Shooting with nephew

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DashCasey0120

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Ok, here is my problem started back to school at almost 30. Not having to sell any of my toys, but I'm looking for a bolt gun for my nephew on a severe budget. I'm looking at either the mossberg atr or the Stevens. I am pretty sure that I wanna go with either the 308 or a 243. I kinda want a do all caliber My only real concern is about the recoil of the 308. I don't want him to get jittery everytime he shoots it. He shoots clays with me every so often so I know he can handle a 12 gauge. Any thoughts or suggestions would greatly appreciated
 
A .243 isnt a light recoil in my opinion...... You may consider .223. You didnt mention what you wanted to do with it, or how big he is. But a .223 is a light recoil and has good range. It may be on the light side for deer if that's the plan (And that is debated here)

Sounds like fun!

Savage also has the edge out now. Combos start at 300 in my area. I havent heard much on them yet, as they are new.
 
Well I'm thinking hog and deer, but really just anything, he'll enjoy just shooting it too. He is 14 and almost as tall as me (5'11"). Well built kid but city raised all his life.
 
I know it's all about shot placement, but hogs are pretty tough and I wouldn't want to lose a hog because of a less than perfect shot.
 
Its not a bolty, but a sks might do the trick. 7.62x39

Or one of the mossberg, stevens or savage. I think you may be right with .243 if going with something powerful, but not as rough on the shooter, given his size and the possible game.

It's been a while for me, but maybe someone here can help with the .308 vs .243 recoil comparison.
 
Im 14, 5'10" 150 lbs. I can handle .308.. shoot I can handle 30-06. reason I didnt get that is the gun was not all black, like my Howa is. and the ammo is more. and no steel case.
Here's my Howa M1500 .308. i have about 650 into 'er now. shoots well.
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Me shooting it.
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HOWA it groups. <--- hahhah. not How. but Howa. (Hornady superformance 150 grain SST.
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Wolf 150 grain junk
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You might add the Marlin XS7 to your choices. Its been getting excellent reviews for the money. Most are reporting very good accuracy.
 
Whatever you get, let him learn to shoot it. It's not like he's a little kid or anything. I'm 5'2" tall and go between 150 and 160, depending on how good dinner's been lately. I got my M700 about four weeks ago and have averaged 150 rounds per shooting session and I haven't been bothered at all by the recoil. Still, if recoil is a concern, there is managed recoil ammunition. I loaded up some light 110gr loads (Hornady V-Max, I believe) for my 12 year old. He doesn't have any problems. I also put a limb saver on mine.

BTW, what's "city raised" got to do with it?
 
Mossberg review

I traded my sks for a Mossberg ATR in .243 a couple years ago--not sure it was much of an even trade, but I "needed" a hunting rifle (deer mainly) for my 3 sons--oldest is 13. You can get one of these at Academy for around $250 new.

The recoil of the .243 out of this rifle is light compared to the 06s and 308s. The stock is synthetic and the rifle is light. My only problem is that it groups poorly, unless you shoot premium ammo. I tried Federal ($14/box), remington ($15 box), and I think it was Winchester ($15box) and finally Hornady ($27box). I got fliers all over the place with everything except for the hornady--gotta love it. All ammo was 100gn, I believe.

I picked up some wolf 110gn sp ammo today and another box of hornady and am going to the range tomorrow to try it out. I have never shot wolf out of it, and am hopeful I can get better results. Granted, once you sight a rifle in, if you are lucky, you may never shoot more than a half dozen rounds hunting a year. But if you are like me and like to have the kids practice alot, pricey ammo sure takes the fun out of it real quick.
 
Tony i just mean that he has been raised on a large city with very few opportunities to shoot any large rifles
 
Dash, I was just jerking your chain a little. Your comment kind of struck home and made me laugh. I was born in south Louisiana and raised a "coon ass," but my father moved us to New Orleans away from "down the bayou." When ever we got together for family holidays, my cousins (from my 13 aunts and uncles) used to tease me and called me a "city slicker."
 
range report on Mossberg ATR 243

Went to the range yesterday with it. It has the Mossberg supplied 3-9 scope on it.
I shot around 15rds of hornady 100gn BTSP through it. It would put them in the 1" circle at 100yds out, if I was a better man. Mighty fine.

I had picked up a box of Academy brand Monarch .243 ammo ($15/box) and ran a couple rounds. Printed about an inch and half above bullseye. Not bad. Think I may be switching soon to Monarch. It was their 100gn soft tip ammo.

Problem was I had two hornady rounds not ignite. Looks to be light primer strikes. All of my cases appear to be light hits. I have run a box of federal, winchester and remington through the rifle with no issues. Maybe Hornady uses harder primers. I pulled the bolt and gave it a quick once over, but saw nothing glaring. I am thinking I can do a simple fix to this. Will talk it over with a 'smith later this week.

All in all, I say you can't go way wrong with getting your nephew one of these rifles. Some would be critical and say it is a cheap gun and it will have problems, but if you had only paid 200-300 more and it had problems, it was just getting "broke in". BTW, my 13 year old son is looking forward to shooting his first deer with it this season. He has fired several hunting rifle calibers, and this one doesn't "scare" him.
thanks
 
doable

It would be sufficient, as long as all things are considered. I would not recommend for large hogs or faraway shots. The last pig I took was with a 22 mag, but it was close, under 10 feet, shot it behind the ear, and the pig(let) weighed about 30 pounds.

I would emphasize shot placement and size of pig. On the bigger ones, that cartilage "plate" on their shoulder gets pretty inpenetrable as they grow. I would still venture a head shot on a slightly larger pig (say up to around 100pds or so) with a .243 would drop it.

I sure don't want to get into a caliber war or anything along those lines with anyone. I believe the .243 is a great round for deer and pigs, but I would hesitate going hunting with it for Hogzilla.
thanks
 
While the gun may work, why spend $300-350 on one of these and have the issues with it not wanting to be very accurate, as well as light primer strikes when you could just spend $387 and get a Savage Model 10 or 110 depending on the caliber from Walmart. Instead of a crappy trigger, you get the great accu trigger, you also get a great rifle without all these issues, and that is very accurate.

My Savage Model 10 in .243 and it will shoot .4-.5" groups all day long at 100 yards with handloads. With factory ammo, I've tried Winchester Power Points, Hornady 95 Grain SST's, Hornady 100 grain soft points, and Federal Power Shoks. The worst it's ever shot was with the Hornady 100 grain soft points and I got groups around 1"-1.2" with those. With both the Federal and Winchester soft points it groups around .7-.8" all day long. With the Hornady SST's I got groups that stayed around 1". This thing is just an amazing shooter, has a great trigger, comes with a scope (although a cheap one), and overall is a nice quality gun for a great price.

This doesn't mean that if I had an ATR I'd go trade it off immediately or advise anyone else too either, as they don't seem to be horrible. Certainly better than a Remington 770. However, if you don't have anything yet and are going to buy something why not get the best you can get for your money? Why settle for something that works "ok" when you can get something that works great for a similar price?
 
My wife had never fired a gun before last March. I had bought her a Ruger Hawkeye in .243, and within 2 trips to the range she was printing 1/2moa at 100yds. On her second outing, she tried and fell in love with my Ruger 77 in .270, pushing a 150 gr. bullet with a nearly max load. She's in her late 20's, goes 5'-7" and about 135 lb. It's more about the shooter than the gun, within reason. If not a .243, how about a 257 bob or a 25-06? -Still good for varmints, and a little more "oomph" for deer/hogs.

(BTW, wife is happier with her .243 now that I made her up some hot handloads with Nosler 100gr. Partitions)
 
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