The Savage 11 Lady Hunter Rifle
When I go deer hunting, I use a Remington Model 700 .243. I love that gun. But for elk hunting, a .243 wasn’t going to work. I needed something bigger.
I asked several hunters and gun enthusiasts for their advice on what gun I should get for elk hunting. Here’s the deal – My .243 is the first gun that I actually hit things with. Why? Because I’m not afraid of it. It doesn’t intimidate me, and more importantly, it doesn’t kick me. I like that. Those are two of the most important things for me when it comes to a rifle because a gun that kicks me and makes me flinch vs. a gun that doesn’t is the difference in an accurate shot or an inaccurate shot. So intimidation and kick were huge factors for me.
Even though I was told about several different guns, a consistent one that was recommended was a .308. “And it’s a great all-around rifle,” is what I heard over and over again. I looked at .308s and finally came across the Savage 11 Lady Hunter .308. I am only 5’4″ and my husband immediately noticed that this gun actually fit me. I could balance it better than the other guns I was holding.
The Lady Hunter .308 weighs just 6lbs. It’s overall length is 39.5 inches with the barrel being 20″. This gun is not just a standard stock made shorter for women. The engineers at Savage consulted several serious women hunters and put a lot of thought into the design of this rifle. From stock design, grip girth and placement, to length and weight… the Lady Hunter is actually designed to fit the unique characteristics of a woman’s body.
I added a recoil pad to the end of my rifle to help with the kick. I will admit that it did take a little practice and getting used to before I was shooting it without flinching. But it was absolutely doable and didn’t take very long at all. Within a week I was shooting it pretty accurately without flinch and was consistently hitting a paper plate at 300 yards.
As for elk hunting, I got the chance to use my new Lady Hunter on a 5 by 6 bull. I shot him in the shoulder and double-lunged him. He stood there for about 3 seconds and then fell over. So I would say that my Lady Hunter .308 worked out great for me! It’s a great gun and a really nice choice if you’re looking for something that’s accurate, fits your body, that’s not too intimidating and doesn’t kick you too much.
Happy Hunting!
– Marci
Morrigan's Lodge 
Dear Marci:
I just got drawn for bull elk and immediately found your article. This will be my first hunt. My husband’s rifle is chambered in .308 so the fact the Savage 11 is a .308 designed to fit females makes my heart soar! Plus, it’s a badass beauty. I can’t wait to check it out.
Thanks for posting this.
Dear AZVick:
How exciting!!! Let us know how it goes! I’ve only been elk hunting the one time. We put in for tags this year so maybe I’ll get to go again.
Happy hunting!
Marci
Hello, Marci:
Thanks so much for your response. Now I have a question for you. I took our Ruger American (hubby’s .308) to the range last week. Don’t know how much it weighs, but it’s a behemoth compared to the Savage LH. (I also took a trip to Cabela’s last week.) I was able to shoulder and fire without too much discomfort, but eight rounds (147 grains) and my shoulder was “waking up” to the kick. I’m concerned the (much) lighter weight of the LH would significantly increase the recoil force, plus I’m assuming I’ll need a heavier round than 147 for elk. By the way, I do own and love a lightweight 12 ga for home defense although I don’t take it to the range much. I can handle a bit of kick but am aware of my limitations!
Can you enlighten me? This is an old post, so feel free to email me privately if you’d like. I’m really worried about this because I want a hunting rifle I can practice with and get really good at and I don’t get to test the Lady Hunter out before I buy it.
Our buddy shoots .270 Win in his grand-dad’s rifle. I can try it out, but then still want my own gun.
Thanks again, and best to you. Vicki
Oh I’m so glad I just came over here to look at this blog. I completely missed this somehow!
Technically your husbands heavier gun would indeed have less recoil then a lighter gun. I made up for this by buying a really good recoil pad and installing it on my rifle and I have never fired it without it. This helped a LOT. I would absolutely get a good recoil pad.
My .308 is definitely a gun I had to practice with and get a used to. But it wasn’t bad at all! VERY doable. I got comfortable enough with it that I took out my elk in one shot.
For me personally, I liked that my rifle was lighter and shorter than my husband’s .308. This meant that it fit my body and I could hold it correctly. His gun just didn’t fit me.
Bullets – I practiced with 150 grain and then ramped up to 180 grain and then used that for elk hunting.
All in all, the rifle and bullets I chose were right for me. The best gun is the gun you are comfortable with and can hit things with. So it all comes down to what YOU are comfortable with. I am wondering if there is a gun range anywhere near you that has a Savage 11 Lady Hunter .308 that you could shoot. It might be something to check into.
For me… If I can get comfortable with my gun while practicing, then recoil doesn’t exist when hunting. On the other hand… if I am NOT comfortable with my gun and afraid of it when practicing, then that continues when I hunt. So the bottom line is this: Have a gun that YOU are or can be comfortable with. Practice, practice, practice until you ARE comfortable with it. And when you finally get to take your shot, you’ll forget all about the recoil.
Happy hunting!