Start and keep him on the .243 for a while and then then the .270

Lots of support for the 270 and its a great cartridge....but the recoil is typically 'sharper' than that of the .308 (more a push)....using their most popular bullet weights (130 gr. for the 270 and 150 gr. for the 308). Either will handle any Deer or Hog out to 300 yds. with ease.

But honestly.....I'd have him use the .243 this season and let him build his confidence.

We will assume the Lad already has his Hunters Education Certification?

Get some Barnes and smokem down with the .223! Seen more fall where they stood with light recoil guns and heavier ones. 22-250 is lights out with a good bullet!

I like the .270 and the .308. Neither one should discourage him

We got sighted in today. He wanted to use the 270 and had absolutely no issues with it. He was grouping about 1.5” three shot groups @ 100yds.

Took more rounds than it should have but the scope was giving me fits. The rifle was my dads and it has an old Leupold 3x9 that doesn’t have clicks the knobs just spin and I kept over and under correcting.

Go get 'em

At 16 I would go 243. Hate to have him go lighter and wound and/or lose a deer. That would be worse than a little more recoil.

Whatever he is comfortable with, my Dad bought me a Savage lever action 243 in the late 80’s at a gun show that was 25+ years old at the time. I still hunt with that gun now, just shot a doe last weekend. I tell myself every year I will put it up and not hunt with it anymore but I still use it. We lost my Dad last year and I think about him every time I bring it with me. Sometimes it’s not the caliber of rifle but what that certain rifle means!

My kiddos shoot a 25-06, not much recoil

I teach entry level shooters and will offer few friendly suggestions fwiw.

The scope sounds like it is broken. Buy one that is in good working order and mail that one back to Leupold for repair.

The scope is not positioned correctly forward and rear for him to use comfortably. There is no way his head position is giving him a consistently clear sight picture through the scope.

The scope should be positioned forward and rear so he can comfortably hold the rifle, sitting squarely and comfortably behind it, leaning forward from the waist, (not scrunched up at an angle like in the photo) with the image in the scope completely clear around the edge.

Sitting squarely behind the rifle, rather than at an angle, and leaning forward from the waist into the rifle helps manage recoil.

Put the front bag under the stock with nothing touching the barrel.

Good luck.

Good advice Jeff, on the old Leupold, they made scopes for years that had no "click" and were easy to do as he said over correct or under correct. I have owned several of them and yes they were gold ring scopes. The first few Leupolds I bought were that way, might still have one but think I purged them out of inventory. Oops I still have one, a 6X target scope in a 1885 low wall Hornet. Forgot about that one.

Good luck on the hunts with your son, mostly have fun and be safe

kmon,

does your Leupold have friction pressure during adjustment?

My old 70’s vintage Leupold and Redfield did not have “clicks,” but definitely had firm friction resistance to the adjustment until they broke. Then the adjustment dial moved freely.

Good for you on getting him outdoors now that you have the opportunity. If you need ammo, let me know. I'd hate to see an eager new hunter not have an opportunity due to an ammo shortage. I may have some of what you settle on. I recently got one of my girls in town for the holidays and she wanted to hunt. At 28, it had been years since she shot one of my rifles, and had never killed an animal. There is A LOT to know and I didn't want to overload her with info. I put her on the range with a .22 and let her get comfortable on the gun all on her own using a rest and bags. She looked good so I didn't have to jump in here. I gave her two keys to focus on, smooth on the trigger and stay on the gun all the way through, and after the shot. On trigger pull, I told her to not release it when the gun goes off, and keep your head on the rifle, and see your shot hit through the scope, not to raise your head and look down range. We all know that recoil moves you off the gun, and for a split second you often loose sight picture but these two thoughts on trigger pull and staying on the gun have helped me more than anything over the years.

This worked for me, that evening she put a great shot on a pig with my 6.5 Creedmoor at 138 yards. Good luck to ya'll and enjoy your time together, it'll be fun.

This man asks for advice, and gets insults from you just so you can brag about yourself. Classless.

I have killed so many deer & hogs with a 243 I can't even count them. I also have a 308 & 270 but love the lightweight 243 as it's hard to beat.

It is not the caliber,It is the placement!!!!

I have a Leupold 3x9 on my 270. I have no idea of its vintage as my uncle gave it to me as a present. It was new in box when he gave it to me but could have sat in his house for 20 years lol. It did not have clicks either, just a smooth turn. We always tapped on the adj. knobs as if you didn't sometimes the sight wouldn't move, sometimes it would move as you continued to shoot till it settled in. Sometimes a small adjustment would move the point of impact greatly and sometimes it seems like you had to turn on it for days to get it to budge. Once it was sighted in and set it never moved on me, but it is nothing like the other scopes I have today that are repeatable and track etc.

I had an old late 70's I think Leupold and the adjustments would never adjust correctly. I sent it in a d they sent me a brand new scope. I guess it was easier than repairing. I was very impressed with that service from Leupold and I have been very happy with it since.