Looking to get the wife her first rifle as she wanting to get involved in hunting. Wondering what would be recommended as a good caliber for deer and antelope? First thoughts are .243, 25-06, 7mm-08. Also thought the .270 & .308 though I think those would be a bit much for her to shoot enough to be comfortable and accurate with the rifle. Whats your thoughts? Any one "better" than the others? Trying to stick with more common calibers due to ammunition cost and availability as I do not reload.

Thanks

243 all day long

.260 or 7-08. Both can fire a superior sized/weight ball at excellent velocities.

There is a Remington 700 .257 Roberts in the Classifieds that would be absolutely perfect for her.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbth.../WTS_Rem_700_ADL_257_Roberts#Post6980136

Bob

243. 243. 243........until lasers are legal.

.243
.257 Roberts
.25-06
.260
7mm-08

No debate here will declare the winner of "Which is best." Just go find a good deal on one and go kill stuff.

I guess I'm a little "old school", but if you don't mind reloading and can find one, a .250 Savage hard to beat for a lady. Very little recoil and muzzle blast, even in a light weight carbine, and very deadly on game. Nothing I ever shot with a .250 required a second shot.

Like I said in the OP I want to stay with the more common choices due to availibility and cost, though the other suggested calibers will no doubt be good choices. I have whittled it down to those listed in the OP. I am leaning .243 or 7mm-08 though the 25-06 is also up there though. I do not reload, yet, this is on my list of things to get into. Finding .250 Savage, .260 Rem, and .257 Roberts around here is a bit more challenging for factory ammunition choices. On that matter the .243 seems to have the best factory options.

Thanks

The caliber is less important that how the rifle fits her. Remember women have less upper body strength and more padding on their upper chest.

My wife started out with a 22" 6.5x55 with a cut down stock and had issues shooting it any way but off a rest. She found a 7mm-08 Model Seven Youth with an 18.5" barrel and just flat out kills anything she shoots at. Funny thing is she finds full size short action Model 70 Featherweights also work. Winchester now makes that model in a compact that might also work.

Just let your wife handle various models until she finds the one that works. If you can, find an experienced female hunter to accompany you and her gun shopping.

25-06, 260 would be the first two I'd look at, although my wife will be using my .257 wby

For her first cf find one that fits her. In 243,or 257 or similar cartridge.Hearing protection allways and stay away from cartridges with much muzzleblast , that bothers new shooters more than recoil. Especially the 25-06 or any magnums let them learn and get comfortable with shooting first instead dumping hot rds on them right away.You will make a better shot out of her that way. Magnum Man

A 243 would be hard to whoop for a first rifle.

jcrain1970,
Go with the 243 Winchester.
It's a great round to start with for a beginner.
There are plenty of other good cartridges out there too, but for factory ammo selection you'd be hard pressed to find a better one with that light of a recoil, and with a little practice for good shot placement it will handle deer & speed goats way out of proportion to its size.
Good Luck,
Ted

Another vote for 243

get a 243

If you think she might every get into elk hunting, a 270 might be a thought too

.243 Win for a starter rifle, then move up to a .243 Win when you think she's ready for a "real" hunting rifle.

A 257 Roberts would be perfect.


ddj

My wife switches between 243 and her 7mm-08. Both will kill either animal as dead as you could ever want. I cant see anything bigger killing them any deader.

I think Savage offers a bolt gun in .250 Savage. That's the route I'd go.

There's only one real choice for somebody who doesn't handload, the .243 Winchester. It's not only great for beginners but many veterans choose it as well.

My wife started hunting in her 30's with my grandmother's old .257 Roberts, but it was a little heavy. Since then she's hunted big game all over the U.S., as well as in Canada, Europe, New Zealand and Africa, with rifles chambered for over around 10 cartridges up to the .30-06. But recently she's become more sensitive to recoil, and last year picked up a light Hiusquvarna .243 that's now her favorite general-purpose rifle. It works on deer and antelope as well as anything she's tried, and a couple days ago she took her 100th big game animal with it, a pronghorn at 243 yards!

.243 - the Barnes bullet loadings in .243 have given me new confidence in that round as a reliable deer killer.

As for the rifle - make sure it fits well, has a safety she can use from a shooting position and a little extra weight in a first gun never hurts from both a recoil and a steadiness perspective.

243, 257 Roberts, 25-06, 260, 7-08

Depends on your wife. A friend's wife shoots a .340 Wby...he shoots a .378 Wby

7mm-08

I would go for the .260, but that isnt as common and ammo is a bit more difficult. Using that criteria, the .243 wins hands down. I dont feel that the 7mm-08 is any more common than the .260 when it comes to available ammo. All 3 are great cartridges. My son started with my .25-06... its a great caliber but will likely come in a bit longer package.

My wife started with a .243 and 250 Sav., but came to use the old 7mm Rem. Mag. more than any other caliber..

.243 or 7mm-08.

Excellent choices for all of the same reasons, accurate, very low recoil and light on muzzle blast.

Both will hammer deer and antelope clear out there.

My kid has had highly impressive results using both cartridges.

Managed Recoil .308 ammo is a fine choice.

Sherwood

7-08 and 120 NBT's

There are 2 243's in the classifieds right now that would fill the bill- a Model 70 carbine and a Model 7.

+1

The more I use the 243 on deer, the more I leave the 300rum and 270wby Mag at home. They were both for long range shooting but now I hunt for fun.

Shooting and handling the 243 is fun.

243's loose way too much energy past 350-400 YDS, 25-06 is the best of all worlds for a low kicker

Another vote the 243, i like mine for deer and i used a 30-06 for a long time! Ammo is availible everywhere and it's inexpensive.

Gotta go with the .243. I'm a grown man and that is my most used rifle caliber.

Curious how many deer you have shot past 350-400 YDS with the 243 and with what bullet?

If all she'll ever hunt is deer and antelope the 243. If at some point she might want to go for something bigger then the 7mm08 or a 308. Those last two are both mild in the recoil if the rifle fits her. (Find a BLR, women seem to get along with those real well).
The biggest reason I recommended the 708 and 308 for bigger stuff is it's less likely some azzhole idiot with about as much real world experience as a can of spam, will be able to put doubt in her rifles ability, they way the experts can almost wreck a new/young shooters physcy with a lite rifle like the 243. Of course I do know of an example where a person claiming years of elk experience gave a thumbs down to the 308 as being in adequate ( only to later admit he didn't even know anybody that used one) So I suppose no matter what cartridge someone can come along a screw with a newbies mind....

No, you don't understand what he's saying. The .243 Win. looses too much energy past 350-400 yds, meaning that it unleashes formidable amounts of killing power once it goes past these distances. As for myself, I've seen this phenomenon on 4 different occasions when one of the idiots that I hunt with tries to kill mule deer with a .223 loaded with varmint bullets. Then I get to send a 100 gr. Partition up the south end of a mule deer headed north at anywhere from 250-450 yds. I've only recovered one of those bullets, three exited the animal completely. I know this because I killed them dead with a .243 Win after loosing all of that energy on the deer.

Add 6.5 Swede to the list above and I agree.

I would be looking at a 7mm-08 with the 120gr pills. Light on recoil. If needed you could move up in weight. If you get a 260 you would have an excuse to start a new reloading hobby

Common caliber? Shux, I was gonna say .250 Savage.

Another vote for the 243. I killed my first elk with a 243, not that I think a 243 is the end all be all elk cartridge, but I have shot elk with a 300 win that ran farther than that first cow. My longest shot to date at a game animal was an antelope at 534 yards with my current 243AI.

I would have to say that the 250 Savage definately has the edge when it comes to the "cool factor."

Last year I was faced with the same question but for my daughter-in-law. There are a number of good choices in calibers; but it is more important how the rifle fits the shooter, more than the caliber.

Shooters vary in recoil tolerance. My DIL, though petite and a novice shooter; seems to tolerate recoil fairly well. But found her husband's 270 W. to be more of a challenge to shoot than his 6 mm Rem., or my Winchester XTR 257 Roberts. I had considered cutting down the stock on the 257 XTR, but decided not to.

Her rifle is a M70 Compact that with scope weighs just over 7 lbs. The shorter action, stock and barrel length fit her better than the longer action and barrel of the 257.

Because she lives in Colorado and hopes to hunt elk at some time; I chose a 7mm-08 as being more flexible than a 243.

My son and I both handload so we have her shoot 120 Nosler BT for practice and for antelope and deer, then 140 g. partitions for elk. With the 120 g. bullets the recoil is only slightly more than a 243 and she has the option of using heavier bullets for larger animals -- yet still have a rifle she can handle, carry and shoot.

That is how my son and I addressed the question. There are a number of good caliber choices (e.g. 243, 6 mm, 257, 260, 6.5X55, 7x57), but we felt choosing a 7mm-08 gave more choice in rifle makes, availability of factory ammo in a pinch and more confidence if she hunts elk.

.257 Roberts
.25-06
.260
7mm-08

Depends on the wife, though, and her previous experience with long guns. A .270 or .280 are great for the application and would be fine for many women.

Since you do not reload, the 243/7-08 wins hands down. If you plan to start reloading, I think the 7-08 would be better as you can load some 120gr bullets at reduced loads.

260
7-08
308

Should cover it

AND

ALL of the others of course

I had my wife a 250AI twisted up. She loves it. Steelhead and dog zapper had a good bit to do with this choice too

Mainly a deer and antelope gun, she shows little to no interest in elk hunting. She had been bitten by the scope of my buddies 30-06 a few years back though she did shoot my old 308 a few times with no real issues. I was leaning towards the lighter recoiling 243 win, though the 7mm08 is still an option. And we will be shopping around to find a rifle that fits well, just wanted some opinions on caliber thoughts.

257Bob or 7mm Mauser or both.

I was in a deer camp this weekend. A friend's wife has a M-70 FW in .257 R, a really nice rifle. She loves that gun and can hit with it. I was asking about it and found out if was given to her by a former husband. Her present husband is a good bud, so I had to comment that her ex at least had class selecting this rifle for her. We all had a few laughs.

It would be hard to find a more ideal rifle for a lady.

DF

I know this is an old topic but just had to share. Went and picked up a Browning x bolt in .243 Win for the wife today.

Well since its for a girl you could with the 243 If it were me id go with the 25-06.

If you reloaded, I'd say the 257 roberts. Since you don't, the 260 would be hard to beat. The 25-06 would be a good one as well, but the short actions rifles may fit better.

Any of the calibers you are asking about would be great. I don't know if any one will be that much better than any other. I have my preferences like everyone here but I think you are on the right track. I know the .243 has killed many many animals but personally prefere at least .25 caliber for large deer just in case a less than ideal shot is presented or made. That said, it is still a good choice.

Like MagnumMan said, always use good hearing protection to minimize a flinch and probably more important than caliber is if the rifle fits her and she comfortable with it, not just, "I can make it work" but comfortable.

One more suggestion, a good recoil pad-ie Pachmeyer or Limbsaver. I have been shooting for quite a few years now and only in the last few realized the difference one of those two pads can make, they are awesome. I am not particularly recoil sensitive but am working on putting one of those pads on everything I have from .280 Rem to .375 H&H. I have nothing big enough to require those type of pads but they make shooting much much more comfortable.

Remember though, if you add the pad you might need to cut down or have the stock cut down or you will lose the fit the gun originally had.

My opinions sir, good luck to you and your wife.

mnimrod45

The browning x bolt we picked up seems to have a pretty cushy pad on it already. We spent an hour or so at the counter comparing gun fitment. She narrowed it down to 4-5 but for her the x bolt came up better and the stock fit her smallish hands better. Went out shooting today , far to windy to get a good sight in done so we just got on paper and shot 12 rounds through it. She came away saying she was very comfortable with the gun and not at all intimidated by the recoil produced. So a good first outing.Hopefully the wind dies down so we can sight in prproperly tomorrow

Thanks

Just make sure it fits now and when she has a think hunting coat on.
My short wife and short daughter both love the cut-down stocks on their rifles.
Both are great shots. Wife carries a .270 with Pachmayr pad and 130's. Daughter has a .243.

stumpy

We went out shooting yesterday with our hunting jackets on and it fits well even worth the thick stuff on.

Thanks

Great, looks like you are well on your way to some fun adventure. Good luck.

As long as we can draw some tags we are good to go

260,
7-08,
7x57,
308

.257 Roberts.

My wife hunts with a custom Browning in 6.5mm Swede. But if I could do it all over again, I'd have bought a 270 instead. Same basic trajectory, accuracy, power, and recoil for hundreds less.

Sherwood

My 12 year old boy started on a Tikka 7mm-08. Low recoil, flat shooting, plenty of punch.

Like the man said, rifle fit is more important than cartridge.


P

257 Roberts.

.243 is a great choice

my wife has a Remington Seven Youth in 7-08 and loves it but elk are a possibility for her on a regular basis.....he also loved the Savage 99 in 250 i had for awhile and has used her dads 6mm Rem a fair bit...

We did choose the .243 and the main game will be deer and antelope, if elk ever comes into the picture for her then I have given thought to getting it rebarreled to 7mm-08 or .308 but that would be down the road a ways. Or always could get another rifle. The main goal was to get a good deer and deer caliber in a rifle that fit her well, and get her some time on the range to work on the fundamentals to be a good marksman.
Thanks

.257 Roberts

My Wife started out with a youth Savage model 11 in .243 & killed many deer with it.

This year, she moved up to a Savage Lady Hunter, in 7mm-08, & is shooting the "factory" 120gr Barnes TTSX. Killed 1 buck & 2 Does & is extremely happy with the rifle. Oh, & she absolutely loves the Savage accutrigger on this rifle.

A well fitting rifle, with a great trigger is bad medicine for our local deer population.


YMMV.

Paul.

Cheers & thank you for letting us know of your choice !

But, you can't leave us hanging like that. What did you get & why ?

Paul.

a well fitting rifle is important....my wife loves her 7-08 but hated my 270 though on paper it kicked less(heavier gun), cause she couldnt hold it right it would hurt her....

Ended up getting a Browning X bolt in .243 Win. The main features we wanted included an adjustable trigger and a detachable magazine. She "tried on" several different rifles but really like how the X bolt felt, came to her shoulder and fit her. We picked up a Nikon Prostaff BDC 4-12 to top it, we have taken it out and shoot a few boxes and she is very happy and not afraid of the recoil at all. We still have to do a good final sight in, I will let you all know how well it groups once we do.
Thanks

Good set up. Glad it worked out. It is all about personal preference. That goodness we can make choices.

I like Chevys!

stumpy