Help on first gun for son

[Alabama John]

Now that's what I call "Real Dads" raising their sons right!!! What memories thay are making for them both!!!!!

[chascmp]

i looked at alot of guns when i was buying one for my son and finally went with a Remington Model 7, youth model 7mm-08. bought it when he was 8 or 9 and he is now 16 and still shooting it. i have killed several with it also. he actually has gotten another Remington BDL in same caliber w/scope that he is now shooting. you cannot go wrong with the 7-08 very accurate out to 250 yards. i own mostly Brownings but the Remington is the only bolt action i could find then that he could unload the chamber while on "safe" all others had to be in "fire" mode to unchamber a round. that was my deciding factor.

[Richard]

my first deer rifle was a New England Firearms 243 youth model but now ive got a New England Firearms 308 single shot and i recomend it for any deer hunter. the best flat-shooting gun to me

I agree with the 243. I have taken several deer with my little single shot NEF. You can buy them fairly cheap at Wal-Mart. One thing I really like also is the option to add a different barrel such as a 270 cal., 30-30 etc.

[Chuck Terry]

I bought my two sons the NEF single shot in .243. Add a hammer extension, BSA scope, and sling and you got a fine beginners rifle. It is very effective on broadside shots through the chest. The recoil is much less than the .270, 30-06, or 30-30. I know that experienced hunters soon learn to ignore the sound and recoil when the adrenalin is pumping but the younger kids have a hard time with flinching the first few times on game after getting "shook" at the range practicing. I am thinking about buying another NEF 22-250 for ME! Bill Jordan's "one shot concept" makes more sense than the assault rifle approach for sure!

[cspot]

I started with a .243 as a kid and still hunt with one today. There is something about that round that makes it deadly on deer. I would get bullets that are at least 90 grains and would not get hollow points. I use 100 grain sierra boattail spitzers in mine but some others on here could probably reccommend a factory load that works well. I have killed them out to 450 yards and never have felt in 20 years of hunting and tons of deer killed that I have been undergunned at any time. They probably wouldn't be my weapon of choice for bear, but for deer size game I think that they are a great gun. They also make a nice varmit gun.

[B-man]

Here is another option definitely worth mentioning. There is a new trend just beginning towards lowered recoil in most deer/elk/bear sized calibers. Remington has "managed recoil" and Federal has "low recoil" loads available. Both loads cut recoil in half compared to the regular load!! This will make a gun more comfortable to shoot, which in turn will improve confidence (which will improve accuracy) and lead to more humane kills and happy hunters

This also allows little Timmy to borrow Uncle Joes 30/06 or .270 and shoot deer comfortably WITHOUT adjusting the scope! Another benefit is you can buy a larger caliber rifle for a youth without the added recoil (and possibly having to buy another gun in the future)

This is just another option to look at. Another thing that should be noted is that with less recoil you also lose some of the knock-down power, shots should be kept under 200 yards. (Most deer in the midwest, east, and south are shot in under 100 anyways )

[BunnyBuster12]

I guess this is a never ending question. I have noticed that no one has really bashed the 243 and I will not start. I will give some information about a past experience I had with my wife. My wife and I went out on a deer hunt. I placed her in a box stand with her 243. I proceeded to walk to my stand. Right when I got to my stand I heard the report of her riffle and started back to congratulate her. When I got to her stand she told me that she had shot one and showed me were it ran we looked for blood for about 45min. Then I told her lets get back in the stand there will be more coming soon. This time I get in the stand with her. A couple of deer come out and she takes perfect aim and fires the gun. The deer jumps up in the air, witch to me signifies that the deer had been hit and I told her that she got it. We get down and look for blood again. We were unable to locate any blood. This result caused my wife to cry and that is disheartening when she has done her part. So I just searched in the direction I saw the deer run. I found the deer about eighty yards down in the woods beside a creek still alive but wounded. The deer was then shot in the head to dispatch it. Upon butchering the deer we found that the initial shot was a double lung shot(pecil in and pecil out). I feel that even though it was a 100 grain bullet it must not have been the right type. I had the same result with the gun later that season. I do know that a 243 can and will kill but is not for me. She currently is shooting a 25-06 in a TC encore and she loves it. I would suggest that you find a good round to shoot through a 243. I think I will try a 308 for my son when he gets a little older but I had not bought or shot one and it may not be the best choice. Good luck

[nhharris78]

DONT OVERLOOK THE .260REM. FOR A YOUTH HUNTER. FINE LITTLE CARTRIDGE AND WILL HANDLE ANY DEER WALKING. HAVE A COUPLE OF FRIENDS BOYS AROUND YOURS AGE PACKING THEM ALONG WITH ONE OF THEM WIFES AND THEY FILL THEIR TAGS EVERY YEAR. RECOIL IS MILD.

[DRamey]

OK, never mind my suggestion about a shotgun, then. I'm going to buy my son the .243, you guys have sold me. I have never been one for long shots, that's the bowhunter in me I guess and that's why I suggested the shotgun. The NEF seems to be the way to go. Can you get a longer stock later for it?

[chascmp]

just be sure and let your kid practice letting the hammer back down after a mis-shot chance witout it being loaded. i started out with a Winchester 30-30 hammer, killed alot of deer but it was also scary everytime to me when i pulled hammer back and then deer moved off without me getting to shoot and having to let the hammer back down.
good luck with whatever you choose.

[wingmaster_01]

I remember going through this when i was a youngster. First off, the single shot with a hammer is the most dangerous rifle you can put in a kids hands, i had a personal experience with a young man and a single shot that almost shot my foot off trying to release the hammer and it slipped from his thumb. A little bolt action is much easier for them to handle.(remington model 7) As far as the .243 goes, i'll never forget the first & last .243 i ever owned(and yes they do kick), cut my eye not once but twice and killed no better than a 22-250. I traded it for a Remington 788 22-250 that i smoked deer with for the next 20 years.JMHO

Alan

[Bev]

My grandson is 11 and I think I'm going to try and get him a .44 Marlin:

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... 45Colt.asp

I believe they are the only rifle legal to use on deer in Indiana. He had chances on one at the Silver Creek raffle and was dragging his bottom lip when he didn't win it, lol.

[hounddog]

[quote="Bev"]My grandson is 11 and I think I'm going to try and get him a .44 Marlin:

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... 45Colt.asp

I believe they are the only rifle legal to use on deer in Indiana. He had chances on one at the Silver Creek raffle and was dragging his bottom lip when he didn't win it, lol.[/quote]

That's it Bev, spoil those grand children as I do. Then Send them home when your done. I call that pay back!

hounddog
Jim Umbarger

[hounddog]

My grandson is 11 and I think I'm going to try and get him a .44 Marlin:

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... 45Colt.asp

I believe they are the only rifle legal to use on deer in Indiana. He had chances on one at the Silver Creek raffle and was dragging his bottom lip when he didn't win it, lol.

[hounddog]

OOPPPPSSSSSSSSS

hounddog
Jim Umbarger