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Message
re: Is a .308 too big of a round for a 10 yr old?
Posted on 11/1/17 at 7:23 am to tigereye58
Posted on 11/1/17 at 7:23 am to tigereye58
0
Posted on 11/1/17 at 7:27 am to tigereye58
My 9 year old daughter shoots a ruger american compart .308 with 150 grain bullets and she is skinny as a twig. She has no issues shooting it. great little gun.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 7:37 am to AP83
My son has had a compact 308 of his own since he was 10. Started him out on reduced recoil loads, but he has always been a pretty big kid. He's 13 now 5'9" and 180lbs. Still shoots the same gun but with regular ammo. I've tried to get him to move up to a full size gun or at least re-stock his. He says he doesn't care. He loves that rifle. We did put a slip over recoil pad on it, but that was to increase the length of pull, not because he was bothered by recoil.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 8:38 am to ChatRabbit77
The rancher I hunt with in Wy.hunts with a 7mm.08. He kills 200 lb.Mule deer with no problem. Great round. When hunters tell him something, he shows them the trophies.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 8:47 am to dwr353
It's always much much better to err on the side of caution with anyone new to shooting and start off with lighter recoil rounds. 7mm 08 or .243 with reduced recoil ammo to start and move up from there as they get better.
I used to flinch and hate recoil personally. Not everyone does, but why risk it? This is a message board, for every guy that says his 5 year old shot .338 lampua as his first gun for lions in Africa there's multi who don't post but their kids were recoil shy.
You are much better off restricting shots to under 100 yards with a smaller caliber they are accurate with then risk poor shooting and recoil flinching.
I used to flinch and hate recoil personally. Not everyone does, but why risk it? This is a message board, for every guy that says his 5 year old shot .338 lampua as his first gun for lions in Africa there's multi who don't post but their kids were recoil shy.
You are much better off restricting shots to under 100 yards with a smaller caliber they are accurate with then risk poor shooting and recoil flinching.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 8:54 am to baldona
My 9 yo girl killed a doe with a .270 and my 11yo girl killed a hog with a .308 they have never mentioned gun recoil because I never did when teaching them to shoot.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 8:59 am to Boat Motor Bandit
quote:
My 9 yo girl killed a doe with a .270 and my 11yo girl killed a hog with a .308 they have never mentioned gun recoil because I never did when teaching them to shoot.
Sweet story bro, your kids are badasses.
Still not something you should recommend for kids to start. Just because one kid can handle it does not mean it's great for all.
I was shooting an Ithaca youth model pump 20 gauge at 9 dove and duck hunting. Had many weekends of bruised shoulders until I was 13-14. It worked, but I'm not sure it was the best learning experience.
Why have kids shoot anything more than a 7mm 08 or .243? They don't need to be taking shots over 100 yards. There's just no need. Again how many people come on message boards and say a caliber was too much for a kid? Cause it happens all the time.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 12:36 pm to tigereye58
Depends on the rifle weight.
I shot a 308 BLR at that age and the load combined with the light rifle was a grade a bitch. Luckily I didn’t develope a flinch.
I shot a 308 BLR at that age and the load combined with the light rifle was a grade a bitch. Luckily I didn’t develope a flinch.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 3:12 pm to tigereye58
Son started shooting .308 at 7 years old. Killed 9 deer that first year (DMAP doe tags). If you’re worried, get reduced recoil rounds.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 4:17 pm to tigereye58
Like others said 7mm08 is the way to go, I’m a big fan but if you already have a 308 I’m 90% sure there is a 50% reduced recoil round for that caliber. I’m sure someone will let me know if I’m wrong.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 5:04 pm to No Colors
quote:
I weigh #230 and I am very much aware of the recoil. It doesn't seem like it would be a fun round for a kid weighing #60 to me.
There's a video of my 130lb wife shooting a mauser 98k in .308.
Short barreled.
She took it like a champ, but it visibly rocked her
I'm a big guy, I've used a .223 with varmint loads since I was 10. Shoot them anywhere near the kill spot and shrapnel is shredding the lungs. Never had one run more than 30ft or so.
This post was edited on 11/1/17 at 5:07 pm
Posted on 11/1/17 at 6:50 pm to tigereye58
quote:
Debating letting my 10 yr old hunt with a .308. Just worried it might be too much.
My personal recs are: 300 Blackout/300 Whisper (full power supersonic loads) or 260 Rem, 7-08 Rem and 308 Win, all w/ reduced recoil loads. A reduced recoil 308 Win actually recoils less than a full power 243 Win.
When my son started hunting at 10 y/o I bought him a full size Savage bolt action (308 Win) package gun w/ regular stock. I bought the 308 instead of 7-08 because at the time I had all the equipment to handload the 308, but not the 7-08. I started him out w/ reduced recoil loads that I handloaded. He's done fine w/ this gun. OTOH, last month I bought a T/C Compass on sale to serve as a "grandchild" deer gun someday. What was the caliber....7-08. Whatever you buy, use reduced recoil loads. I don't believe there are any reduced recoil loads for the 243 Win.
I agree w/ others who've suggested:
Limit the distance of shots to 100 yards until he's demonstrated competence.
At the bench, consider a sandbag between shoulder and butt of gun and use both plugs and muffs. Sure, he won't notice the recoil in the field, but if he develops bad habits in practice, it will carry over to the field and probably result in a flinch (no matter how big he may be).
Be sure the gun stock fits him as well as possible.
Install a nice recoil pad on the butt stock, but don't make the length of pull too long.
Start him off shooting w/ 22 LR.
Don't make the shooting sessions w/ the 308 too long. He should still be enjoying shooting gun when you quit the session.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 8:50 pm to tigereye58
My wife is the size of a 10 y/o boy and didn’t have a problem with the recoil just the reach from butt to trigger.
Posted on 11/1/17 at 10:04 pm to LZ83
I bought my ten year old a savage 308 last year. Used reduced recoil. He loved it. He killed several deer with it. It's a great gun for kids.
Posted on 11/2/17 at 12:15 am to sparkinator
quote:
I was sighing in his 7mm08
quote:
Now I want one.
This has been the cause of a huge bunch of 7mm-08 purchases. Same thing happened to me. Bought daughter one and I ended up with one too soon after. Wait til you see what that no recoiling round will do to a deer. I have zero use for a magnum caliber hunting anywhere that dangerous game isn't a risk. If the 7mm-08 was tits they'd be the most beautiful perfect set of natural ones you've ever seen
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