best rifle for women????

I would suggest you check out the Ruger Compact version of the M-77. If you reload, you can compensate somewhat for the shorter barrel by using the handgun loads shown for the .308, .260 or 7-08. The Ruger Compact comes with a 16 1/2 inch barrel and a shorter stock.
 
My wife is really small built. She doesn't handle recoil well at all. Her deer rifle is a custom Mauser 98 chambered for 257 Roberts with a short 22 inch barrel. Her Elk rifle is a Remington M742 (now called 7400) chambered for .308 Win. also with a short 22 inch bbl. The M742 is an autoloader so the recoil is cut dramatically. It seems like a good choice for a woman and my wife shoots hers quite well.
 
I'm new to this forum. Looks like a good one.

My wife hunts mule deer and antelope every year. Elk only when we're drawn for a certain area in Wyoming near where I grew up.

She does quite well with a TIKKA in 6.5mm X 55. Barrel length is 22 inches. Ordinary PMC 129 gr ammo is deadly for mulies and antelope. But for elk we've tried both the Trophy Bonded and Nosler Partition bullets. The Nosler is more accurate in her TIKKA.

Be cautious about those new Rugers with their short barrels. The 260 delivers a poor performsance in this barrel length.

The 7mm-08 has a lot going for it. We chose the Swede because of availability. 7mm-08 would've been a special order.

My 15 year old daughter is a crack shot with our old Remington pump in .243. Three deer with three shots in three years! I like this caliber, too. Really hits hard for such a small cartridge. My favorite for antelope.

Don't rule out Marlin's 30-30 for timber hunting. Used one abound at under $200. price and they're proven vension-getters. In the hands of a good shot, even big bodied mulies have succumbed to a single well placed 30-30 bullet!
Jack
 
If you are going to use the Ruger compact, you have to reload to get the best performance out of it. Otherwise, any of the .308-based rounds are going to perform in a mediocre fashion. My suggestion would be to use the loads in the handgun section of the newer manuals - faster powders and loads designed for 14 or 15 inch Contender or Encore barrels. Check out those loads - they will work much better than standard rifle loads in the short barrel.
 
Calif.hunter,your right about that .
My ruger took quite awhile to find a load it liked.
Lucky for me Steve hand loads, we have tried a number of differnet loads and bullets over the years .
The best for this rifle and what I hunt has been-- the 130 Gr Barnes XBT Nosler Partition /53.0 Gr. of IMR 4831
This same load shot like crap in steves 270.
 
Very helpful thread! Thanks all. I’m an archery hunter here in the west (MT) wanting to dip my toes into rifle hunting. I know precisely ZERO things about rifles, so this was a great thread to start educating myself on. Happy hunting.
 
She shoot's a 243 and a lot of cartridges going up from there recoil from a bit to a lot more. With some it's not so much recoil as it is muzzle blast. My 25-06 doesn't recoil near as bad as it sounds. In the 6.5x55 one of my loading manuals show two different loads. One for the older mod 93 mauser and one for modern rifles. I don't know it factory ammo comes like that but I think I'd check. My 6.5x55 is a mod 70 and I load from data for modern rifles. Recoil is not really to bad I don't think, but I'm not your wife! If you reload I believe where I'd start is with the 260 Rem. If you con't then I think the Creedmor would be a better choice in finding factory ammo. I'm sure the 250-3000 and 257 Robert's would be equally good but also harder to find ammo for and I have this thing about cartridge's, up to some point bigger is better. Biggest I own these days is a 30-06! Seems to me a lot of people claim the 7mm-08 is low on recoil also but I've never shot one. If you don't reload you can't load anything down to control recoil, might think about that. That 7mm-08 is going to be different from the 7x57 in recoil about as much as the 260/6.5 CM is compared to the 6.5x55.

Something to keep in mind about you choosing her rifle. The one who's going to shoot it is her! You won't find out about what she can stand to shoot until you reach the point where she's had enough. I'd try to find some people with different cartridges for her to try before committing her to any one in particular. Only she knows how much recoil she can live with.
 
Weatherby Vanguard Compact
weatherby.com

Vanguard® Synthetic Compact - Weatherby, Inc.

Length-of-pull adjustability, along with the great price, makes this rifle a popular pick for parents who are raising their kids in the sporting life. FINISH Barrel/Receiver/Trigger Guard - Matte, bead blasted, blued finish Stock - Injection-molded composite stock Removable elongated spacer to...
weatherby.com weatherby.com

Vanguard Camilla
weatherby.com

Vanguard® Camilla - Weatherby, Inc.

The Vanguard Camilla Rifle—“designed by women, built by Weatherby”—incorporates a high comb, along with a number of other features that make this rifle superbly comfortable to shoot. Aptly named after the first lady of Weatherby. FINISH Barrel/Receiver/Trigger Guard - Matte, bead blasted, blued...
weatherby.com weatherby.com

They also have the Camilla Mark V.

weatherby.com

Mark V® Camilla Deluxe - Weatherby, Inc.

Named aptly after Camilla Weatherby, the graceful lines are befitting of the way the stock fits female shooters. It features a shortened 13” length of pull, slender forearm, a slimmer grip with a gentle palm swell, and a higher comb for optimal scope-eye alignment. FINISH Barrel / Receiver /...
weatherby.com weatherby.com

weatherby.com

Mark V® Camilla Ultra Lightweight - Weatherby, Inc.

The Camilla Ultra Lightweight was designed by women, for women. The graceful lines are befitting of the way the stock fits female shooters. FINISH Barrel / Receiver / Brake - Midnight Bronze Cerakote Bolt / Bolt Knob / Trigger Guard / Safety - Graphite Black Cerakote Hand-laid, raised Monte...
weatherby.com weatherby.com

Hard to beat 308win. I have yet to shoot a Vanguard or Mark V I am not impressed with.
 
Brittany Chukarman said:
If she shoots the .243 well get her the same make and model in 7/08.
Click to expand...
This ^

My wife has youth models in weatherby vanguard and savage 16. She uses the .308 for deer and elk. My brother harvester several deer and elk with a youth Howa in 7/08, it’s an excellent caliber.
 
6.5CM seems like the obvious choice. Plenty of other 6.5’s and .257’s that would also fill the bill, but in terms of readily available rifles and ammo, the 6.5CM seems like a clear winner and it will do everything the usual recommendations for low recoil will do.

Since it’s “not for you” you probably won’t even have to wear your hair in a bun. ;)
 
Old threads are very informational. I’m looking for one for my daughter and was leaning towards a 25-06. My FIL has a Ruger M77 in that caliber and it is a sweet gun. Still doing some research though. Ammo availability is what’s stopping me.
 
Have a .270 Savage, got me my first elk at 240yds. Nothing fancy about it, it's a great gun that shoots straight and easy to carry in the field.
 
kiwi hunta said:
How about 6.5x55 " The Swede" I use the 155gn lapua bullet on Red Deer and I don't belive wapiti are that much if any tougher to nail,very easy to shoot and handles the heavier bullets well.
Click to expand...
I started my son with a 6.5 Swede, love that round, very manageable recoil.
Accurate cartridge in a 140 grain fir me.

Tk
 
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