When faced with the same problem in finding a rifle for my 11 year old son I went with a Rem. Mtn. rifle in .260. Its fairly light to carry.....6.5 lbs. w/o scope, powerful enough for most anything we hunt, easy to load for, doen't kick him around and if I'm lucky he even lets me use it occasionally.

I'd thought about the Mountain rifle, as I know that's available in 260. I'm off on the usual Saturday tour of the local gun shops, so I'll see what's on the racks to look at. Maybe inspiration will strike?? Thanks for all the info - knowledge is power, ya know!! maxman

Since you can handload, just about any of the cartridges that have been mentioned can be tamed down so that a youngster can enjoy shooting the rifle.... Probably more important that the rifle fit the shooter than the choice of caliber.

My son is handicapped, profoundly weak but, he wanted to hunt..and in the beginning he was very recoil sensitive. I put together a 6.5x55 swedish barrel and a turk action. Reworked the military stock so that it fit him with recoil pad. It has a 24 inch barrel, and I added weight to the forearm to help him steady it on the support arm of the shooting chair he uses...it weighs close to 9# with the scope and ammo.

When we go to the range he shoots 120gr bullets at about 2000fps..with nearly zero recoil..when we hunt he shoots 140gr bullets at 2400fps. Never notices the recoil when we are hunting..and it aint much anyway.. It is plenty adequate for the deer and hogs he has encountered..

I am glad your kids and wife are going to have a chance to share your hunting!!

zeeriverrat1

Maxman, You've been blessed w/ a lot of good advice so far. Not sure I have anything new to add, but will share w/ you what I recently did w/ similar situation.

I bought a Savage bolt action in 308 Win for my 10 year old son just a few months ago. I worked up a load using Blue Dot powder and 125 gr Nosler BT bullet to 2400 fps. So far, he's killed 2 deer w/ 2 shots! I definitely think you'd be best served to count on handloading for the reduced velocity load. Even a relatively low recoiling round like the 257 Roberts can be toned down considerably to make it even more agreeable to the young/beginning hunter. This summer I developed a load for a friend to use w/ his two grandsons (7 and 9 y/o) for deer hunting this year. Both used the same load (90 gr Sierra BTHP/Blue Dot/2650 fps)in a 257 Roberts. So far, they've killed 5 deer w/ 8 shots. (The older grandson went through a cold spell where missed 2 deer , but redeemed himself w/ an 8 point at 150 yds.)

Some years ago, I remember reading an article by John Wootters dealing w/ rifle rounds that were good for beginners to learn w/ and continue being able to use into adulthood. The title was something like "Seven Rounds to Start and Stay With." He recommended the 250 Savage, 257 Roberts, 6.5X55, 7-30 Waters, 7-08, 30-30, and 300 Savage; the 260 Rem was not available then or I'm sure he would've rec'd it as well.

Personally, I'd give serious consideration first to the 257 Roberts, 260 Rem, 7-08, and 308; I'd consider the 250 Savage as well, especially if you're leaning a little more to varmint rather than big game. Nothing wrong w/ the 250 Savage, but I think the 257 has a little more flexibility w/ heavier loads. I chose the 308 in part because I already had proper components to load for it. The 257 Roberts (w/ aforementioned bullet or 85/100 gr NBT), 260 Rem (w/ 120 gr NBT/Sierra/Speer), or 7-08 (w/ 120 gr NBT or 130 gr Single Shot Pistol bullets) loaded to 2400-2700 fps should be both very effective and very manageable. I've killed enough big game w/ similar loads in Contender pistols to appreciate how useful these loads are.

Best of luck w/ your decision. I'm sure you'll do well.

Gary T.

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Good luck and good hunting.

Max:

Spend a little time with SR 4759, Blue Dot or IMR 4198 in your loadings and any one of those cartridges are easily a 200 yd deer rifle with recoil reduction of 40% to 50% with no problem at all.

Cheers and happy holidays
seafire

Maxman,
I have two sons that love to hunt deer. They started at the age of 12. They both use Model 7 Remingtons in 260 Rem with great success. My oldest son now 16 has havested 7 deer and a coyote with his 260, with 120gr Rem CL and AA2520. The longest shot was about 215 yards. His brother, now 14, has shot 4 deer with 120gr Sierra Prohunter and 120gr Nosler B-Tip and H4995. I started both boys out before their first season with a practice load of 20 grs. of SR 4759 and 85gr bullets. No recoil and good accuracy. When deer season arrived they wore their hunting coat and did not mind the minimal recoil from their deer loads. They were familiar with their rifles due to lots shooting with the practice load. Plus the Model 7 is light and easy for a young person to handle. My neighbor has 2 boys 12 and 14 both shoot pre 64 M70 Win. 30-06s. They struggle to get shots off at deer. Nice rifles but very heavy and awkward for them.
Go with the Model Seven in 260 Rem

My wife's rifle is my 45-70 Govt. NEF Handi-Rifle.

Loaded with 300 gr. cast lead bullets at 1250 fps (12.2 gr Unique), the ballistics are similar to a 44 Magnum. Recoil and muzzle blast are negligible. The cartridges only look scary. It's a nice 100 yard setup.

H. C.

You might want to check out SeafireB17G's recent post on the new Howa 6.5x55 in blue or STAINLESS STEEL. It would make a great low maintenance, light-recoil deer gun. Lot's of potential for shorter range varmints too.

Thanks all. I belive my mind is made up. We got to handle all the mentioned guns over the weekend, and the one that fits her best is the Mountain Rifle from Remington. I liked the longer barrel, which wasn't too long for her to handle since it's such a light contour. Weight was just right, stock size was good. I don't think I'd have to make any changes to it for them to use it. Only problem was that no one in town has one in a 260! Six months ago, they couldn't give them away (or so they say). I really liked the detachable magazine of the Mtn Rifle also - very very good feature. I'll have to order one I guess. I did settle on the 260, as I think it will give me the most performance/flexibility for the money.

I didn't have to come home empty-handed, though. I found a Czech 98/22 in the rack that looked pretty nice. I did find some minor pitting at the wood line, but nothing to worry about. Should make a dandy receiver for the upcoming 458 project. The BRNO crest/stamping is still on the front ring, which is nice, as there will be no scope on this rifle. At least I'll have something to mess with right now.

Anyway, I do appreciate all the suggestions. Have a good one, maxman

Good going. You'll... I mean... She'll be pleased.

Good choice. I've got a Model 7 that I rebarreled with a .260 Mountain Rifle take-off barrel this past summer. This hunting season, between myself and my 11 yo nephew, 4 shots, 3 dead deer (I put a finishing shot on a pretty decent 8-pointer). All using factory Remington ammo - 140 gr. I've since picked up 2 boxes of discontinued Federal Premium 140 gr. Trophy Bonded but I haven't had time to try them out yet.

If you are still interested in CZ products, I got an e-mail from them saying they are working on a 527 in 6.8 Rem SPC - identical ballistics to a .250-3000.

Good choise. I really think your daughter will be happy with that rifle. Maybe if you are lucky she will let you use it once in a while. Get a box of Sierra 85 gr. or the Speer 90 gr. TNT and start her out with those. Seafire is a great source of reduced load information. That little rifle with 100 or 120 gr. bullets will put a hammer on deer. Like I said before I was alway and still am a big fan of the 308. But that little 260 is fast gaining on it. It seems to be the rifle I pick up the most.

RiverRat

Thanks guys. I'm sure she'll like it. It fit her pretty well in the store. Heck, it even fit me pretty well, considering it's shoter LOP. I didn't find it hard to use at all. I'll bet I can talk her into letting me use it...