Youth hunting rifle

Another caliber worth considering is the .260 remington it has a wide variety of bullet selection with very little recoil and is more than capable on elk.
 
I think caliber choice really depends on whether you buy ammo or reload. If you buy its hard to beat the old standard calibers, but if you reload some of the less common options can be a lot of fun to mess with..... The .260 has always intrigued me.. :)
 
good thought HC,
some of the factory ammo is really inexpensive, too.

I don't know anything about the .260, enlighten me.
 
Bucksnort
I read that article and am embarrassed to say I didn't know about the .260. Very intriguing and looks like it could be a great cartridge for a kid/small person. Has this been out for a while?

Looks like it could bridge the gap of the .243 (too light in my opinion) and the 7mm-08 which is a great round. Anyone shooting deer with this gun?
 
I just read that Remington Standardized the caliber in 97' But wildcater's were loading it for many years before that.. It is one of many cases based off of the 308win case... It matches the long distance trajectory of a 300 Win Mag but with much less recoil....
 
Alright, you guys enlightened me and I'm putting the 260 on my list for possibles when my daughter graduates to deer hunting. Thanks! Fascinating caliber and I'm a handloader so I'm giddy now.
 
The 260 and 7-08 are very similar ballistically. 140 gr. 6.5s have a bit of a BC advantage over 140 gr. 7mms. Either are great deer rounds. I have a 7-08 and a Savage 260 barrel waiting for an action.
 
Robby, Katys rifle is a.260 in a youth model ruger. She has taken four deer with it and would probably give me up before that gun. When your daughter is ready let us know and we'll go out and let her shoot it.
 
Tyler, I got your text, thanks for checking in and just be thankful to have a job if you know what I mean!

Yes, I missed this post, so very nice offer and that would be great for Grace to shoot that gun before we buy anything. Just getting going on the .22 now, so it might be awhile as she's only 9. I'll definitely remember that offer.

Thanks!
 
I 2nd the model 7 Remington and 7-08. My daughter hunted with one during her teenage years and it always did the job well.
 
One other caliber that no one has mentioned is the 25-06. mine has accounted for many mule deer and several elk. My daughter is small and has shot this rifle since she was old enough to shoot. Great selection of bullets available on the shelf and for reloaders. Only problem is I'm pretty sure I lost one of my favorite rifles to her.
 
25.06 is a great caliber. One of the longest shots on a mule deer I've witnessed (400+ yds) was with one and it put him in the dirt! Penetrated from behind paunch all the way to front shoulder.
 
The only issue I have with some of these other calibers is I have not seen them in a youth size rife. My son really needs the shorter length of pull on the rifle.
 
One of the best deals out there for a youth rifle is the offerings from Marlin in their XS7Y and XL7Y models. You can get .243, 7-08mm, and .308 all in the XS7Y and I believe the 270 and 30-06 in the XL7Y. For the money (most can be had for right around $300) and they shoot the lights out.

I got a XS7Y for myself as my .243 predator gun. I wanted the youth rifle for the shorter LOP when I am all bundled up for sitting around at -20F waiting for a fox or lynx to come in, a shorter stock is easier to shoulder with all that gear on. :D

And it shoots pretty decent to boot:

3 shot group with Factory loads:
IMGP0038.jpg


4 shot group with handloads:
2434shotgroupJPG.jpg
 
The only issue I have with some of these other calibers is I have not seen them in a youth size rife. My son really needs the shorter length of pull on the rifle.

Can always buy a standard LOP rifle and get a aftermarket stock to cut to his current LOP. When he gets bigger, put the factory stock back on(or vise versa).
 
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