I'm hunting open country where shots can get long. I got my buck at 340 yards this year. I use a 264 win mag with a 25" barrel and a 5-20x50 Huskemaw. I have shorter rifles and use them on occasion, but only for deer drives, timber, or similar situations. I should use a shorter rifle more, but that gun has been lucky for me and filled my freezer plus decorated my walls. It's hard for me to choose anything else unless there is a really good reason.
In high school I hunted with Remington 760 in 270 win pushing 150 grain Partitions. If I was to hunt where shots were all under 200 yards I'd likely get a similar gun in 270 or 30-06 and shorten the barrel to 20". Add a good scope for low light and I'd be set. I've always liked those old guns, especially after adding a good recoil pad and a trigger spring kit. A 20" bolt gun would be just as good, I just like the old pumps.
To me binoculars capable of seeing what I'm shooting at the fringes of legal light, and a scope capable of taking advantage of those minutes are way more important than the firearm. I bought good binos years back, and then had to upgrade my scope to match. It was sure frustrating not being able to shoot what I could see. I've taken some of my best bucks on overcast, foggy/misty/sleeting hunts where usable light was scarce during legal hunting time.
