looking for a smaller caliber youth rifle

Remington 700 Mountain rifle in 7mm-08.  Short action, light recoil, near .270 performance.

FYI, my post was a suggestion of something to look for.  Not an offer to sell.  I have one.  I don't use it a lot but I would not sell it.  Ever.

Farnorth Said:
FYI, my post was a suggestion of something to look for.  Not an offer to sell.  I have one.  I don't use it a lot but I would not sell it.  Ever.

Ever?  I'd use it if you sold it to me.....promise! 

i have been hearing a lot about 7mm-08 lately. we looked at fleet farm. they had a weatherby vanguard on sale in a 7mm-08. it came with 2 stocks, one youth and one adult. sounded perfect for a kid so he could grow into it. i have a weatherby vanguard in a 270 wsm. my action felt a lot nicer than this new one. you think its safe to buy one from fleet farm?

they also had some new style remington in a 243 youth. had a drop out clip. can't remember what it was called.

catmechanic Said:
i have been hearing a lot about 7mm-08 lately. we looked at fleet farm. they had a weatherby vanguard on sale in a 7mm-08. it came with 2 stocks, one youth and one adult. sounded perfect for a kid so he could grow into it. i have a weatherby vanguard in a 270 wsm. my action felt a lot nicer than this new one. you think its safe to buy one from fleet farm?

yep, you'd be just fine with that rifle.  I wouldn't hesitate. 

Not a big weatherby guy but it sounds like it would be pefect for your situation.

I've heard some good things about the Vanguard.  The 7mm-08 is a nearly perfect deer round.  Sounds like a very good setup. 

Jiffy,
I didn't say I never use it.  I love that rifle.  My "go to" gun is a 700 BDL CD in .270 with a cheap scope.  Why?  It hits what i'm shooting at.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Farnorth Said:

Jiffy,
I didn't say I never use it.  I love that rifle.  My "go to" gun is a 700 BDL CD in .270 with a cheap scope.  Why?  It hits what i'm shooting at.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Yep, I agree.  Nevertheless one can never have too many guns.

Jiffy Said:

catmechanic Said:
i have been hearing a lot about 7mm-08 lately. we looked at fleet farm. they had a weatherby vanguard on sale in a 7mm-08. it came with 2 stocks, one youth and one adult. sounded perfect for a kid so he could grow into it. i have a weatherby vanguard in a 270 wsm. my action felt a lot nicer than this new one. you think its safe to buy one from fleet farm?

yep, you'd be just fine with that rifle.  I wouldn't hesitate. 

Not a big weatherby guy but it sounds like it would be pefect for your situation.

i think you are right. they are on sale til the end of the month i believe. only bad thing is there are no mounts, rings, or scope with it. that remington is all set up with a scope. its not a very good one, but i can fix that. i suppose those rings are junk too.

I hate to come off as a gun snob but if the Remington is a model 770 go with the weatherby.  The entry level Remingtons have not lived up to their companies reputation or expectations.  If your anywhere near Watertown, SD,  Kones Korners has a nice used Remington Model Seven youth in 7mm-08 on the rack reasonably priced.  It is wood and blued.  The only down side I've found with the Vangaurds are the weight, they seem a bit on the heavy side.

I'd have to agree.  I am even a Remington guy and I'd still go with that Vanguard over the cheap 710s or 770s.

That litte model 7 would be my first choice.  I'd make a road trip if I were you. 

i agree with the vanguard weight. mine is heavy, doesn't bother me, but my girlfriend won't like the weight. maybe the youth model is lighter???

Vanguard youth with the youth stock installed, scoped, etc should be 8# give or take an oz or two.

Horsager Said:
Vanguard youth with the youth stock installed, scoped, etc should be 8# give or take an oz or two.

so what do you think the vanguard "adult" would weigh with a scope?

7-08 is a great choice. 

I'd also throw out a 257 roberts if you could find a used one. Very mild recoil, great deer pill. My Rem 722 is a slaying machine to this day.

catmechanic Said:

Horsager Said:
Vanguard youth with the youth stock installed, scoped, etc should be 8# give or take an oz or two.

so what do you think the vanguard "adult" would weigh with a scope?

1/4-1/2# more adding the adult length stock to the "youth" rifle.  1/2#-3/4# more for a rifle purchased in the adult configuration with no youth component.  The difference being a couple extra inches of bbl on the adult rifle.  In the real world those 2" of barrel mean nothing, less than 50FPS.  I had a 7-08 Vanguard youth, it shot 120gn TSX's and V-Max's very well, sold it to a buddy and it's a killing machine no matter who he hands it to.

The 7-08 is very nearly a free lunch as you get lotsa lotsa kill on the business end and is very very mild on the shooter.  A 7-08 is very easily a do-all for North America.

I would suggest a Rem Model 7 stainless.
If for some reason you were to find a reason, a kevlar stock and lightweight 2-7 leupy scope can put this setup under 5.3 lbs fully combat loaded (4 rounds.)

 I am happy with my  Weatherby Vanguard,    They have an adjustable trigger, And they are accurate and dependable .  For the price (under $ 400)  You just can't go wrong with a vanguard.   

Geothermal Said:
 I am happy with my  Weatherby Vanguard,    They have an adjustable trigger, And they are accurate and dependable .  For the price (under $ 400)  You just can't go wrong with a vanguard.   

the trigger is adjustable? is this something new or am i just in the dark on it? maybe i need to pull the old short mag out and take a look.

On the youth rack at Scheels in Grand Forks, there is a blued and wood Ruger Hawkeye in a 7mm-08. It is new and I don't remember the price, but it sure was a pretty short-barreled bolt action!

catmechanic Said:

the trigger is adjustable? is this something new or am i just in the dark on it? maybe i need to pull the old short mag out and take a look.

Yes,   The adjustable trigger is what I like most about my weatherby vanguard,  It doesn't matter  how good or bad of a shot you are.   A  decent  trigger will make you a whole lot better.