Recommendations On Rifle For My Wife

[Fastrig]

Limited distance, well constructed bullet and superior shot placement, it will do the job, optimum choice no. The 7x57 has proved its capability on many continents. Shot discipline is the name of the game as margin for error is slim. I have watched many elk fall to the 243 Winchester, definitely not an elk cartridge by anyone I knows standards but the elk didn’t receive that memo before getting put into little white packages and frozen!

That's what I was worried about, i.e. it's a border line round. Was kind of leaning towards the 30-06, maybe the 308 win, for this reason. Very familiar with those rounds and with proper ammo they both can do pretty much anything south of DG or big bears. 30-06 is probably the better choice as this will be her only rifle and it carries a bit more versatility. She's a lefty so hope finding the right combination for her doesn't into a headache.

 

[ActionBob]

I'm not overly familiar with this cartridge, but the couple articles I read that were both written by ladies said they really liked the 7mm-08. Is this good enough for bigger game such as elk, kudu, red stag, or evan an eland?

In this case, with Africa on the agenda, a 7x57, which is the same as 275 Rigby adds the nostalgia and African/European connection. As well as the romance of all that combined into a functional work of art done up in fine Walnut and blued steel doesn't get any better. Go all out and order a custom fitted Rigby Highland Stalker, just be sure you love this woman more than you are going to love that rifle

 

[CoElkHunter]

My wife has become interested in shooting, and "maybe" hunting. Thought I might buy her a nice rifle/scope combo for Christmas. I'm hoping she'll join me in hunting in Africa and other locals at some point. Debating what caliber would be best. My first thought was a 30-06 or 308 win, but have been reading some articles written by ladies that say they really like the 7mm-08. Thoughts?

I see some companies have started making "rifles designed for women". Savage and Merkel are the ones I've reviewed so far. Is this marketing hype or is there something really to these designs? My wife is fairly tall, 5'9", and medium framed but when I had her shouldering some of my bolt rifles last night the LOP (14.25 to 14.75) was definitely too long for her. Was going to take her out this weekend and have her shoot my 308 win, 300 win mag, and 9.3x62 to see how she likes various hunting calibers and the associated recoil but afraid the LOP on my rifles is going to hinder that a bit. She's shot my lever actions which have much shorter LOP's but this would be a first with my bolt rifles. The LOP on my rifles is a good 1" too long, do you all think that's too far off for her to have a good feel for the calibers?

Lastly, especially to any ladies on the boards, what would you recommend I look at in makes/calibers? Thanks mucho for the input!!!

Savage “Muddy Girl” edition! Perfect for your next Safari! Ha! Ha! No but really, I bought my daughter in law one in .243 for her birthday. She likes it. Short barrel and stock, lightweight and magazine fed. 3x9 factory Bushnell scope. They also make it in 7mm-08 and .223.

 

[ActionBob]

Was looking at this rifle for her. She's a lefty and CA offers a LH model in both 7mm-08 and 308 win. Only downside to the 7mm-08 here is that it's only available in a 24" barrel where the 308 can be had with a 20" barrel, which I think she might be happier with. Rifle only weighs 6.3 lbs so with a decent scope total weight maybe around 7.5 lbs or so....would think that would be prefect. Thoughts on this CA and barrel lengths?

https://christensenarms.com/ridgeline/

If you do go with this, and the 20" barrel, be sure to get a thread protector and take that hated muzzle break off for everything except possibly bench work, with doubled up hearing protection. Then think about buying a light weight, think titanium, suppressor for it.

 

[Ryan]

The Savage 110 Storm LH comes in all three of those cartridges and has the advantage of both LOP and comb height adjustment. In 308 it's a 22 inch barrel. I've got a Lefty in 7mm-08 in this rifle, it shoots better than I do. I did eventually replace the stock with a laminate, just my thing.

 

[browningbbr]

I would recommend , for your wife , a 7 millimeter Remington magnum calibre model 700
Or
A model 70 rifle from Winchester , calibrated for .270 Winchester cartridge .

Ditto this.

My wife shoots an Encore in 7mm Rem Mag.

I load a 140gn Barnes TSX for the rifle and it has all of the knock down and range needed for everything she has hunted. (Pronghorn, warthog, white tail, springbok, etc.) A nice plus: The Encore is a simple break-action single shot with a short LOP. It fits her needs perfectly.

 

[curtism1234]

The 7-08 is a loud cartridge? Compared to a .308? Huh?

Not sure how you calculate cartridge (as opposed to platform) induced decibel contributing factors, but the .308 does have 56 gr capacity to 52 for the 7-08. And the .308 operates at about 2000 psi higher pressure.

That is my personal experience shooting those two. I could honestly see where some young kids or inexperienced shooters might even flinch with it. Ymmv

I also think my 375 kicks less than my 7mag. The numbers would show that is not true by a significant margin. Again, personal experience

 

[Red Leg]

That is my personal experience shooting those two. I could honestly see where some young kids or inexperienced shooters might even flinch with it. Ymmv

I also think my 375 kicks less than my 7mag. The numbers would show that is not true by a significant margin. Again, personal experience

In my experience, the perceived loudness of a caliber has everything to do with barrel length or any muzzle appendages attached to it. A 7-08 can not be inherently louder than a .308.

Perceived recoil is all about rifle weight and stock design. I once had a little Ruger .308 International that was one of the most punishing rifles I have ever fired - not because a .308 kicks particularly hard but because the rifle had a horrible stock design - at least for me. A lightweight 7mm mag might indeed be more unpleasant to shoot than a particular .375. It is all about weight and stock design.

 

[WAB]

My wife stole my 7x57. She loves it. She got very comfortable with it before stepping up to a 9.3x62 for her buffalo. Definitely don’t have your wife shoot a gun with a lop 1” too long for her. It will likely be a bad experience for her.

 

[CoElkHunter]

The Savage 110 Storm LH comes in all three of those cartridges and has the advantage of both LOP and comb height adjustment. In 308 it's a 22 inch barrel. I've got a Lefty in 7mm-08 in this rifle, it shoots better than I do. I did eventually replace the stock with a laminate, just my thing.

The Savage 110 is one of the finest, most accurate, inexpensive push feed rifle actions ever made! No pink stock (Ha! Ha!), but in .308 or 7-08 it would be hard to beat for a female shooter. One can buy factory low recoil loads for the .308 for practice or reload your own. Just my 2 centavos!

 

[dchamp]

I have a Nosler M48 Classic in 7X57. It is a superbly built rifle and it is rock solid and has become one of my favorite rifles. It shoots Nosler's 140gn Accubond ammunition sub MOA as long as I do my part. The 7X57 is offered in left hand by their custom shop with barrel lengths 20-26" and length of pull 12.5-14.5". Might be worth checking out.

 

[BeeMaa]

My wife's first hunting rifle was a Savage Lady Hunter in 270WIN and she dropped a Kudu where it stood with one shot to the neck.
That rifle now belongs to the daughter of a member here, because it was time for her to "step up" to a .30 caliber.
She chose the 300WM in the Blaser R8 Intuition platform that we will be ordering shortly.

Given the opportunity to do it again, I would have gone with Blaser (R93) platform back in the 1990's.
Having the flexibilty to move up (or down) and share calibers when on Safari is a great advantage.

Aren't you looking at a R8?
Why not do a his & hers?

Caliber?
Personally I like the 7mmRM, 30-06 but prefer the 300WM for the larger antelope like Eland.
For smaller game maybe 6.5x55SE, 270WIN or 7x64 would fit the bill.

 

[BeeMaa]

My apologies, I thought you said Blaser...I just remembered it was a Merkel Helix you mentioned in another thread.
Still...several caliber options in the Merkel Helix Lady DS all the way up to 338WM.
Beautiful wood too.

 

[Fastrig]

Thanks everyone for all the great input!!! My head is really spinning now, LOL. Think I’ll start by taking my better half to one of the local ranges that allows you to rent different rifles, find ones that fit her in various calibers, and have her spend some time with them....probably the best and what I should have planned originally....was hoping to make the rifle a surprise but would rather have it be the right fit for her more than anything else.

 

[CoElkHunter]

Thanks everyone for all the great input!!! My head is really spinning now, LOL. Think I’ll start by taking my better half to one of the local ranges that allows you to rent different rifles, find ones that fit her in various calibers, and have her spend some time with them....probably the best and what I should have planned originally....was hoping to make the rifle a surprise but would rather have it be the right fit for her more than anything else.

That is a great idea! Wish I could find a range like that for trying out different large bore hunting rifles? Good luck!

 

[Fastrig]

My wife's first hunting rifle was a Savage Lady Hunter in 270WIN and she dropped a Kudu where it stood with one shot to the neck.
That rifle now belongs to the daughter of a member here, because it was time for her to "step up" to a .30 caliber.
She chose the 300WM in the Blaser R8 Intuition platform that we will be ordering shortly.

Given the opportunity to do it again, I would have gone with Blaser (R93) platform back in the 1990's.
Having the flexibilty to move up (or down) and share calibers when on Safari is a great advantage.

Aren't you looking at a R8?
Why not do a his & hers?

Caliber?
Personally I like the 7mmRM, 30-06 but prefer the 300WM for the larger antelope like Eland.
For smaller game maybe 6.5x55SE, 270WIN or 7x64 would fit the bill.

If she can handle and likes a 300 win mag, that would be the way to go....like Red Leg points out, it’s often the stock design that dictates felt recoil so might have her go with a R8 or Lady Helix.....I’m dialing in my Helix tomorrow so we’ll see how the recoil is....thing weighs next to nothing even with the scope mounted....wife was shouldering it tonight and really liked the weight...think the Lady Helix has a LOP about an 1” less which would be about perfect. If the recoil isn’t bad I might have her give mine a go.

 

[ActionBob]

That is a great idea! Wish I could find a range like that for trying out different large bore hunting rifles? Good luck!

Come visit

 

[CoElkHunter]

Come visit

Australia?

 

[Red Leg]

Australia?

LOL - it is almost as bad.

 

[Tra3]

I bought my sister a 7mm-08. She shoots it very well. The recoil is mild.

Keep in mind that hunting travel is done with a double rifle case. She will need 2 rifles to make sure the rifle case is proper. start with a 7mm-08 and work up.