My nephew wants to start deer hunting with me. He's built on a small frame, so I'm wondering what caliber might be a good choice to start with. My spare 30.06 is too much gun for him, I was thinkin' about a 243, or a 25.06, or maybe dusting off my old bolt action 44 mag. What do ya think?

Get him a Marlin® Mdl 336 in 30/30. Recoil is very light, & with the new Hornady LEVERevolution® ammo he can cleanly take a deer @ 300yds.

7mm-08

Just exactly how small is his small frame?

The .243 is an excelent deer cartridge with the correct bullets. It shoots fast and flat so it can be sighted in so he won't have to worry about holding over the deer or anything like that.

The 30-30 is another great deer cartridge for a first time hunter. So is the .257 Roberts, 7mm-08, 260 Rem, 6mm Rem.

Still another option is letting him use the 30-06 until his dad can get him his won rifle. Get him sighted in and practicing with the Remington managed recoil loads. These kick about like a .243 and have plenty of umph at 250 yards for deer.

this aughta be good......30-30 @ 300 yards.....I got the BIG bucket o pop corn for this one!!!!! In the hands of a beginner noless

I like the .25-06. Plenty of power and plenty of bullet with less recoil than the 30-06.

One question: Have has he tried the 30-06? It may not be as bad as you thing. Ifit isn't, get a new gun anyway, because, well, you'll have another gun. And more guns is always better.

Get him a 260 or 7-08...he wont ever outgrow either of them. They will both kill farther than most folks can shoot.

Here is another vote for the excellent little and surprisingly effective 260rem that’s so much more effective then its paper ballistics show.

The 260 or 7mm-08 would be a good choice. Why not try that 44 mag. just for the heck of it. See what he thinks...