bets caliber for youth
- Thread starter rkr
- Start date
Either 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser, 260 Rem or 6.5 Creedmoor will be your best options, with good rifle and ammunition (120-156 gr bullets) choices to be found.
Another great choice is the 7mm-08 Rem (again 120-160gr bullets).
If you want something a little lighter and still very effective with a classic touch, the 250 Savage (also known as the 250-3000, with 87-100 gr bullets)) is another great choice.
These choices will also be great for target shooting, as recoil is fairly mild, especially with the lighter bullets up to 143 gr. But find a rifle that fits him well, or get an extra stock that you are not afraid to shorten and fit with a good recoil pad, and then are able to put the original stock back on when he grows larger and can fit the original stock's length of pull.
Also hard to beat the good old lever actions in 30-30 (150-170 gr bullets) or the 35 Rem or 38-55/375 Win (200 gr bullets) if looking for something with a larger bullet.
Although the latter 3 will be limited to just over 100 yards. But not a bad thing for a young hunter to learn to hunt and gain stalking skills on game.
Everyone should learn to shoot rifles with open sights at various ranges. It is more of an acquired skill that provides a better sense of accomplishment. Many levers can be fit with scopes, but to teach him this skill is important, and he will appreciate the capabilities of the scope more when using one.
May not be the typical target rifles or cartridges, but are a lot of fun to shoot, carry and hunt with!
There's something about using levers with open sights that just cannot be found when using scoped bolt action rifles, and should be experienced by everyone.
Just my 2 cents...
Another great choice is the 7mm-08 Rem (again 120-160gr bullets).
If you want something a little lighter and still very effective with a classic touch, the 250 Savage (also known as the 250-3000, with 87-100 gr bullets)) is another great choice.
These choices will also be great for target shooting, as recoil is fairly mild, especially with the lighter bullets up to 143 gr. But find a rifle that fits him well, or get an extra stock that you are not afraid to shorten and fit with a good recoil pad, and then are able to put the original stock back on when he grows larger and can fit the original stock's length of pull.
Also hard to beat the good old lever actions in 30-30 (150-170 gr bullets) or the 35 Rem or 38-55/375 Win (200 gr bullets) if looking for something with a larger bullet.
Although the latter 3 will be limited to just over 100 yards. But not a bad thing for a young hunter to learn to hunt and gain stalking skills on game.
Everyone should learn to shoot rifles with open sights at various ranges. It is more of an acquired skill that provides a better sense of accomplishment. Many levers can be fit with scopes, but to teach him this skill is important, and he will appreciate the capabilities of the scope more when using one.
May not be the typical target rifles or cartridges, but are a lot of fun to shoot, carry and hunt with!
There's something about using levers with open sights that just cannot be found when using scoped bolt action rifles, and should be experienced by everyone.
Just my 2 cents...
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FreedomIsn'tFree
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Republic of Buffalo.
7mm-08 it a great choice and what I bought my boy at 12.
safehunter
Regular
- Location
- South Western Onterrible
243 or 3030
Imho win94 are underrated for children. Light quick handling. Great close range offhand Bush gun.
243 would be my pick for longer range ie 100+
Imho win94 are underrated for children. Light quick handling. Great close range offhand Bush gun.
243 would be my pick for longer range ie 100+
7.62x39 fills the bill for ammo, but restricts gun choice. 243 is rather light. 6.5 ammo harder to find. 7.08 is getting better but pricey. Good old 30.30 can be found darn near anywhere, but most guns are lever. I built a custom 7.08 Rem 788 for my wife, works and shoots great, just don't lose your ammo in south Sk. Try to find that on Sunday at the local Co op!
(which is why I always keep a good old non clip Parker Hale 308 in the truck for a back up, once lost her mag and all ammo on a remote trip)
(which is why I always keep a good old non clip Parker Hale 308 in the truck for a back up, once lost her mag and all ammo on a remote trip)
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for my nephew when he was young was a 7 08 loaded to 2600 fps with a 140 grn. he got deer and bear with that load. a few years latter it was loaded up to full velocity and he never noticed. he has grown up now still using the same rifle.
paintearthmike
Member
- Location
- Central Alberta
The 7mm-08 is a good choice, but if you want a lighter bullet, I'd take a 257 Roberts over a .243.
If you reload then there are a myriad of choices, anything between and including .24 to .30 caliber with 40-45gr of powder pushing it along will do the job nicely. If you don't reload keep it to something on the cheaper side ammo-wise, as the more shooting he can get under his belt the better. If I was choosing a new rifle, for a young new hunter today I'd personally choose the 6.5CM if I didn't reload as there are different ammo offerings everywhere.
The most important thing in my opinion should be the rifle itself, not the caliber. Most 12 year olds aren't yet built for a full size stock. My first rifle was a Rem. 788 7mm-08, excellent rifle in an excellent chambering, but I wasn't big enough yet to hold the rifle properly (length-of-pull was way too long), and the first few years it really "seemed" to kick me around a lot, even relative to the other couple centerfires I had a chance to fire back then.
The most important thing in my opinion should be the rifle itself, not the caliber. Most 12 year olds aren't yet built for a full size stock. My first rifle was a Rem. 788 7mm-08, excellent rifle in an excellent chambering, but I wasn't big enough yet to hold the rifle properly (length-of-pull was way too long), and the first few years it really "seemed" to kick me around a lot, even relative to the other couple centerfires I had a chance to fire back then.
This ^^^^...and I don't own one...never did. But .308 Win bolts are pussycats. The stuff that I hear is 7 / 08 is very nice to shoot, effective too.
- Location
- Saskatchewan
Both my sons started with 7mm08 rifles, and both still use them almost 20 years later.
If you reload, you can build reduced loads for anything. If you don't reload, you can buy "Managed Recoil" loads for many common cartridges. 7-08, .308 are both good choices... if you are serious about medium game, the 6.5mm options are a better starting point than the 6mm options (IMO)... these days, there is no good reason not to start with a 6.5 Creedmoor... the marketing and "fan boying" around the cartridge has created a push from both firearms and ammunition manufacturers... so, lots of options. I have a few friends that have started their teens hunting the past few years and all chose .308's for which, I make reduced loads using H4895 and 150 SST's.
