Thought I'd get a few more suggestions here. My boy is 9 yrs old and ready for his first deer rifle. What would y'all suggest? Found a nice .243 at the Academy here in Temple and he said it felt ok in weight. It was a Rossi .243 synthetic stock with a decent scope. He's not little by no means but not huge. He's stout. What say y'all would be a good deer rifle?

I'm gonna say 7mm-08 before BMD jumps in and says the same. Seems like I saw a nice Remington youth model 7 chambered in 7mm-08 on here the other day.

I'm just afraid of getting him "gun shy" and don't want to ruin this for him. Does the 7mm-08 kick more than a .243?

Last year got my 9 year old a youth remington .243 at academy with a limb saver recoil pad and another recoil pad that goes in his shirt. A little overboard, but now that he got used to it, he loves shooting small groups from 100 yards. Never shot a gun before that one.

At 9 I think I would go with the 243. Personly I would go ahead and buy him a better gun than the Rossi though. Maybe a Tikka, Vangaurd, or even a Ruger or Remington if you want to spend even more money. Guns should last a lifetime so you wont even miss that extra money spent later on down the road.

That's what I was thinking because my 3 yr old would be handed this gun once his time came and my 9 yr old moved on up. Gonna keep on searching then for a lil better gun in .243 then. Thanks JCB.

If you get him a 7-08 and put a simms recoil pad on it he should be able to handle the recoil.

Forgot....the other thing I'm worried about is his arm reach. He's not that tall(for a 9 yr old) and his arm reach is a bit short. The Rossi seemed like a good fit but it could probably be a lil better. Is there anything I could do to accomodate that?

If he still doesn't like that, then I just got me a new toy.

I agree with putting a little more money into the gun. It will last a lifetime...you hate for him to think in 10 years to himself "Dad bought me this POS rifle when I was young..."


And regarding his reach...he'll grow into it. Might not be perfect right now, but he's only going to get bigger. If it's tolerable and gets him shooting for now, I'd 'pull the trigger'

The Remington ADL youth model might be the answer to the reach problem. It has a shorter stock on it than the standard ADL and I think you can still get them for under $400 at Academy.

My favorite short gun is by far the Ruger Compact. It has a very short stock and a 16" barrel. Comes in 243 and several other short action calibers as well. Price is gonna be a little steeper though with used ones being around $500. Cant imagine a 9 year old not being able to handle that gun well though. Mine is actually a 308 and the gun does have more muzzle jump than any other 308 I have shot but recoil is about the same as any other 308. I would imagine the 243 would behave the same way.

That's true LON35T4R. He IS a growing boy.....AND eating me outta house and home. LOL

The muzzle blast from the compact ruger is bad idea for kids in my opinion, .243 is ok but with a 9th old boy go with the 7/08 youth Remington it has 12.5" length of pull and when he gets older you can yank it out and drop in b/c TI stock and have a nice rifle for years to come, don't cheese up on the scope the Zeiss conquest 3x9x40 is the perfect scope for youngsters with it's huge eye relief and good glass doesn't hurt either the felt recoil on the 7/08 and .243 is approx 1lb more and loaded with 120 TSX it is an awesome combo for the kiddos.

Sounds good! Looks like I'm going "gun huntin". thanks fellas for all the suggestions.

Good luck always fun getting the kiddos rifles. and thank you for taking the time to spend with them doing what we love and passing on the tradition.

Thanks. It IS fun watching him in Academy looking at all the guns. Although he's REALLY interested in Compound bows too. Might need to buy him one of those too, but I think that'll wait for a lil longer. Don't think he has the patience to hunt with one, but it'd be fun to teach him how to shoot one. Can't wait for the yr I can take both my boys hunting with me.

I am sure nothing like hunting with your kiddos, take lots of pics and videos it goes fast seems like yesterday Kacee started and that was 6 years ago

that it does. Seems like yesterday(he was 5) when I taught him how to use a baitcaster. And now he's better with it than some adults! LOL

Yep it goes by way too fast

Thanks again. I really appreciate y'alls input.

Long time no see primo . Hope all is well.

HEY deerfeeder!!! Everything WAS good till a couple of weeks ago. Started to get pains in my side to my stomach. found out I have gallstones and my gallbladder is gonna get removed. Got surgery Tuesday. And I start school Monday. Going for my Criminal Justice credits so I can go to be a Game Warden.

i agree the 7mm 08 is a fine rifle but so is the 243 unless your planning on hunting large exotics or leaving Texas. might also consider a 30-06 with reduced recoil loads or a 270 same way. I shot my first pig with a 300 winmag at age 10 and I was a stocky kid. recoil wasnt that bad either and remember in the heat of the moment he wont feel it anyway. you can also get a good bench rest that absorbs recoil for sighting in and practicing.

I agree with JCB, lots of good advice on this site from obviously wise people.

I think you're on the right track. A youth model 243. A common mistake (in my humble opinion) is getting a rifle that you think he can use for years. It won't fit him now, it won't fit him later, so just get the gun that fits him now. His first experience will likely determine whether he becomes your hunting partner or not.