Wow. That is a ridiculously low price for a good scope. I have a Burris Veracity on my .308. If this had been available at this price when I bought the Veracity, I would have bought this one.

I have 2 Burris scopes, both are very good for the $. For a hunting set up, I really like the Burris Signature HD I have in 3-15 x44. It's SFP with a plex reticle, which IMO makes it better suited for the OP's intended purpose.
If he could kick up his budget a bit, or find a good used one, I recommend a Leupold VX5-HD, 3-15 x44. I have two of them and they're fantastic.

AMEN!!

this right here:

Go get a good bolt gun in .308, load it with 150 grain soft points and go hunt (this is the truth)

This is where you and I differ in opinion. I like FFP on any reticle that has substentians. And I like to hunt with FFP. Any SFP reticle needs to be a simple duplex reticle. Too easy to make an error with a mil, bdc, or moa reticle in SFP.

Apex, sorry you lost the doe you shot. Sorting out bullet choice, shot selection, and placement will get your difficulties with recovery headed in the right direction. Developing tracking skills is the final part of the recovery equation. If you shot the deer quartering away where you indicated, your tracking skills were not adequate, because the doe died quickly.

If you want a new caliber for deer hunting. One that is not on the light end of deer cartridges. One that will take deer with authority and ammunition that is readily available, get a 30-06. A bigger caliber alone will not solve your problem with recovery. Bullet choice, shot selection and placement along with tracking skills is still something you need to work through. Anecdotally there is an active thread currently on THF about a hunter shooting a deer with a 30-06 and core-lokt bullets with no blood. The commonality is a hunter blaming his gear. Any hunter with ample experience hunting with both cartridges will tell you they both will do the job. They will also tell you if you don’t do your job, either may not pan out.
Your .223 will work fine for deer if you shoot them right. Very similar to a .410 for birds. Smaller margin for error but deadly in the right hands!
The only complaints about a 30-06 is some of the modern metromen in the 2020’s have grown too limp wristed to operate a man’s rifle and get their panties in a bunch about it.

Good luck Apex. Hopefully the learning curve will be short and you get the recovery details working for you.

While the turrets work as they should, I can’t say I’m happy with mine. I’ve sent it back twice because the illuminated reticle stops working. Even if I turn it to the off position at the end of every use, it will drain the battery. I like the illuminated reticle on a FFP scope, it allows me to not have to turn the power up to see the reticle while hunting.

It will be coming off the gun after this season and being sent back for a third time, then placed on a 22 until it can prove itself worthy of being on my hunting rifle

Appreciate the response! I found a couple drops of blood on the exit wound side where I shot the doe. After that we did not find anything. I had a more experienced hunter with me this day by chance, which I was thankful for. However after hours and hours of attempting to track down this deer we had no luck. I am not sure what else to have done - but to your point, very new. I am guessing that deer ran a long way off and was bleeding internally. Any resources like books, videos, etc on tracking that you suggest? It was definitely very frustrating.

Loosing a deer is something that happens . Been hunting for 50 years now and have lost a few . Have taken deer with so many different calibers including the 556. I still like the 308. It gives you a broad spectrum of choices . Probably more than any other caliber. I have some high end rifles and low end rifles . Bought a Howa 308 500.00 dollar gun and it shoots right there with my expensive guns . The cheap savage hog hunter will do the same . These guns are threaded. Most modern 308s will hold Moa if you do your part . I am amazed at the modern guns and how well they shoot for a budget. Ammo choice is critical though. Good luck in your future hunts.

7mm-08