As far as I know, .223 and the like are not usually recommended for deer-sized game (tho I could be wrong about that) but great-grandson will be old enough to participate in the Youth Hunt next year and his Dad is asking about an appropriate rifle.

He's thinking .243, but Jayden is a little guy, be surprised if he weighs 100 pounds and I'm wondering if a .243 might be a bit much for him.

Input appreciated.

.243 or .223 are the 2 I see most, 25-06 as a third.

My dad has a Savage Axis [non accutrigger] that my stepmom & sister shoot. No complaints there.
He put a Timney trigger in it & it made a big improvement over the stock setup.

I started with a Marlin 30-30 at around 11 or 12, probably barely was over 100lbs then.

First question is, what's the minimum legal caliber in the area/state? I've killed a lot of deer with a .22-250 but several states don't allow .22 caliber centerfires. As you mentioned, the .243 is a great youth caliber. I think there's even reduced recoil ammunition available or if you handload, work up a reduced load if you feel it's too much for him to handle.

.243 has long been a reccomended youth/ or ladies caliber with good reasons. It works and is usually not too much for 100 to 120 lbs. small framed people. This is for next year and kids hit growth spurts.
What are state regulations for caliber? .223 may not be allowed. If you want an AR style rifle, 300 blackout seems to work well for deer size animals.

If you can try him on a 6.5 creedmoor next summer. That would be my forever choice.

I see 7 and 8 year olds shooting deer with rifles and they’re definitely not 100 lbs.

The smallest I would personally go is 243. I think my 9 year old could shoot it with a good forearm rest and maybe a cheek elevator would help, too. Even better if you can add a little weight. 100gr Partition in a 243 is a deer killing machine.

The only Junior shooter I know said "I got my first deer last week."
Me: "What did you shoot him with?"
Jr: "A .223."
Me: "Good work."
Jr: "Most people ask me how many times I had to shoot him."
Me: "OK, how many.
Jr: "Once."

But I think a .243 is a better choice, now that you can hardly get a .250 Savage. If Dad has a 6mm or 6.5mm Fashionable Blaster, the kid could hunt with one of those and save tooling up for an added caliber.

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:
As far as I know, .223 and the like are not usually recommended for deer-sized game (tho I could be wrong about that) but great-grandson will be old enough to participate in the Youth Hunt next year and his Dad is asking about an appropriate rifle.

He's thinking .243, but Jayden is a little guy, be surprised if he weighs 100 pounds and I'm wondering if a .243 might be a bit much for him.

Input appreciated.

If 223 is legal in your state, and you can find some ammo loaded with the Barnes 70gr TSX bullet, it will do fine for deer as long as you keep the distances modest.

Otherwise, keep in mind that a lighter rifle will recoil more, so maybe opt for a heavier rifle and a shooting position that will let him rest the rifle on something to be steady. 243 out of a heavyish bolt action shouldn't be too much for him.

.243 is a great choice. They may get bored with it working without a lot of recoil, and want something else later, but it will always work as well as any deer cartridge.

A few years back, my grandson borrowed my Ruger in 7.62x39 for his first deer hunt with his Dad. Your description kind of fits his size at the time. He loved it to the point I had to buy him one for his birthday to get mine back. He still uses it today. I wouldn't take it out to 400 yds. but its a great eastern woodlands cartridge where you may shoot 100 - 150. Think 30-30, which is what I taught my son with.

I won’t offer any opinion about actually hunting deer, but I do know something about ballistics. Light-recoiling (i.e., low velocity) .30 caliber cartridges have more rainbow-like trajectories than faster-stepping 0.24 bullets. The latter are therefore more forgiving of range estimation and aiming holdoff errors. That may not be a huge consideration at close ranges, but it’s one.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: sigfreund,

My son took his first deer with a single shot 44 magnum.

I'll reiterate the .243. Over the years of our youth, my brother & I have killed oodles of Mule deer & Antelope with it. I know some who have taken Elk with it. (I think it's too small)
It's light recoiling, flat shooting, easy to load for/plentiful if buying factory ammo. There's nothing to dislike about it for a youth rifle.
You could even look at the 6.5 CM as well. It's a round that a youngin' can use effectively & will carry him well into adulthood hunting.

quote:

What are state regulations for caliber? .223 may not be allowed.

The smallest permitted caliber in Maine for deer is actually .22mag. So .223 is legally fine and I think given that we don't normally have very large deer or very long ranges very acceptable with good ammo.

Paul, pretty much any caliber will work, I’ve shot them with 357,38,45,40,308,45-70,45 musket ball, shotgun, 223, even 22lr .
The last 2 were headshots only. I helped cull deer at the local airport. You could ride the tractor and pop them in the head from ten feet or less.

But for a kid who might be making a lung shot I’d stick with the 243. The recoil isn’t much-much less than a 308 and with his adrenaline running he probably won’t even remember the recoil.
Just get a good round, you don’t want FMJ, match or a groundhog bullet. Most ammo has the sized animal they are supposed to be used on, ie deer pic, or ground hog.

Good luck, take pics and post em.

I recently bought a new rifle in 243 and really enjoy shooting it because of the light recoil. I am sure the young man would do fine with a 243 for many years to come.

just to be precise about this, the recoil of a .243 is more than double that of a .223 round.

quote:

Originally posted by hrcjon:
just to be precise about this, the recoil of a .243 is more than double that of a .223 round.

Yes. Which is to say, more than double that of an angry pellet rifle.

My Dad bought me a Marlin lever action deer rifle for me at age 12 in .35 Remington that was way too much rifle for me he admitted years later.

I’ve been using a 7mm-08 more recently and it’s got a surprisingly soft recoil and is a good deer round. May be worth looking at.

Thanks everyone. I believe we've settled on a .243

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:
Thanks everyone. I believe we've settled on a .243

Good choice. If you're looking to buy a new rifle, also consider 6 Creedmoor. 6CM better handles long & heavy target bullets, should the rifle also be used for longer distance target work.

Recoil forces of various calibers in foot pounds, for common loads:
22lr = 1/4 to 1/2 foot pounds
223 Remy = 3-4 foot pounds
300 Blk supersonic = 7
243 & 6CM = 8-10
350 Legend = 9-10
30-30 = 10-11
25-06 = 11-12
6.5CM & 260 Remy = 11-12
7mm-08 = 12-14
270 Win = 16-17
308 Win = 16-18

Good muzzle brakes decrease recoil by 50-70 percent, but with a 15-20 dB noise increase to the shooter.
Good suppressors decrease recoil by 40-60 percent

This message has been edited. Last edited by: fritz,