I know this is an older post but still a relevant topic. I'm mentoring a boy of a single mom who has no family or friends that hunt. The young man is small for his age of 11. strength and tolerance for recoil are some hurdles we had to deal with. I have a 30-06 and 7mm08 for my hunting tools for Wisconsin Whitetail. My two main rifles were not an option for this young guy.
A lot of research and studying led me to buy a Ruger American Ranch in 7.62x39. I handload so going forward I will have other options but for the Wisconsin's youth hunt, 10-05-19 I used off the shelf Winchester Soft Point hunting bullets.
This round grouped well and this young guy was able to shoot them well. Long story short the young guy harvested his first deer.
The shot was a 100 yard shot. The little guy used shooting stix to support the weight of the rifle. The shot was near the center of the chest broadside while the deer was grazing. The 150 pound doe rand 40 yards and died quickly.
The bullet went through the deer and no ribs were hit. The bullet damaged both lungs, the end of liver, and a major piece of plumbing for the heart. (not sure if the pipe was into or out of the heart.) The damage to the lungs and liver were very clear and tissue was damaged in an estimated 2-2.5" diameter around the bullet's path.
While this was a successful hunt I think the Winchester ammo will not be used again. I feel the bullet didn't expand much