I'm playing with the idea of buying a 22-250 for a couple of reasons.
1. I want to practice shooting a lot more than I have in the past, without shooting my 7 mag or 7mm-08. The round count on my 7 mag is getting up there, and I'd rather preserve it since it shoots so well, and my 7mm-08 is a very lightweight mountain rifle that gets hot fast, so I can't really shoot all that much with it.
2. Varmints. Never spent much time after them, but I hunted a piece of private ground this fall that was absolutely loaded with them, and the farmer expressed some interest in someone coming in and thinning them a bit. I'm happy to oblige.
3. Smaller lighter - weight gun to pack around in the woods during the off season for the opportunistic coyote, grouse, etc...
I haven't established a budget for this yet, but I'd like to keep the gun under about $600. I can get deals on scopes, so that's not a factor.
Any standouts that you guys would suggest right off the bat?
I had a Browning BLR in 22-250 once. It isn't the tack driver like some bolts are but it was close. Fun to shoot a lever gun in varmint caliber and pack around while scouting or hiking. The caliber and BLR platform seem like an odd pairing but it worked for me for general rifle shooting and the occasional varmint session.
Rob