Recommendations On Rifle For My Wife

[ActionBob]

Australia?

Much worse Minnesota

 

[Cam Moon]

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

Love the woman more? Is that possible?

 

[Kawshik Rahman]

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.

Browningbbr
I have a good deal of respect for this calibre. A client used it to secure a leopard with a single shot . However , he was using the 175 grain soft nose bullet .

 

[1dirthawker]

fastrig,
everyone else gave you their 2cents, here is mine.

270 winchester. a nice combination of flat shooting, versatility AND pretty tolerable recoil.
the 7mm/08, 7x57, 30-06 or 308 are all good cartridges, not quite as flat shooting.

shooting a 270 can be done with reduced factory available loads as well.

i don't own one, don't need one but i have recommended them to friends for a first rifle (men and women). if you need more gun later, pretty easy by then to know how much bigger to go and the 270 will take care of lots of pretty sizable game.

take her with you when you buy it and make sure it fits her and has a good recoil pad.

my 2 cents

 

[bruce moulds]

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 .

an average of these would be a 280 rem.
bruce.

 

[Kawshik Rahman]

an average of these would be a 280 rem.
bruce.

Bruce
I speculate then , that the .280 Remington cartridge would be better for the lady's needs ? I have no experience with this cartridge and thus l cannot comment on it , however.

 

[mark-hunter]

270 winchester, 280 remington, 7x64, very-very similar cartridges, by diameter and size of casing. 7x64 can have heavier bullets though.

 

[Boela]

One more vote for the 7x57.....with a suppressor. She should have no problem with handeling the rifle for the recoil and muzzle blast will be significantly reduced.

 

[BeeMaa]

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.

The weight of the rifle is a big deal in mitigating recoil, but as you know there is no free lunch.
Heavy rifle, hard to carry all day but a pleasure to shoot and the opposite with a lighter one.
That's one of the reasons we are going with the R8 as there are different profile barrels in the same caliber to further customize.
You can pick your poison from a light weight mountian rifle to heavy DG calibers and everything in between.
My wife is looking at a 300WM that comes in around 8# to 8.5# with the scope mounted.

Let us know how she does at the range.
Cheers.

 

[Beretta391]

270 winchester, 280 remington, 7x64, very-very similar cartridges, by diameter and size of casing. 7x64 can have heavier bullets though.

280 and 7x64 shoot same size and weight bullets, unless I am mistaken

 

[Fastrig]

The weight of the rifle is a big deal in mitigating recoil, but as you know there is no free lunch.
Heavy rifle, hard to carry all day but a pleasure to shoot and the opposite with a lighter one.
That's one of the reasons we are going with the R8 as there are different profile barrels in the same caliber to further customize.
You can pick your poison from a light weight mountian rifle to heavy DG calibers and everything in between.
My wife is looking at a 300WM that comes in around 8# to 8.5# with the scope mounted.

Let us know how she does at the range.
Cheers.

8-8.5 lbs fully outfitted makes for a nice rifle. Your wife ought to really enjoy that R8 with that config. This new Helix is sitting at 7.8 lbs scoped, no sling. Merkel claims their stock designs mitigate felt recoil, if they have achieved that in a significant manner, at this weight, I’ll sing their praises from one end of this board to the other. Had to postpone range day till tomorrow and will post how it goes.

 

[CoElkHunter]

Much worse Minnesota

Ha! Ha! Ha! The Great State of Minnesota! Back in the ‘90s, I went fishing in Manitoba several times with an uncle who lived in Crookston, MN., right next to the Red River. Caught my first catfish (10lbs) right behind his house. Great place!

 

[Longwalker]

I did a similar search for "beginner" hunting rifle cartridges for several women and youth who I have helped start hunting over the years. Never a complaint from any of them when started with a 7mm-08 or .308. They are versatile, capable cartridges and easy to shoot well. In my experience Canadian moose are taken quite efficiently with either cartridge if good bullets are used. I personally wouldn't use either on eland, but smaller african antelopes should be within both cartridges capabilities. The .308 gives a little more confidence on the bigger animals, but may be restricted in countries that ban military cartridges. I personally own and shoot three 7x57 mm rifles and although they are just as good as those two, a 7x57 is not better and suffers from lack of good readily available ammunition. Few modern rifles are chambered in 7x57. Stock fit is likely more important than the cartridge she'll be shooting anyway.

 

[shootist~]

https://www.africahunting.com/threa...s-honeymoon-hunt-her-side-of-the-story.50861/

Or you could go with what worked for @Just Gina
One of my favorite hunt reports, btw.

 

[Tokoloshe Safaris]

Many great suggestions on caliber (I would go with the 30-06, with light bullet). I consider even more important proper fit, recoil pad one of the really good ones & keep her away from a "sitting shooting bench"! At least until she is very comfortable with the rifle, scope & recoil.

 

[IvW]

7x57mm or 7mm-08

 

[Tracey Colson]

My wife and I both shoot left handed and when I purchased the rifle that my wife shoots she wanted something to shoot deer and pronghorn with. I went with the 30-06 because it can be loaded down with lighter bullets to .270 like loads and still loaded up in case she ever decides she wants to go after elk or bigger game. She is only about 5'2" so I knew that a full size rifle was not going to work and was on a pretty limited budget so I bought a Savage in 30-06 and then added an AT-one stock from Boyds Stocks. The stock has adjustments for both length of pull and comb height. It did take some fitting on this particular rifle and that was pointed out on Boyds website (I did not read it before ordering so things got interesting lol). It has taken some trials and tribulations finding the right length of pull and comb height for her but she did manage to score on her first big game animal in 27 years with it this fall on the opening day of pronghorn season. Nice thing is with the AT-one stock if something would have happened to my rifle on that hunt we could have just changed the settings on hers and been set to go again.

 

[DieJager]

Well what I've heard, not of my own experience, the 6.5x55 is an ample caliber. Up north they use it for everything.

 

[Art Lambart II]

For what is worth I would recommend a T/C Encore you pick the caliber. I have three barrels for mine a .270 Win, 300 Win Mag & 35 Whelen. I have used all three rounds in Africa and I prefer the 35 Whelen by a wide margin.

 

[Shootist43]

For what is worth I would recommend a T/C Encore you pick the caliber. I have three barrels for mine a .270 Win, 300 Win Mag & 35 Whelen. I have used all three rounds in Africa and I prefer the 35 Whelen by a wide margin.

And here I thought you were going to say that "my wife loves her Savage 7mm 08."