Hi, new to non-AR rifles

Hi everybody, I just moved to a rifle hunting state from a shotgun hunting state and am excited to build up a hunting rifle that I can also use as a meditative target shooter. I have only hunted whitetail and now have access to elk, black bear, sheep, goats, and moose. I have shot quite a bit in the military but never really learned about ballistics. I bought a Stevens 200 in 7mm-08. I haven't done anything to it yet, it groups terribly so far.

It came with a Nikon Prostaff 3-9x40 BDC that I wasn't super excited about so I sold it to buy something else. The rings were some leupold rings and bases that didn't seem to mount everything really tight. I would like to replace the scope and rings for something else before I decide what to do next. I am thinking Leupold VX-1 and some PRW mounts. Not sure about the base(s) though.

I don't know what the twist of the barrel is but I have read it is something like 1:12 (could be another reason it groups poorly). I am not reloading and have been shooting off-the-shelf Hornady American Whitetail and Superformance (both 139g). I may change the barrel for something else (maybe a different twist rate or maybe a different cartridge completely). 7mm-08 is locally available, but not as much as 243 and 308. If I order ammo online, the 6.5 Creedmoor seems interesting because match ammo is available. I'm not excited about a .308 for some reason but I probably should be, simply because of ammo availability.

I also don't care for the olive/tan/gray plastic stock. It doesn't fit very well and I think it's kind of ugly. I like the looks of the camo color Boyds laminate stocks and the price is great.

Overall, I am excited to build this up. I don't have a lot of money to spend on it so reading on the forums will be a huge help in making high value decisions.

howdy

Welcome aboard

Welcome from NE Michigan.

Welcome - thank you for your service.