Old Crab,
For many non-looney shooters, the 30-06 is the only rifle cartridge that many can name, offhand. And many choose the cartridge simply for that fact.
There are any number of common, off the shelf rifles and cartridges that I'd choose before the 30-06 for an older or occasional shooter that would be more fun to shoot and just as deadly on deer.
OTOH, a lot of guys are simply fascinated with the Springfield cartridge, and nothing wrong with that. I would explore the options before putting money on a rifle.
Or you could show your buddy the classifieds here and see how many rifles he tries as things take their natural course...
