One thing to consider is your eyesight. I have one of the Low Wall .44s and it's a bit of a struggle for me to shoot it well with the irons. Depending on the day, a +1.5 or +2.0 works. I also replaced the bead with a Skinner blade, easier for me to get a clear sight picture with.
These little Brownings aren't drilled for mounts, but I just found a Skinner dovetail adapter that will let me mount a tiny red dot or See All in place of the rear leaf. No permanent mods to the pricey little rifle required.
The High Walls in .38/55 are still to be had, but pretty expensive. Low Walls like mine are a bit less and usually have really nice, sometimes stunning wood. Since the sights are the limitation for me and it weighs a lot less, I'm sticking with the .44. Out West, the .38/55 might be better, or if you can find one (good luck!) one of the Browning .30/30s.
If you want to try out the concept on the cheap, pick up one of the Henry Single Shots. It's a break-action (kipplauf), but is pretty nice looking and comes in .30/30, .44, and .45/70, I'll bet that .45/70 is pretty sporty on the back end. Other than the heavy trigger, easily fixed with a spring, I've not heard any complaints from owners, and I like my .308 a lot. Nice wood, blued steel, $400.
