Well everyone should have a small game / plinking rifle to keep their skills current. The 22 LR would seem like a good choice, but I pretty much refuse to shoot anything I haven't reloaded myself unless of course it is a free offer from one of my buddies at the range. After looking long and hard at the whole list of 22 Centerfires my first choice is the 225 Winchester. The ballistic performance of the 225 Winchester is similar to the 224 Weatherby Magnum and is superior to the 223 family of cartridges based on the 0.378 head size rimless case. The 22-250 and the 220 Swift will out run it but not by a whole bunch and the 225 Winchester is easier to load for as light loads aren't as problematic.
A light game, deer, antelope, etc., rifle would be next on the list. My favorite caliber for this usage is the 260 Remington! The preferred bullet weight in the 6.5mm's is the 160 grain. This is the bullet weight that established the global reputation of the 6.5x54mm MS. From W.D. Bell’s brain shots on Elephant to numerous other outstanding feats on Lion and Leopard. There is something about having a sectional density of 0.328 that makes that slug penetrate all the way through every time.
I could write a long novel on the why's and wherefore's of why I don't like the 270, but prefer to use precious typing on items that I can say good things about. Let's just say that the combination of a chopped Ruger #1 (21" barrel) and a Leopold VX-II 2x7 left a real bad taste. Extremely loud, surprisingly heavy recoil and optics that force your face down on the stock all combined to be annoying. The only thing I have against the 7mm's and the 30's is that everyone has at least one. That alone is good enough to talk me out of it.
Now once we get on the good side of 30 caliber; we have the grand old 8x57mm Mauser. Which keeps up with the 30-06 while using less powder. The continuation of that idea, opening up the bore and shortening the case for improved efficiency, ends up with the 358 Winchester. It is quite easy to drive a 250 grain bullet at 2350 fps in the 20 inch tube of the Browning Lever Action (BLR) the only current factory rifle in 358 Winchester. This generates over 3,000 ft-lbs of muzzle energy and keeps up with the 30-06 with equal weight bullets in terms of velocity, energy, and trajectory. With the 180, 200, and 225 grain bullets the little 358 Winchester is a ballistic twin of the 30-06. Then when big bullets are needed the 358 Winchester keeps on going when the 30-06 runs out of steam. The 358 Winchester drives the 225 grain Barnes Triple-X bullet at 2,475 fps which equals what the 30-06 can do with the 220 grain slugs. The 358 Win sends the 250 grain Nosler out at 2,350 fps which is almost the velocity that made the 416 Rigby famous. The 358 Winchester can also send the 280 grain Swift A-Frame out at 2,220 fps which is the velocity that made the 160 grain bullet so famous in the 6.5x54mm MS and the sectional density is almost as high at 0.312. If all that isn’t enough, the 358 Winchester can also drive the 310 grain Woodleigh at 2,110 fps which equals the velocity of the 458 Winchester Magnum with the 500 grain bullets. Putting the icing on the cake the 310 grain Woodleigh bullet has a sectional density of 0.345 surpassing the famous for penetration 160 grain 6.5mm bullet by 5.4%.
