Youth shotgun for 7 yr old

[Cowbell]

I am looking to find the best shotgun for the oldest of my three boys. Mainly to shoot birds and squirrels, especially duck hunting. We currently have a .410 single shot and a light franchi 20 gauge and both kick way too much for him. Looking for your expert opinions. I'm willing to pay for quality as we have two more boys behind him and I look at guns as assets that hold value if they are good. He just turned 7 and already hunts a lot. Most youth models still aren't quite small enough for him. Thanks for any help.

 

[hereinaz]

Don’t think anything prebuilt for a 7 yo exists.

IMO, get a semiautomatic and cut the stock to fit with a fat recoil pad. Add a little weight to the stock next to the recoil pad just to slow the recoil down.

I always say to parents, imagine if you had a 338 Lapua that was way too big for you that you had to try to control. First thing is you gotta get it fit if you want any chance not getting kicked around.

 

[_S_R_]

Only mossberg 510 .410 comes to mind

 

[ebrownw2]

You might check out the Savage 555 compact .410 O/U if you have not. I have one I got for my boys around that age and we were happy with it. The shorter overall length of a double might help him balance it better than a pump or auto.

 

[hereinaz]

You might check out the Savage 555 compact .410 O/U if you have not. I have one I got for my boys around that age and we were happy with it. The shorter overall length of a double might help him balance it better than a pump or auto.

Size of the shotgun matters, adding the weight of a second barrel may help.

My single shot, O/U, and pumps all kick harder than an auto, all things being equal. The auto uses some of the recoil inertia to cycle.

 

[huntinfool84]

I have a mossberg 510 in 410 and 20ga. They worked well for my kids in their younger years. I just recently bought a Stoeger M3020 from Cabelas used guns (it was new just on clearance) and a youth stock from midwest gun works and it has been awesome for both kids (16&12)

 

[Kurts86]

The mini Mossberg pumps are the only thing that exists in a stock form for a 7 year old lop.

I’d consider a Tristar G2 410, cut the stock down even further and fit a new recoil pad.

If you want to go full in I’d buy a Benelli SBE3 28 gauge, cut the stock and fit an adjustable butt plate for the kids.

 

[Thinkingman]

The mini Mossberg pumps are the only thing that exists in a stock form for a 7 year old lop.

I’d consider a Tristar G2 410, cut the stock down even further and fit a new recoil pad.

If you want to go full in I’d buy a Benelli SBE3 28 gauge, cut the stock and fit an adjustable butt plate for the kids.

No way would I put someone who is recoil-sensitive behind an inertia shotgun.

My son was kind of beefy at 8 years old but I contacted Browning and they sent a youth stock conversion kit for the Silver Hunter 20ga I had been shooting.
Turned it in to a nice little range/field gun.
Once he got big enough, the compact stock came off and the original buttstock went back on.
It's really a nice shooting shotgun.

 

[Kurts86]

No way would I put someone who is recoil-sensitive behind an inertia shotgun.

My son was kind of beefy at 8 years old but I contacted Browning and they sent a youth stock conversion kit for the Silver Hunter 20ga I had been shooting.
Turned it in to a nice little range/field gun.
Once he got big enough, the compact stock came off and the original buttstock went back on.
It's really a nice shooting shotgun.

For what’s worth the SBE3 28 gauge kicks lighter than my gas operated Beretta AL390 20 gauge I have while still being 1 pound lighter. It also has all the comfortech accessories that help mitigate some recoil.

There is always the Beretta A400 28 gauge for lighter recoil but they come with the compromise of only being wood stocked and every variant except the silver one having a 2 3/4” chamber. The Benelli SBE3 has a 3” chamber and best finish options.

The Tristar 410 is probably the lowest recoiling option as a gas 410 but they aren’t particularly nice or know for long term durability.

410 single shots and inertia 20 gauges are neither low recoiling guns for the payload and speed going down range. A really good inertia 28 gauge is not hard kicking by any means and are going to shoot lighter than a comparable pump or o/u. Sure a gas gun is generally best but I’ve been shooting a SBE3 28 gauge all year and it’s quite manageable at a very light weight.

 

[ETtikka]

I have a youth model Charles Daly that my son used, even though its a light recoil gas gun, it was still way too much for the avg 7yr old