Im looking for a light gun to use for Pa whitetail for when im not on stand and just walkin around the woods. It will also be used for a boy just starting out. I own a Rem.700 ss 7mm mag and that is to heavy for him and the recoil is a little much. It is also heavy for carring around. I deffinatly want a Remington Mt. rifle, but i dont no which caliber yet. i was thinkin either the 260, or the 7mm-08. Any comments on these caliber for my situaton would be greatly appreciated. thanx
Just an opinion but it is splitting hairs. Both rounds have proved to be an exceptional deer killers. I would go with the 7-08 only because of bullet selection. Either way you won't go wrong.
I have killed at least one deer per year for the past 15 w/7-08 winchester FWT all one shot kills.A very good choice I have several other good rifles but can't bring myself to use them due to my fondness for this one.I think its lack of recoil and great handling make me a better shot.
Posts: 610 | Location: MT | Registered: 01 December 2001
My choice would be a Ruger #1A in 7x57. It is light, accurate, and the recoil is mild. If you choose the M700 Mountain Rifle, I would take the 7mm-08, which is very close to the 7x57. You could use a moderate load with the 139 gr. Hornady or 145 gr. Speer to reduce recoil and still have a perfectly adequate whitetail load. I haven't shot a whitetail in about 15 years, but used these two bullets a lot when I lived in Texas and hunted in the Hill Country. I tried the 130 gr. Speer, but it was a real meat-grinder on the 3 or 4 deer I used it on.
Winchester's compact classic is available in both chamberings, and so is Rugers compact M77. The latter has a 16.5" barrel and the former a 20 incher. I've examined one copy of each and the Winchester was a little heavier, a little bit shorter in length of pull and a good bit more expensive. I imagine if you don't need the controlled round feed the push feed Winchester is a little cheaper. And of course Remington's Model 7 is available in a youth model. Then there is Savage's Scout rifle, which is shorter and therefore lighter than your full size rifle, but I think it is only available in .308. Any of them is probably a good value. The difference between the .260 and the 7mm-08 is about 20 grains of bullet weight for similar performance, results in a tad less recoil.
[This message has been edited by Slamfire (edited 12-27-2001).]
The 7MM-08 with the 120 gr. 140 gr. bullet in a light weight rifle would probably be the premier rifle for any young man just getting his feet wet hunting the whitetail deer. It is the cousin of the very accurate 308 and it also shows the accuracy any new hunter could hope for. Recoil is mild with a 4X12 adjustable AO scope you would have almost the perfect rifle for many game animals, Deer, Antelope, Caribou, Mountain Goats, Big Horn Sheep, and with special attention taken for shot placement even Elk.
Have a Rem. M-7 Stainless with Kevlar stock in 7-08. Made up some reduced loads for the missus using 39 H4895/ F210M/R-P Case/140 C-T Ballistic Tip at about 2650FPS for reduced recoil. The gun shoots great, weighs 7 lbs, and handles like a dream.
As your boy gets bigger, you can increase the loads, and recoil level, as his abilities increase. The 7-08 is hard to beat in this respect.
R-WEST
Posts: 1483 | Location: Windber, PA | Registered: 24 January 2001
The little 7-08's performance on deer when compared to it's recoil does nothing less than amaze me. I have had good luck w/ IMR-4895 and 140 Nosler B-tips.
Close range, light weight, bolt action deer rifle the 7MM-08, being a necked down 308, is very accurate. With light recoil and in most cases less than 100 yard shots the 7MM-08 is the ideal cartdge for a young deer hunter to cut his teeth on. As he grows in experience and skill he may find he does not need, nor want, any other deer cartridge than the great shooting 7MM-08.
