Choosing a Birthday Rifle for my Daughter

[frozentundra]

First of all, helping your daughter master the rifle is no small chore, and deciding to take her down that path makes you a slam dunk for Father of the Year. Well done.

Second, beware of Jeff Cooper. He had revolutionary ideas but he didn’t let them evolve and he worked hard to keep better ideas from replacing them. Ken Hackathorn, who taught under him at Gunsite, has said that Cooper refused to change any detail of his teaching because he felt it would lead people to doubt other things that he taught. I read Cooper’s books and articles as they were being published and I exchanged letters with him, which really restricted my thinking over the years. It’s only been in the last decade or so that I’ve begun to get out from under the cloud of his ideas.

With that in mind, the art of the rifle in 2018 centers on the Colt 6920 or equivalent, so I’d get her something like that. It meets the requirements you stated and she’ll grow into the slight extra weight before you know it.

The Art of the Rifle is probably the best book ever written on theory and form. I’d teach her those things from that book, then teach her TTPs as shown in “Green Eyes & Black Rifles” (https://www.amazon.com/Green-Eyes-Bl.../dp/0615166547).

She can—and should—learn the bolt gun later.


Okie John

Some good points here for sure. I don't know why I've never read Lamb's book! A Lot of what I know about running an AR stems from Pat Rogers and Pat McNamara. They seem to have disparate takes on certain key elements of gun handling. My personal approach to running the AR platform is based largely on a hybrid (or bastardization) of those 'Pats' that seems most relevant to my life. I have always tried to implement my daughters rifle instruction with this system in mind.

I'm far from the most qualified instructor, but I'm what she's got. At least I buy her guns and ammunition.

Also, I'm certainly not a dogmatic Cooper person, but I think invoking Cooper's name is still probably the easiest way to express a certain ethos. P-F members are likely to pick up on the meaning quickly. I read the Art of the Rifle years ago, and it was pretty much a paradigm shift for my thinking at the time. Techniques and equipment may have evolved way past Cooper in the time since his death (or before it), but I don't think anybody has improved on his communication of the overarching ethos regarding the armed citizen and the rifle.

[okie john]

Techniques and equipment may have evolved way past Cooper in the time since his death (or before it), but I don't think anybody has improved on his communication of the overarching ethos regarding the armed citizen and the rifle.

Exactly.

Keep us posted.


Okie John

[Toonces]

You repeatedly mentioned volume shooting, and mentioned ammo cost. With those restrictions, IMO, the only centerfire worth discussing is .223/5.56. She is already familiar with the AR, so that seems like a natural starting point.

If you are open to other options, a .22 LR (current 15-22?) for volume and a 260/6.5 Creed/7-08/308 for deer hunting could be a better combination.

Do you handload?

[Clusterfrack]

16.5” Alexander Arms 6.5 Grendel. 8 lbs with scope.
Basically unlimited barrel life. Effective for hunting and shootable to 1000 yds. Easy to handload, plenty of factory ammo, and cheap Wolf steel case for $6/20.

[HCM]

16.5” Alexander Arms 6.5 Grendel. 8 lbs with scope.
Basically unlimited barrel life. Effective for hunting and shootable to 1000 yds. Easy to handload, plenty of factory ammo, and cheap Wolf steel case for $6/20.

Howa and CZ both offer 6.5 Grendel bolt guns on mini actions.

[Chuck Whitlock]

I'm not sure if it was posted before, but the Savage Scout in.223 might be a contender:

https://grabagun.com/sav-110-scout-223-18-10rd.html

I've been holding on to the notion that an extended AR scope mount, reversed, would work on a scout rail for conventional scope placement, but haven't tried any proof-of-concept.

[OlongJohnson]

Barrels can be chopped by any competent smith if you want, and that comes with the benefit of a clean crown.

That makes this worth considering. Only real issue is magazines. https://shop.whittakerguns.com/product/38252

On Tikkas, if you shop for mags, they tend to be ~$32, which isn't that bad. Stainless models can still surface rust, need some wax or other protection in high humidity.

Tikka and Howa are my favorite bolt guns. I think it's hard to go wrong with either. The Ruger MkII can be excellent, but may need some TLC to get there and tends to be heavy.

Also, a lever gun in .30-30 or .357 Mag starts to give up some effectiveness at the outside of the ranges you're discussing, but it is fairly lightweight, very easy to carry due to its shape and lack of lateral or underhanging protruberances, and relatively less scary to non-gun people. You get mixed feels about current production Marlins, but they have stainless 1894s in the catalog this year. As a long gun that can always be at hand, an 1894 is hard to beat.

[OlongJohnson]

Ran out of time to edit...

I do lean toward Tikka if it will be carried, due to the weight. For an all-purpose hunting rifle, a Tikka in your choice of caliber with a Leupold V3-level (whatever suffix is current) 2.5-8 scope and get on with it is a difficult approach to beat.

Ruger MkII production does have the occasional dog that just doesn't shoot to contemporary standards even with a lot of work.