I've got the Fireball in 17 cal, and a lot of 223s in bolt actions ( all bought when they were on sale and cheap!)
If you hand load, and can live with 22 caliber, you can make a 223 into whatever you want., plus brass is available and cheap. I'haven't bought 223 brass in 20 plus years.. its all range pick up. Last month, I picked up over a 1000 pieces of brass off the ground.. people shoot their AR and then just leave it laying around. See two guys who leave and then shot 5 boxes of 20 rounds each and then don't don't pick it up.. it isn't hard to get 1000 rounds in just a month.
Throw it in the tumbler overnight and next morning it looks brand new. I give away thousands of pieces of brass a year to friends who are reloaders or just starting out.
a handloader can make a 223 be anything from a 22 LR equivalent to a hot loaded 223.. that covers a lot of ground...
versatility and cheap to shoot, and there are a million good bolt 223 actions on the market.
Just a suggestion. I have relatives who live in east Tennessee, and the ones that shoot, do 223 for setting at the back door.
and they choose that, not for any reason , but they are cheap SOBs.. probably worse than me, on economizing