caliber choice would be a 260 or 7/08.... even a 243...
action doesn't really matter...
I'd still be tho, that when he grows older, he'll want something different, regardless of your best intentions now...so get ready for that disappointment then...
gave my son his first rifle when he was 12 or 13.... he wanted a 30/06... so I gave him a Browning A Bolt... one I had had for 12 to 15 years at the time...
I've had to down load it to equal factory " Managed Recoil" loads, but he still wants to have a 30/06... when I have 243s, 260s etc also readily available in the gun cabinet..
if you do pick a Savage bolt action, it'll be easier to rebarrel to another caliber as he grows older...
