Which caliber

[tazdog]

I will be getting my 9yr old son a rifle in the near future. I'm getting a full size rifle in either 25-06 7mm-08, 6.5 creedmoor or 308. Looking for the most knock down with least recoil. He is a tall and stocky kid so not looking for a youth model. Thanks

[cwink]

I will be getting my 9yr old son a rifle in the near future. I'm getting a full size rifle in either 25-06 7mm-08, 6.5 creedmoor or 308. Looking for the most knock down with least recoil. He is a tall and stocky kid so not looking for a youth model. Thanks

Here is my .02.

If you don't get him a youth rifle you will greatly increase the felt recoil of the gun because the gun will not fit him correctly.. A youth rifle (contrary) to popular belief is not for 6 year olds.. They are designed to fit kids 12+ years old. The only difference between a youth rifle and standard sized rifle is usually about 2" shorter barrel and about 1.5 inches off the stock. You throw on three layers of camo clothing and guess what, that standard sized rifle is going to be way to long for him. All of my hunting rifles are "youth" sized.. I am 5'10 and 190lbs and the youth guns are much easier to carry through the woods, move around in a box blind or drag up a tree. I promise you, if you get him a youth sized gun you will not regret it..

As far as the caliber the .243, 6.5 Creedmoore, 7mm-08 and 308 all have virtually the same case capacity when it comes to powder. The additional recoil comes from the size of the bullet you are pushing down the barrel.. A 100 grain 243 will have less recoil than a 120 grain 7mm-08 or 6.5 creedmoore. A 140 grain 7mm08 bullet will have more recoil than a 120 grain 7mm08. And a 150 Grain .308 will have more recoil then all of those.

My general suggestion is kids 12 or younger should start with .243 or less.. Something like a 6.8 SPC, 300 Blk or .223, 22-250. All of these rounds are more than capable at taking deer out to 200 yards easily.. For kids over 12 you can start looking at the 7mm08 or 308. While many people consider the 7mm-08 round to be a "youth caliber" The 7mm-08 is a 28 Caliber bullet traveling at about 3000 fps and is capable of taking ever hoofed game animal in North America including Moose and Caribou.. So it is way more than enough for 150lb MS Whitetail.. Don't get all caught up on knockdown power.. Get him a gun that fits him, that has low recoil and muzzle blast and teach him the basics of shooting like trigger control and breath control..

Most of the deer I have taken here in MS have been with my trusty youth model .243

I just posted a whole article on this in the deersouth forum. Go check it out and feel free to call me if you have any questions about purchasing a gun.

http://www.ducksouth.com/phpbb/viewtopi ... 7&t=119674

Thanks
Chad
601-260-5995

[DUCKAHOLIC]

Dont let him shoot it at anything but a deer and his adrenaline will be pumping so hard he could put a sherman tank on his shoulder and not feel it.

I only let my kids shoot a 22 at a target when they were young.....my son was shooting a 7 mag when he was 7

[Blackduck]

What cwink said.

I would definitely get a youth model. Accurate and bullet type are more impt than caliber.

[Deltamud77]

I went through this a few years ago when my son was turning 8...what caliber, youth or not-youth, etc. The best advice I heard was from a competition shooter that met my son and I at a local gun shop. He watched him shoulder both full size guns and youth guns. Obviously, the youth fit him better, but he could comfortably accommodate a fun size gun as well.

The guy's logic was why buy a gun he can use for 5 or 6 years when you can buy a gun he can shoot for a lifetime?

We bought a .308 and shoot Hornady Lites through it and he is an assassin with the gun. I think he could probably shoot full loads through it now, but we are going to use up the reduced recoil ammo we have on hand before he moves up.

He and I hunt together. I limit his yardage to about 100 yards right now. He could shoot further, but we are building confidence and hopefully shooting ethics. I don't want to push him too hard right now. We carry one gun - his gun. I carry regular loads and his loads. For deer over 100 yards, I take the shot and for those in his range, he takes it. Pretty good set up for us.

[stang67]

Very surprised that a competition shooter placed no importance on a proper fit. Maybe he thinks that for shooting goats and not bullseyes it doesn't much matter.

When mine gets a little older, I plan to buy a pair of rifles, same model, both compact, one in 223 and the other in 7-08. I plan for him to literally burn the barrel out of the 223. I recently switched from a 270 to a 7-08 using 120-gr bullets. I'm not one to notice recoil in the stand, but with the first deer I shot with that 7-08, I most definitely noticed the lack of recoil. I felt like I was still looking at the deer through the scope when he was hit. That NEVER happened with the 270, which is also 2 lbs heavier.

I WAS recoil shy as a teenager. I hated sighting my rifle in each fall. After I started reloading and shooting much more on my own as an adult, I realized it was the noise as much as, if not more than, the recoil, that made me dread pulling the trigger. I have no doubt that if I had grown up banging away with a loud, short barreled 223, that things would have been much different.

As for what happens 5-6 years later --- I've never waited that long between gun purchases.

[missed mallards]

Stang,

Noise can be dealt with a good set of ear muffs. To this day, I still flinch from the muzzle blast. I flinch worse from the blst than the recoil.

I like the .22 ideas. Got my little girl popping them in hopes she'll be ready to move to a larger caliber. Then, I'll see and shop.

Whatever caliber, don't over gun. I've got a model 700 in 270 that I still look at in the safe. It was my first big bore, and I'll still put it up against any for noise/recoil. It's nicknamed the mule for a reason


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[stang67]

I never fired a gun without muffs until it was at my first deer. Honestly, it could have been the muzzle blast, along with the noise. I have no doubt that learning to shoot with a small centerfire would have been the ticket for me, instead of doing all my plinking with a 22 LR. I think people that grow up wingshooting get a similar advantage.

[missed mallards]

I see your point


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[js]

I agree with cwink on the youth model rifles they are much easier to carry in the woods and plenty accurate I killed 2 deer over 250 yards with the youth model 308 cwink talked me into this past hunting season I also use the hornady lites due to a bad shoulder and never feel any recoil.

[jacksbuddy]

I went through this a few years ago when my son was turning 8...what caliber, youth or not-youth, etc. The best advice I heard was from a competition shooter that met my son and I at a local gun shop. He watched him shoulder both full size guns and youth guns. Obviously, the youth fit him better, but he could comfortably accommodate a fun size gun as well.

The guy's logic was why buy a gun he can use for 5 or 6 years when you can buy a gun he can shoot for a lifetime?

We bought a .308 and shoot Hornady Lites through it and he is an assassin with the gun. I think he could probably shoot full loads through it now, but we are going to use up the reduced recoil ammo we have on hand before he moves up.

He and I hunt together. I limit his yardage to about 100 yards right now. He could shoot further, but we are building confidence and hopefully shooting ethics. I don't want to push him too hard right now. We carry one gun - his gun. I carry regular loads and his loads. For deer over 100 yards, I take the shot and for those in his range, he takes it. Pretty good set up for us.

Ok, I really like this set up. I may just use it when daddy's little angel gets old enough to hunt.

[Deltamud77]

I went through this a few years ago when my son was turning 8...what caliber, youth or not-youth, etc. The best advice I heard was from a competition shooter that met my son and I at a local gun shop. He watched him shoulder both full size guns and youth guns. Obviously, the youth fit him better, but he could comfortably accommodate a fun size gun as well.

The guy's logic was why buy a gun he can use for 5 or 6 years when you can buy a gun he can shoot for a lifetime?

We bought a .308 and shoot Hornady Lites through it and he is an assassin with the gun. I think he could probably shoot full loads through it now, but we are going to use up the reduced recoil ammo we have on hand before he moves up.

He and I hunt together. I limit his yardage to about 100 yards right now. He could shoot further, but we are building confidence and hopefully shooting ethics. I don't want to push him too hard right now. We carry one gun - his gun. I carry regular loads and his loads. For deer over 100 yards, I take the shot and for those in his range, he takes it. Pretty good set up for us.

Ok, I really like this set up. I may just use it when daddy's little angel gets old enough to hunt.

It has worked for us...I am not saying it is the way for everyone, but if you want to buy one gun and not two...it works for sure. Moreover, my son has a gun he can hunt with for a lifetime. Instead of spending money replacing this gun down the line, my plan is to use that money, plus a little , and convert a stock rifle into a truly custom rifle as he gets older. I figure that by the time he graduates, he will have a really, really nice rig that he can use as long as he wants.

[stang67]

Incidentally, you can replace the short LOP stock on nearly any "youth" rifle with the std version, generally for less than $100 and 10 minutes of your time. You may still have a barrel that's 2" shorter than the std version, but some folks prefer that. No deer will ever know the difference.

Were I buying today, I'd look no further than the Tikka compact.

[cwink]

Incidentally, you can replace the short LOP stock on nearly any "youth" rifle with the std version, generally for less than $100 and 10 minutes of your time. You may still have a barrel that's 2" shorter than the std version, but some folks prefer that. No deer will ever know the difference.

Were I buying today, I'd look no further than the Tikka compact.

Stang is correct.. There are so many options for new stocks now days that you don't have to buy 2 guns.

You basically have two types of "youth" or compact rifles.

True youth or compact usually have a 1.25" - 1.5" shorter stock and an 18" or shorter barrel. An example would be the Ruger Compacts

Mid sized youth or compact usually have a 1.25" - 1.5" shorter stock too, but they also include spacers to extend the lenght of the stock and they usually have 20" barrels. An example would the the TC Venture Compact, Tikka Compact and Savage.

For a hunting rifle shooting short action calibers like 308, 7mm08, 243, 260 etc, there isn't really a need for barrels longer than 20". When you get into long action like 270, 30-06, 25-06, 280 usually you will need at least a 22" barrel to get full use out of the cartridge.

I just set my BIL up with a TC Venture Compact in .308 it has a short stock but includes spacers and has a 20" barrel. It is also a little heavier than most youth guns and that helps tame recoil..

My favorite gun to hunt with is my Ruger Compact 7mm-08 stainless laminate. It has a 16.5 inch barrel and is less than 36" overall length..
http://galleryofguns.com/genie/default.aspx?item=17111

[Wildfowler]

No, don't customize that youth gun down the road. Save it for him so he can have some nostalgic hunts with it later in life like I did last year with my old deer rifle from childhood.