7mm08 for my son
 

Well... buying another gun is always a good thing! My son turns 12 this year and can hunt out here. We will be chasing Mulies/Elk. I'm shooting for a 7mm-08, but I'm curious everyone's thought on the caliber?

I'm a huge .284 fan from a ballistics standpoint. I will be hand loading loads for him. Right now, I'm think 7mm-08 or a .308.

Again, curious about everyone's thoughts on the "08" and any suggestions on brands? I'm a huge Browning fan, but thinking of not spending that much $$$ on this one.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

I own a 7mm-08 in a synthetic Browning A-bolt. I think that it is just about the perfect caliber for deer sized animals. It has mild recoil yet shoots pretty flat. I haven't had a deer make it farther than 40 yards. For Elk, I would think that if you kept the shot distances within reason and used a tough constructed 140 grain premium bullet like a tripleshock ora partition then it should kill elk reasonably well. But I'm by no means an elk expert. The 308 with it's ability to handle heavier bullets would probably be better for elk but then you are looking at more recoil with that set up. You would know far better than me what level of recoil your kid can handle.

As for brands, well they ain't beautiful to look at but Savage makes some pretty cheap yet accurate rifles. You don't really need some wallhanger masterpiece with a high grade walnut stock and fancy engraving for a kids gun anyway.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

I cant imagine the 7-08 not being just right for either. I dont think you'll ever hear much bad about that caliber.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

I have a Tikka T3 Light in a 7mm-08 that I know a 12 year old could handle easily. I've never taken anything larger then whitetails with it, but works GREAT on them. The gun is light, smooth, VERY ACCURATE and the price is nice.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

I was in the same boat last fall - my son was 12 and had an elk tag. I already had a Remington 700 BDL in a .243, with the length of pull reduced to 12 1/2"; but was a little apprehensive about the knock down of the .243. Found a 7MM Douglas blank for $65, turned it down to a #4 sporter, and chambered for 7MM-08. First load I tried with it shot MOA. 150 Swift Scirocco with a moderate charge of H-380 gave me a little over 2700 fps in the 25" barrel. A real little sweetheart to shot in terms of recoil.

He wound up shooting an elk in the neck at 230 yards. Didn't look like the bullet expanded very much, but it worked nonetheless. His second shot at about five feet went in the elk's mouth and was found later during butchering in the animal's hip. It did expand all the way to the base, but appears to have a lot penetration at the expense of a smaller wound channel - at least at these velocities.

I have since developed some loads for the 140 Nosler Ballistic Tip and the 140 Sierra Gameking, which both shoot around MOA as well. They should perform well at the more modest velocities of this caliber. Looking at the horsepower chart, I'm going to try to limit this caliber to 300 yards on elk.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

I bought a NEF 7mm-08 Youth model new for 219.00 at Gander Mountain. It shoots well and I really like the gun. You can add thefull lengthstock later for 30.00 bucks or so. The rifle shoots 1 1/2 inches with all loads and a bit better with 140 grain Remingtons. You can even add a shotgun or muzzle loader barrel for less than a 100 bucks.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

The Remington model Seven youth rifle chambered for 7mm-08 is a great first gun. It's really compact and light, but it still has manageable recoil and it performs great on elk and deer. I'm not sure how much they cost now, but when we bought ours it only cost around $400. The Pachmayer decellerator pad we put on it really absorbs the recoil good too.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

7mm-08 is good choice IMO. 140gr Barnes TSX would be a great place to start as far as bullets for the elk hunt. However their are many others in the .284 line that would also work ie: failsafe, nosler partition, etc 140-160grs.

As far as brand one that hasn't been already mentioned is the Rem 700 SPS, several variations to chose from in terms of fit/finish/features.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

Awesome info and thx to everyone. I'll probably be handloading 140 gr Nosler AB's for him and put a limbsaver butt pad on it.

Do you think it's worth the "youth model"? I do plan on handing this down to my younger boys and eventually my wife. I was leaning on a non-youth model for as they get bigger, etc. Does the lighter weight increase recoil alot? I remember my .270 featherweight kicking horribly as a kid, but I was a "kid". ;) I've only shot "normal" guns for years since.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

Dont hold me to this as Im not 100% positive but I think all you need to do to make the lop the same as a Regular Mod 7 as opposed to a youth model 7 is add a 1 inch recoil pad to the end of the stock. If thats the case that would kill both birds with one shot for you.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

Youth or not is all dependant on the fit &/or size of your boys(wife). The only way is go window shopping and have him shoulder the various rifles. If fit isn't right it can effect the felt recoil much like a lighter version of the same caliber.BTWm theSPS has the R3 (or sims pad) installed on it from factory, so need to modify. However it also carries a 24" barrel so it may not work, you'll just have to see.

If looking at a compact/youth model you may also want to check out the Weatherby Vangaurd Compact as well. It is made by Howa with the weatherby stamp put on it but doesn't have the traditional weatherby price. Just for options if you need them.

Personally for elk I'd go with the 140gr NP over the 140 AB in the nosler offerings. I have used the AB for 1-elk and 1-moose out of my 7mm rem mag but in the 160gr version. Neither opportunity was faced with the large bone structure so worked but in 140grs I'd look to something that may offer a bit more insurance, like failsafe, tsx or NP...just in case. Just my 2 cents FWIW.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

Got a Remington 700 LVSF in 7mm-08 topped with Zies Conquest and love it. I'm about to turn 46 and really don't like much recoil and this fits the ticket. Took nice 12-point (144 gross) at an unbelievable 20 yards, yes 20 yards, and shot one doe at 195 yards. The buck ran about 40 yards, and the doe was DRT. Also shot several other deer and a couple of hogs with it, and was very pleased. I think its a great round....

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

I got a Savage .270 package gun for my son. He uses a 115 gr managed recoil round, and can use a full power round in the same gun later. I am not a handloader, so I was looking for a caliber that he could handle where a factory load was available inmanaged recoil.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

Check out My post ( Mod 7, 7MM-08 project completed ). I built one for My 8 year old Son and he has no trouble with the regular size mod 7NOT youth. Find someone who has one and let him try it out. If my 8 year old can handle it, I think Your Son will have no problems. Good luch and have fun.

RE: 7mm08 for my son
 

7-08 should be fine for Elk, but I would stick with under 150 yards. Key is placement. My son turned 14, I started him off with a Remington 700 ADL in .270 and he handled it fine. I started off with some light loads for him to get a feel for it and then used factory loads. Now Remington sells the 50% recoil ammo and it is great for target practice to work on trigger pull. Good Luck...........