Low recoil deer caliber

During recovery from rotator surgery I experimented with several calibers for felt recoil. Cut Rem 700 Sendero in 6.5 Creed to 16.25" length and matched 308 5R to same length for short/switch barrel setup.. 9 yrs later and that is the rig I still grab for hunting under 500yds. Also, Reduced recoil came from APA Fat Bastard muzzle brake and handholds. Not to mention extremely accurate. Found a rare 6.8SPC Remmy 700 fluted barrel, that is such an underrated shooter with non existence recoil from a bolt gun to kill anything under 400lbs..My fav for hogs, period......Also had an extra stock cut to shorter LOP for hunting from ATV ....
 
I'm tossing the idea of getting my son a riffle for Christmas. he will be 9 in march. He has been shooting 22 for several years now and is doing really well with it. So I'm thinking of getting him a deer riffle that he Can practice with until He is of age to hunt. What are some options for low recoil deer calibres. Thanks for your input
6.5 creedmoor or a 300 blackout
 
I'm tossing the idea of getting my son a riffle for Christmas. he will be 9 in march. He has been shooting 22 for several years now and is doing really well with it. So I'm thinking of getting him a deer riffle that he Can practice with until He is of age to hunt. What are some options for low recoil deer calibres. Thanks for your input
I've raised a few young hunters and highly recommend the 6.5 Grendel. 123 grain SSTs are lights out deadly to at least 300 yards. Even though most kids are capable of shooting short action cartridges like the 6.5 CM, there's slot more recoil and they develop a flinch easily. The other important consideration is the trigger. When pressing the trigger properly, young people often don't have the finger strength to use over a three lbs trigger and maintain good accuracy.
 
I'm tossing the idea of getting my son a riffle for Christmas. he will be 9 in march. He has been shooting 22 for several years now and is doing really well with it. So I'm thinking of getting him a deer riffle that he Can practice with until He is of age to hunt. What are some options for low recoil deer calibres. Thanks for your input
If you're going to fit them for a rifle u need one u can adjust to fit their size as they grow . Any mountain type rifle in a lite set up
 
I'm tossing the idea of getting my son a riffle for Christmas. he will be 9 in march. He has been shooting 22 for several years now and is doing really well with it. So I'm thinking of getting him a deer riffle that he Can practice with until He is of age to hunt. What are some options for low recoil deer calibres. Thanks for your input
6.5 grendel in an ar or chassis stock for adjustability.
 
Ruger Ranch in 6.5 Grendel, 300BO, or .223. Shooting Barnes 115gr or 110gr TAC TX, heavier .224 Barnes TTSX, or 62gr Speer GDHPs.
 
I'm tossing the idea of getting my son a riffle for Christmas. he will be 9 in march. He has been shooting 22 for several years now and is doing really well with it. So I'm thinking of getting him a deer riffle that he Can practice with until He is of age to hunt. What are some options for low recoil deer calibres. Thanks for your input
All 3 of my sons started with my 7mm-08. Good all around rifle with low recoil
 
I'll be crossing this bridge in the near future myself. My son is five and I'm going g to put a rifle together for him soon.

I've got a 700VLS in 243AI. I think I'm going to cut it down and put it in a more youth friendly stock or chassis that he can grow into. Obviously I'm already set for components and equipment to load the AI, but if I wasn't, I think I'd do a 6creed. And I still might. I love the originals but there's no doubt, the new class of cartridges in the creed and prc families are here to stay and I like the fact that the 6creed can shoot the light 70gr class of bullets up to the 110's. I'm only recently a fan of the 6mm but after playing with this 243AI I'm hooked.

I started out with a 300winmag and I don't recommend that lol. After that I shot a 22-250 for years and pretty much shot all se Texas had to offer with a 55gr core-lokt. I actually did less tracking with the 250 than the winmag. Come to think of it, I never tracked anything I shot with the 250, every deer was drt. I always popped the high shoulder though.

My brother killed his first deer, a fair size doe, with a 223 shooting federal premium 55gr sierra HPBT gamekings. She went about 20 yards and piled up. Boiler room shot, got both lungs.

When I got married, my wife had never hunted or shot anything ever. I started her with a remington model 7 in 7-08. I'm a huge fan of that rifle/cartridge combo. Shooting the factory hotnady reduced 120gr sst loads it's a potent, handy combo.

Just some of my own experiences over the years.
 
Lots of good advice here.

If this rifle will not be for anything larger than deer and is for training purposes make it enjoyable and go 223. Most inexpensive center fire to shoot. A 60 gr partition will kill any deer and if possible find a 9 twist or faster rifle. You can shoot up to 79-75 grain bullets or the mono bullets with it. As has been mentioned if you reload you can down load any cartridge to a point. ( I shoot tons of 223 with 12 grs of Blue Dot and 40 to 50 gr bullets for ground squeaks … barrel stays cool and recoil is like a 22 mag or 17 Hornet. Kid will become very proficient with such a rifle!!

Any larger cartridges like 243, 6 CM, 6.5 CM, 7-08 etc can be used and downloaded to an extent also. However, as has been mentioned those cartridges in super light configurations and with full pressure loads will have considerably more bark/bite than a good ole 223. ( point being, I have a 6ARC in a 4 lb 10 oz Howa mini, with a full pressure 100 gr bullet load it actually has some recoil and torque to it !!)

Good Luck with your pursuit but really do give serious consideration to a 223….. it made me a much better rifleman when I was 12 and acquired one!'
 
I shoot my Savage in 308 with a Light Target load. Very low recoil using a 115 Grn Berger. Very pleasant to shoot. Happens to be a good target load at 100 yards. I also made a reduced 30-06 load for my nephew when he was 15. I used 55.0 grns of IMR 54350 with a 150 grn Horn Bullet. That was his grandfathers old sporterized Springfield Bolt Action. He killed two deer in two years with that light load. One shot was about 40 years or less, the other about 80 yards or less. I might also suggest you purchase a PAST Recoil Pad ( Cabelas/ Bass Pro) for him to wear, under his jacket. They are very helpful.
 

Recent Posts

Top