Texas Hunting Forum

Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife?

Posted By: Texas Dan

Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 12:29 PM

I checked one of these out yesterday at my local Academy. One of a few rifles now available that's sized for those with smaller frames that comes with a wood stock and all the features on the full sized model.

You'll most likely need to ask to see one as they are seldom kept on the display shelf.

Mossberg Patriot Bantom
Posted By: Nogalus Prairie

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 01:10 PM

If one can swing a few more dollars I would look for a Remington Model 7 or a Winchester Model 70 compact or a Browning Micro Midas or a Tikka T3 compact or ...... or .......

That way they would have something besides a Mossberg, which in 50 years will be the equivalent of a Sears Ted Williams gun from the 50s today - something no one really wants.
Posted By: huntwest

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 02:11 PM

Weatherby Vanguard Compact
Around 500.00
Sub moa guarantee, two stage trigger.
Great rifle that fits smaller frames perfect.
Posted By: Buzzsaw

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 02:20 PM

Browning Micro Midas in .243 or 7mm-08 (Hornady Custom Lite ammo) you get quality will last a life time and re sale value when he wants a bigger rifle

Gunbroker will have several
Posted By: Texas Dan

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 02:24 PM

Originally Posted By: Nogalus Prairie
If one can swing a few more dollars I would look for a Remington Model 7 or a Winchester Model 70 compact or a Browning Micro Midas or a Tikka T3 compact or ...... or .......

That way they would have something besides a Mossberg, which in 50 years will be the equivalent of a Sears Ted Williams gun from the 50s today - something no one really wants.



I picked up a new Browning A-bolt Micro Medallion soon after our first daughter was born, but it was our last daughter who finally laid claim to it. It's a beautiful gun no doubt, but perhaps too beautiful a gun for a kid with it's high gloss finish to the stock and barrel. Not sure if Browning will offer it again, which adds to it's personal value no doubt.

I wish I still had that old Ted Williiams .22 my dad gave me when I was a kid. I'm sure it was all he could afford at the time, which would make it even more valuable to me today. He probably bought it on credit from Sears. I loaned it to a co-worker to teach his own son how to shoot and he never returned it. It was and will be the last gun I will ever let someone borrow.
Posted By: WileyCoyote

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 02:37 PM

+1 on what Nog said...but if you can't swing those price points, here are some other ideas I'd consider in your shoes...CDNN in Abilene has a closeout on the very last of the NIB Marlin XS 7's in a 243 at $239 that is the very best buy on the market, although it is in standard sized rifle but only weighs abouth 6lbs and a few oz's...or I'd look for a Thompson Center VENTURE ( and NOT the newer Compass with a 1 year warranty ) from one of the other On Line guys in a Compact that'll come in several 308 based calibers like 243, 7-08 etc and sized correctly for a youth gun & comes with a Lifetime Warranty & either of them can be upgraded starting at $140'ish in a finished Boyds wood or laminate stock that can be ordered in a sub sized length for a nominal price increase. If you look at the Boyd's website be sure to clickon the customized version so you can pick and choose exactly what stock style & material & optional up grades of many that you want....and a nice option for a growing child.

Just remembered CDNN also has some Browning AB3's in a youth size...but only come in a composite stock in most models. These are the base model no frills ABolts non adjustable trigger guns that recently were offered at the mid $300's.

Whittakers in Ownensboro KY has some stellar prices on Howa's that'd be worth a look & I've done enough bidnizz with Darrik to trust his word...he's been very good to work with on some of my ordering screwups's and putting up with my Old Woman styled hissy fits when I do something too stupid to admit to in public.

FYI the Howa's are a plainer version with a less stylish finish out as a Wby Vanguard II....FWIW I bought a Wby VG II last month or so in Stainless ( that Howa no longer offers in their own brand name) that I am very impressed with for finish out and a much much better composite stock.
Good Luck
Ron
Posted By: Texas Dan

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 02:58 PM

All good suggestions made here, which appear to point to the question of what makes for the best gun to give a kid? Should it be a really nice and more expensive rifle, or a more economical firearm that's sure to take a beating from a kid as they learn the ropes?

I don't believe there's any question that having an old cheap Ted Williams gun when I was a kid was part of what drove me to pay cash for a Browning Micro Medallion to give to a future child or grandchild. But looking back, I have to ask was I truly buying the gun to satisfy myself, or a kid?
Posted By: syncerus

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 03:03 PM

Originally Posted By: Texas Dan
All good suggestions made here, which appear to point to the question of what makes for the best gun to give a kid? Should it be a really nice and more expensive rifle, or a more economical firearm that's sure to take a beating from a kid as they learn the ropes?


I'm not sure there's a right answer to that question as so much will depend on the family, the kid and the means. Is the kid that's already addicted to hunting, or is it just Dad's wishful thinking? Can the rifle be passed down to younger siblings? It really depends so much on the situation.
Posted By: blackcoal

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 04:07 PM

Why doesn't everyone just pass down the first gun they got from their parents. I'm sure everyone still has it and I'm certain it was the highest quality and most expensive on the market at the time. Definitely kept in pristine condition.

Personally I would just have a custom rifle and shotgun made for my child, heck with this off the rack junk.
Posted By: Texas Dan

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 05:09 PM

Originally Posted By: blackcoal
Why doesn't everyone just pass down the first gun they got from their parents. I'm sure everyone still has it and I'm certain it was the highest quality and most expensive on the market at the time. Definitely kept in pristine condition.

Personally I would just have a custom rifle and shotgun made for my child, heck with this off the rack junk.


Definitely the preferred approach. However, a lot of guys had parents like my dad who didn't hunt.
Posted By: WileyCoyote

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 06:04 PM

...or have wives who think whats theirs is theirs...and what is yours no matter where it came from ...is theirs too...
Ron
Posted By: Nogalus Prairie

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 07:40 PM

My first hunting kid got the Rem 700 BDL .243 my Dad got me. My second got a Tikka T3 Hunter in 7mm-08.

I don't buy cheapo rifles. I don't buy my kids cheapo rifles. I taught them how to take care of their rifles (and other stuff) so that's not an issue. Money spent on cheap rifles is a poor investment IMO. That said, if that's absolutely all a Dad can afford for their kid, I get it and applaud them for sacrificing to provide whatever they can so they can go hunting. Which is obviously the most important thing.

But if you can swing another $200-300 it's money well spent.
Posted By: Nogalus Prairie

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 07:48 PM

P.S. I just remembered I told a fib. Bought a Savage Axis once for a beater truck gun.
Posted By: Simple Searcher

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 08:37 PM

Something to think about, get a heavy barrel rifle
I know there are guys on here that get all excited about their gun being too heavy and want something lighter to carry the 100 grueling yards to a blind.
My youngest daughter used my heavy 243 for her first deer. She was 9 and would carry it 1/4 mile to the blind. 16 years later she still shoots that gun beautifully. Texas hunting is bench rest hunting and my girls like the stability and reduced recoil of heavy rifle. My oldest also uses a heavy barrel.
Now my wife has a heavy 243 and loves it.
I have seen way too many guys get light weight youth models for their wife or kid and create a recoil shy shooter. The worse kicking 243 I ever shot was a youth model a friend had got for his daughter, it kicked like a mule. He thought there was something wrong with the gun because she could hardly keep it in on paper. I cringed when pulling the trigger after only a few shots, no one should do that to a kid.
Posted By: Texas Dan

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 08:41 PM

Originally Posted By: Nogalus Prairie
That way they would have something besides a Mossberg, which in 50 years will be the equivalent of a Sears Ted Williams gun from the 50s today - something no one really wants.


Granted, Mossberg is best known for their relative low-cost shotguns. However, the company remains our nation's oldest, family-owned firearms manufacturer, having moved much of their production capability from New Haven, Connecticut to their new facility in Eagle Pass, Texas. Not sure that puts them on the same firearm production scale as Sears and Roebuck.
Posted By: Sneaky

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 08:49 PM

When they moved to Texas, did they start making firearms worth buying?
Posted By: Nogalus Prairie

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/22/17 10:37 PM

Originally Posted By: Simple Searcher
Something to think about, get a heavy barrel rifle
I know there are guys on here that get all excited about their gun being too heavy and want something lighter to carry the 100 grueling yards to a blind.
My youngest daughter used my heavy 243 for her first deer. She was 9 and would carry it 1/4 mile to the blind. 16 years later she still shoots that gun beautifully. Texas hunting is bench rest hunting and my girls like the stability and reduced recoil of heavy rifle. My oldest also uses a heavy barrel.
Now my wife has a heavy 243 and loves it.
I have seen way too many guys get light weight youth models for their wife or kid and create a recoil shy shooter. The worse kicking 243 I ever shot was a youth model a friend had got for his daughter, it kicked like a mule. He thought there was something wrong with the gun because she could hardly keep it in on paper. I cringed when pulling the trigger after only a few shots, no one should do that to a kid.


Good thought for sure. Heavy is good for blind hunting.
Posted By: 505ed

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/23/17 12:49 AM

I've posted this before. The below is a 300 blackout... I have loaded 130 TSX bullets and it is a favorite around the house...



I also have a 6.5 grendel encore with a 20 in barrel set up a little different--they both are excellent for kids...mine kids love the little blackout..especially running the can on it...

Ed
Posted By: Texas Dan

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/23/17 12:37 PM

Originally Posted By: Sneaky
When they moved to Texas, did they start making firearms worth buying?


One thing is certain. If people don't buy enough of them, Texas jobs will be lost. Mossberg leaders made it clear their decision to move most of their production facilities to Texas was based on our pro-gun beliefs and higher levels of hunting activities.

Mossberg has since released their "Revere" edition of the Patriot which carries higher-end features. With this being the company's first entry into the deer rifle market, I don't believe there's any question the family-owned company is trying to improve their image.
Posted By: chalet

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/23/17 02:13 PM

Originally Posted By: Nogalus Prairie
If one can swing a few more dollars I would look for a Remington Model 7 or a Winchester Model 70 compact or a Browning Micro Midas or a Tikka T3 compact or ...... or .......

That way they would have something besides a Mossberg, which in 50 years will be the equivalent of a Sears Ted Williams gun from the 50s today - something no one really wants.



Blasphemy, some of us -well me anyway-hold a softspot for the old Sears and Western Auto branded guns. My dads cabinet was full of Savage, Stevens, Springfield, Ted Wiliams and the like. Good guns at good prices.

Didn't realize Mossberg moved to Texas, may have to pick one of those Bantam's up. Too bad it doesn't come in .223.
Posted By: blackcoal

Re: Looking for a rifle for a kid or the wife? - 10/23/17 11:23 PM

Originally Posted By: chalet
Originally Posted By: Nogalus Prairie
If one can swing a few more dollars I would look for a Remington Model 7 or a Winchester Model 70 compact or a Browning Micro Midas or a Tikka T3 compact or ...... or .......

That way they would have something besides a Mossberg, which in 50 years will be the equivalent of a Sears Ted Williams gun from the 50s today - something no one really wants.




Blasphemy, some of us -well me anyway-hold a softspot for the old Sears and Western Auto branded guns. My dads cabinet was full of Savage, Stevens, Springfield, Ted Wiliams and the like. Good guns at good prices.

Didn't realize Mossberg moved to Texas, may have to pick one of those Bantam's up. Too bad it doesn't come in .223.




I would love to have a closet of Sears Model 6C or 54... I will buy everyone that, nobody wants, especially those that haven't held their value.
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