With proper bullet placement, the .243
should take all but the largest deer. I
know a guy that uses a 6mm., which is a
shade more powerful than the .243, for
deer up in canada and never needed a
follow up shot. If I was buying a gun
for a kid, the single shot sounds nice
for safety reasons, but just because a
gun holds five rounds, doesn't mean you
have too load it with that many. When I
go to the range with my rifle, I put one
directly into the chamber, fire and than
wait about 30 seconds and do it all over
again. Plus buying a repeating rifle now
means not having to buy another one when
he outgrows the single shot. If he is
not recoil shy, you can get a .308 in a
youth sized gun. I think savage still
makes packaged guns that come with a
scope, sling, and target. Great for a
beginner. I'll leave some links, just in
case you want to do some browsing.
www.savagearms.com www.remington.com www.winchster-guns.com www.ruger-firearms.com www.marlinfirearms.com www.browning.com
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L.D.
[This message has been edited by Ldoll (edited February 03, 2000).]