Hi HNI Visitor,

You have my deepest sympathy on the loss of your son. We lost our son about a year ago. He was my baby, my buddy, and my best friend. I truly am sorry to hear about your son!

I know the consensus to this point has been the .308, which is a very good choice. But there are a lot of variables you didn't mention. The particular .308 you mentioned has a "heavy" barrel which would make it extremely cumbersome for much deer hunting.

Is your Grandson big or little? Is he husky (ie. strong for his age) or slight? Will he be walking a lot....or sitting a lot? Will the ranges he will most likely face be short or long? All of these are important.

If he is relatively large and strong, and will be doing most of his hunting from a stand, after a relatively short walk in.....then the .308 would make a good choice. And its weight would help reduce felt recoil and make it easier to shoot well.

If on the other hand if he is slight in build, may be walking alot, and the ranges he most likely will encounter are 150 yards or less.....the Ruger Mini 30 (7.62 X 39) might make the best choice. Assuming a semiauto is legal in your state for hunting, (and check laws concerning magazine capacity).

Have him shoot both and see how he feels about each of them. If he can display proficiency with either of them.....maybe you should let him choose. If in fact he chooses one over the other and it turns out to not have been the best choice.....he will learn a valuable lesson.

If he can shoot the little Ruger mini 30 accurately to 150 yards with a good soft point load it will kill deer about like a .30-30. There is no doubt that the .308 is the more authorative cartridge....but that model may be less than handy for some types of deer hunting.

Good luck with your decision...and once again my condolences on your loss!