Benjammin: I'll take a careful look at the 7mm-08 before making a final decision.

In the mean time, I was looking at the .30-30 rifles by Marlin and they have a good contender in that caliber (a popular lever gun). So if I go that way, I just need to think a bit about barrel length (choice of 20 in, 22 in, or 24 in).

One nice thing I like about the .30-30 and 44-magnum calibers is that they do have some use for defense against big animals, provided they are fired at close ranges. If a bad situation happened with a rogue black bear, they do offer a last-ditch option for protection.

best,
other Pete