I’m guess’n that a lot aren’t killed also! Making an educated decision on firearm use when accessing the type of hunt is never a bad thing!
Many men think that wives and young hunters are incapable of tolerating some recoil. Years ago, fathers thought that starting their kids out with a 410 was a wise decision…..actually just the opposite, by handicapping them with a small shot charge which required more skill to make clean, lethal shots!
There is a vast difference between adequate and optimum! memtb
starting their kids out with a 410 was a wise decision memtb
BTDT. If there was ever an exercise in humility, shooting quail with a single shot full choke 410 is it.
You guys are really helping make the counter argument here. The message is, don’t start novice hunters with a firearm that makes proper shot placement more difficult. Very simplistically, with shotguns that means a larger shot pattern. With rifles, it means more accuracy and precision, which means less recoil and less sensitivity to wind and short-range drop.
I respectfully disagree!
Most any young shooter (that wants to hunt/shoot) in their early teens and older should be fully capable of accurately shooting anything in the .308Win/ 30-06/7 mag range and likely larger more powerful, without difficulty…..Assuming proper stock fit, and a decent recoil pad…. The scoped pkg coming in around 7 1/2 to 8 pounds. I started out @14 with a 6 3/4 pound (didn’t add a scope until I was in my 20’s), with a hard plastic buttplate in .308 Win and didn’t have any difficulty shooting prone, we didn’t have a bench in 1967.
For a younger shooter, a smaller caliber would probably a wise choice…..but keep them with smaller big game…..not elk/moose,ect. ! If large big game is on the menu, then a larger, more powerful cartridge should be used. Most folks on this site love to put a “weed-burner” on darn near anything over a 22 rimfire. Perhaps a brake should be considered if the shooter hasn’t reached their early teens yet, is very small/young shooter, or is timid……perhaps only hunting/shooting to satisfy dad!
I’ll go a step farther……only an exceptional, very accomplished youth shooter should be attempting long range shooting were wind doping, and drop become a significant issue! JMO memtb
