Hi ImKu -- I decided to go for the 30 caliber hunting rifle rounds as a second rifle caliber, specifically the 30-06.  I figured that stocking up this caliber will allow me to get rifles for the two things I wanted it for:  (1) hunting anything and (2) puuloa range target shooting.  As for what rifle, I figured that it would have to be 2 different ones..   an M1 Garand from CMP for the Puuloa and a Tikka T3 Lite for hunting.  Why not the Remington 700?  If i was going to be lugging the rifle around, a light rifle would be better than a heavier one.  Otherwise, if I was mostly going to be benching it and carrying it from car to bench, then a Remington 700 sounds like a really good option.

What about the 308?  I found out that OGC actually has tons of 308's on stock.  They are selling bulk 1K rounds for $800, so if you want to get that caliber, OGC is the place to go.  The 30-06 bulk ammo would still be cheaper though and is plentiful at most gun shops.  So I think the 30-06 would be a cheaper for practice purposes.  I love the idea of getting the Gunsite Scout for a bush gun.   Unfortunately, it is only in 308 caliber.  I figured that if I was going to get a Gunsite Scout, I might as well get an AR or AK carbine at that point. 

My 3rd rifle caliber will either be a 223 or a 7.62x39 but I haven't decided yet and that will have to wait a bit.  I haven't jumped on the AK platform yet as I went to the different stores to look and have not found an AK for under $1000.  Where would one get a sub-$700 WASR as mentioned by I Hate Communists and Pit808 anyway?   I don't see one anywhere and I suspect that KK is buying them all up.   

Good to hear that you've got an idea of what your purchasing.  I'm still lost, browsing LGS and lookin online.  Might sell an AR to fund my new wants

I've been fondly considering an Ar-7 to fill the .22LR category.

http://henryrepeating.com/rifle-survival-ar7.cfm

If I could only find .22LR ammo for sale somewhere. There's a reason every other firearm I own shoots cast lead reloads without issues. :-/

Ammo is getting to be like gas: the price skyrockets every time there is some destabilizing event in the world.

the ammo demand is so high that its driving the prices up until it peaks in price. at a certain point no one is willing to pay the outrageous amount per round.....

if and when everyone stops paying the high prices suppliers will catch up and the stores will have no choice but to sell the ammo at a lower price due to availability.

but as long as people are willing to pay the high prices, ammo demand and prices will not decline and the suppliers will incur more costs to produce more ammo hence the price increase from the mfg....

I heard and could be wrong, that 30-06 is not that cheap to shoot unless you can get it from SA which is the lowest grain bullet. price all depends on the grain of 30-06....

it is one hell of a wallop for hunting!!!! good luck with purchase!!!

Get a 7.62x39 AK type rifle.

Used ones can be had for 600-700 dollars.

They're reliable, cheap and very inexpensive to feed.

They only go up in value.

Get a .308Win/7.62NATO type rifle.  Incredibly diverse set of loads for the .308Win.  You can hunt pretty much anything on the North American continent with it (although for a large bear I'd opt for something with more oomf) and ammo is available anywhere.

Not saying you can't get AK ammo, but for diversity, .308Win is it.