Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Reduced 7mm-08 loads or 243 for youth hunter

My teenage niece just got her hunting license so I will be taking her out this fall for whitetails.

She’s really tall (5’9”) for her age but very skinny so while so while I think she’ll be fine with an adult sized rifle I’m a little concerned about recoil. I have a 243 and 7mm-08 that she can use. Trying to decide whether I should have her use full power 243 loads or reduced 7mm-08 loads. The 243 is a Sako Varmint so won’t kick much at all but it’s a fairly heavy setup. The 7-08 is a Tikka T3X. For the 243 I’d probably use a Sierra 85 BTHP as the gun is sighted in for that, for the 7mm I’d use a 120 ballistic tip or 130 Speer. Any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks, Mike

I'd go 7mm08 and use these:

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1001691679

Also, if she's not used to shooting a ton, game ears. Sometimes the noise is worse than the recoil for new/young hunters. (That's partly why I think 708 > 243... the two 243s I've killed deer with just seem to be loud.)

Lightly loaded 7-08 with the 140 NBT will kill well. Good luck.

I've never had a problem using a 243. Try 85gr Sierra HP boat tails and 60% of a max load of H4895 or IMR4895. I've loaded youth 243 loads for friends and their children never had a problem dropping a deer.
For a 7mm-08 youth load I'd use the Hornady 120gr FTX and 60% of a max load of IMR or H 4895.

I started my son on 7-08 youth loads with H4895 and a 120gr hornady soft point. Worked very well. MV approx 2,300fps. His buck was down in 30yards

7-08 with 120 BT loaded with 40 gr RL-15..that's what i load for my daughter. Its also what I use for my 7-08 but with 44 grains RL.15.
Very little recoil and kills like a thor.

I speak from experience.

41 grains of Varget, 120 BT is a low-recoiling round that will wreck a buck at 200 yards out of a Tikka 7mm-08.




P

I agree with the guys shooting 120gr 7mm-08 loads at moderate speeds. I liked H4895 at 2,800 from a 20” 700 and the kids shoot it well. I think we were about 3 grains below book max. Performs like a 120gr .257Rob load.

I will second the rec's for 120BT's with a lower dose of Varget or RL15. It's a game killing machine, as that's what I started my son and nephew on when they were young.

Thanks all. I’ve got the 120 BTs, Varget, Big Game and H4895 so will work up some loads. Would be nice to get in the 2700fps range.

Start with the extruded powders, ball is usually happier at full power.

This for sure! Save that Big Game for when she gets more experience and can handle full power loads.

Number 1: make sure the rifle in question fits her.

Number 2: see number 1

Number 3: don't push her to shoot a lot at first. 1 or 2 shots at paper and be done. Next session do the same. Next session a little more and so on. 50 yard targets will build confidence. Extend the range when she is ready for the challenge.

Double up with ear protection. Ear muffs over ear plugs.

Did this with my son and a Browning micro medalion in 7-08 when he was 9.

I bought both of my sons a 7mm08 for their 15th birthday. They were both small for their age. I loaded a 120 or 130 gr bullet with a light load of 4350. It worked wonderfully for both! It was a reliable killer as well. I wanted to give them a rifle they could hunt with forever. I had a shorter stock for each and added a full size stock after they grew. I would do it again in a heart beat more than ten years later.

This is from a guy who often uses a 6mm as my go to gun. I have yet to try the 120 gr Nosler BT. The reduced velocity worked wonderfully with standard cup and core bullets.

Use the 243 with a light bullet. Granddaughter at 11 was shooting full power 243’s. She probably weighed 75 lbs in this pic. She is 5’3 now and shoots full power Creed 120 grainers.

If you look at the recoil tables you will find the .243 has a good deal less recoil than a 7-08. They also make reduced recoil loads for a .243.
I would never use a hollow point on deer. They will blow up on bone and a trackin' you will go. I have a friend who has lost several with
hollow points. He has now, on my advice, switched over to one piece bullets. The 95 grain or 100 grain Nosler Partition in .243 has cleanly
taken deer and elk for over 50 years and was the choice of Warren Page and Byron Dalyrymble (hunter/writers for Field & Stream and
Outdoor Life), although Dalyrmple, I believe was partial to corelokts. I swore off those after seeing the amazing performance of Partitions.

Mike,

My niece has killed about 15 deer with the 7-08 and the factory Remington reduced 140 grain loads. They are only listed as having a velocity of 2200 FPS but she has smoked some deer with them and some big bucks at that. Surprisingly, they exit most of the time. She hasn’t taken anything beyond 175 yards, but they have performed very well.

Dan

Thanks all. I guess I will see which rifle she likes better then go from there. The nice thing about the 243 is I already have loads developed that are extremely accurate so I wouldn’t need to develop new loads. The 7mm-08 loads I have are full power and might be a little too much for her, especially in the Tikka.

Definitely let her pick the rifle she likes. Either cartridge will work, and if you have to load up some lighter 7-08 loads, so be it.

I have had great success using H4895 to create light loads in multiple cartridges using Hodgdon's formula.

I have used both. The 243 extensively. I learned to track deer using a 243. Using 100 grain soft points behind the shoulder I had a lot of trouble getting them to die quickly. I’ve sworn off it.

All that said, I’d use one again using 80 grain TTSX gladly. I didn’t handloads when I had trouble with the 243 and I wasn’t using the best bullet for the job.

With the 7-08, I like 120 or 140 grain pointed soft points and I put it through the shoulders.

Here's some firsthand load data with 120's and H4895. 2,700 should be doable with somewhere around 40gr of H4895.

Youth 7-08

And no deer will walk away from a correctly placed bullet.

I wouldn't shoot for 2,700 fps. For my wifes 7-08 with 120's, she found the recoil above 2,500 fps uncomfortable. We went for a load at 2450 and there hasn't been a deer the 120 Sierra didn't perform well on. The lighter load she also enjoys shooting - and she hasn't picked up any kind of flinch. I feel it's a game of shot placement and bullet selection - I just tend to think the shot placement part is easier if you're not getting pummeled.

Factory Managed recoil loads from Remington uses a 140 grain Corelokt and 30 to 33 grain ( IIRC) of 4198....

Myself for in the field, I'd go with the standard 30 grains of 4198, and a Nosler 120 or 140 Ballistic Tip...
or the Speer 130 SP, or the Hornady 139 gr SP...

accurate in my Howa 7/08 and has taken a fair number of black tail with my Featherweight, in 7 x 57....

My boys and nephews used reduced loads out of a 270 and 22-250 to harvest deer/antelope.

Loads:
85gr TSX at 1900fps
140gr Hornady BTSP at 2200 fps.
110gr NAB at 2600fps

I never chrono'd the 22-250 loads but guestimated a 53gr TSX at 3000fps when a full power load was pushing 3800fps.

Seafire is right on the 4198 notion. The 30-31gr of 4198 is a good way to roll if you want to come in another notch below the 120gr/2,700fps threshold. We shot 120's around 2,550 with 31gr and a 20" barrel. Very gentle load on the shoulder and the ears.

load pretty much equals a 6.5 Grendal with a 123 grain Bullet.. at least what my 6.5 Grendal Ruger Predator I picked up not long ago...

The 243 will dispatch any deer as well as the 7-08 will. Deer don't take a whole lot of killing. It being lighter recoiling on top of that answers your question. It doesn't matter that the 243 is sighted in with the BTHP. Switch to a Partition. The 85 grain works great if you want to keep the same weight.

45 gr of H4831 with any 120 in the 7-08. Around 2400-2500 fps and recoil non existent. Just another route to go.

I can see downloading an 06 for a kid or woman but not a 7-08. Even full power 7-08 loads are mild. However, either one, .243 or 7-08 will do nicely. Both are deer killers.

We started our kids on both the .243 and 7mm-08 using reduced recoil loads. I contacted Seafire for suggestions and based on conversations with him used SR4759 with 90 gr. Accubond bullets in the .243. and 120 gr. bullets in the 7mm-08. Have used both the Hornady 120 gr SP and Nosler 120 gr. BT's with good results. Light enough recoil to be able to get in good practice sessions at the range, but still plenty effective on deer. Limited shots to 125 yards or less and had successful results.

I have helped many people get started shooting centerfire rifles. I think it always a good idea to start with reduced recoil and good hearing protection. There are many ways to accomplish both. The lower power loads we have used worked perfectly.

Both of my boys are now shooting full power loads and have been for quite awhile My oldest, and physically largest son (6'1" and 240#) still does not like heavy recoil, while my youngest and smallest (5'10" and 150#) can even shoot big bores well.

Mild is relative. My boy at nine years old preferred a downloaded 7mm-08. I loaded a bunch of different Varget charges under a 120 BT and let him pick the charge he could handle. It was the next to lowest charge. Since he got to pick he had a sense of ownership.



P

It is indeed relative. My 15 year old enjoys the 120/2,800fps load, even for steel, while my 11 year old thinks it's a bit stout for her and prefers less recoil at this stage. She's not as much of a shooter as my older daughter.

The kids after each taking a shot at the 220yd pig gong with the 2800fps load.

I think I’d prefer a full-load 243 over a light load 7mm-08, but YMMV

Can you share what the two lowest Varget charges you tried were?

I'd be perfectly happy with either of them if I already owned the rifle. If I were in the market for a new one it would be 6.5 CM. Recoil is closer to 243, performance is closer to 7-08. Ammo is cheaper and more readily available too.

120 Ballistic tips at about 2600 using IMR 4064 - used this for my youngest son and now my 85 year old dad uses them. 3 shots - 3 deer so far.

41 and 41.5 grains.



P

Hand her both.

See how she does.

Let her handle and shoot both and choose for herself.

The .243 is fine for many types of game but if elk are on the menu I'd start her with the .243 and work her up to the 7mm-08. I would also consider getting a a youth or compact stock if it would fit her better.

This discussion does show the merits of handloading, as the recoil impulse from a 120gr 7mm-08 at 2,600 with 31gr of 4198 is 8.9 ft/lbs, while a garden variety 100gr .243 factory load at 2,900 is making 10 ft/lbs. They are effectively the same on the shoulder. A 120gr/2,850fps load using something like Varget, RL15, or 4895 is going to be 12.3 ft/lbs by comparison, while a well-built 100gr .243 handload that is bumping 3,100fps with something like RL26 is going to turn up 11.7 ft/lbs. Again, the recoil is almost the same. This all assumes 7.5lb rifles.

Technical point: That's not impulse.

Ah, true. "Recoil Energy" is the term. Good catch......

My daughter is shooting Remington 700MT rifle in 7mm-08 and we have great results with 110gr ttsx and RL15. She has shot 2 small buck and they both went strait down in there tracks....

https://www.barnesbullets.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/7mm-08RemingtonV10.pdf

I used to load 120 nbt's and a starting load of H 4895 for my nephew. He killed at least 3 bucks with that load. I think it ran about 2800 fps and shot moa from his 700 youth rifle. Even as he grew bigger he still wanted me to load that load for him because he said he had faith in it.

Bb

For nearly 30 years my go-to 7mm-08 load has been 43 grains of WW-748 under a 139 grain Hornady Spire point. I will soon be trying 110 and 120 grain TSXs in my 7mm-08. If they shoot as good as my go-to load, I will switch. Less recoil, better killing power - what's not to like?

My kids are shrimps and definitely recoil averse. To get them going I used trail boss in a couple youth model .243 that would put a 58 GR VMax to about the same POI at 100 yards as an 85 TSX. Trailboss and a light bullet makes for almost no recoil and they can plink at rocks, milk jugs, etc for a long time without getting sick of it or flinchy.

When it is time to hunt I switch to the 85 TSX. Has worked well for me.

When they are big enough to go to the elk woods I switch them to a Ruger Frontier 7mm-08. The heavy barrel on the Frontier helps tame recoil/muzzle jump and all have made the transition smoothly.

7-08 120 Ballistic Tips and reduced load of H4895. Got us from 8-10 years old.

Photo was with the 7-08 120 ttsx and Varget.