Tikka T3X 7mm-08 Youth Build

[Motown]

So my 10 year old son has the T3X compact in 7/08 so hopefully I can help.

If I were you I would just try to find the compact stock as it will come with the spacers. I have seen them pop up from time to time and if you put a WTB ad up on a few sites I bet you’ll find one in no time.

I also had my son shooting the Hornady 120 grn loads this past year and the recoil was not much more than a 243 and they shot well out of his rifle. He was able to take his first buck this year at 225 yards and the deer ran maybe 40 yards with plenty of blood. I wouldnt let him take that shot unless I knew he could make it cleanly, but he has been shooting since he was 4 and has been practicing at 200 yards on a regular basis the past 2 years.

 

[wyo2track]

I put together a rifle for my daughter last year. I had a Ruger M77 7x57 sitting in the safe that was my first rifle with the traditional Ruger stock and red pad. It was long for me as a kid. So I took the stock off and bought an inexpensive Boyds Praire Hunter laminated stock with the raised cheek piece and negative comb. Cut it down so the LOP would be 12 1/4" when finished with a limbsaver pad. Bedded the recoil lug and free floated. We worked up a load with 120 gr Barnes keeping powder charges around 42 grains. It shoots nice. My wife asked me why I hadn't done that for her...oops...lol. Throughout the process I found its important to have a high enough comb line that a kid can positively get there face on and see through the scope while not having to lift their head up. The Boyds stock I modified worked great. There's many youth models out there but straight comb stocks and only shortening the LOP still don't fit many kids or women. If I had to buy a rifle I'd consider the savage models with the accufit stock or lady hunter.