I want to get my 11 year old a deer/hog gun for Christmas and I'm looking for recommendations. I think the Weatherby Vanguard Series 2 Synthetic Youth in .243 would be good, but wanted to pick the brains of the experts here. That particular gun is offered in .223, .243, 7mm-08 and .308. Would one of those other calibers be better for a kid than .243? Other than .223 I don't have experience with them.

Any good recommendations in the $500 or less range?

I'd take a look at the Ruger American Compact line.

Offered in 22-250, 223,243,7mm-08, and 308

Is 7mm-08 and 7 mag the same thing? That has a pretty good kick, doesn't it?

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Is 7mm-08 and 7 mag the same thing? That has a pretty good kick, doesn't it?

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No, they aren't but Im not well versed enough to give you the differences.

There are also a good number of reduced 7mm-08 rounds available

http://www.chuckhawks.com/recoil_table.htm

My 13 yr old shoots a 7mm-08 that he got for Christmas when he was 11. He LOVES it and I'm pretty damned impressed with that caliber as well.

I've always shot a 25-06 for anything in the hill country and a 7 mag for mulies. That 7mm-08 seems like very capable caliber for anything in Texas with pretty minimal recoil.

7mm-08 is a great rifle, even for adults.

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I want to get my 11 year old a deer/hog gun for Christmas and I'm looking for recommendations. I think the Weatherby Vanguard Series 2 Synthetic Youth in .243 would be good, but wanted to pick the brains of the experts here. That particular gun is offered in .223, .243, 7mm-08 and .308. Would one of those other calibers be better for a kid than .243? Other than .223 I don't have experience with them.

Any good recommendations in the $500 or less range?

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That gun was on sale at Cabela's in Buda a couple days ago. I don't remember the marked down price exactly, but it seemed to be a decent amount

They are both .284 bullets but the cases are substantially different. The 7-08 is an ideal caliber for Texas hunting no matter the age. Though it is gererally thought of as a light recoil rifle for youth or elderly.

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Is 7mm-08 and 7 mag the same thing? That has a pretty good kick, doesn't it?

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The 7 mag does, it is a magnum, they all do.

The 7mm 08 is just a .308 necked down to .284 (7mm) it will kick a little more than a .243, but not too bad. I think the .243 is a perfect first deer rifle, FWIW. I still hunt with mine from time to time, since it is a light rifle that still doesn't kick much.

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7mm-08 is a great rifle, even for adults.

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My grandfather gave me one when I was 10. I still use it today as my main hunting rifle. I have taken monster hogs and buck with no problems. Works great at both short and long distances. Fantastic round and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone.

7mm-08 is a great round for kids and adults. That would be an easy choice over a 243 (which by the way I grew up shooting).

Another vote for the 7mm-08. All of my cousins shoot them and they range from 8-12 years old. I just bought my wife the youth vanguard for her birthday and she loves it. Shot a doe a couple weeks ago with a 140 grain bullet and the exit hole was the size of a tennis ball. Doe dropped where she stood. Little to no recoil from what I can tell when I've shot it myself.

Hoss,

You can't go wrong with the 7MM-08. My niece (Now 14 YRs) shoots that one with reduced recoil loads and it is deadly accurate. She has been shooting this since she was 12 and she was weighing maybe 80-85 lbs?

Minimal recoil and she is very comfortable shooting it. As she gets older she can jump to regular loads if the need arises.

Great Round.

.243, .308, and 7mm-08 are all the same shell casing with different bullet diameters.

My kids started with .308s and .243s in Winchester Model 88s and 100s (mostly because I have a ton of them and a left handed son that took up well with the 88) but you can't go wrong with any of those 3 calibers in a good bolt action rifle IMHO.

I personally shoot my Winchester Model 70s and Tikka T3s more than anything in the safe. They're my go to guns simply because I know them and trust them. But everyone has their own opinions regarding rifles.

Get something they're comfortable shooting at the range and practicing with.

Thanks for all the input. Based on what y'all have said and the Google search I did while waiting for responses here, I think the 7mm-08 would be a really good round for him.

I picked the Weatherby Vanguard Youth because I have a Weatherby Vanguard that I really like. It's not a "nice" gun, but it's accurate and well made. Any other thoughts on good starter guns in 7mm-08?

I have the Savage 11 7mm-08. No complaints.

I too started with a 243, my guess anyone on here with a budget back in the day had one. I have a boy who is 7 and is shooting a 22 now. I have a Hill Country Rifle made 223 heavy barrel and it will most likely be too heavy for him to get around and accurately use it. Body size and weight will play a big part, and how much recoil they are used to. Most of the recommendations are good. I would stay away from the larger caliber Ruger americans they just do not seat well action to body. 22-250 is ok but I would want a heavy barrel in 22-250.

6.8SPC

I love the 7mm08, its still my go to rifle for a lot of my deer and hog hunting, my son started hammering deer with it at 12, before that he was shooting a .243. That being said, I would lean toward the .243 for an 11 yr old girl, Hornady makes some "Lite" ammo for both rounds and it makes the .243 extremely usable for young shooters. As was mentioned, the new Ruger compacts are very cool guns and it's hard to go wrong with the Weatherby Vanguards.
If anyone has any 7mm08 brass they'd like to get rid of, let me know.

7mm-08 is, from what I've seen, nearly identical to the 7mm masuer / .275 rigby. I shoot one regularly, and have let kids as young as 7 or 8 pull the trigger comfortably.

MY personal outlook on a rifle is buy him a good action, even at base trim, and re-stock and barrel it as he grows. I'd rather start with a rem 700 or another good quality action, and pay for a new stock/barrel/trigger as a youth progresses than buy multiple stock rifles.

Mine is an old Remington Model 7. I absolutely love it. Twenty years of use and other than tossing on some new glass and a new sling I have done nothing to it. I might swap out the stock at some point but I don't know. I do love that gun.

.243 or 7mm-08

I picked up a Weatherby Vanguard 7m 08 for my son that came with a youth and a compact stock. It is a very sweet shooting gun and it was nice being able to change out the stock when he got bigger. I really love the 7mm 08 too. There seems to be a lot of ammo choices that are suited for wide variety of applications. When he was younger, we used 120 grain bullets and I couldn't tell a noticeable difference in recoil as compared to a 243.

No love for .25-06?

Get a good stock now at a good price and then have it all glassed and accurized when the kid is older, lifetime rifle usage...I like it.

My go-to deer rifle is a Vanguard so I got my son the Vanguard Youth .243 last year and topped it with a Nikon. Great gun, however, in hind sight the Savage 11 with the Nikon scope package would have saved me a couple hundred bucks and been every bit as good of a rifle.

Are you close to New Braunfels? I'll meet you at a range if you want to let your son shoot ours

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My go-to deer rifle is a Vanguard so I got my son the Vanguard Youth .243 last year and topped it with a Nikon. Great gun, however, in hind sight the Savage 11 with the Nikon scope package would have saved me a couple hundred bucks and been every bit as good of a rifle.

Are you close to New Braunfels? I'll meet you at a range if you want to let your son shoot ours

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I looked at the Savage 11 but the places I've looked it costs about the same as the Weatherby Vanguard Youth.

My dad bought my son a Rossi .22-250 before he even born. Assuming my dad is still able to get out in a couple years, I'll probably let him use my .243 with the Lite rounds (not real concerned about the size issue at the moment). I'll probably go back to shooting my 30-30, or maybe my .308 when I want longer ranges.

The gun solo isn't a big difference. It was after buying the scope and rings that widened the price gap. You save a considerable amount with the package

wheatherby vanguard youth is $429 at Cabelas right now

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The gun solo isn't a big difference. It was after buying the scope and rings that widened the price gap. You save a considerable amount with the package

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Perhaps, but is the Savage Model 11 a youth gun? I'm afraid the stock would be too long for him.

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wheatherby vanguard youth is $429 at Cabelas right now

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That's a good price. Most other places I've seen have been $550-600. Thanks for the info.

I recently purchased a CZ 527 carbine in 7.62x39 for my kids. Neat gun. It has a small Mauser action, detachable magazine, and a set trigger. There's a good selection of ammo ranging from cheap target ammo to high quality loads from Hornady, Federal, etc.

Search for Savage 11 youth combo. They come in .243, .7mm-08, and .308

Again, I've got the Vanguard youth and it's great so I'm not saying don't do it. Just putting it out there for you. I've got a Savage 11 adult rifle as well and I'll give the edge to the Vanguard overall, but, that Accutrigger on the Savage is money