9 year old first deer hunt with a rifle, any suggestions!

[Hntelk]

If you can get a Tikka 223 lite compact and it will fit him perfect. Started my boys on this from a 22 and they learned the fundamentals. Those 55grain vmax bullets kill deer pretty good out of 223.

 

[Bad habit]

My 8 year old son to be 9 year old wants to try and harvest a doe this year with a rifle. I have three different rifles in my possession, and access to a number of other rifles in a variety of calibers.

I have used a .280AI semi custom and a model 70 7mm-08. My son was set on using the 7mm-08 but at the range he started to get jumpy on two shoots after hitting the bull eyes on his first shot. I have access to a .243 Winchester, .257 Robert’s youth/woman’s model 700, 6.5 creedmore American Ruget, and a model 700 .308 varmir rifle weighing about 12lbs. We will be hunting in a blind, and I will have a support for him to shoot off of too. Any suggestions are appreciated!

The 257 youth model would work great with little recoil, also lots of trigger time with a 22lr before the hunt If you can.

 

[Titan_Bow]

I’ll go against the grain a little here and suggest what I did for my son. Build them an AR-15 chambered in 6.8 spc or 6.5 Grendel. The carbine platform with 16” barrel and collapsible stock is the perfect size for youth. The recoil on those rounds is so minimal it’s not even an issue with small kids, and they can make a follow up shot quickly if need be, without coming off the scope.
The one I built for my son cost me maybe 700 bucks or so. You can stay pretty much milspec, but a good quality barrel and trigger. Ours is mainly Palmetto Armory, with an ARP 6.8 barrel and a Palmetto 3 lbs trigger. It’s easily a sub MOA gun with Nosler 110gr Accubonds from SSA. My son shot his first deer with it and has taken 4 more with it. Each time I’m pleasantly surprised how well that little 6.8 performs on deer.
I really think that it is the perfect rifle for a small kid.


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[BOFF]

That’s a good solution as well Titan_Bow! Are the AR build parts readily available, and still around the same price you built the 6.8?

God Bless?
David B.

 

[Titan_Bow]

That’s a good solution as well Titan_Bow! Are the AR build parts readily available, and still around the same price you built the 6.8?

God Bless?
David B.

To be honest I can’t really speak to availability. I just did a quick check of Palmettos site and it appears they have stuff in stock.
One thing that you will have trouble finding is factory ammo for 6.8 LOL.
There’s a company called Cavity Back bullets that is making 6.8 ammo now with their proprietary bullet. I haven’t hunted with it yet, but they shoot really great out of our gun and are grouping consistently at around 3/4” at 100.


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[Neumie]

Good advice in here.
I picked up a Ruger American compact in 7mm-08 for my 10 year old. It hasn’t been scoped or fired yet. We’ve been shooting the .22 and plan to have him ready for deer hunting fall 2022.

 

[NEWHunter]

How did the hunt go? Support in the blind is a great idea! I will sound like a broken record on this, but get a Caldwell Fieldpod or the like. They’ll make those calibers you mention feel like a .22 lr. I use one and wouldn’t take my kids out without one.

 

[Carrera72]

I bought my nine year old a Kopfjaeger shooting tripod. He has been abel to shoot several calibre accurately when attached to the tripod. He was able to kill a deer last week with a Tikka T3X in 6.5 Creedmoor.

 

[35remy]

I recently purchased a CVA Scout in .350 Legend. No recoil, 30-30-like ballistics, commercially available ammo, in a compact size break action with a hammer. Great setup for a youngster and completely capable for whitetail.

 

[bootstrap]

I started my girls off with a Cricket 22 using Aguila Colibri subsonics. Progressing to 22 shorts then 22lr. Good bench rest and a bag full of Halloween suckers make for a fun day with active targets that don’t make a big mess. Just drill some small holes in top of a saw horse put the suckers in and wahla.

I went the 300 AAC AR route for whitetail for the very low recoil (this was before the 6.8 SPC). I have since moved on to the 277 WLV this was very reloader friendly for me at the time.

The girls never did develop a flinch and both have a few whitetails in the freezer.

 

[jimh406]

I hunt with a 300 Weatherby Magnum in a Winchester Winlite which will wake you up if you are dead asleep. But, I'd never spend significant time practicing with it.

Find/buy to teach your kid how to shoot with something that doesn't kick. Maybe that means you buy a 22 Long Rifle. If they have no flinch, and you teach them how to hold the gun, any caliber other than real magnums should be fine. Frankly, I don't remember the kick when I'm shooting game. Other than the safety of not getting hit in the eye with the scope, your kid should be fine.

Note: I'm not advocating buying a 300 Weatherby Magnum for a kid. But, any non-Magnum caliber should be ok.

 

[Fordguy]

I recently purchased a CVA Scout in .350 Legend. No recoil, 30-30-like ballistics, commercially available ammo, in a compact size break action with a hammer. Great setup for a youngster and completely capable for whitetail.

This ^
Especially if you are in Michigan as I think I saw earlier in the thread. Very little recoil, if someone can handle a .410 they can handle a .350 legend. It will easily put a deer on the ground out to a few hundred yards. Offered in single shot, bolt and ar platforms. As others have said, focus on the fundamentals with a .22.

 

[Kauffy]

My 10 year old took his first deer this fall with a Mossberg Patriot 350 Legend. Worked great.

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[Fordguy]

My 10 year old took his first deer this fall with a Mossberg Patriot 350 Legend. Worked great.

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Congrats! What kind of accuracy do you see with the patriot?

 

[bootstrap]

Awesome congratulations to the young hunter. Thank you for taking the time to teach him and take him hunting. I always like to see youngsters getting outside. Looks like a good double lung shot.

 

[Kauffy]

Good accuracy to 150yds with 150gr bullets. Drops about 6" at 200yds. Buddy of mine shot a doe at 200yds this year and dropped it.

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[dmoran5]

I love the 243 for a starter gun for kids.

 

[TheGDog]

I also recommend taking a twelve pack of Diet Coke or beer to the range. They make great inexpensive blow up targets. It will make range time more fun when his impacts are shown with an exploding can vs paper.

He is NOT lying! And to make it more fun, when they hit and it sprays out? You shout out "Look! It's Peeing!!!" and they will laugh like crazy and love doing it from then on out!

 

[Kyle K]

My sister in law who probably weighs around 140 lbs/about 5'⁶" uses her 243 and has since she started hunting when she was a kid.

 

[Zoa]

He is NOT lying! And to make it more fun, when they hit and it sprays out? You shout out "Look! It's Peeing!!!" and they will laugh like crazy and love doing it from then on out!

Thirded.