Great question! I think all firearms are cool! I have an open mind to anything. That being said I'm definitely not made of money lol.
Me either. If I was, I’d be worth about $110k. I think I’m worth way more than that. I think that’s a very pathetic ransom for myself. I fell like I should at least be worth a quarter mill.
For me (and this is just me) I have always loved old, or old style rifles. Old is a very relative term. Levers do qualify. My favorite rifle to shoot is my Cimmaron (Pedersoli) Pride of the Plains. And it’s one I find my friends (several are younger than you) aalways, ALWAYS, want to shoot. The second is my Remington 700 Safari in 375 H&H. Cant say enough good about that cartridge. It has a reputation of being this crazy recoiling cartridge. It’s not that bad. Very manageable.
Another rifle I have always wanted was an old Hawken. Shot one as a kid at it became a bucket list gun. Seems kinda dumb. But I loved it. I was lucky enough to pick up a low serial #, true T/C Hawken (not a kit) last year for a song and a dance. Before that I bought what was described as a Hawken that actually turned out to be a Pedersoli Kentucky rifle (gunbroker).It was a happy surprise. Admittedly I don’t have a lot of trigger time with them because I’m a CoVid nurse. And, well, yeah. But I have some civil war BP that I do have trigger time with. BP is just plain fun to shoot.
Here is a still capture of my Sharps in action. 405gr bullet over 70gr BP in the evening. The recoil is about like a 20 gauge shotgun. However it can also be loaded to Marlin load levels. Just not to the Ruger levels. Most factory ammunition is fine. And if you think you can’t shoot a long ways, check out some videos on YT.
Another consideration should be an AR. Maybe not in .223/5.56. But maybe something like the 450BM or 458SoCom. It’s a heavy hitter and the platform offers you a lot of versatility. New upper, new gun.
If you want recoil that will detach your retinas, a Ruger #1 in 416 RemMag. But seriously, it hurts and I’m not recoil sensitive. I’m also not kidding about detached retinas.
The 50’s are ridiculously fun to shoot. But at $5-10/shot, plus the $5k-$15k initial price tag, if you aren’t made of money, then you’re better off just going somewhere and renting one a couple times. H&R also makes a single shot in 500S&W. Shot one with heavy(ish) handloads. Took 3 before I quit. But make no mistake, I quit.
I might sound like an old geezer for recommending the BP. But I’m only 38.