Youth rifle options

[edman87k5]

Wanting to get my son a .243 youth deer rifle for his birthday this summer.
Anyone have any to reccommend or advise against?
Was looking at the Rossi that academy sells and for the price they seem like a good buy. I know a couple people that have them and like them. Upon reading reviews it seems that opinions are mixed though.
My son will be 9 and I guess he is average 9 year old size.

 

[lp11]

Look at one of the youth model bolt actions, you might look at a youth model remington 700. It comes with a stock spacer as he gets bigger and needs more lop. It's also a good rifle platform, to work with.
Safety aspect, it can be loaded with just one rd, unloaded without touching the trigger.
I'm not a big fan of "crack barrel" actions as a first firearm.the trigger pull is terrible, and it's hard to teach proper trigger control. To make them safe, if a shot is not taken, you have to pull the trigger and release the hammer at the same time. This in it self doesn't practice good firearm saftey and most kids hands doesn't have the reach or strength to preform this task. Also when hunting, hands are usually cold or wet. This can result in accidental discharges. Example: I usually have 3-5 people ,young and old out of 30-40 person hunter Ed class has had " AD's" while decocking a crack barrel style action.

 

[InterstateGuns]

I'm really excited about the tikka youth model that will ship this year. It's something that they have been needing to do for a long time and I'm glad to see it finally arrive.

Other options would include the Remington 700 youth, or the weatherby vanguard youth model.

Like the post before said, you only have to give him one round for now.

 

[akfrozen]

This past summer I picked up a Marlin x7y youth in 7mm-08. It has been fantastic. And you can pick up an adult stock for under 100 bucks. I'm in Alaska and he has got two caribou and two nice hogs in Texas. Couldn't be happier.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk

 

[Gambit]

Try going with a 7mm-08 instead of 243. Recoil isnt much worse and ballistics are much better

 

[LSUSMC]

Ruger American Compact if you're on a budget

Tikka Compact or Winchester M70 Compact if you have a little coin

Kimber Adirondack if you are made of gold.

 

[Barney88PDC]

I would go with a youth model .308Win. You can shoot the Remington Managed Recoil ammo now (Hornady also released some reduced recoil ammo at SHOT that is coming out this year) and then use "full power" ammo in a few years. Swap out the youth stock to a normal one once he grows into the rifle. Then he has a rifle for life, one purchase and done.

 

[GeorgeS3]

Rem 700 youth in 308 or 7-08....set for life!

 

[Goatwhiskers]

If you're thinking single shot as a first rifle, I don't care much for Rossi, but would freely recommend the Handi-Rifle. First off, it's American made and if you should find a fault you can send it in on their nickel and it will be repaired immediately. Trigger pulls on more recent production are really good, no you won't get a 2lb trigger but for a kid you don't want that. Altho you can't open the action when cocked to unload, the trigger must be held all the way to the rear for the transfer bar to contact the firing pin, so I feel that even a kid can learn before loading the first time to keep his thumb hooked over the hammer extension. Also, this is a prime opportunity to teach the cardinal rule of always having the muzzle pointed in a safe direction. Just a few things to think about, yes I'm prejudiced toward single shots for a first rifle. GW

 

[bayoupirate]

Don't buy a .243.
Go with 7mm-08, 260Rem, or 308WIN. Much better calibers. There is a myth that .243s have less recoil. It is purely myth. The calibers listed above are guns that can take any north american game.
Many Youth model rifles available. Rem, T/C, Savage, Ruger all make good guns. Marlin and Mossberg rifles seem very capable as well.

 

[dantheman]

I just bought a Savage Axis .243 Youth Model for my grandson . He's 10 and kind of skinny . He manages it with no problem .