You'll love the 35 Rem. You can load to to most anything, from subloads with pitol bullets all the wat up Barnes solids. Have fun! One of my favorite bolt gun calibers is 35 Whelen, and I've long thought of the 35 Rem as the lever paralell.

The business about 45-70s in south texas is just a legend, no more. These days, unfortunately, it's all about firepower down here. The durg and people runners have gone full auto. You are just as likely to see a tactical weapon in 308 or ever 300 win mag, or a few M1As around.