Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting 6.5cm or 7mm-08

My granddaughter is 11 yr old and wants to deer hunt. She has only shot a bb gun before. Just based on recoil would either caliber be better. We have our own shooting range and I reload so ammo or practice is not a issue. I have a creed but would be willing (thanks grandma) to buy a 7mm as a maybe lighter weight option.

They are practically two peas in a pod. I'd go with whichever chambering in which you can find a suitable rifle. I believe the 6.5CM currently has the edge for rifle and ammo offerings/availability.

In any event, I'd start with some really light loads, like Blue Dot or Trail Boss and some plinker bullets. My kids liked the 260 and 7mm-08 with those powders and light Sierra HP bullets. After that, they graduated to H4198 loads with hunting bullets.

I should mention I have two .223 rems for training she could shoot all day long for practice but I prefer a heavier bullet for our sometimes large wisconsin deer

Either chambering you choose will do the job. I have used both on white tails, both have worked well.

the 6.5CM will kick less and there will be little difference on deer sized game. The larger and heavier bullets that a 7-08 can use is of no real-world advantage for killing deer.

Of the 2 I prefer the 7-08, but I hunt elk every year and the larger heavier bullets that can be fired from the 7-08 please me a bit more for game over 400 pound'. But for deer I can't see any difference at all in the deadliness of one over the other, and less recoil IS an advantage for a smaller shooter.

Use the Creed , load it down with H-4895, increase wider as she gets older. She a little thing even now.

Granddaughter started with a loaded down 243 at 7 yrs old.

As stated above they are about the same but I would choose the 6.5 for one reason only.
Reload with lighter bullets like a 100 gr NBT and down load it to around 25-2700 FPS and it should be a pussy cat.

Yep,

If something new, my choice would be a 6mm CM, have one and like it lots!

Sounds like it will be the cm but I'll miss out on the new 7mm-08 , a caliber I don't have. Thanks for all the imput

Get one anyway, I think you would like it with 120 Barnes TTSX

Probably the best answer is to get a 7mm-08 to go with his 6.5CM and then let the kiddo pick one. Best of both worlds and a win/win.

My Daughter and both Granddaughters all have 7-08's. Started them with reduced loads. They all shoot the Tikka youth carbine model. Boy, are they one accurate rifle

No wrong answer here. Get whatever gun that you find first and fits . Both are excellent calibers.

You can load that 7-08 down to about 2700-2800 with 120 BT's and it's a pussycat too, and it is a deer killing machine. Put a suppressor on it and it's even better for a kid.

Your granddaughter wants to go deer hunting and shoot her own deer, you've all ready won. Don't fumble the ball now my vote goes to the 6.5 creed. Mb

I started out back in the day with a .243, still have it.
100 grain core-lokts stacked up quite a few deer here in Cheeseland.

There's really very little differences in any of the calibers being discussed here.

Whats the average shot in Wisconsin, 75 maybe a 100 yards?

I have a 260, a 6.5 creed, and a 7-08. They all kill whitetail deer efficiently. I cant tell the difference between them from the stand point of dropping a deer. They all have threaded barrels. And with a muzzle brake on either one of them it cuts the recoil almost in half. I have 4 grandkids. They range from 4 to 9 years old. My grand daughter will be the first up to go deer hunting next season. so far she has been doing really well with her .22. But when she steps up to a hi powered rifle it will have a muzzle brake on it. Once she is comfortable with it and shooting it well we will try it without the brake. I think they are less likely to develop a flinch this way. I do not reload any more so this is another way of taming down the recoil.

But for me, it’s the 7mm-08.

where we hunt shots could stretch out to 300 yds but most would be 150 or less.. I already have a Howa 1500 creed but it is on the heavier side. Something like a Ruger American could be a bit more comfortable for her. She,s not tiny but tall and slim. Her long arms should be no problem with standard length of pull.