Need help on a childs first rifle...

[cmeier117]

So I have 2 young boys and a 3rd girl on the way. She is due in August and the boys will be 2 & 4 in August. I am looking for some advice on the following 3 types of rifles for them.

1.) I want a Air BB gun. I am leaning towards the Crossman but would consider anything else in the sub $50 range. I need 3 of them and one needs to be pink.

2.) Bolt action .22 for my oldest. Not really sure why I want one as I can't find ammo for the ones I already have but I have faith

3.) Semi Auto .22, I will most likely just buy a ruger 10/22 and be done with it, but I am also considering the S&W .22 AR style rifle. These are the only two I am looking at right now.

Any advice would be great. This summer I want to buy the 3 air rifles and atleast one .22. I may even just buy all 3 of them their .22.

 

[Lukem]

If I might offer a suggestion, I'd consider just buying one air gun and one bolt .22. That way you can focus on teaching them proper safety, etc., without having too many "irons in the fire" when you have shooting sessions. I'd also suggest just a bolt .22 to teach proper shooting form and patience with each shot. A semi tends to teach kids to just pull the trigger a lot. This all would save you a little cash in initial purchases as well as ammo costs down the road.

 

[Ray]

My first rifle at age 4 was a 1904 winchester single shot rifle. I did not have a semi auto rifle until I was 17. I did not need it. I had to buy my own BB gun as an adult. My dad had a 1906 winchester single shot worked on and gave that to my daughter for her first rifle at age 11. If I ever handed my daughter a pink rifle she would hit me with it. Her feminism is so cute!

Until the kids are well versed in gun safety they should have bolt guns only. Sure semi autos are fun, but that is not the point at that age.

Range safety is a serious thing at a young age, so I will agree with Lukem about one rifle at a time. You will have to manage the non shooter behavior but that is just part of parenting.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

I bought my daughters a little Crossman bb gun, little $25 thing from WalMart. For a .22 I chose a Savage Rascal, eventually they will graduate to my Ruger 10/22. All have worked well, and the girls love them.

 

[Hunt'nFish]

You have plenty of time to sale watch. 2 & 4 is a bit early for BB guns IMO.
Perhaps you should focus on cork pop guns for now.
Hunt'nFish

 

[shaun]

You have plenty of time to sale watch. 2 & 4 is a bit early for BB guns IMO.
Perhaps you should focus on cork pop guns for now.
Hunt'nFish

It is never too early to teach firearm safety. My son is 16 months old and he has a red Ryder BB gun not shooting yet but I'm chompin at the bit for him to start!

 

[brettb]

I got my first 22 when I was 4. I bought my niece her first gun when she was 4. I totally believe in the earlier you get them started the waaaaay better off they will be in the long run. Hell i remember right after i got my hunter safety card when I was 9, There I was out with my dog in the summer running around with my dog and my 22. Oh yeah with no supervision. The earlier you teach them the more they will know and better they will know with out having to hold there hands while they learn the right way way. You dont need to start out with a bb gun to teach them. get them the real thing and teach them the right way and be strict about about it at the begining and they will know more about guns than 50% of the ppl in this country by the time they are 12. Go with the open site bolt 22.

 

[jmez]

http://www.crickett.com/crickett_22_LR.php

Pretty much any color you want and they are sized to fit little kids. Sizing is important when teaching them to shoot correctly. I woudn't buy a semi auto for a kid. The rifles linked above are single shots. They do make similar ones in a bolt action under the Chipmunk brand. Same company and they link to the Chipmunk guns at the bottom of the page.

 

[Rucker61]

Depending on the size of your oldest and your budget, the CZ 452 Scout is an amazingly accurate youth .22.

 

[tstowater]

Depending on the size of your oldest and your budget, the CZ 452 Scout is an amazingly accurate youth .22.

X2. Comes with single shot feed and can put in a clip. Great safety. Fits a kid. Awesome gun.

 

[Above Timber]

I work of an organization that introduces high school kids and their parents to traditional outdoor activities. One of the activities is small bore (22) shooting. We us CZ 455 Training Rifles. On a yearly bases we shoot somewhere in the neighborhood of 10,000-15,000 rounds through these guns. The rarely get cleaned and perform flawlessly. All they do is shoot and shoot and shoot. I do not have any experience with the Scout model but based on my experience with the Trainers they are a great gun built on a solid platform.

 

[Schleppy]

I just did the research and bought my 8 year old son a savage rascal. It's a superior rifle to the chipmunk and other "youth" rifles for several reasons: it comes with a peep sight, it has the accu-trigger, the feed mechanisim is the most user friendly for any single shot, the rifle has a safety, and the biggie is that it cocks the hammer when you function the bolt. Most kids have trouble pulling back the hammer on the single shot .22 and this eliminates that problem. this also is probably why this rifle has a safety which I think is a great feature on a training type gun. As for a bb gun, get them the smallest daisy "lever action" single pump. We all want our kids to have the best, but buying too much gun here is a big mistake. The expensive air guns are made for adults and they are oversized. Even a red ryder is a pretty good sized gun compared to the little daisy. My 7 year old son inherited my little daisy last year and had a great time plinking cans and stalking grasshoppers on the edges of the driveway.

 

[cmeier117]

Thanks for the tips guys. The 10/22 was more for me as I never got one as a kid and have never bought my self one as an adult. I think I have settled on getting one bb gun for now and I will start teaching my 4 year old gun safety with it and letting him shoot cans. I will look for a good deal on a .22 lever gun for them down the road as well. I think it is never too young to start trying to teach, if they aren't ready to learn/listen then I will just wait. I would never just let my 4 year walk around with a bb gun. More thinking of getting him on a bench and letting him shoot cans. Thanks for the advice though. I do have a buddy I know who had his 1 month old shoot his AR-15 that was strapped in a sled and had a suppressor on it. Now when he is older he can tell people he shot an AR that young. Anyway I thought it was pretty cool.

 

[Lawnboi]

I'd agree on starting them with a bolt or pump 22, I'd avoid an auto or even lever action for a while.

Then go buy yourself a 10/22 and a few banana clips, everyone needs one of those.