mustanger98
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Well, I prefer 150grs @ 2400fps (.30-30), but yeah.
Grandson 1st Deer Rifle
- Thread starter Boattale
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Well, I prefer 150grs @ 2400fps (.30-30), but yeah.
fireside44
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Some states law says .223 is plenty of gun for a whitetail. That doesn't mean anything to me either. Yes, it's adequate, that's not really a pro anymore than a con. OP is looking for a rifle for a young man. I was that young man once. My .243 is a dust collector, so I offered my take on it. If it was a .308, a more common caliber, I'd still use it. If it was a 30-30 I would still use it. But it's a marginal deer caliber and short of guys calling it the ultimate whitetail caliber, hyperbole, it'd probably be a handloader only cartridge today. I'd have sold off the gun with a lot of other stuff I let go except I'm caught in sentimentality about it cause dad bought it for me. I hate sentimentality that causes me to hold on to material stuff I don't use for it's intended purpose. Hence my recommendation.
I was shooting 154 grain Tula soft points. Definitely a harder hitter at 30 yards than a .243 and a $5 box has lasted me the last 3 seasons, lol.
Proper shoot placement for bullet design keeps tracking jobs at a minimum. Lung shoots equal running deer.
I'm going to guess that you used a 100 grain bullet and lung shot.
An 85 gr bullet to the lungs or a 100 gr to the front shoulder would have made different results.
But I'm the type of guy who thinks a 223 is fine for deer if you do your job.
FTR, I am of the opinion that .243Win is adequate for whitetail deer and lots of similarly-sized game, and that premium bullets (partition, bonded, etc) make it solidly adequate--when in past years it might have been iffy.
But fireside44 has a point: many of the "youth" rifles end up idle after a couple years, after the user grows a bit, and wants a more versatile or capable rifle+cartridge. And his other point (think it was fireside44) that the .243Win still produces quite a bit of subjective recoil is also valid. There is not enough separation, recoil-wise, between .308Win and .243Win to make .243Win truly a "youth" cartridge. It is really a "small ladies" or "nearly grown boy's" cartridge.
A I see a couple alternatives to this.
First, if the youth can truly manage .243Win recoil, but .308Win is too much, getting a youth/compact rifle or carbine chambered in .308Win and shooting one of the low-recoil commercial loads while the youth is still a youth. Remington has a load with a 125gr pill and Federal has a 150 or 170gr round nose at .30-30 velocities. Both are in the neighborhood of .243Win, recoil wise. This would make the rifle still usable and desirable for the not-as-youthful hunter later, as a light carbine. Rifles in the niche are things like the Ruger Compact American 18" bbl, Ruger Hawkeye compact 16" bbl, Browning Micro-Midas, and some others. I always had a soft spot for the Ruger Haweye compact in stainless with a laminate stock. Or their scout rifle if the youthful user can tote a bit more mass.
Second alternative would be a cartridge that a youthful youth can manage, such as .223/5.56mm, .22Hornet, 6.5Grendel. All of these can be found in micro-sized bolt actions and many can be found in the AR15 platform. .223/5.56mm can be had with 75-77gr hunting pills that have decent sectional density. 6.5Grendel is a great killer of medium game with little drama with 120-ish grain pills: Hornady SST and Federal Fusion are two good choice. The AR15 platform can grow with the user by extending the stock.
But fireside44 has a point: many of the "youth" rifles end up idle after a couple years, after the user grows a bit, and wants a more versatile or capable rifle+cartridge. And his other point (think it was fireside44) that the .243Win still produces quite a bit of subjective recoil is also valid. There is not enough separation, recoil-wise, between .308Win and .243Win to make .243Win truly a "youth" cartridge. It is really a "small ladies" or "nearly grown boy's" cartridge.
A I see a couple alternatives to this.
First, if the youth can truly manage .243Win recoil, but .308Win is too much, getting a youth/compact rifle or carbine chambered in .308Win and shooting one of the low-recoil commercial loads while the youth is still a youth. Remington has a load with a 125gr pill and Federal has a 150 or 170gr round nose at .30-30 velocities. Both are in the neighborhood of .243Win, recoil wise. This would make the rifle still usable and desirable for the not-as-youthful hunter later, as a light carbine. Rifles in the niche are things like the Ruger Compact American 18" bbl, Ruger Hawkeye compact 16" bbl, Browning Micro-Midas, and some others. I always had a soft spot for the Ruger Haweye compact in stainless with a laminate stock. Or their scout rifle if the youthful user can tote a bit more mass.
Second alternative would be a cartridge that a youthful youth can manage, such as .223/5.56mm, .22Hornet, 6.5Grendel. All of these can be found in micro-sized bolt actions and many can be found in the AR15 platform. .223/5.56mm can be had with 75-77gr hunting pills that have decent sectional density. 6.5Grendel is a great killer of medium game with little drama with 120-ish grain pills: Hornady SST and Federal Fusion are two good choice. The AR15 platform can grow with the user by extending the stock.
someguy2800
Member
Here is my thoughts on youth rifles. If your kid outgrows his size 7 shoes you don't buy him a size 12 so that he can use them for longer. Get a gun that fits the kid and worry about what he needs next later. You can put a slip on recoil pad on it when it gets to be too short and get another year or two out of it until they are ready for a full size rifle. There are some youth rifles available now with spacers to put in the comb and buttstock. Yes, they outgrow them quickly just as they outgrow everything, but trying to make a kid shoot a rifle with the wrong length of pull or comb height is a disservice to them. Get something compact with the right length of pull and not too muzzle heavy, and by the time they outgrow that they will probably have an informed opinion on what they want next.
entropy
Member
I felt the same way after getting out of the Army, but my older son wanted an AR, so I advised him and went with when he bought it. (as I did for my younger son later) He then decided he missed the Savage Axis he sold to buy the AR, so he traded the AR to me for my Axis, and his old 870. lately he's been hinting he wants his Ar back-he might get it for Xmas, I've since built two of them.
The Nikon would be my choice for on that Henry.
My older son, at ten, shooting a 7.62x54R. I wouldn't have let him hunt with it because of the hard-to-use safety, but he had no problem shooting it. I didn't have a carbine then, or he might have been shooting it offhand. The rifles chambered in .243 for youth are usually light, so recoil is stiff, that's more reason for the 'small ladies' or 'nearly grown boy's' line of thought. I think 7mm-08 is an excellent choice, also, BTW.
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I'm sold on the Youth Henry Single Shot for a lot of reasons. It's only available in .243. It's on order now. Settled on a Burris 2x7x35. The rifle will weigh a bit over 7 lbs. when scoped. This grandson has shot a bit and can handle shotgun recoil so little concern over .243 recoil. He's small in stature but very athletic. Everyone involved agrees on this gun for him.
When he outgrows it, he has two younger brothers coming up to hunting age in a few years, so the rifle will see use for years to come.
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That is pretty. And MSRP is in the same neighborhood as uglier entry-level bolt action .243Win rifles.
Was thinking: a pretty lace-on leather cheek riser...with cartridge loops on the far side to facilitate a second shot if need be or just a super handy way to tote ammo.
Was thinking: a pretty lace-on leather cheek riser...with cartridge loops on the far side to facilitate a second shot if need be or just a super handy way to tote ammo.
Imagine my surprise when he got the rifle and I learned he shoots leftie. Plays baseball right handed, writes left handed. Move the hammer spur and voila! a left handed rifle....
dranrab
Member
You done good. I love those Henry single shots. Almost all of them have wood with great character. I saw one in Cabelas in the Library for $299 in 223. I had a hard time not buying it. Did you determine which eye is dominant?
gotboostvr
Member
What I would do now (or in the next few years at least) is contact Henry and get a full size buttstock for when the last of them out grows it and stash it in a closet somewhere.
No sense in allowing a well loved and perfectly capable firearm go unused.
A thicker recoil pad might also work to keep it in action once everyone grows up.
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