Which youth rifle?

Joined
Jul 8, 2019
I am looking for a compact .243 for that is threaded for my daughter’s first gun that we can run my suppressor on. It will be used for whitetail and just family shooting. The only one I can really find is the CVA scout stainless which I’m very interested in. I really love the .243 for whitetail, but do you have any other caliber suggestions? I have a 6.5cm now and someone suggested this and it’s a fine deer caliber, but I lean toward the .243 more. My child is 6 so this will likely be a future rifle but with the suppressor I think she will do just fine with it. Thanks ahead.
 
My youngest uses a CVA scout. His in .300 blackout though. He doesn’t like load noises at all but will shoot a bunch of subsonic 110gr loads suppressed for practice then switch over to SuperSonics while hunting.

The CVA scout is a nice little rifle.
 
I won a Thompson center center compass at a gun raffle. It’s a compact .243 with a factory threaded barrel. My 8yo shot his first deer with it a few weeks ago.
 
Some the AR specific calibers in a small bolt gun would make fine youth rifles for whitetail. 6mm ARC, 6.5 Grendel, 6.8 SPC, etc. My son has shot 5 whitetail and a couple antelope with a 6.8SPC and it had dropped all of them in their tracks. I actually just built a really nice 6ARC AR, but haven’t hunted with it yet. However, it’s laser accurate and it’s fun watching the bullet trail out to the targets at 300 to 500 yards. Literally zero recoil


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I have an AR in 5.56 and 300 black out that she can shoot also. She doesn’t like the loud noises so the suppressor is the way to go. I’ve been looking at the tikka as well, just a big price difference in something she may never shoot. I’m considering a more inexpensive rifle now then if she shows interest buy a nicer rifle. Thanks for all of your responses.
 
My son is turning 10 in two days. He has used a 6.8 SPC on a few deer since he had turned 8. With a collapsible stock, suppressor, and illuminated dot reticle, it has been ideal for hunting. We practice more with an AR in .223 with a similar setup and I would have no problem letting shoot deer with it either.

He shot my 6mm CM and 22-250 bolt guns recently and he said they were “ok” but preferred the ARs due to less recoil.

For his first true gun of his own, I’m leaning towards a 6mm CM or 7mm-08 with lite loads but am probably going to hold off until he’s 12.

If I had to get a small bolt rifle now for him or another kid <9yr, it would be a Tikka in .223 twisted fast and threaded.
 
Some the AR specific calibers in a small bolt gun would make fine youth rifles for whitetail. 6mm ARC, 6.5 Grendel, 6.8 SPC, etc. My son has shot 5 whitetail and a couple antelope with a 6.8SPC and it had dropped all of them in their tracks. I actually just built a really nice 6ARC AR, but haven’t hunted with it yet. However, it’s laser accurate and it’s fun watching the bullet trail out to the targets at 300 to 500 yards. Literally zero recoil


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I'll 2nd the 6.8. I've only killed 3 critters with it, 2 deer and a hog, but all 3 were DRT. 1 deer raised up on his hind legs and fell over backwards, other deer and the hog just dropped. 110 gr SPH out of an 18" barrel.
 
I’m actually looking at getting a Bergarra in either 7mm-08 or 6.5 prc. Need an adjustable length of pull. I will put a muzzle break on it and just use hearing protection anyway. Once the kids get older then the gun will be mine to use and they will get their own.
 
My 9yr old is shooting a full size X-Bolt Western Hunter in 6.5CM without any difficulty. 🤷🏻‍♂️

If I had to go any which way I’d go with a Micro Midas if you can find one.
 
Play with this calculator before you decide. I went with a Tikka 22-250 for my son’s first rifle because of the recoil.



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I think my kids will be just fine wearing hearing protection. Thousands of kids and adults have shot some form of a rifle for a very long time with proper hearing protection just fine. If you want less recoil go with a muzzle break.
 
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