My 12 year old son wants to go pig hunting with me. He's about 75 pounds. I want a gun that will drop a small eater pig 40-60 pounds, but not so powerful that he's reluctant to shoot it. Also if you have something that might fit the bill for sale, let me know. Won't be going this week, but would like to go soon.

my 12 y/o uses a 243 he is 105 lbs and a 223 will drop a pig also very little recoil especially in my ar 15 , both boys 9 and 12 yo love that gun if you need an excuse to buy an ar with adjustable stock there you go

I dont like starting kids out on small calibers. If you show them how to shoot and give them some confidence, they can shoot bigger gun. A .308 can easily be handled by a 12 year old given he is taught to shoot correctly. It has enough to take down pigs of all sizes and not punishing recoil. I shot a deer when I was 12 with my grandad's .270 and I could shoot it just fine (i was also a shrimp). A .243 will easily kill a small pig, but i would get a gun that can be used for big pigs and deer as well. Top choices would be .308, .270, .30TC or even a 7mm-08. Hope this helps.

we have used 243 for all pigs and deer for years , but a 308 is more forgiving on shot placement . I started on a 308 at 12 also but my son's size would not let him shoulder my 308 so I taught him accuracy and he uses my grandmothers 243 and makes them drt

the best plan I know of is to get good with what fits and is comfotable with what you have and make work and have fun

good word

.243 is fine with good shot placement

Here is another option. Managed recoil ammo. It has 1/2 the recoil of standard factory ammo. It comes in most popular calibers. My son has started shooting my 30-06 when he was 12.The kick is about the same as a 30-30. They just need to shoot from box blinds or with shooting sticks because they are not strong/experienced enough to hold the gun up for offhand shots.

My son is 12 and he shoots a .243 just fine. I will put a hog down for the count if you hit him right. It's a perfect gun for a pre-teen IMHO.

another option would be to tell ur son to man up.... i mean when ur shooting a pig u will typically only shoot once anyway, not like one blast of recoil every other weekend will make him "gun shy" JMO so i say, let him shoot whatver gun u got. but if u really wanna buy a low recoil gun, get a 17hmr

Bad advise here, he obviously doesn't have kids.

IMO you should start with something like 223, 243, (not rim fire 17 HMR) and stress shot placement. Anatomy of a hog is different than deer,internal organs are more forward. Aim from the point of the shoulder forward to the ear, anywhere in there should put a hog down. Starting a kid out with heavy recoil will only cause him to develope a flinch. Low recoil and good technique, stress aim, breath, squeeze and follow through.

I would try and find a good NEF handi rifle w/scope and syntheic stock in .243 and let him target shoot and get adjusted to shooting and loading and unloading and cleaning.Then you have a cheap gun that shoots well and can get many years of use.

+1 my first centerfire was a NEF handi in 223. I still have it.

Sirrah243 has good advice. Get him a NEF/H&R in 223. It's affordable, ammo is easy to find, no recoil, with the right bullet you can kill anything from prairie dogs to deer. If he eventually wants a larger caliber, you simply buy another barrel for 100-130 bucks. I shoot a NEF Ultra Varmint in 223, I love it. Hope this helps.

I agree with teaching shot placement. I have an 8 year old daughter that i bought an H&R in 7mm-08 and it was to much recoil for her. so i got a 22-250 barrel for it and she loves it. she shoots a 55gr sp and she took her first hog in dec. one shot in the neck at 110 yards. so 22-250 or 243 they will both work if you teach shot placement on hogs or deer.

i would get him a .243 a 17hmr is auto and dangerous for a boy that age espically if he was to get a little trigger happy.

I have killed pigs upwards of 275 lbs with my AR... a .223 will do the job, poke a hole in both lungs of right behind the ear, either way will do the job

anything that shoots a bullet and kills a pig should be used. KILL THEM ALL!

Tuff to say. Does he shoot now? Kids can be very subjective to recoil and muzzleblast. We used to conduct youth hunts. The kids were supposed to come ready to hunt with at least acceptable accuracy. We let the kids and parents have some time at the range anyway to evaulate which stands to place them on. We had tiny kids shooting .243s without issue. We also had kids that could not shoot a .223 without breaking into tears. Obviously a .223 rifle doesn't kick but it might as well have been a 300 mag as far as the kids are concerned.

I would definitely probably go with a .223 or .22-250. As long as you keep the shots close, around 100 to 150 yds you will kill it. Besides, having a smaller caliber teaches proper shot placement, and that is much more important than having a "big gun". There are way too many people who try to compensate for bad marksmanship by shooting .300 mags or such. I usually try to aim for the head, right behind the ear, but upper neck shots usually work well also. On bigger hogs, especially the boars, the muscle and cartilage around the vitals can be very thick, and can prevent you from killing a hog when shooting there.

Oh, and "Manning up" is a terrible idea; if the kid is scared of the recoil, he might close his eyes before he pulls the trigger, fearing recoil, and wind up shooting who knows where. Don't listen to anyone who says "Man up".

My son is 8 and he shoots a youth model 243 just fine, he either shoots from shooting sticks or a blind. He killed a 250 pound boar with one shot, Its all about shot placement, that goes for any caliber. There is a web site called texas boar hunter that shows the real anatomy of a hog in several stages that takes you from the hog just laying there through the entire skinned carcass.

I would recommend a 243. I am fond of a 223 but not for a young hunter. The 223 is best when the shot is placed behind the ears of a hog not on the vitals. The 243 will allow a new shooter to have a larger shot placement area and higher success rate thus building confidence. Another gun is the 6.8 SPC on an AR platform. It has 80 % knock down power of the 308 with 50% of the recoil. It is great for small to medium size animals. The ballistics are similar to a 308 with a little flatter trajectory. The round was primarily design for a 16 inch barrel which would be great for a young boy. The platform of the rifle will allow for a very quick follow up shots. A dad would probably love shooting it as well.

one comes to mind..... .50 BMG

my girlfriend shoots a mossburg bantum 243 and will shoot 10 boxes and not complain any about the recoil. she may be 110 pounds soaking wet and is a first season hunter. she loves it and it is light for her to carry also.