I know I am stirring up a hornets nest, but my son is 3 1/2 and I would like to buy him his first deer rifle. I am interested in what caliber and factory models people think are the best. I plan on changing out the trigger once he is older, but I want an out of the box gun that will work.

He has already started shooting the Anschutz Woodchucker .22 that I learned on. I want to step him up around 6 or 7 and want time to work up loads and field test it a little before I give it to him.

I started my boys with reduced load 22-250's, then increased to full power 53gr TSX's.

Then on to reduced load 270's and now full power loads.

.308 with reduced recoil loads. when the kid grows, you just up the powder charge!

I started my 6 yr old neice out on a TC G2 Contender with a 16.5" 7-30 waters barrel with a muzzle brake...she is about to turn 11 and has killed 11 deer with it....alot of killing power and no recoil. I am putting her 3 year old sister a TC contender together with a SS 30/30 barrel with a muzzlebrake to give to her when she gets older. I tried getting my older niece started with a 243 and reduced loads...she hated it ...to much muzzle blast and it scared her... the muzzlebrake on the 7-30 doesnt bother her at all. I load 120gr Sierra prohunters and they literally drop em in their tracks or with in site. She has made some great shots...not up close her average shot is 90 to 125 yards..she made an awesome shot on a buck last year quartering away from her and she put it right behind his shoulder and dropped him in his tracks. I never once made her shoot paper..I sighted the gun in and made sure it was on...then let her shoot at different sized water bottles at varying ranges. I knew she was ready when she busted every one of them at 100 yds. The cool thing about the TC's is that it is easy to get a youth stock and change it out when they get older. I have tried to give my niece some nice deer rifles and all she will hunt with is her 7-30 Waters!

Here we go again!

How soon can he be hunting?
Where are you and whats legal?
How will you be hunting?

There are many fine choices. You will get a huge range of answers. A .223 with 60gr Nosler Partitions or Win 64gr PP would work pretty well. How bout a 7mm TCU? A .22-250 up to as big as he can handle well.

It's more important to me whether or not a kid can shoot well with confidence than what they are shooting. With some of todays bullets, cartridges that I'd have never considered before are viable now.

Thanks for the info. I was looking at a Browning X-Bolt Micro Midas in a .22-250 or a 7mm-08. Do you know anyone who has used one before. I haven't found a lot of reviews on youth rifles.

SounthArkRob

Where did you get your TC G2? Did you buy all of the pieces separate or did you buy one complete? It looks like there is a lot of customization possibilities

Big Nate

I will be hunting mostly in Texas. Probably starting out in a dear blind and moving up to tree blind and foot later. I want him to be comfortable with the gun first though. I will probably take him with me when he is 5 and hope to let him start shooting when he is 6 or 7. Partitions are a great round. I use accubonds in my .270 and .30-06. 7mm TCU is kind of rare cartridge that isn't common in off the shelf youth rifles as far as I know. Do you know of any models?

Both my daughters started with a .223 (after a .22). I would rather they be able to shoot a small caliber accurately than be flinching with something bigger. After that I would go 7mm-08 or .260.

If hunting from a blind the weight of the rifle can be a bit more which would help recoil and stability.

The 7mm TCU isn't common but you didn't say you wanted to buy your ammo. I have not lived where kids can start that young when mine were so I didn't have to make this exact choice. I did start mine hunting coyotes pretty young and the .223 and .22-250 were the first big noise makers they hunted with.

One caution on youth models. They tend to have very short barrels which increases muzzle blast. It can cause a bit of flinching. The choice isn't easy. I cut down a .257 Roberts for my wife and one of my boys was very happy with it until I got him his own Model seven in .243. The youngest is a left eye dominate shooter and youth lefty guns are even rarer yet. He wound up with a Rem 700 SPS Youth in .243 but is wasn't an easy gun for him to master.

If doing this again now I'd probably do things a little different. BUT, I reload. Today, I'd chamber a .264 LBC (Grendel copy) in a bolt gun.

I am planning on loading the ammo for it, but I tend to like calibers that are more common so I can get ammo and brass easier. Thanks for all of the wisdom and experience.

Raider,
My son shot his deer last year with 270 Win and 85gr TSX's loaded to approx 2000fps. 100yards, through the ribs, punched tag.

Remember shot placement trumps all other caliber discussions. Whatever you can do to make sure they are comfortable shooting and will place the shot correctly is going to be much more important than the caliber arguement that is likely to ensue in this thread.

My suggestion would be the .243 or the 7mm-08.

My wife shoots a .257 Robert's, but finding factory ammo can be tricky. Even though I reload/handload, things can happen and sometimes your only outlet in an emergency is Wally World.

SD Hunter

I agree whole heartedly about shot placement and comfort. I had a good friend who bought used to hunt with a 300 Weatherby that's scope gave him a nice cut around his eye. Even as an adult he couldn't hit anything with it. I heard all sorts of stories of him shooting Texas whitetail with that thing and then watching them running off. Since I am going to have my kids start shooting their rifle at 5 I need a youth rifle to start them in purely for the ergonomics and anthropological measurements. My third kid will be born before my oldest is 4 so my plan right now is to have all of them start out on a small bore youth rifle and then around 10 or 11 buying each of them a deer rifle they can take out the door with them that I will also probably have to load down initially. That being said I have to buy 4 rifle and scope combos over the next 10 years in addition to what I want to buy for myself.

Since I am not a liberal and therefore don't like to spend money I don't have I have to budget for them. I am a planner and for me $1300 is a lot of money so I like to do my research and value peoples experience and wisdom. I also find that the more time I give my wife to think about me blowing a lot of money for myself the better it works out for me. This is why I don't have have to buy my wife all sorts of expensive jewelry, purses, shoes, etc. to compensate even though I spend a lot of money on me and in the near future my 3 kids.

Considering that you're starting him out in Texas hunting from a blind I would suggest a .223. It's plenty for Texas whitetails if hit properly at reasonable range.

From kindergarten to coffin---.250-3000 roger

I started both of mine with a NEF youth handi rifle in .243 with Remington 100gn corelokt's. The youth model fits small shooters really well and it's so simple to learn on.

Terry

Wow thats vague as can be...lol.

My oldest son shot his first two deer with a 30-06 and 150 Sierras. But this is MT where legal age is 12 and my 12 year old is taller than I am.

You could set up a very short stocked NEF Handi or a Contender. If you went with a Contender you can replace the short stock with an adult size later. If you start each successive child with the same shorty and then move them up to a full size (or nearly) like a Model 7 or Ruger UL or scout in 7mm-08 you'll have them starting with a very well fitting gun that can be morphed into something later for small money. A 7-08 or .308 in say a Ruger Hawkeye with a Nikon scope would be less than a grand per kid.

Rem reduced recoil loads in the .308 is what my buddy started his daughter with. But I agree with Swampshooter, the .223 with 60's would be an easy starter. You can work them into the heavier loads gradually and let them shoot plenty to gain confidence.

My first center fire rifle at age 11 was a 257 Roberts. My kids and I are still shooting Bobs!

I have a new 6.5X55 barrel for my M 03 Mauser. Very mild and very accurate!

I think you should take your kids to the gunshop and let them look at the different rifles.

I know at one time, Weatherby offered youth packages with two stocks, or you could buy them an adult rifle and buy an extra stock (to cut down) or a youth stock.

The 22-250 my boys started with was a Rem LVSF that I put a $35 youth tupperware stock on.

My oldest boy quickly grew into full size stock. My youngest is shooting a shortened stock on the Rem 270 Win I bought him. I have a Ti take off that I will install once he outgrows the youth stock.

The one thing I do not like about "youth" model is that they typically have short barrels. It is much easier/cheaper$$ IMO to swap out a stock than a barrel.

If you buy a full size rifle, it is fairly easier to post a WTB add in the classified for a youth stock. There are plenty of guys willing to help out with youth stocks.

260Rem or 6.5X55 or 7mm-08 or 257Roberts. All are very under rated and preform very well. These are cartridges that will work for life on any non-DG animals. My rifle of choice would be a Tikka T3 Lite and put on the direct replacement Limbsaver recoil pad #10011.
I have the Tikka in 6.5X55 and 7mm-08 and everyone who has shot them falls in love with them. Small kids do well with them at the range.

PS Buy a PAST sholder recail pad for him/her to wear when target shooting and that will really help for the recoil and make shooting fun. Too much recoil and people start to not want to shoot and do not shhot as well.

I started my youngest son with a .223 in a NEF Handi rifle, bought the youth stock set for $50 or so. It is simple, safe, small enough that he could really use it and accurate enough to get the job done. On this trip he shot 2 animals and the .223 shooting 45 grain TSX's was plenty for 2 one shot kills.
Get something that fits them now, when they get bigger get them different rifles.

quote:

Originally posted by bartsche:
From kindergarten to coffin---.250-3000 roger

X2. There are alot of adults here at the forum that are going back to or are still using a 250-3000.
Check it out.

What about a 6.8 SPC? Slightly larger bullet with no recoil.

Snellstrom,
That may be the "Happiest Kid" picture I've ever seen! Ya done well, sir! I hope he will grow to appreciate the wonderful father he has!

Raider, my son started in the woods with me when he was seven. We plinked during the off-season with a Remington 541-T single shot target 22, shooting off a bench. When he was nine, he took his first whitetail, and he did it sitting on my lap, with my full blown Remington BDL in .270 Winchester...

It is my fervent belief that if you start them shooting with something that has minimum recoil and teach them the basics of concentrating on watching the bullet hit the target, they will never feel the recoil of a full game rifle because they will be concentrating on making a good shot.

Now; having said all that, when Mark was 12 he got a customized '03 Springfield with a #5 contoured barrel, chambered in 7 X 57. He shot it until he was 18 and we got ready for Idaho, when he graduated to a 7RM in Ruger 77.

There is not much wrong with a 7 X 57, and if you do it right, he can use it as long as he is breathing, on anything he will hunt in North America except the big bears...

What range?
I would want to keep kills under 200 yards.
Low recoil?
Deer?
30-30. Single shot.
100 grains on up to 220

1st choice 250 savage
2nd 257 Roberts
3rd 243 win

since you reload.
i started my girl on my 308 at 7. [she started on a cut down 22]
some plated bullets and 29 grs of 4895.
could have gone lower with a filler.
then switched over to cast with 16 grs of 2400 and moved her along to heavier boolits [and more powder].
added a weight to the butstock for her.
and let her go at the 25 yd targets to start then moved her out as we went.
by the time she was 12 she was up to her 7.65 [which i cut down to fit her] and then the 25-06/270 etc, and the 300 yd bowling pins.
she still uses the argie for hunting just with a slip on recoil pad to lengthen it a titch.
done the same thing with the shotguns.
started her on the 12 ga and just worked the loads up with light[7/8th's oz] charges and soft wads.
eventually all the way up to 3" steel shot at 1550 fps.
same guns,just different stock sets and some weight added/removed.

7mm-08 with hand loaded reduced recoil 120 gr bullets.

Now, with that said...

Sadly, too many people don't teach their kids how to hunt anymore. Rather, they are merely interested in a photo op of their child at the youngest age possible with a dead whitetail shot over bait or the practical equivalent of bait.

There's already plenty of good suggestions here, but I had to chime in with mine too. My personal anser to the question came to me immediately and without hesitation: no question: .250 Savage. Start him with a classic. No "reduced power" loads required. It will be a cartridge he can enjoy his entire life.

Gentlemen,

I apologize for the delay in my response, but I am in the middle of a move. Thank y'all for all of the great advice. There is a wealth of information on here that I plan on using.

quote:

Originally posted by Tyler Kemp:
What about a 6.8 SPC? Slightly larger bullet with no recoil.

I don't think it gets any better than that, especially when paired up with a collapsible buttstock AR-15 for little kids.

Light recoil, good bullets, a rifle that actually fits, what's not to like?

A 7-08, or a .260 would be hard to beat. They will handle whatever deer he wants to shoot and won't kick much.

I started my two with a 357 max TC carbine light weight low recoil and muzzle blast.

Worked very well.

Most arguments about what constitutes a minimum for (fill in the blank species) occur b/c logical and ethical people fail to consider just how much hunting conditions can vary. We do a much better job comparing kinetic energies and bullet constructions. One man finds a .223 totally adequate for smallish meat animals found in abundance in open fields. Another recoils at the suggestion, visualizing the rough and dense cover and scarce opportunities for larger examples of the same species.

The first several deer I took as a teenager were cleanly killed with a .22-250. Open field - Maine, of all places - deer had no way to run 100 yds or so and make cover. I really didn't give a hoot that there was no blood trail, or bullet exit, on those 150#ish dressed whitetails. Dead, all.

I was not so dumb as to think a .22-250 would be a sensible choice when I later made whitetail trips to Ala and mule deer trip to WY. Always brought a .300 Win. Yeah, some are thinking: "overkill". But I understood that what worked in an area I know well had little to do with what I'd want hunting as a paying customer in some place I'd never been.

Fast forward. When my son turned 10 we thought long and hard about what to use. Ten, after all, is not 18. I even asked for opinions here on this BBS. Most suggested I download a little RSI in .308 on which I had an Aimpoint. This made sense - lighter recoil, but a probable exit wound and blood trail. This is what we did. As it turned out my son just wasn't ready to pull the trigger. For the first three years our opportunities with the RSI were either too distant, or involved moving animals, or animals partially obscured by cover. To his credit the kid declined opportunities the first three years out. We saw deer each year, but central ME is not like Columbia county, NY. Moreover, we had decided his first would be a buck.

By age 13 he was decent enough with a rifle that I decided to let him use a .243 with 100 gr Partitions. It had a 3-9X and I thought he might feel more confident with a 150 yd opportunity. And, as it happened, he punched his first buck with it at that distance - a 135# six. Bullet gave full penetration through both lungs. Deer ran 100+ yds down a steep hill though. There was almost no blood trail. I say almost b/c his young eyes picked up a very fine red mist (that I missed) on some snow patches. I had watched the animal's reaction, knew he'd made a good shot. We found it in short order but, to be truthful, there were a few anxious minutes. I was kinda underwhelmed by the .243. Mostly I was feeling a bit foolish that I had mistakenly related the conditions behind our house (also in ME) to those open field conditions behind my parent's place. My parents' place is just a 10 mile drive from mine (see paragraph one).

At age 14 he was now larger than me. So we took a .300 WBY along. He looked at the shell and asked if it would kick. I answered "no" b/c he was regularly shooting 200 3 dram traploads per Saturday morning playing NSCA. He promptly dumped a 218# dressed 8 pt with one shot at 110 yds. Next year he used the same rifle to take another corker (208# dressed) at about 130 yds. He really loves that rifle, despite having fired exactly two rounds through it. Maybe someday he'll appreciate a .243 as I do.

Now I'm not bashing the .243. But the point is: I don't think there is such a thing as a one size fits all answer to the thread question. You need to consider the kid's size and shooting skills, the terrain, the size of the animals, how plentiful they are, cover along likely escape routes, how much time you have, etc, etc.

Sam

whats wrong with a 30-30.

Samuel_Hoggson,

Well spoken! I am a big guy and my kids are very tall and muscular thus far so they will handle a lot early than most kids. I like your advice.

Woodelf,

I have a 30-30, but where I hunt at my friends place in south Texas we are hunting sinderos and road cuts with long shots on really big south Texas deer that are closer to northern deer than most other Texas whitetail. A 30-30 isn't appropriate for that. His first shot will most likely be 150+.

We are talking about a rifle for a 3 1/2 year old. Some of the choices offered why not go ahead and start him on a .300 magnum or above and really develop a flinch? A .223 or .222 placing a bullet in the right place is all you need.