The man said his boy was ready so who are we to judge. This is a hunting forum. if you want to offering parenting advice I am sure I can check with my wife and provide you a web address for a different forum. The OP asked a straight forward question and we owe the man a straight answer. I like the idea of taking a wood stock .243 and cutting it down. My first shotgun was a 20 gauge single shot with a cut down stock. Dad took about three inches off the stock and it fit my fat stubby arms just right when I eight. Good luck to you and your boy this year. I hope he gets a bigger one than you and never lets you forget it. And again my apologies for the rude a$$es in here.

Why not a lever action 30-30 like all kids years ago learned to shoot deer with? Those are neat guns, they are easy to handle, and they have a cool factor that is hard to beat.

If you let him learn to shoot with an open sighted lever action 30-30 he can easily make the transistion to bolt action and then someday AR style rifles.

You also need to get him a bow. Once he tries that he may not even be interested in a rifle!

I couldn't agree more!!!
For you guys that think it’s better to wait until YOUR ready to take your kids hunting!!! I don’t get it.
IMO… If our sons / daughters are asking us to take them hunting it's our responsibility and obligation to do so. They grow up so quick and these moments with your kids will pass you by in the blink of an eye.
Just remember that every hunting season that passes you by is hunting time you won’t get back with your kids.
I’m sure glad my Dad had them time to take me.

Yeah and no parents push their kids into sports or ______ etc. I say let em wait a bit longer, the thinking process of a 7 year old isnt condusive to hunting in my mind. Take him with daddy and he will have a blast.

I killed my first deer when i was 7 and i used a .243. a few years later i killed a doe out at 268 yrds so it has plenty of knockdown power

Again I get what you are saying. This wasn't what this thread was about but since it keeps getting brought up I will address it again. I am not forcing him. I am actually tired of him asking me....begging to go. His older brother has been going with me for several years now.

He doesn't want to go and watch. He wants to shoot a deer like his brother. I'm thinking why not let him shoot one of the spikes we need to thin out. Last year there were way too many spikes. My 11 year old shot a very nice 8 point. He has been hunting with me for several years. His first big game was an Axis.

Of course we will practice a lot prior and he if is not up to making good shots....he will not be getting a green light on shooting anything. Last weekend he shot a skeet off a pole at 20 yards with opens sites with a .22 cal.

I grew up in the woods. I live in the city now. I take my sons every chance I get to the woods. The stand we are hunting is 10 yard from where I used to hunt when I was growing up.

Thanks for all those that have posted about hunting with their kids. It definitely makes me feel better. I know now I'm not the only one with kids hunting. Also I have got some really good messages in regards to others hunting with their kids.

Now on the gun. I have someone that has told me they have a Remington 788 .243 carbine. It has a full stock on it.
But I think since the barrel is 16 inches it will be a very good option. I was thinking I don't want to cut the original stock down so of ordering a new stock for it. Pacymeyer makes slip on stocks.

So I could cut a stock down and put the slip on the Pacymeyer recoil pad. Depending on the recoil I could then go back and drill out stock and put some weight in it.

Any more suggestions are very welcome! Thoughts?

I have got lots of great information from this thread and all the replies. Thanks very much.

Built my son a Thompson center contender .223 with an m4 teloscopic stock. He took three deer with it last year at age 5. Like the contender platform better for the kids than the encore because it's a little lighter and has a safety.

Here's a link to the stock he is using, best part is that it grows with him.
M4 stock

The 788 is a good rifle. If it is the carbine the barrel is 18.5 inches, usless it has been cutback or replaced.

One thing they are loud with that short of a barrel. Have had 2 of them in 243 so know. My oldest nephew got one of them when he was I think 12. If recoil is an issue for him you can use the managed recoil rounds and they are very easy on the shoulder.

Just make sure to use hearing protection, and bet he will be good to go.

This year I bought a Weatherby Vanguard S2 in 243 for my kids (7 and 9). I removed the factory stock and then put the rifle in an BlackHawk Axiom stock. The adjustable stock works perfectly for my two different sized kids. When they get older, if they don't want to use the Axiom, we can always put the adult sized Weatherby stock back on it.

Here's a link to them on Optics Planet. They make versions for Weatherby short action and long action rifles. I think they are more geared towards the Vanguard, so I'm not sure if your 70-08 will fit in or not.
http://www.opticsplanet.com/blackhawk-kn...ion-rifles.html

Wow that is a very nice set up. I love that.
My son with the 7mm08 wants the stock for him now

I really was wanting something just a little smaller than the 7mm08 for my 7 year old. That stock on a .243 would be perfect!

just bought my son a rem 700 in 243. Waiting on the youth stock to come in.

Thanks for that link. It saved some money. I looked and read a lot and it seems that the 7mm-08 I have will fit.
I ended up ordering 2. One for the 7mm-08 and another for a .243 I don't have the .243 yet but will get one that will fit it.

That looks like it will really cut down on the recoil and the adjustable stock looks like it would be perfect.

Thanks again everyone for helping!

I found the recoil pad on the Axion to be a little stiff. So I also ordered one of these and it's super soft. It's basically a limb saver pad that is re-branded by Black Hawk.
http://www.opticsplanet.com/blackhawk-knoxx-limbsaver-butt-pad-fits-04-08-90-series.html

Question for you blackhawk stock users:

If you are using this stock does it really reduce the recoil as they claim?

I am in a mental dilemma now thinking this through

They don't make .243 in managed recoil rounds that I see. So if I got a larger round with managed recoil ammo and combined it with this stock would that not be the way to go?

Thanks

Does this add much length back to the LOP? Or does it replace the current pad that is on there?

Got my son a CVA Stalker Elite at Academy last year for 169.00 added a Nikon Prostaff 2X7 and I was out the door for less than 300.00. He is no professional by no means but he consistently shoots 3"-3.5" groups at 100 yards. I make sure that when he hunts, handles guns, or shoots guns he is always with me. Once he gets a little older I will trust him to hunt by himself but for now I am with him at all times.

it replaces the existing stock pad and may add 1/4" to the LOP. IIRC, the adjustable stock lets you go from 12.25" to 15.5" for LOP. When I get a chance, I'll pull mine out of the safe and measure the LOP with it on.

My son is shooting a 700 .243 this year, y'all will like it it's a good gun. His is standard size because he's really big for a 9 yo. Get a different scope if you bought the combo, scopes that come on the combos are cheap IMO.


I think most guys arent ready to take their kids is the problem, it's a lot of time, patience, and responsibility to take em and some guys just want to go hunting alone to get outta the house. If the kid can handle a gun safely and wants to go y'all are wasting precious time that you can't get back.

OK, I pulled mine out of the safe and put a tape measure on it.
For my Vanguard 243 S2 in the Axiom stock with the thicker recoil pad, the LOP ranges from 12.25” with the stock completely collapsed to 15.5" with it fully extended.

For comparison, the LOP in my stock Vanguard S2 in 308 measures around 13.5”

I also measured the two recoil pads. The factory Axiom pad with spacer is 3/4". The Limb Saver version is 1”. So you are looking at adding 1/4" and getting a much softer pad.

I thought the 12.25” seemed high, so I went back and looked at the spec’s on OpticsPlanet again. They are saying the stock has a minimum 11.25” LOP. However, on mine, you can only get to 11.25” if you completely remove the recoil pad.

So I was in your exact same dilemma. My youngest is 6years old, will be 7 in December, and while he is tall for his age, is a string bean and maybe weighs 50 pounds. My daughter is 8, will be 9 in January, is also tall for her age and probably weighs 75 pounds.

Until a couple of months ago, I only had my Weatherby 308. I saw the Axiom stock and was hoping between it and the MR loads, I would be able to get the kick of the 308 down to something near the 243 or 22-250 range. I ordered the stock and some Federal and Remington MR loads. The Remington 308 MR loads were back ordered over 4 months, so by the time I got them, I had already tested things out with the Federal MR loads.

I used a Weatherby S2 308 with a bipod attached to test. I used the same bipod for the test with the Axiom stock. All shots were from a bench. I didn’t have the new recoil pad at the time, so I can’t say how much it would have helped in my test. I did put a folded dish towel against my kids shoulders when they shot the 308 with the Axiom stock.

Without the Axiom stock, the Federal MR loads cut the recoil some, but it was nothing to write home about. I guess the best way to describe it was without the MR loads, the rifle would jump about an inch off the bench after the shot. With the MR loads, the rifle only jumped about ½ an inch. The kick to my shoulder was reduced, but like I said, it wasn’t reduced much. With the Axiom stock and the Federal MR loads, the recoil was cut a good bit. Instead of the 1 inch jump like I had on the stock rifle, the MR loads with the Axiom stock pushed the rifle back and it didn’t jump off the table. However, while the recoil was reduced, I could tell my kids really didn’t like how much it kicked and I seriously doubt I’d be able to get them to practice with it. The other thing I noticed was that the point of impact with the Federal MR rounds was a lot lower than advertised. I think they said at 100 yards, it should have only been 1” to 2” low. Mine were more in the 4”-5” range.

I still haven’t made it out to the range to try the Remington MR loads and hope to do that in the next month or so.

So long story short, after seeing how my kids reacted to the 308, I bought a Weatherby S2 in 243 and put it in the stock instead. I just started breaking in the barrel yesterday and using Monarch 100gr bullets, the Axiom stock and the Limb Saver recoil pad, it’s not too bad. It’s not like shooting a 22lr, but I think I would equate it to a 223. It’s been awhile since I shot my buddies AR, but I think this was pretty close to that. I was shooting my 20 gauge just before it and it’s definitely softer than that. I think it will be soft enough for my kids to practice with as they alternate between the 10/22 and the 243.

Wow thanks for all the info!

I just got a Weatherby Vanguard .243 at academy for 399.

They were out of scope mounts so no scope yet.

I am waiting on the stock to come in!

I'm going to order the other pad also.

I was looking at the Nikon pro staff for 169.
Any suggestions? I want to make sure there is plenty of eye relief. I got busted when I was little and I'll never forget that black eye!

Nikon pro staff is REALLY good for the price

When I was seven, my dad would drop me off at the stand before daylight and pick me up at about 11. That was the good old days. If I dropped my seven year old off like that now, I'd be in jail for child endangerment. by the way, I shot a lever action 30-30 with no safety.