Youth rifle choice

308downrange · Aug 5, 2013

Ok here goes, I'm looking to buy a youth rifle for both my boys to use for hunting. The choice I narrowed it down to is the Thompson Center Venture compact in 308 and the Savage 11 trophy hunter xp youth with Nikon 3-9 scope in 308 caliber. Anybody have any experience with these?

Certaindeaf · Aug 5, 2013

A light .308 for a kid? It's not against the law to have a .243.

drew · Aug 5, 2013

Certaindeaf said:
A light .308 for a kid? It's not against the law to have a .243.

It depends on how big the children are and how well they handle recoil. I wouldn't have wanted a .308 when I was 12 or so. A .243 worked well when I was that age but I was a small runt. My father never got us youth rifles and we still use some rifles we were given.

308downrange · Aug 5, 2013

I have a 308, so I can download if I needed to and keep it simple with same caliber. I was thinking of a 7mm-08 but I will just stick with the 308. Just cant decide on either the savage or the Thompson.

Certaindeaf · Aug 5, 2013

I hear you guys. I'm not saying anyone's a child abuser or anything.. just that a .243'll smack down a critter also.
I've heard good things about both those rifles.. I'd probably go with the Savage though as I've used them much more than Thompson rigs.
Speaking of youth rigs, and as you obviously know, fit is very important, maybe you could just re-stock a gun you already have.

308downrange · Aug 8, 2013

I cant restock my gun because I put a fluted heavy barrel and my gun weighs in at 14.5lbs. I picked a rifle finally and went with a Remington SPS youth compact in 7mm-08. I wanted to find a Model 7 but non to be had for a good price.

Certaindeaf · Aug 8, 2013

That sounds like a great rifle.. lucky kids!
I got a new Model 7 a long time ago.. I don't think I'll ever get rid of it.

308downrange · Aug 8, 2013

Yeah I wanted the Model 7 really bad, but non to be had. I hope this youth model will work for them. The Length of pull is about 12.5" which seems to be common on other youth models and has a 20" barrel. Only time will tell. What caliber is your model 7?

unklekippy · Aug 8, 2013

I love the 7-08. My son will be 10 next month and while I have a Remington 660 in .308 with his name on it, I don't think he'll be shooting that for a few more years. With today's bullet construction, a .243 or even .223 is a fine rifle to develop centerfire rifle handling and marksmanship without developing a nasty flinch. I also want to be very clear that this is my opinion and what works for me. I would not suggest that another route is right or wrong. Your child may be more or less "tough" than mine and handle recoil accordingly. It is amazing what a kid with a 77 grain(or lighter, even) bullet in a good .223 can do. It's also amazing what that little bullet can do to the lungs and heart of a deer when placed properly. The same goes for any bullet in the .243, though I wouldn't go higher than a 105 grain. For the most part, the rifles are the same(the aforementioned 660 was made in '66, for example) and though powders have come along, bullet construction is absolutely amazing.

Certaindeaf · Aug 8, 2013

308downrange said:
Yeah I wanted the Model 7 really bad, but non to be had. I hope this youth model will work for them. The Length of pull is about 12.5" which seems to be common on other youth models and has a 20" barrel. Only time will tell. What caliber is your model 7?

It's a .223.. I mainly use it for coyotes and stuff like that. It's super handy.

308downrange · Aug 9, 2013

Sounds nice. It never fails when Im looking for a particular model, they don't have any. What scope do have on it?

Certaindeaf · Aug 9, 2013

It's a little Nikon 2x7.. I usually keep it on 2x.. it's way easier to jack it up than down when/if they're close.

Hatchet27 · Nov 15, 2023

unklekippy said:
I love the 7-08. My son will be 10 next month and while I have a Remington 660 in .308 with his name on it, I don't think he'll be shooting that for a few more years. With today's bullet construction, a .243 or even .223 is a fine rifle to develop centerfire rifle handling and marksmanship without developing a nasty flinch. I also want to be very clear that this is my opinion and what works for me. I would not suggest that another route is right or wrong. Your child may be more or less "tough" than mine and handle recoil accordingly. It is amazing what a kid with a 77 grain(or lighter, even) bullet in a good .223 can do. It's also amazing what that little bullet can do to the lungs and heart of a deer when placed properly. The same goes for any bullet in the .243, though I wouldn't go higher than a 105 grain. For the most part, the rifles are the same(the aforementioned 660 was made in '66, for example) and though powders have come along, bullet construction is absolutely amazing.

Thank you this really helps, I'm looking for my 11yr old granddaughter, do they have a lot of kick because she is petite. I just don't want her to have a bad experience and not want to hunt. She's been shooting my H&K 22 call with literally no kick for the past 2 years.

dangerranger60 · Nov 15, 2023

a 308 loaded to 30-30 pressure is a great youth caliber. Two of my grandkids started with an Axis in 308. Once they grew up the youth stocks got traded for full size and they are still shooting them.
The Savage Axis has been trouble free and accurate.
When I got a new Coyote gun, I picked an Axis in 223 with the idea of changing the stock, but it shoots so well I'm still shooting it with the plastic stock.
And they are CHEAP. DR