My son (13) got his first deer last year with a 30.30 and the damage to the 8 point's internal organs was impressive. The friend we were hunting with was skeptical when he saw what he was using but he changed his tune in a major way. Certainly worth considering.
My cousin (with only one wife... LOL) bought his son a 260 and has a really hard time finding factory ammo. I know I can get 270, 30.06, 243 and 30/30 and a few other cal. almost anywhere.
We're talking about a gun for your wife to kill deer, so absolutely. It'll be a lot easier for her to shoot and is more than enough to kill deer here in WI. There is no reason to over gun her and create some bad habits of flinching.
Didn't want to come off as a .243 basher as I have killed several with it and it's a popular whitetail caliber I've just been researching it quite a bit due to the way this gun season has gone and I just felt the .30-.30 will give my boy a little more knockdown power/damage at our common ranges (50-150yards). It can do that, especially on bigger bodied deer 150 pounds + and still provide a very light recoil so I was sold. It really stung losing his first deer so admittedly I'm probably a little biased against the .243 right now. But if you do go with the .243 some good bullet options include: Winchester Supreme 95 gr Ballistic Silvertips 90-95gr Nosler Ballistic Tips 90-grain Swift Scirroccos 100-grain Nosler Partitions Federal 85 grain loaded with Barnes Triple-Shock X Bullet Lots of info out there on most of these guns mentioned but as far as recoil energy and velocity once you get out of the .25-06 / .243 / .30-.30 / 6mm range felt recoil jumps up significantly. Another important aspect is making sure the gun fits her well even if the stock must be cut down and fitted with a nice recoil pad it is worth the time and will lead to much better shooting. my.02
On a side note, I just switched to Hornady GMX bullets this year. I really like how they've preformed so far. Here's what I pulled out of my buck when butchering... Here's the shot and why I didn't a full pass thru. The bullet was lodged in the ridge of his left scapula.
I have rifles in 30-30, 30-06,.308, and .243 that I use for deer hunting. As far as brining home the meat, I think the .243 is as good as any of them. I think it is a good caliber for a boy, a woman, or a man for that matter. If your wife is going to have to learn how to shoot, the .243 would be a good one for a start. A larger caliber might cause her to have problems learning to shoot because of the recoil. In the end it is all about shot placement anyway. I had rather shoot a deer through the heart with my .243 than shoot one in the rear end with my 375 H and H Magnum - it would save a lot of good meat too.
I love my .30-30 it has almost 0 recoil and packs one heck of a punch. I shoot Hornaday's LeverEvolution ammo and it has turned my .30-30 into a 200 yard+ gun. mine is a Marlin 336W. You also get the opportunity to shoot 165grains unlike many of the other rifles mentioned with the same or less recoil than the .243. Ive shot 4 deer and 8 hogs with it and they have all dropped right where they stood.
By the way... a .243 is basically a necked down .308... you could for all practical purposes call it a 6mm-08. A 270 is a necked down 30.06 and again for practical purposes could just as well be a 7mm-06. What we are really discussing is preference and any of the calibers discussed are fine rounds. Maybe let her shoot a couple guns and see which one she likes. My experience with most new shooters is that the recoil doesn't bother them nearly as much as the noise. Ear muffs really help control the flinching. My thought is... if the choice is made on practicality...ie... you can use it anywhere on practically any game... you would choose the 30.06 for the range of factory rounds you can shoot. From 120 grain at 2960 to 220 grain at 2960 by varying the powder load. A given model 30.06 with a 150 grain bullet will kick the exact same amount as the same model .270 with a 150 grain bullet or .300 Mag for that matter if the powder charge is the same. Or if there is a slight difference, you won't notice it. Shake a 150 grain .06 bullet with a 150 grain and do the same with a .308 and you will notice the loose powder in the .06. That's because it is intentionally loaded with less powder to propel the bullet at 2960 fps. The ballistic equal of the .308 which is slightly but insignificantly slower.
.25-06 with a 120gr bullet is more than capable, and is a GREAT shooter. I have a pair of identical rifles in the .25-06 and .243 caliber, and if I were to look at doing any BIG GAME hunting with a rifle, I'd not hesitate at all at taking the .25-06 as my weapon. .30-30 [TABLE="class: infobox"] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TD]110 gr (7.1 g) FP [/TD] [TD]2,684 ft/s (818 m/s) [/TD] [TD]1,760 ft·lbf (2,390 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]130 gr (8.4 g) FP [/TD] [TD]2,496 ft/s (761 m/s) [/TD] [TD]1,799 ft·lbf (2,439 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]150 gr (9.7 g) FN [/TD] [TD]2,390 ft/s (730 m/s) [/TD] [TD]1,903 ft·lbf (2,580 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]160 gr (10 g) cast LFN [/TD] [TD]1,616 ft/s (493 m/s) [/TD] [TD]928 ft·lbf (1,258 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]170 gr (11 g) FP [/TD] [TD]2,227 ft/s (679 m/s) [/TD] [TD]1,873 ft·lbf (2,539 J) [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] .243[TABLE="class: infobox"] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TD]55 gr (3.6 g) BT [/TD] [TD]4,058 ft/s (1,237 m/s) [/TD] [TD]2,012 ft·lbf (2,728 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]65 gr (4.2 g) BT [/TD] [TD]3,746 ft/s (1,142 m/s) [/TD] [TD]2,026 ft·lbf (2,747 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]75 gr (4.9 g) HP [/TD] [TD]3,447 ft/s (1,051 m/s) [/TD] [TD]1,979 ft·lbf (2,683 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]90 gr (5.8 g) SP [/TD] [TD]3,203 ft/s (976 m/s) [/TD] [TD]2,051 ft·lbf (2,781 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]105 gr (6.8 g) BT [/TD] [TD]2,986 ft/s (910 m/s) [/TD] [TD]2,080 ft·lbf (2,820 J) [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] .25-06 [TABLE="class: infobox"] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TD]100 gr (6.5 g) PSP-CL [/TD] [TD]3,230 ft/s (980 m/s) [/TD] [TD]2,316 ft·lbf (3,140 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]115 gr (7.5 g) PSP-CL Ultra [/TD] [TD]3,000 ft/s (910 m/s) [/TD] [TD]2,298 ft·lbf (3,116 J) [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]120 gr (7.8 g) PSP-CL [/TD] [TD]2,990 ft/s (910 m/s) [/TD] [TD]2,382 ft·lbf (3,230 J) [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]
You're missing a big opportunity here. I bet she'd really like a new mixer or crock pot. LOL OK, so she wants a gun. LOL 270 wouldn't be too hard on her at all. Auto loaders less kick.
My son has a 7mm-08 little to no kick really accurate and he has been deadly with it. He has a bolt, I relly enjoy shooting his gun.
Whatever caliber you choose, make sure you get a good recoil pad. I have a 25-06 with a nice recoil pad on it, it barely kicks at all. http://allaboutshooting.com/index.php?cPath=28
BJE, I don't know where in Wisconsin you're hunting, but where I hunt, far NW wisconsin around Hayward, we have guys that shoot 30-30, 243, and 30-06. All of our guys that hit a deer, get their deer. now maybe the 30-06 will put it down a little faster, but I don't know. Our guy that shoots the 243 swears by it. I think that if your shooting under 100 yds in wisconsin, the 243 or 30-30 would do just fine !
.257 Roberts, plenty of power, easy on the shoulder and ears ....just an easy pleasant round to shoot...perfect for a women.
243 hands down. Shouldnt need anything bigger than a 243 for deer. I have brought down plenty with mine. Its all about shot placement. Plus you dont ruin all the meat.
All my life I've rifle hunted in Missouri. I've used a .243, and a 7mm-08. Its a Stevens model 200 7mm-08 and I love it. It's topped with a Nikon prostaff scope and its a true killer. By far my favorite, really accurate, and no recoil. My dads newer savage 25-06 though is a very nice gun as well. Dont get me wrong, I've killed many deer with my .243, I just think the other two are better.
