In a perfect world Trev I agree with you but I've been on more sheep kills than I care to count and many of the shots have been over 300 yards. I just think that for someone building a dedicated sheep rifle, why not take advantage of some of the new calibres that make the odds of you pulling that shot off a whole lot better. Speed is your friend when shots stretch past 250 yards. Not saying you couldn't do it with the 7mm08 but it's a whole lot easier with more velocity. Judging a sheep at 500 plus yards through a spotting scope is no more difficult than it is at 50. If you aren't sure....don't shoot! But why not utilize the most up to date technology to stack the odds in your favour for that inevitable 300 yard shot. The question was about the "ideal" sheep rifle...not one that will get the job done.

Heck, I killed my last ram with a muzzleloader but I'd sure never recommend the .50 front stuffer as an ideal sheep calibre. I also didn't even mention the calibre that my favourite sheep rifle is (.25-06) as there are just so many more better choices today. It gets the job done just fine but is it "ideal" I don't think so.