help w/youth rifle

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skeeter20i

New member
I need to find a rifle for my 11 y.o. What brand/model did you get your kids to use for coyotes, deer, etc? I did buy him an AR w/6 pos stock, but its too heavy for him to carry around and stuff. In fact, even using a monopod it starts getting wobbly after 5 min or so. We have 2 more boys that will be moving into the gun after him w/in the next few yrs, so this will definitely be a transitional rifle.
 
Boy it's hard to beat those CZ 527 Americans for a varmint rifle. They are well under 7 pounds scoped and ready to go and just the right size for a youngster. You can get them in a variety of calibers such as the 17, 222, 223 and my favorite the 204 Ruger.

If it's a deer and varmint rifle My old shooting partner just bought a Howa 243 and it came with two stocks and a 21 inch light barrel. It had a youth stock and a regular stock for just under 400 bucks and also had a scope, but not a great one.

My grand daughters started out with a 22 rifle to learn to shoot. Now one has a Rem model 7 in 308 and the other has my old Ruger #1 in 243. both use my CZ 527 Varmint when were coyote hunting and I just guide and call. They started shooting when they were 5 and 6 and now are 14 and 15.

Here's the oldest with her #1 killing some targets and getting it sighted in. She's right handed and left eye dominate and shoots left handed.

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Here's the youngest whacking some tin cans with the CZ 452 22 lr. She's left handed and shoots right handed, go figure.

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When my son turned 10 we got him a Youth New England 243. he shoot his first deer then a few with it. He has since out grown it and now my 10 yr. daughter is using it. She got her first deer this yr. with it the very second time she shot the gun. She did give herself a Lil old fashioned scope bite.
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Since my son has outgrown it he is now using Remington 30.06 deer & 17HMR for predator. The only thing I found wrong with it was he did out grow it quickly however I think my daughters smaller figure she will use it longer.
 
I have a Browning Micro Hunter in 243 and love it. Its really lite and short. Im 6'01" so its now a little too short but I dont have the funds to get another one so if you plan on your kids using it when they are older you may want to consider a different rifle.

Other than growing out of it, the rifle is accurate, lite, durable, and fun to shoot. It barks pretty loud though.
 
I second the Howa/Hogue 2-in-1 combo. My bro-in-law got it for his oldest, also in 243 win. Shoots great, decent scope, come with a full size stock as well (allowing for growth), and you don't have to rob the bank. Hard to beat! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
I have a friend that bought a model 700 Youth model in .243 at Wally World, he said he caught it on sale for $300.00. What a deal, wish he would have let me know about.
 
I dont see any votes for the T/C contender or G3 which happens to be my favorite. I have one set up for my oldest daughter in 6mm TCU and will serve her well for deer and coyote. Plus it has the switch barrel option. It weighs 7 lb. with a Bushnell 3x9 scope.(wood stock)Rynite will be lighter.
 
Now about those Handi Rifle's I got one from NEF as my 9th birthday present. (20ga. .243 combo) switch the barrels and your good to go. but we could never hold a good group with the .243 I'm talking 6-8 " groups at 100 yards. In all fairness this was with factory ammo but we just never could find a good factory load. That said, It killed my first coues at 70 yards.
 
My dad put together a Remington 600 Mohawk in 243 for me when I was young. He had the original stock cut down and it fit pretty well for a 10 year old...
 
Guess it depends on what you wanta spend.. If you want something cheaper, the Rossi youth models are very light & the safety feature is much to my likeing for a young shooter.. I bought one for my son in 223 cal & to my surprise its very accurate.. FWIW, the Rossi can be bought in a combo with 3 barrels..
The Combo package includes a rifle,shotgun & muzzleloader barrel. IMO thats not bad for 3 bills..

Im a big fan of TC as well..
I personally like the old contender frame..
Anyhow, take a TC set up with a sporter barrel & youth stock & they are not only a gorgeous rifle to behold.! But they are also light & all I have owned are tack driving machines..
 
If you do get a NEF make sure you stress the importants of keeping your thumb and the hammer when uncocking it. I was 9 when I got my 20 gauge NEF. We had seen some quail and dad said that they were quick and that i should cock the gun. We had thick gloves on because iowa winters aren't all that pleasant at times and my finger slipped off when i was uncocking it because we didn't get them up. There ended up being a hole probably a foot in diameter with my dads foot about 1.5 feet from the hole. I got a little scared and cried because i almost blew my dads foot off. I didn't shoot that gun until last year(I am now 15) but mostly because i started using dads benelli nova. It is now my gun with a rifled slug barrel and a 1.75-4x32 i think. It has killed 3 deer, 1 phesant, 1 quail, and many sparrows. Pheasnts and quail have become few and far between. But if you live in arizona a highpower would work much better.
 
My kids and wife have used the Contender Carbine in 7-30 Waters. I think that this combo is awesome. When it is not being used as a rifle I have several 10" pistol barrels that I love. It is light as a 22 rifle and deadly on deer. My brother bought a Ruger compact 77 in 243 for my nephew and nieces to use. It is a recommendable rifle also.
Harvey7
 
My dad was smart I think he started me out with a rem model 33,single shot bolt action 22 LR which I could not cock by myself so he didnt have to worry about me getting excited and shooting him or myself with it! I recommend something thats hard to cock and has atleast 2 safety features because as we all know kids dont always listen I have started several kids in their mystical flight of the hunter n found that rem. to be a great starter!
 
I saw somebody mentioned the 7mm-08. I'm curious what experience people have with this caliber for their kids? I was curious what type of recoil it would have in a youth sized rifle? I saw a model 7 in 7mm-08 and it was a great looking rifle though a bit pricey compared to the Howa and some of the other youth guns available. Thanks
 
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