Deer Rifle question

[CJ1]

If you have a trusty 30.06 that you can hand down to him, it will be treasured by him for a lifetime!

This^^^^.
I have a 375H&H that was my dad's and I almost made the mistake of selling it. Now that he has passed it is honestly the 1 thing I have from him that really matters.I have taken more deer with it than any of my other rifles. Only because that is what I started with.
As requards the 6.5 I have one and love it for distance shooting. Would not hesitate to take a deer at 600 yards. Cj

[RangrSkipr]

Tikka T3 light in .308 or my personal choice the flatter shooting .270. The Tikka is a tack driver and the ammo for either round is abundant in many different loads and weights for whatever you care to hunt.

Having said that I took the majority of my deer with a 30-30 growing up. Great brush gun but not a long distance (over 125 yards) rifle for large game.

[basscat21]

.308, 30-06, .270. They never go out of style, they have proven capabilities and the ammo is very easy to find.

[berudd]

Al calibers mentioned are good for deer and will fill your needs equally. If you already have an .06, I'd say get him one as well then you only have to keep track of one type of ammo. IMO, all those other calibers are cool but I don't see any compelling reason to choose them over the .06 for your stated needs. Recoil is about the only advantage they would offer. Also, any sporting goods/gun shop in the country will have some .06 on the shelves if you ever need it. If you don't already have an .06 then I'd probably go with 308. Common ammo and excellent performance in a short action rifle.

[Vrybusy]

It is hard to beat the .308.....Been around forever, inherently accurate, ammunition can be found nearly anywhere even post covid. Recoil is very mild and it is capable of taking any game animal in North America. The Browning X-Bolts are great guns - short bolt throw (I beleive on Weatherby offers a shorter throw), good camo pattern and a fantastic cerekote finish. For browning X-Bolts, I currently own three, and my hunting partners own several as well....including the .308. With the factory muzzle break you won't have to worry about recoil for any hunting aged child. If you desire, you can also "lighten" the trigger on X-Bolts with an inexpensive DIY spring kit from MCarbo. I shoot all calibers of guns from the smallest up to the large "African" calibers. For hunting all across the country I always have my .308 with me, even if as a back-up, regardless of whatever other rifle I'm hunting with. Good Luck!

[okiebass]

308 --ammo readily available and wont kick the crap out of him like an 30-06

[12poundbass]

This^^^^.
I have a 375H&H that was my dad's and I almost made the mistake of selling it. Now that he has passed it is honestly the 1 thing I have from him that really matters.I have taken more deer with it than any of my other rifles. Only because that is what I started with.
As requards the 6.5 I have one and love it for distance shooting. Would not hesitate to take a deer at 600 yards. Cj

.375 H&H! Holy cow, how much bigger are those deer in northern Michigan than here in mid Michigan?

I had an boss years ago who went on an African safari and that’s what he used for Cape Buffalo, Zebra, and other big African game.

[1Holeshot]

I grew up on the 30.06 and then shifted towards the .308. Love it! The 6.5 is a fantastic round. Can’t go wrong with those three.

^ This. My very nice Remington 700 stainless synthetic 30-06 mostly stays in the safe now. I usually reach for my Kimber model 84 in .308 because it is light, low recoil ( Pachmyer recoil pad ), or my Savage Axis II stainless syn. in 6.5 Creedmore which is accurate, low recoil, and flat shooting.

Ammo is readily available for all three calibers although I reload my own.

Other calibers I have owned and recommend are .270 Win. .280 Rem. .260 Rem. 7mm08 Rem.
and 7x57 Mauser.

[DaveBrabec]

243,25.06,270
seems most of the public wants 223 that they say they are hunting with.

[Ryan]

Stick to your more traditional calibers. 30.06 or 270 would be fine.

[Bass Cat Boats]

The nice thing about a .308 is most optics are centered around the ballistic data of that cartridge.

Get something with common ammo availability, that shoots well and has varied Bullet weights. Plink with 120 grains or move on out with a heavy boat tail, and the .308 fits that bill. The .30-06 fits that range fine as well.

[Unionskeeter]

Been deer hunting over 40 yrs. Never failed to recover a deer with my 30-06

[dukhntr]

Prolly more than any other caliber....

I'm a 308 fan myself...I own 270s and big magnums but always go back to the 308. It's taken many a deer for me...you won't go wrong with any of the standard calibers. How old is the boy? If he's less than 10-12 I'd go with the 308...either the Winchester model 70 or the xbolt. I own a model 70 in 308 and 7mm mag in the a bolt. I've taken countless deer with both. You won't go wrong with the 308 or the 270. I haven't bought into the fad that is the 6.5 for deer hunting though...I'd rather take my big magnums over something that small...

He's 15. But he's big. 6'3; 235 pounds and still growing.

[BP in ME]

Al calibers mentioned are good for deer and will fill your needs equally. If you already have an .06, I'd say get him one as well then you only have to keep track of one type of ammo. IMO, all those other calibers are cool but I don't see any compelling reason to choose them over the .06 for your stated needs. Recoil is about the only advantage they would offer. Also, any sporting goods/gun shop in the country will have some .06 on the shelves if you ever need it. If you don't already have an .06 then I'd probably go with 308. Common ammo and excellent performance in a short action rifle.

Recoil is a huge consideration if you ask me, esp. when outfitting a youngster. Taking a kid under 18 to the range for practice with an '06 is signing them up for a shoulder pounding. Some kids can take it, others can't. I hunted with a 30-30 and didn't shoot the '06 until I was close to 20. Eventually took a few deer with my dad's but chose the 7mm-08 when it was time to get my own.

Keeping ammo straight seems a fairly minor consideration if the OP has an '06 and the son gets something different. Maybe you buy in bulk and are looking for savings that way? I don't know how guys with lots of weapons in the same caliber range keep them straight. Hunting with my daughter when I carried my 7mm-08 and she had a .243 made me paranoid that we were going to mix up rounds esp. if she borrowed my jacket on a cold day.

[LonnieP]

243,25-06,7mm08,270

[basscat21]

Lots of talk about 6.5....Dad bought a .260 Rem. Which is a sister to the creed. We load, and shoot a lot (yes we have played with many heads), Dad is well north of a 100 deer as we have hunted multiple states for years. Will also say 30yr Army career. Pracitcality measurement. His dam deer seem to run a lot farther hit for hit to his .308. Why I say this.. .I have to drag the dam things UP the mountain!

[Fireball]

He's 15. But he's big. 6'3; 235 pounds and still growing.

So really no limits on almost every caliber mentioned.
From lightest to most ever need in the calibers I would suggest that can handle any from 50`- 250 yards.
.243 Win (one of my all time favorites for deer and wood chucks)
.7mm-08
.270 (another favorite)
.308
.30.06

And as far as a rifle. Well I have ALWAYS loved the Ruger M77 but they can be hard to find nowadays. If you don't want to spend a lot but want a REAL ACCURATE hunting rifle look long and hard at the Savage line. They are some of the best shooting rifles right out of the box you will ever find and very reasonably priced.

Last but not least just go to any place and look what is available on the shelves as far as ammo. You might be surprised at how limited it can be and how EXPENSIVE it has become. Then go look at rifles to buy.

[okhawg]

With his size, common deer round recoil shouldn't really be an issue. I grew up with the 30-06 and it never bothered me. Lots of good rounds mentioned, whatever you buy get you 4+ boxes of ammo and he should be set for a few years. I currently shoot a 350 Legend for expected 150 yds and under and handload a 300 WSM for anything else.

[G-man]

Keep it simple... .308, 30-06 or 270... whatever ammo you can actually buy. You don't need anything exotic...where you pay $100+ for a box or ammo.. and can't find at local Walmart.

[BP in ME]

He's 15. But he's big. 6'3; 235 pounds and still growing.

Good lord! How much corn you putting in his feed bucket????