Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles 7mm-08 vs 308 for daughters.

Strictly Colorado experience here with my daughter. She started at 12 like your daughters are heading towards with Colorado rules. Bought her a Ruger Compact in 7mm-08 for her first elk and deer hunt. Didn’t get a shot at an elk but she did get a deer. The following year she got a cow and a deer with the 7-08 working great for her even though she was not even 100#. She ended up going to Adventure Camp at the Whittington Center and followed up with several years as a camp counselor. That tuned up her shooting skills but she stayed with her little Ruger. Her and that short barreled Ruger that gives up too much velocity and has viscous muzzle blast according to internet experts has accounted for over a dozen elk, over a dozen deer and a bighorn sheep since she started at age 12. These have all been in Colorado on public land or RFW tags. In a couple of days I get to go watch her do it again with a 4th season buck tag with that same little Ruger 7-08 20 years after that first hunt.
Get your daughters a rifle that fits them and that they are comfortable with. With my daughter, that Ruger Compact in 7-08 was that rifle and still is her favorite. Don’t worry about obsolete ammo, best BC, etc. whatever they are comfortable with will be what works best.
And the some advice is to send them to Adventure Camp at Raton, it is not far and it will change their perspective on shooting.

Good input.

Yes! I just got back from a deer hunt with a first time 12 year old using a full stock 243. He could not get on the deer we found because he could not properly see through the scope aside from the rifle was too heavy and too long. Fit is important.

Absolutely. Put a kid in bulky hunting clothes and then hand them a full-length LOP rifle with the scope placed correctly for an adult man. What could go wrong? This is part of why so many deer are shot by kids with their dad's collapsible stock AR carbine. It can fit them until they get their own rifle. A benefit of the more common rifles like the 700, Vanguard, RAR, Tikka, etc is the availability of youth-sized secondhand stocks.

6.5 CM. Start them with 100gr TTSX at 3100. Put a can on it and you have virtually no recoil or blast. That’s what I did for my 10 y/o.

Should other species come into play, the 127 LRX or 140’s will be used as she grows.

My other two will start with 22 CM, a can, and 75s.

You Drooling CLUELESS Fhuqktards are HILARIOUS. Hint.

Fhuqking LAUGHING!.............

Was wondering when you'd get here to finally teach these clowns how to get their kids shooting. My sons learned how to shoot deer offhand at 1000 yards by the time they were 5 BECAUSE THEY'D BEEN THROWING RIFLES IN THE CREEK FOR AS LONG AS THEY COULD WALK! If Stick has said it once he's said it a hundred times before: if you don't have kids throwing rifles in the creek by the time they're 6 or 7, it's hopeless. TOTALLY HOPELESS. BUT NONE OF YOU WILL LISTEN.

Back when I used pan for gold in the Yukon with some boys running 1700cc Stihls out of Bavaria, in between shooting 500 bald eagles per day, we always used to laugh at guys whose kids didn't even know how to put neon tape on a scope. How were those kids ever supposed to send 127 grain super salami beer can zinglewhizzens down range without tape on the scope? YOU'D LOSE AT LEAST 200FPS PER MM of TAPE. STOP AND LEARN AND LISTEN TO STICK. HE DOES THIS FOR YOU NOT FOR HIMSELF.

Good point, that most here get. The stock should have the appropriate length of pull for who's shooting it. Also, the kid should practice, practice and more practice way before they ever pull the trigger on a critter. Who's at blame when things go wrong? The parent.

Save yourself some change and buy them both Howa Minis in 6.5 Grendel. You can thank me later.

Dinny - what is the LOP on the factory minis?

The 308 Win is my favorite cartridge (currently have three), and I've also had four different 7-08's.

I'd go with 6.5 CM - not even a contest.

I don't know without looking at the Howa site. What I do know is some time in the past Howa offered a youth stock. B&C and other companies sell stocks for the Minis now.

If you have a hemorrhoid, you can apply Preparation H to make it less annoying.

Think of the "Ignore" feature as this site's form of Preparation H and apply it to those who you wish to make less annoying.

7-08 or a 6.5 CM.wlth 20" barrel very versatile handles well in a blind especially with youth.
Both do well with light youth loads then load for heavies later.
The Howa Alpine 6.5 CM has been spindly killing for us this year. The 129 hornady interlock hits with authority.

BSA1917hundred,
You are absolutely correct. The boy does not practice enough nor does the rifle fit him. He's my godson's child. His dad has 5 other kids and a full time job. We're lucky to get 2 days to hunt-not excuses just fact. Fortunately no deer were wounded. We'll do better next year.

I agree with Brad.

Personally I have a long history using the .308, and have killed a good number of deer and elk with one. That said, I think the 6.5 CM is quite a practical little cartridge and gets the job done very well. Very good cartridge for young and old alike.

If and when you take your daughters to Africa to hunt, I'd sort out what they need then. For now, I'd put them behind a Creedmoor, and let them choose between 6 or 6.5.

Are they shooting a .22 CF regularly now?

6.5 creed or 7mm-08....

^^^THIS^^^


My 8 year old grandson is shooting an ar in 6.5 Grendel with the collapsible stock set on the first lockable position. It fits him perfectly and he shoots it well.

My 10 year granddaughter shoots a Tikka T3X 6.5 Creedmoor with a youth stock.

They have both spent lots of time at the range. I taught them the importance of shot placement. And if they don't have the shot, don't pull the trigger. They have hunted two seasons now during our youth hunts. They have 1 Buck, 2 Doe's, and 4 pigs to their credit. all shots were bang flop, DRT. I'm a proud Pop Pop.


I might add their mom, my Daughter, shoots a Tikka T3X 308 in a youth stock with a 20" barrel. She is deadly with it. I started her out with 125gr BT's. Now she's shooting 150gr BT's with no complaints. Recoil is not an issue.

I’m 5’8” and I’m generally not a fan of full-length LOP stocks when wearing anything more than a t-shirt. I’d rather the LOP be a touch short than too long. My daughter is now the same height as me and we both enjoy her 20” 7-08 700SS in a youth stock with one spacer installed. I think it’s around 13” LOP now. Quick and easy to shoulder in awkward positions but the recoil is light enough not to bite you.

As others have said, the 6.5CM is today’s “easy button” in a factory rifle for a smaller person. Like Brad, I’m a big fan of the .308 and 7-08, but the Creed is more sensible these days.