Yeah, nuts is a good word for it. I am actually looking for a coyote/varmint gun and have 2 in mind. One of them is a Ruger Mini-14 Ranch rifle and the other is a Bushmaster Varminter. The Mini is about $500 and the Bushmaster is $1000, and those prices are before adding a scope, bipod, sling, extra clips, ect.....
My hunting has really taken off in the last couple years and its hard to depend on your dad's guns when he lives almost 2 hours away, so I have to get my own I guess. I have 2 shotguns already, both 12 gauges, one is a semi-auto. The other is a pump. I hunt pheasents and turkeys with them and now. I have recently been hooked into coyote hunting, so I need a rifle. I guess I look at them as a investment, if you take care of them they will hold a pretty good price if you ever need to dump them.