cptenca, how is the muzzle blast and noise with the very short (16.5") barrel on the Ruger compact? Even with hearing protection I wonder about the blast.
I have some 20" barreled rifles and about 20" seems short enough. The 223 Mini-Mauser has a 20" barrel and to me is a noisy little bugger even with hearing protection.
I'd like to avoid blast and noise becoming an issue with a relatively new and inexperienced shooter like my DIL. But because she is not very strong; a long barrel on a rifle is harder for her to hold. Thus the questions on the Vanguard youth and its' 20" barrel and how it balances.
.............Imo, if you were to take both a 20" barreled 7/08 Vanguard and a 16.5" barreled 7/08 Ruger compact to the range, and compare them right along side each other using the same loadings, any differences in muzzle blast or noise levels would be very minor to the shooter "when" wearing ear protection.
Anytime you have a rifle which is shorter by a few inches (39" for the Vanguard vs 35.5" for the Ruger compact), a shorter OAL rifle in most cases, is always somewhat easier for handling and carrying, especially for someone who is petite and not a large or stronger person.
Balancing wise imo, there would be little difference in that dept between a Ruger compact and the Vanguard youth. I own a Ruger Frontier compact and have handled the smaller Vanguard for a few minutes when at my dealer. Imo, not a whole lot of difference between the two when it comes to balancing.
Too bad that you cannot just walk into a local dealer and handle both rifles (if in stock) with your DIL. Seldom do dealers have on hand two or more rifles that one is considering buying.
