Between the .223 and the 6.5x55

The classic answer is the .243 Winchester. But if your .22-250's barrel has a fast enough twist, a heavy bullet (say 60 grains and up) designed for deer size game should do the job nicely.

Depending on what your hunting of course but a 243 will get a lot done and be easy on the shoulder. A 270 or a 25-06 or similar ain’t too rough on you either in my opinion.

6.5 Grendel or 257 Bob.

ExAgoradzo said:

If you want to say Creedmore I won’t object.

A hunting rifle for CXP2 game that is easy on the shoulder. I’m thinking for my small framed daughter.

I own a .22-250 and a 6.5x55. Those two seem to cover both ends, but economy of rifles has never been a goal of mine. I’d like to read some opinions.

thanks,
Greg

Click to expand...

What's the budget and how do you like to hunt?
Hot 22 heavies work well, 6mm and 6.5/6.8s will too. There's also the x39.
Anything rougher than a .243 up to .270/.308 can be fairly tamed with the right rifle, but toting it around she won't enjoy.

horsey300 said:

What's the budget and how do you like to hunt?
Hot 22 heavies work well, 6mm and 6.5/6.8s will too. There's also the x39.
Anything rougher than a .243 up to .270/.308 can be fairly tamed with the right rifle, but toting it around she won't enjoy.

Click to expand...

What horsey300 said. Also, do you handload?

In my feeble brain a 1:7 to 1:8 twist 22-250 would be perfect for a daughter on the small side. Of course everyone is an individual and recoil tolerance is across the board. My daughter is 30, 5’7” and ain’t no stringbean. She won’t shoot anything with more recoil than .243 in a rifle. She won’t even shoot 7mm-08, says she can tell a big difference. Her best friend who is much smaller and skinnier uses a .270.

ExAgoradzo said:

If you want to say Creedmore I won’t object.

A hunting rifle for CXP2 game that is easy on the shoulder. I’m thinking for my small framed daughter.

I own a .22-250 and a 6.5x55. Those two seem to cover both ends, but economy of rifles has never been a goal of mine. I’d like to read some opinions.

thanks,
Greg

Click to expand...

Coupla thoughts...

If you Reload - you can make anything work.

Factory 6.5x55mm is plenty mild and hits hard... enough.

A "Chipmunk" rifle would lend itself to a short action, for ease of bolt throw given a shorter stock... so .243 or 6.5 CM.

Given good shot placement... Game up to whitetail deer won't care.






GR

Is 223 legal in CA for hunting and does someone make non-lead ammo?

ExAgoradzo said:

If you want to say Creedmore I won’t object.

A hunting rifle for CXP2 game that is easy on the shoulder. I’m thinking for my small framed daughter.

I own a .22-250 and a 6.5x55. Those two seem to cover both ends, but economy of rifles has never been a goal of mine. I’d like to read some opinions.

thanks,
Greg

Click to expand...

7.62x39? Ive been reading good things about the Ruger American and Howa in x39.

George P said:

Is 223 legal in CA for hunting and does someone make non-lead ammo?

Click to expand...

Barnes loads their VOR-TX-TSX .223 in 55 gr., and 5.56x45mm in 62, and 70 gr..




GR

ExAgoradzo said:

Still in the planning stages. I’m mostly looking for cartridge opinions. All my rifles have been purchased based on opportunity, not looking through new gun racks. (Well, my Sako Swede was purchased new... That is for my younger son (who is now bigger than I am).

Greg

Click to expand...

cdb1 said:

In my feeble brain a 1:7 to 1:8 twist 22-250 would be perfect for a daughter on the small side. Of course everyone is an individual and recoil tolerance is across the board. My daughter is 30, 5’7” and ain’t no stringbean, She won’t shoot anything with more recoil than .243 in a rifle. She won’t even shoot 7mm-08, says she can tell a big difference. Her best friend who is much smaller and skinnier uses a .270.

Click to expand...

Modern savages have a 12 twist .22-250 which will stabilize a Barnes 50, nosler 64 and Speer 70 the old 14 twists may not though. Also the .223 12 twist or tighter will run the Barnes as a minimum. There's also the Valkyrie. A .243/6cm/6.5g/6arc/6.8spc should also be mentioned if we're going on cartridge alone. I asked about rifle as my beanpole 12 year old has taken a strong liking to my r1 in .270wsm saying she could barely tell the difference between it and the heavyweight .243 she used last year, the difference is, she can balance and tote that .243 20" bbl around easier than the 24" Benelli barrel lol! In the r1 or something similar the .270wsm and .308 become kid friendly without even having to download... For reference she doesn't notice the recoil from the .22-250 axis2 I dropped in an at-1 thumbhole for her little brother. I'd also put up that a bolt .44 magnum shouldn't be ruled out and the new .350 legend should be noted as well, however terrain and hunting styles may not be conducive.

Most people say kids shouldn't shoot past 100 yds and generally they're right, some kids are like mine though and have been working on marksmanship since they were old enough to hold a .22 revolver straight and practice frequently with THEIR rifle at least a year before they hunt. My kids get well past the hundred yard limit before they get their first tag and due to that, with our wide open terrain, can take ethical shots with confidence as far as necessary. I would recommend finding something lightweight chambered in a low recoil cartridge that will let them test themselves up until season. The battleship targets make for fun excuses to step up the game. For my eight year old, I'm thinking a mini action 6.5 Grendel would be perfect for her hunting goals, but finding a lefty is not a thing so she'll have to either adapt or we'll be shopping around. Also, if she's really lighter framed and you're not in a blind, mount a sitting height bipod for her and get her comfortable with it, then she will not be uncomfortable in her technique when she's in the field.

Don't over look a 55 grain soft point in a 22-250. They are lethal.
If you're in the I need an exit wound crowd, any of the 3 6.5 triplets will do well with a 120 gr bullet and still be extremely low recoil.
My niece uses a 6.5x55 and my wife uses a 260 rem. My nephew uses a 22-250. All 3 are deer slayers but can be shot as many times as you want without recoil making it painful.

ExAgoradzo said:

A hunting rifle for CXP2 game that is easy on the shoulder. I’m thinking for my small framed daughter.

Click to expand...

16” rifle chambered in 300 blk.

Bfh_auto said:

Don't over look a 55 grain soft point in a 22-250. They are lethal.
If you're in the I need an exit wound crowd, any of the 3 6.5 triplets will do well with a 120 gr bullet and still be extremely low recoil.
My niece uses a 6.5x55 and my wife uses a 260 rem. My nephew uses a 22-250. All 3 are deer slayers but can be shot as many times as you want without recoil making it painful.

Click to expand...

While I agree with your statements, the OP is in CA so any ammo must be lead-free for hunting, which MIGHT lead to some not being readily available......

6.5 Grendel on an AR platform.

I don't know about you guys but I believe that the .243 has a lot more felt recoil than a 7mm-08 and the 08 would be my choice. I am a 30-06 hunter and depending on bullet use I find the .243
recoil equals that of my 30-06 with a 150 grain bullet. My second choice would be a .223 with a fast twist as recommended earlier but I would choose a Hornady 75gr BTHP bullet.

ms6852 said:

I don't know about you guys but I believe that the .243 has a lot more felt recoil than a 7mm-08 and the 08 would be my choice. I am a 30-06 hunter and depending on bullet use I find the .243
recoil equals that of my 30-06 with a 150 grain bullet. My second choice would be a .223 with a fast twist as recommended earlier but I would choose a Hornady 75gr BTHP bullet.

Click to expand...

The only way the .243/.30-06 reference makes sense is if the .243 is a lightweight rifle and the .30-06 is heavy, I've shot both and the numbers don't add up.
Eta especially if a 7-08 doesn't "kick" worse than a .243.

My 06 is a Tikka T3 lite. I believe the .243 was a single shot rifle that my brother bought for his daughter, and honestly I can't remember who made, I'm thinking Rossi but not sure. Anyway when it comes to recoil it is perceived and that is exactly what I perceived. But I do fine the 7mm-08 as having a lighter recoil than the .243. Full transparency I really do not find any discernible difference in recoil between a 12 gauge shotgun and a 20 gauge shot gun. My 12 gauge is an over/under and my 20 is an 870 Remington.

6 ARC, 6.5 Grendel, 6 creed.

I wouldn’t recommend the 223 for a younger shooter - concessions need to be made with the 223, and younger shooters may not place shots as reliably, so a bit of bullet-weight-insurance is nice. Depending upon how big is your daughter currently, a 6 creed/243win class might still be a bit of recoil, but it’s certainly a considerable double-step up in insurance. The Grendel/ARC are also a step up from 223, with only marginally more recoil.

I loaded 85 gr. bullets in my (then) 10yo daughter’s .260, over 10grs.(?-been a long time) of Unique for her to practice with until she was old enough to hunt-rifle was a Ruger youth model & I got the load from a ballistics guy at Speer. If the OP reloads, it stands to reason that there is a similar load for his 6.5 Swede & he could work up from there.

Sam

Of the two, handload the 6.5 Swede to fit your needs. I recommend a .243 otherwise. Were it not California, I might recommend the .223, but the bullet selection is harder to make work there.