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My choice would be a Ruger 77 RSI (The International) in .308 Win. Bullets of choice would be either the 165 gr. Speer Hot-core or the 180 gr. Sierra Pro-hunter in round nose form. Using Winchester brass, I would load the 165 gr. bullet with 49.0 gr. of W-760 for 2550 FPS. (That's what My three RSI rifles deliver.) For the 180 gr. Sierra, 48.0 gr. of the same powder with Winchester brass.
My preference is for the 165 gr. bullet, although the 180 is more accurate. but then, I'm usually hunting deer, not bear. Of all the deer taken witht he 165 gr. bullet, only one has been recovered. All the others had the bullet pass completely though the deer. No deer went more than thirty feet after being shot. it's a darn good load.
I also must be totally honest here. The RSI can be a temperamental rifle. certainly they are not the most accurate either, but they have a class that is all their own, being about the closest to a genuine Mannlicher-Schoenaur in feel I've been able to find. ( I had two which were stolen.) The loads mentioned have, so far, proven to be the most accurate from my three rifles. None of them like 180 gr. spitzers at all, producing patterns with every bullet I've tried. The 150 gr. bullets are 2.5-3.0" bullets at best, 180 gr. Spitzers 3.0=-4.0" at best. The 165 gr. Speer will do 1.25-1.50" consistantly and the 180 gr. Sierra round nose is the real winner at .75". Go figure.
Just find one of these rifles and pick it up. Swing it to your shoulder and try the feel. Believe me, you just might get hooked. Put a low power 2.5 or 3X scope on it and you'll be good to go. Mine have 1.75x6X Simmons Whitetail Expedition scopes on them at present. Not too bad a scope, but at least one was easily knocked out of zero when my wife fell in some rocks.
I'm thinking of dumping most of my variable scopes anyway. For most of my hunting, depending on the rifle a 3,4, or 6X scope will do just fine for 99 percent of the hunting I do.
Paul B.
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