What would be the best choice for a beginner hunter 13 years old.243 7mm/08 or 270

Hi jdeerhunter270,

Find the rifle that you like and fits you best. Any of the three calibers you mentioned will work fine for deer!

Good luck!

The 243 will have the least recoil followed by the 7mm-08.The 7mm-08 offers the best selection of bullet weights if larger game is to be hunted.

Any of the three would probably work fine. It really depends on the 13 yr old. How big is this person? How much experience with a rifle have they had? Alot of factors go into it. Personally I'd opt for the 7mm-08. It's a great all around cal.

If he is really small framed or very recoil sensitive then I'd get the 243 but for the average 13 year old I'd get the 7mm08. It has a little more recoil than a 243 but not nearly as much as a 270. A 270 is a 30-06 hull necked down to 27 caliber. And most of the ones I have shot felt like they kicked about as hard as a 30-06.
In 4 years he will be 17 and probably able to shoot any gun he wants. If you get the 243 then by that time he will probably want more gun. The 7mm08 on the other hand is as much gun as you will ever need for whitetails and can even take elk sized game at reasonable distances and with the right type bullet. Heck I'm 38 years old and could use any caliber I want. A 7mm08 in a Browning A-bolt is my primary deer gun of choice. I think its just about the perfect deer cartridge. Light recoil, relatively flat shooting, lethal on deer, good ballistic coefficient, and accurate.

We shoot 22s alot and so does he thanks for the replys and keep um coming

We started my son out at 9 practicing with a 243 by the time he was 12 and started hunting moved up to 7mm-08 with no problems although tough to find a rifle at the time because of the samll frame he had.

Flip a 3 sided coin personaly id choose a 270 formyself but when my daugther starts hunting (if) ill start her on a 243.

Another round to throw into consideration: the .25-06. The ammo selection isn't as good as the .243 and some other popular calibers, however. Still a great deer cartridge.

If you can wait for them to come out Remington is offering a model 700 LA youth model "soon" chambered in .270 and .30/06. They also are coming out with a reduced load in both of these as well as 7mmRem Mag ( though the article I read didn't mention a youth model I this chambering) the idea is when the youth gets bigger you just buy a new stock and then regular ammo no need to upgrade.

Any of the ones you mentioned will work; I started my son off with a .243 he's 11 right now and the recoil doesn't bother him.