Advise from and old man......(soon to be 55 yrs old :P)
I have never missed opening day of deer season since the age of four. I come from a family of multi-generation hunters that have included front page appearances in rags such as Field & Stream and such.
I have had the pleasure to fish and hunt all over North America and do not buy into all the hype projected by TV shows and rag advertisements. I have NEVER camo's my face or any equipment during hunting. I also wear blaze orange on all hunting trips. I do most of my hunting in West Virginia now (Deer, Turkey, Bear, small game) and have been successful for the past 48 years. I sold a lot of weapons back in the day under a Federal Firearms License.
My gun case is full, ranging from 22's, 30-30's, 30-06's and 12 gauge shot guns. I also carry a 9MM or 44mag (I have a concealed weapons permit).
If you want to hunt small game - 22's or shotguns
If you want to hunt deer or equivalent size game - 30-30's
If you are taking long range shots - 30-06's
If you want to hunt with a pistol - 44mag
For personal protection, you want something that will knock your predator backwards - 9mm's, 45's, 44mag
Recommedation(s) FACT- 30-30's have been the most popular deer hunting rifle in history
FACT- Remington Model 700 BDL is the most popular sold rifle (comes in different calibers)
FACT - S&W pistols have been reliable since day one
If you are buying a pistol for protection, buy a 9mm. Shop for something that fits comfortably in you hand. For hunting, buy a 44mag. Again, something that is comfortable.
If you are concerned about recoil, that is easily accommodated by the number of powder grains in you cartridges, the weight of the weapon, and the type of grips/or padding. These recoil issues can be discussed with the seller and I am sure he/she will fix you up to meet your desires.
STAY AWAY from Taurus weapons, they damned near put me out of business with all the returns. Even front sights kept falling off.
Unless you are hunting in an open field, stay away from a .270. The slightess branch will redirect the bullet whereas a 30-30 and 30-06 will usually go right through it.....
I am sure there will be comments against this post, but like I said....I have been doing this all over North America for many years and have the seller as well as user experience. Good luck in your search.

I've always heard the brush buster is a myth (30-30). I think the reason why they call the 30-30 the brush buster is not so much the blunt tip, weight (studies showed the opposite effect), but because hunters are more accurate with this very versatile weapon.

I own both a 30-30 and a 270.

If I'm hunting hogs or deer in the swamp, I'll grab my model 1894 30-30 (no scope). It's light, shorter barrel, and maneuverable, allowing for quick target acquisition, especially within brush.
If I know I'll be subject to open long shots, I'll take the 270 (with scope), which is heavier and longer, but more accurate at longer range.

Followup post
http://www.cabelas.com/...sh-Buster-Myth/532941.uts

http://www.chuckhawks.com/rifle_ballistics_table.htm

Anybody thats ever had a physics class knows that 'brush busting' by any bullet is a fallacy. I don't know if Isaac Newton was a hunter, but I bet he would not have tried to pound a bullet through a briar thicket and hoped to hit anything.

A 270 has taken a hell of a lot of game in the last 50 years. I've known a lot of people that traded in their 30-30 for a 270 (or similar), I've never known anybody that traded the other way.

At the end of the day, ANY modern bolt action rifle shooting any round from a .243 up will adequately take most game in north america if you do your part. I've never had a deer or elk complain that I killed it with the wrong caliber rifle.

7mag and be done with it. I have killed deer with multiple calibers, and the deer drops faster with a 7mag. Just my experience.

Hope you're not shooting South-East white tail with that 7mm mag. Overkill for most things in the south. :)

Overkill is better than no kill, but I own a .270 as well.

Hunt with a bow and be done with it.... A bow can take any big game animal.... Small game and fishing its your all around best bet

you hunt bears with bow?

no, he hunts prairie dogs with an english longbow.

It's all a personal preference thing. For carrying, I like my glock 19 for compact reasons and capacity. In all honesty, I rarely carry despite having the permit. I'll defer on the hunting rifles, although I'm partial to the 30-06s.

i have a crossbow, dont have a compound bow. The crossbow has 2 bucks to its name, but the weapon is pretty much limited to 50-60 yards or so, even my relatively high end Barnett. patience and a really good blind are needed for bow hunting.

Never used a blind seems like it would be fun I use tree stands and yes use a bow for bear guns are to easy ;p

Yar, an I use my dagger to cut out that bar's heart and eat it on the spot, like you're s'posed ta.

well its your life if you decide to use bow against bear.

the last time i shot a buck with my crossbow, the bolt went clean through the deer, knicked its heart, and lodged itself 2 inches into the tree behind the buck. buck only bade it 20 yards before he droped.

a good bow can take a bear down easily. especially a black bear

Lol my compound bow makes a pass through shot on bear and deer in and out 1 1/4 " cut all the way they don't go far at all

sure it can take but aim needs to be good since time for 2nd shot isn't that long if bear attacks.

You only get one shot and its just a black bear they won't kill ya just rough you up if your that unlucky bears would much rather avoid conflict most all attacks are because your to close and startle them they don't go around looking to kill and eat people or anything for that matter a black bear is much more content with berries and acorns then they are for meat

still aim needs to be good or health bill will be somewhat big.

If you hit one I doubt he will climb trees to find you.......but I agree with you somewhat if you can't hit where you want you should not be in the woods hunting

if you get to tree.

Already in one to start off ;)

in that case.

well, I'd like to shoot whomever is about to rob me, or physically harm me, but most likely they'd catch me with my pants down and my gun belt hanging around my ankles, but that's only because i don't pay enough attention to my surroundings and can't figure out the proper time to run for it. I'd probably trip over my ankle pants anyway.

Yah, conflict avoidance is the best bet. If someone has a gun pointed at me and is robbing me, I don't expect I'll be able to draw faster and would rather give them my wallet. Of course, I may choose to pursue them once i have evened up the odds, but generally the risk isn't worth the reward. Plus, any idiot mugging me will get like $23 at any given time.

if robbers are druggers then they can buy drugs with 23 bucks.

For rifle depends on "where" you hunt. I have several used for different areas. More open space 7mm is sweet with decent distance and accuracy.

For brush hunting up in the mountains where the laurel and scrubs are thick I use a lever action 35 with 200grain. In that area if you can get a clear shooting ally of 50 to 75 yards your lucky. The heavier bullet is also less likely to deflect as much if it hits a small twig/limb.

For pistol got couple and again it's "where you hiding it" and how comfortable are you with it. Best advice is look for a dealer who has a range and allows you to "rent" a gun. You can try couple out and see what you like (9mm, .38, 45, etc). There is a difference in both ammo used as well as the gun (my Glock 19 is nice, easy fire, easy cleaning but the S&W .357 with 1.5 inch barrel kicks and is hard for my wife to handle). There are a ton of subcompacts out there as well. Don't go based on price as some manufacturers on the low end are pieces of crap. If you get a S&W, Glock, Ruger, HK, Browning, etc. chances are you will get a decent gun over something like a Taurus or HighPoint.

Anyways, my doggie opinion.

BD