do excessive damage to the meat either. entrance wound was small, but exit was like a golf ball.
hope that helps and regardless of what you buy make sure its what youre happy with.
Honestly, if you want the best cartridge for SC whitetail deer, get a 7mm08. Best of the .243 and the .308 combined. If you have a buddy that reloads, I can give you a load that is phenomenal in it. Shoots sub MOA in three of mine. I kill a lot with it, usually DRT.
Mark
Pioneer 222 Sportfish Yamaha F300
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.
“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
"some say: the 243 is a little light, the 270 is hard to find, the '06 isn’t good for long range, then there is the 25-06, the 7mm’s, "
Bluesky guy… Most say take a head or neck shot with a .243 it is not too light for that. .270 hard to find? no it is not. who says a 3006 is not good for long range? what do you think is long range? So you mention 25-06 and 7mm… what’s your thoughts?
[/quote]
Mr Fred - my point is simply that these are mostly opinions, some are fact based and some aren’t, my sentence started with “some say”, not my opinion but what others have said, again some may be true some not
whatever someone owns is almost always the “best”, no one would spend that much $$ then say it sux, thus why ask?
my thought on long range is: based on the ability of the shooter, thus no defined distance, practice and learn the ballistics of the stuff and the hunter can define thier own “long distance”
25-06, 7mm, etc. - don’t know enough about them to have an opinion
if I was thinking about a gun and had this question, I’d read and research on the INet, plenty of good expert factual info available, my original post was meant as a humorous reply
Pioneer 197SF
A lot of good points made above. A lot of good calibers mentioned and all will kill a deer. IMHO a .270 is all you need for a SC whitetail. Shoot 150gr and they will not go far. You can bean-field hunt with 130gr or varmint hunt with 100gr. Bullets are easy to find and a good box can be had for $20 or less. Then if you ever go out west you can still kill an elk or speed goat with the same gun. There is some very accurate and lethal ammo on the market for all situations.
J Ford