Thinking about buying my wife a deer rifle for X-mas since she will be gun hunting on our land next year. Right now thinking about .270 caliber. I want to pick something that keeps recoil down a little bit but still want something that isn't undersized. I have my eyes on a Browning A-bolt Medallion .270 for $649. I'd probably set her up with a 130 grain bullet. Comments/Suggestions?
I love my WIN .270. It's a A-Bolt II Stainless Stalker. Great gun. Recoil isn't bad at all. If she'll just be deer hunting, look at a 7mm-08. My brother has a Micro-Medalion in this round, that's a sweet gun too. Otherwise, a .243 or .25-06 would be good rounds with low recoil.
I've always thought of .243 as the smallest caliber I would consider for deer. I know people use the .25-06 or even a .223 but I just always thought they were a little too small. I know those calibers can put deer down. But like I said perhaps a little bit undersized? Having said that, a .243 for a youngster just starting out I think is a great starter gun.
My wife shoots a 270WSM with no problem, but its probably bigger than what you're looking for. Like Fitz said, I would look at a .243 or a 7mm-08. I have killed a lot of deer with the .243 with no problem. I've actually thought about getting it out of retirement and using it again. As for the 7mm-08, my brother has killed a lot of big bodied Canadian deer with his. Definitely a great caliber for you to look at for your wife.
I bought my wife a 7mm-08 a couple of years ago. Very similar recoil to a .243 and a bit more energy. I'd highly recommend it for anyone looking for a low recoil option. You really don't need an elephant gun to kill deer either guys. I'm shooting a 6.8 spc now and have killed two deer with it. One was a quick bang flop through both shoulder blades with a ridiculous entrance and exit hole, and the other was a terrible shot (in the guts) that went maybe 50 yards again with huge holes and was then quickly finished with another bang flop through the thick part of both shoulder blades. The last of the two deer was shot at almost 300 yards, and the second slug went through both shoulder blades and almost exited, when I pulled the hide downs skinning the slug fell on the floor. That's only a 100gr slug going 2900fps........and at a distance that most guys will never get to shoot at.
GFY, I've actually changed my mind on rounds over the last few years. I actually like the smaller rounds now. I'd buy a .243 or 25-06 way before I'd get a .308 or .30-06 FYI .243 7mm-08 My brother's other rifle is a .35 Whelen. He prefers the 7mm-08.
Quite a few people in my family shoot them. Mainly because we bought them right after the caliber came out. Its also a flatter and faster shooting gun, which I know isn't that important when deer hunting. But, I have also killed elk with my 270wsm and she wants to shoot an elk one day as well, so its a gun she can use for multiple species. Plus, she can shoot it. If it was too big for her, I wouldn't have her shooting it for deer.
Here's a Saskatchewan elk with the 270wsm. But, in the caliber you're looking for. Here's a 274# DRESSED Canadian whitetail my brother killed with the 7mm-08.
.243 or a .270 will do outstanding jobs for your wife with little recoil .... you can't go wrong with either ..... but as many calibers as there are, there are opinions ... but my guess is these two will get the most votes ...
^^x2. I also have a 270WSM and I absolutely love it. As far as recoil goes, I can honestly say every time I have had a deer in the crosshairs I have never felt the recoil of any gun for that matter. Call it buck fever if you will but i just think with all the excitement, recoil is the last thing I think about. But if recoil is a big issue and you want a small gun that can put down deer, I would look into a .22-250. It's a really small caliber yes, but I've but down deer with it and the holes that the 55 grain hollow points leave are unbelievably large for how small of caliber it is. They're also really light guns and easy to hold on target. Extremely accurate too.
My cousins' wives (the three that hunt) all use .243 or .223, low recoil, with plenty of killing power Better camp? lol
Unless you are planning on some long range shooting where extremely flat trajectory is needed I would steer away from the 243 or the .25-06. I have killed several with my sons .243 but have had some bad encounters with it as well ie little to no blood trail and larger bodied deer deer absorbing the shots. Two weeks ago I shot a buck that weighed about 160 with it and the way he was responding had me thinking I was missing him but he finally went down afte the 3rd shot(all three within a 6 inch circle in the chest with one being a touch high in the shoulders just below the backstrap). Anyway I bought it for my son mainly because of the recoil which is rated at roughly 8.8 foot pounds of energy and about the same 8.7 fps recoil velocity. But after some spotty results(that buck I mentioned and my son lost a big doe in the swamp this year, his first deer) I am retiring it for deer. I was shooting 100 gr Remington Core Lokt out of it and there are some better rounds out there for it but 100 grain is about the max weight you will find. An excellent deer rifle with a lot more and heavier bullet variety is the .30-.30. I'm actually surprised noone else mentioned it. The recoil is very close to a .243 at 10.6 foot pounds of energy and 9.7 fps recoil velocity with a 150 grain bullet which is much less than most .270 or .30-.06 rounds. The recent advances in the ammo available for the .30-.30 have really stretched out the killing distance(see Hornady LeveRevolution ammo). The bullets are available in many sizes from 125 gr to 160 gr and seem to fit deer hunting a little better especially if most of you're shooting is inside 200 yds. 140 -160 grain bullet is causing much more damage and shock trauma than an 85-100 grain bullet(common weight range for the .243). My only suggestion if you go with the .243 or something similiar is shoot em in the neck, that seems to anchor them pretty well I just didn't feel like my 10 year old was quite accurate enough to be trying that and I'd prefer him aiming at the standard kill zone area. I ordered him the Marlin Spikehorn .30-.30 which is a youth model and plan on equipping it with a Limbsaver Recoil Pad (http://www.limbsaver.com/2011/firearms/38-39-40.php ) which is another great product for reducing felt recoil. In case you are interested: http://www.chuckhawks.com/recoil_table.htm
I would suggest either the 7mm-08 or maybe the 260. Get in the youth model 7. Light to carry and has very little recoil. My two boys got these two guns when they were just young pups and did really well with them. (no busted foreheads)
