I’m not sure if you’ve gotten all of the info you were looking for but I’d like to throw my .02 cents in as well.
I am very partial to the model 700 bdm. Mostly because of their bulletproof (haha) design and durability as well as reliability. These weapons have stood the test of time through army snipers as well as police sniper teams. The reason I like the bdm as an option for a hunting rifle is that it allows you to load the magazine and leave it out of the rifle while traveling to your stand. Then you can easily load the magazine, chamber a round and your good to go. The round that I prefer for all of my hunting at any distance is the 7mm-mag. It is not such a large caliber that it will make a big mess at close ranges but large enough to have plenty of stopping power for almost any game animal you lower it on. The ballistics are great as well. I sight mine in at one inch high at a hundred yards and can pretty much hit anything I’ve aimed at out to 300 by aiming center mass. I mean you can adjust for distance if you want but it’s gonna be pretty close just by putting the crosshairs on the big part of your victim.
As far as scopes go, I really like the leupold scopes but feel that for the same money, you can get a good Nikon with superior clarity through the optics.