Low recoil deer caliber

[GCarlton53]

My daughter is 8 and she killed a buck last year with her 6mmGT. I built it with a suppresor and a manners cs2 stock. It weighs about 14lbs. She sits with me when we hunt so its not like she carries it. So weight isnt a problem, its a solution. It doesnt kick and it aint loud, so she is focused on the shot not the gun. When she can tote it, ill call an have them ship a carbon barrel.

 

[bonie]

small rifle with reduced loads .243 , 6.5 creedmoor , 7-08, 30-30 ect, just something that fits and wont hurt to shoot.

 

[Stokesrjsr]

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 raised four sons who all killed their first big game animals when they were ten years old, which is the minimum age here in Arizona. I built them a Remington Model 7 in 243 Winchester which worked well for them but I have since rebarreled that rifle to 6.5 Creedmoor. My Grand daughter then used it to take her first big game animal with it. Between myself, my sons, and grand kids that rifle has taken a couple hundred big game animals. If doing it all over again, I would go straight to the 6.5 Creedmoor, it is simply better for this purpose. I did not let them take any shots over 300 yards with either caliber but the Creedmoor was noticeably more decisive than the .243 and recoil is very little difference. I did download the Creedmoor for my grand daughter using a 90 grain Speer TNT at about 2400 fps and an aimpoint micro H red dot because she had trouble with eye relief. That worked like a charm.

 

[timo308]

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 I were going through all this again today I would probably go with a Howa mini in 6 mm ARC placed into a Boyd's laminated stock.
I however used a Rem 700 CDL classic chambered in .250 Savage that I installed a brake on. I cut down a old 78 Remington Sportsman stock to proper fit so I didn't wreck the nice piece of walnut that came on the CDL. Using light for caliber bullets and working with the first accuracy node I found working up from the minimum listed charges did the trick. My niece has put a hard claim on this rifle.

 

[264WM]

243 is a great choice for a youth and I have seen elk taken with it also.

 

[Allen Lone wolf]

I bought my 9 year old a Savage Axis in 6ARC as the 45 year old hand-me-down .243 Winchester was too heavy and the length of pull too long.
I took the stock extension out and slapped on an inexpensive Athlon variable scope and a slip-on stock cheek riser. I bought a box of 108gr ELDMs and took it to the range to sight it in. Oh my! that cheap little savage shoots tighter groups than my bench rest gun. I was so impressed I bought a Savage Switchback, and built an AR upper in 6ARC. He took a doe on youth weekend last week.

BTW it will work on large game too. Talked my Pal David West into buying a savage 6ARC. Check out his red stag

Congratulations to all!

 

[JustMe2]

View attachment 508420

It'd be interesting to know what what your rifles weighed. it makes a much larger difference that most people realize. just like shooter weight. You can see the difference even between the 85 & 103 Gr loads between the 243 & 6 CM & 3 lb rifle weight differences.

What do you think "Rifle WHT" in his table means? White rifle or Rifle weight?

 

[Mike D Texas]

This table doesn't mean squat if rifle weight isn't listed. Also charge & bullet weight can greatly vary recoil Energy, Velocity & Impulse.

The table was based solely on the AVERAGE weight rifle which I assume to be 8-9#.
Regardless, it does give some idea of where each cartridge will fall based on an average hunting rifle using factory ammo.
You are not going to magically take a rifle that averages 12# of recoil and make it recoil less than a 6# average recoil cartridge.
if you are loading light rounds in the 12# recoil, you can do the same in the 6# one.

 

[Mike D Texas]

Lots of advice on this one! Hunting with children is the best!! Dad started me with a 300 Savage 60 years ago. I think 22 calibers are best left for varmints. 243 or 6mm Rem were both great rounds for a kids first deer rifle in my chidren's era. However, I set my grandkids up with a 6.5 Creedmoor that performs well. I put 3 rounds in a 0.27 group at 100 yards with a Howa Mod 1500. We have less than $600 in it with a youth stock and adult stock as they grow. The 135 gr Berger Classic Hunter with H-4350 is a winner. The popularity of the 6.5 Creedmoor provides broad availability of rifles and ammo. Have fun.

I used to feel the same way until all 3 of my kids killed their first whitetail with a 223 using Federal Premium ammo with the 64 grain Trophy Bonded BearClaw bullet.
All shots were 100 yards or less and the deer died within seconds with massive trauma and very good blood trails.

 

[dankathytc]

I agree with the .243 crowd. If the . 250 Savage was still around readily available I would place it first, but the .243 is so good it killed the .250-3000. Great for deer size game and easy to manage.

 

[Mach1Morgan]

A .243 seems like the perfect answer. With 80 grain bullets there's almost no recoil, ammunition is cheap, it shoots flat and it's available in a broad range of inexpensive rifles.

 

[loghome]

223 does a great job on them.

 

[Kiowa Cowboy]

My sons grew up sharing a Savage 110 youth model in 243. Between the two of them approximately 2 deer year per year from 13-to 16. My younger son received a 270 for his birthday at age 16. From that point on he has killed elk and deer with his 270. My older son still uses the 243, and loves it. (no elk yet.)

I grew up sharing a 25.06 with my dad and brother. The gun was a Winchester model 70 purchased from Gibsons in approximately 1980-2??. To many deer, elk , coyotes, and pigs to count have been shot with that gun. My dad still uses it. From the time I could afford to purchase my own rifle, I have used a Sako 25.06. Again too many deer, pigs, and coyotes to count.

If it is primarily deer and coyote country, I would suggest 243, 25.06, or 6 CM or 6.5 CM.
If it is primarily elk and mule deer, you might consider 260, 270, 7.08, or 308.

Personally, I don't think I could have handled a 308 at age 12 or 13 very well. A 243 level of recoil is about perfect for a young shooter, IMO. The main thing you want is for them to be hooked. You would hate to see them get scared off by a heavy recoiling gun. I have seen a couple of young people who don't like hunting because their only experience was wing shooting with 12 ga. when they were too young. There are tons of good suggestions. I don't think you can go wrong with 243, 25.06, 6.5CM or many of the other suggestions.

 

[Idaho Lefty]

243 is a great choice for a youth and I have seen elk taken with it also.

My Grandson ( 12 y/o and again, at, 13 y/o ) has Killed 2, Large bodied, Heavy Horned, Desert Muley's, in Southern Idaho with, the Tikka T-3 in .243 Win. that, I gave him. He's using, 87 grain Berger, H-VLDS @ 3,100 FPS,.. BOTH, Deer were.. DRT,. 225 to 300 Yard shots.
At 14, He's now testing, My .270 WSM, T-3, Braked and Down loaded w/ 140 gr. Classic's at, 2,965 FPS, as his, Elk Rifle.
He's SO Happy with, the .243 that, he'll probably want to, Use it,.. again, this Year !!