Youth/camp/training rifle

I recommend the ruger american in 7.62x39, but Ill also warn you it has quite the muzzle blast with the 16” barrel. Luckily the barrel is threaded and you can screw on a “linear compensator” for about 25 bucks. Also no iron sights, but other than that its been a great gun for me.

you can find the cz 527 youths in the 400 range. the american would be good to.

How about $250ish for a CVA Hunter in your choice of caliber? The Henry looks decent enough, but for a working camp rifle, well, cheap and straight shooting is my pick. It looks like it weighs a ton but it does not, nor is balance too bad. This one is chambered in .44mag.

Random 8 said:

I have need for a rifle following the spirit of the post title.

Rifle will serve as a general camp rifle at a hunting camp, used as a backup in case of an equipment problem, a plinking/training arm for individuals less familiar with firearms including youth.

Must be relatively light and compact. Must be in an inexpensive caliber with modest recoil and blast. Must be simple to operate with good safety features. Must be powerful enough for whitetail deer at shorter ranges, say 75 yard maximum.

Considering a Henry single shot in .357 or .44 mag (with reduced loads) or perhaps a Savage/Stevens bolt .30-30 (also with reduced loads) or a bolt action in 7.62x39. Not a fan of .223 for big Northern deer, so not interested in that caliber.

Wondering what else is out there in the low to moderate price range?

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Look no further.

RUGER 77/357 w/ NEGC Aperture sights.

GR

I know you asked for just one gun, but may I suggest that if you go with Skylerbone's idea, add a Ruger 10/22 with the $$ you'll save (assuming you don't already have one, of course).

If you skip ahead to 12:30 on this excellent but rather long video, I think Paul Harrell makes a good point:.

30-30 levergun from your preferred maker. Henry is good, and American made.

I want a Henry Single Shot!!

30-30's are "kickers", especially out of lightweight carbines.

Not so, the .357 Magnum.




GR

Any basic AR will work as well.

George P said:

Any basic AR will work as well.

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While out of the OP's envelope... it is still a reasonable suggestion.

Would have suggested the Mini-14, and use one myself for that very purpose, along w/ the 77/357, depending....




GR

A good SKS isn't a bad suggestion. Short, handy, accurate to iron sight distances for me, effective round, lower recoil. What's not to like?

Military surplus Swede Mauser.

CZ just introduced the 527 with a synthetic stock. I suspect it will be even more affordable than the walnut stocked version. 6.5 Grendel offers much longer range than 7,62x39 or .223 and plenty of lethality for deer, hogs, etc. Wolf steel-cased ammo is inexpensive -- currently about $0.25 per round. It's chambered in 7,62x39 also if even lower cost ammo is more important than the big advantage in range. Either way, .30-30 or .243 Winchester will be close to twice the price for ammo. 357 Magnum is inexpensive if you buy Tula, but .44 is not so cheap -- certainly not as cheap as Grendel, much less 7.62x39. Either handgun cartridge will even more severely limit the effective range.

Also, it's not clear what youth the rifle will need to fit, but bolt-actions, surplus, and most older guns generally don't have adjustable length-of-pull and many of them have limited aftermarket stock options. You can get a Boyds machine-inlet stock for the CZ 527 and the Ruger 77/44 or 77/357 that is either a custom length or adjustable. AR-style rifles very frequently come with adjustable stocks -- and if you're using an optic, the rail allows for adjustment of an optic's eye point, because scopes usually have a fixed eye-relief, so shooters with varying lengths of pull will need the optic moved forward or backward. But you didn't even mention if a magnified optic would be used.

The gas-operated AR action absorbs some recoil that you mentioned wanting to keep modest, and current prices on AR-15 style rifles make them a good value. You can get AR-15's chambered in Grendel, 300 BLK or 450 BM. There are also bolt-action guns with adjustable AR-style furniture. A good choice could be a Howa mini-action barreled action (in 7.62x39 or 6.5 Grendel) and then a chassis for it.

If it were ever to be used by youth under 15 as well as adults, I think an adjustable stock is essential. That's why I would suggest a rifle with AR-style furniture, a AR-style chassis for a bolt-action, or an action for which Boyds inlets their adjustable stocks.

For individuals less familiar with firearms, I'd say that optics matter; and I'm not talking about scopes. Throwing a decked-out AR into a 10 year old kid's hands is going to raise some eyebrows from any non-gun or anti-gun people that might be around.

I'd say the perfect solution would be a CZ 527 youth. Super light, good for deer inside 100 yards, and looks like a hunting rifle.

Plan B would be any Model 94 or 336 you can scrounge up at a pawn shop. 30-30s kick more than you think, but it's not bad IME. It's about like the 527s honestly; x39 is no one's idea of a hard kicker, but they also get your attention in a way that an SKS doesn't. That's just life with a lighter rifle. I think either one is manageable for a kid who's moved up to anything past 22s.

The Henry single shots look good on paper too, although I can't vouch for them.

labnoti said:

Wolf steel-cased ammo is inexpensive -- currently about $0.25 per round. It's chambered in 7,62x39 also if even lower cost ammo is more important than the big advantage in range. Either way, .30-30 or .243 Winchester will be close to twice the price for ammo. 357 Magnum is inexpensive if you buy Tula, but .44 is not so cheap -- certainly not as cheap as Grendel, much less 7.62x39. Either handgun cartridge will even more severely limit the effective range.

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@labnoti, Of course bottlenecks will enjoy better ballistics and yes, normally ammo is the lion’s share of cost associated with ownership. In fact I agree with the entirety of your post...however for this instance, and I’m also assuming lower than normal volume of shooting, I find pistol calibers to be ideal, the CVA being single-shot helps control ammo, and it’s inexpensive.

The OP is training for inside 100 yards; limiting distance for novice shooters. At .66/round for .44SPL subsonic cowboy loads you can avoid noise induced flinch- and $33 for a box of 50 is not horrid compared to typical 30 cal hunting rounds at say $1/round. Train with subsonic and throw .44mag in for the hunt. My kids never notice the difference once they’re aiming at a deer.

@Dave DeLaurant, I would be remiss in not acknowledging your post as most sensible. Always and forever I recommend rimfires myself and failed to remember my own advice. As many already own one it makes perfect sense to tag it along for cheap, effective training.

Remington 510’s are my go to rifles for kids or “new” people and I keep one in the shop for me.

The auto on safety gets them used to using one because there is no other choice and they are quite accurate even by today’s standards.

The last two I bought were $65 and $35.

Ruger, Howa, or CZ in 6.5 Grendel. Cheap and widely available ammo, reliable, easy to operate, low recoil, and plenty of punch for whitetails at much farther than you need.

Mosin Bubba said:

For individuals less familiar with firearms, I'd say that optics matter; and I'm not talking about scopes. Throwing a decked-out AR into a 10 year old kid's hands is going to raise some eyebrows from any non-gun or anti-gun people that might be around.

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I’d offer an alternative philosophy here:

1) I’ve not met many anti-gun folks at the range, at least not any who were on the fence. So there won’t be any around to have their eyebrows raised.

2) The 10yr old kid who is NOT taught to hold a stigmatic opinion for the AR-15 will be less likely to vote against them in the future. In my personal experience, the more a person touches and uses an AR, the less “evil” they will find them to be, and propagating a philosophy of non-violent AR’s is always a good thing.

The Ruger 77/357 - is 5.5 lbs, has negligible recoil, an 18.5" Bbl., is stainless, and has a Winchester style three-position safety.

It will take deer out to 150+ yards with Federal AE 158 gr. JSP (~ $22.50/50 box), and for plinking or training, PPU 158 gr. FMJ/FP is $16/50 box.

The rifle is a little pricey... but not like a Winchester lever action in that caliber... and most nice things, that will last nearly forever, generally are.






GR

labnoti said:

CZ just introduced the 527 with a synthetic stock. I suspect it will be even more affordable than the walnut stocked version.

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You can try a factory CZ527 synthetic stock for yourself as a $125 accessory purchase from CZUSA: http://shop.cz-usa.com/ProductDetail/19920_Stock-527-American-M1-Polymer-Stock

I bought a 'suppressor ready' 527 package in 300 Blackout that came with the factory synthetic stock in late 2017, and FWIW I don't care for this stock at all. Much uglier in person than in photos -- it has an old Norinco air rifle look to it, if you know what I mean. It features a sticky-tacky-rubbery coating I immediately disliked, but more importantly, a vague action fit. I found that I needed to insert and line up the action, TG and magazine before tightening the action screws -- the stock has enough rotational slop that the action can be installed in so that the magazine well ends up misaligned and magazines won't fully insert. I retired this stock earlier this year in favor of an MDT chassis:

If you can find a Remington Model 7 in .243 you need to look no further.

Random 8 said:

I'm avoiding semi autos and levers not for any political reason, but for the fast action repeater in the hands of a novice shooter reason. Training somebody on their first centerfire, or first rifle period is simply easier and safer with a bolt or single shot.

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Discipline is about the shooter, not about the rifle.

I trained my two year old, now 6, on a Semiauto rifle. I’d hope you aren’t training anyone with less discipline than a 2 year old.