Deer Rifle for a 11-12 year old

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Both my boys got heir first deer with their youth model 700 in .243. They both still have em. The grandkids will get theirs with em too. In the words of Gus McCray " Money well spent, both times".
 
If this 11 or 12 year gets hurt, scope in the face or from over recoil, you may never get him or her to shoot again, if it were me, I pick the 260 Remington,
 
I would tend to agree with 280shooter. I have a .260 and believe it to be the BEST round for a kid. I mentioned other rounds because some on here say that the .260 is a reloader's round, and in some areas they are right.
 
Yeah, I've been hit with the scope from a 12 ga slug gun and my 30-06. Now I need to practice away a flinch. I don't want him to have a bad experience. He already doesn't like the sound level of my 30-06 when I shoot it. That's why I was leaning toward a .22-250 since it would be a little better than minimum but hopefully not bad on recoil. My 12 ga deer gun is an H&R Ultra Slug Hunter. I'm familiar with the platform if it is the same between the USH and the Handi-rifle.
 
I used to have a Marlin 44 magnum lever rifle. It felt like a toy and would have been a good starter rifle for a boy.

I'll go with the posts that suggest a rifle that shoots a (currently manufactured and easy to find) pistol caliber.

A Marlin lever in 357 magnum might be just the ticket. Big enough to bring down a whitetail and gentle enough to have little perceived recoil in a rifle. Plus ammo is readily available. Instead of buying a box of 20, you buy a box of 50.
 
lwolford said:
Yeah, I've been hit with the scope from a 12 ga slug gun and my 30-06. Now I need to practice away a flinch. I don't want him to have a bad experience. He already doesn't like the sound level of my 30-06 when I shoot it. That's why I was leaning toward a .22-250 since it would be a little better than minimum but hopefully not bad on recoil. My 12 ga deer gun is an H&R Ultra Slug Hunter. I'm familiar with the platform if it is the same between the USH and the Handi-rifle.
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The 22-250 certainly is low on recoil, but it is very very loud.
There's an easy 30 to 41 grains of powder behind the bullet, and it leaves the muzzle at at over 3,500fps.

If you go that route, stay away from short barrels and spend real money on hearing protection.
 
I wasn't thinking about relative loudness between rounds. Would the .223 or .243 be any quieter? What about the pistol caliber rifles?
 
Savage Axis youth in .243. If he hits a growth spurt, you will be able to find a take-off regular stock for a song probably now that Boyds is making replacements for it. Or just get the Boyds.
 
airbus300 said:
My 11yo son uses a Remington Youth 700 in 7mm-08. Currently he uses Remington reduced recoil 140gr ammo to deer hunt with. Incrediblely low recoil. He only shoots out to about 100 yards for now and it has plenty of energy at that range. I got it because it's a gun that he can keep well into adulthood and hunt just about anything with it using a variety of ammunition. Later he can restock it into a full size stock. Should last a lifetime.
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That is the gun and caliber that I started my son on when he was 11. I downloaded rounds for him. I replaced the stock with a full sized stock when he outgrew the youth stock. Now, with full power ammo and the right bullets (e.g. Barnes Triple Shocks) you can hunt everything in North America with it, although I would not take it on a brown bear hunt.
 
Wyo is right about the increased versatility, and with a 139, 140 gr. pill you would make shot placement at least a little less critical.
 
A good friend's 11 year old daughter took her first deer this season with .243 Browning auto. I had just finished up at the range when they showed up for their "prep lesson" and watched him review the safety rules, proper shooting and sighting practices with her and then she put 3 rounds through the "deer target's" heart at 50 yards!

Can't say anything bad about a .243!
 
does it have to be a center fire a inline M/L and 60gr of powder and a 240gr
bullet is very mild to shoot and will kill a deer just fine and can be real cheap
to shoot and a lot of fun too and it will grow with you son
good luck
 
Savage 243 in a lady or youth gun will do him good. Rem has a new 783 that might make a youth size stock for around 400.00. GOOD LUCK
 
I agree with many of the others...something in 243WIN. I'd recommend one of the newer Remington 700ADL with X Mark Pro trigger, or Ruger American.
 
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Both my sons started with a 243....there are others just as good for the purpose of getting kids started (257 Roberts, 6mm Remington, etc.)...but none do it any better than the 243.
 
Ruger American 243 compact.

I just picked up one for my son for his 13th birthday on Wednesday when we go out hunting. He thought he was getting it for Xmas (he is) but I am sneaking it out a little early.

He is a small 13. I plan to load up some lighter end rounds for this winter for him to practice with. That is, when I can locate dies.
 
My son just finished his first deer hunt, and he is 12 now. I bought hima youth savage axis 243, and he didn't like it cause he was afraid of getting scoped and couldn't hit anything with it, so I let him try my Winchester 94 30-30, and he thinks it recoils less, and could shoot ALOT better with it. Just my personal North Dakotan experience this year.
 
357 max = 30-30 basically?

Is the 357 max equal to a 30-30? If so might as well just go with the one with ammo that is easy to come by.
 
6.5x55 swede. Low recoil with factory loads and easily hand loaded to suit your needs. Downside though is ammo is not as available locally as more common calibers but online availability has been good.
 
+1 vote for either 243 Win or 30-30 single shot, or bolt action but just have them load 1 round to begin with. If the child is on the small side and you don't want to use the heavier 170gr bullets in 30-30, they also offer managed recoil ammo for it with 125 gr bullets that would still take a deer when hit properly. Personally, I'd avoid any elaborate or expensive cartridge options until the kid demonstrates strong desire to stay with hunting, etc.
 
Personally, I'd avoid any elaborate or expensive cartridge options until the kid demonstrates strong desire to stay with hunting, etc.
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Agreed. I know it's easy to get caught up in the excitement of it, but the above statement is very sound (and fits with my own experience with my son).

Funny, I remember when I was a kid. You simply used what was available to you. My first deer hunt was with a double barrel 12 gauge borrowed from a neighbor. Today, many of us have the means of tailor fitting our child out with youth guns and soft shooting calibers, and although that can be nice, I don't really think it's as necessary as modern mentality seems to think. Although I was not successful on the first deer hunt, I still remember it vividly today (I was so excited, even if a little scared of that big old 12gauge. Besides that fear quickly goes away when you see that deer come into sight).
 
My 100lb 12yo has no problem handling my t/c venture .270 that came with a very soft recoil pad but this is the same kid that likes to touch off my 3.5" 12ga Turkey gun or 870 slug gun
 
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