And I have to agree a .243 is too much gun for a 7 year old. I have never seen a 7 year old that was big enough to handle the recoil of a .243. Many of my 10 year old students are not big enough for a .243. We start kids in 4-H at the age of 10. My son shot his .243 when he was 10, and did not like it. He refused to shoot it again till he was 14. By then he had a 45-70, and liked it better. He got a Black Powder barrel for the gun and the .243 barrel has been laying on a shelf in the vault ever since. Doubt he will ever do anything with it.
My son weighed 160 pounds at 10 years old and could shoot my 30.06 without flinching. My daughter has been shooting a .243 since she was 9, and she is quite small. Be careful with generalizations.
Dan
