My daughter is going to get her first rifle

Self | Jan.19,2005 | self

[TMSuchman]

On or around the Feb.01,2005, I will get my daughter [age 11] will get her first .22 rifle. I will be getting her a Henery Lever action Youth model. I will also be getting a larger version for myself, so we can go shooting together. I post this in order to get other "Freepers" input on this. Her mother [is a critter lover] is very aginst hunting, but has let me get her one so we can go target shooting on the local range. I hope that this will make for some great "Daddy & Daughter" days!

[Armedandfemale]

That is so seriously cool. I came to shooting late, but I had an instance like that also. It ended with a good old boy patting me on the back and saying, "Well, I guess it's not your father's Oldsmobile."

Now that I have a daughter, I need to start thinking about when to teach her to shoot. I like the idea of making her earn her own money to buy one. I also like the idea of finding a mother/daughter gun saftety course we can attend. I can always use a brush up!

Thanks for all the informed thoughts.

[Jaysun]

Just a ques ton. Would it be okay to give a rifle to an 11 year old boy?
I like the poster's answer saying he would keep the rifle locked in his gun safe. But as for me, giving an 11 year old a 22 rifle is fine as long as the parent and child are responsible. Easy-Bake ovens are dangerous too.

I might be able to save myself some grief by giving you a line of BS, but here's my honest answer: Everything else being the same, yes. Boys will have (supposed to anyway) special responsibilities in life, so it's a whole different ballgame. Not just with guns. I think a daughter requires more constraint (in things like dating for example) than a boy does. I know that most would see that as hypocritical, unfair, and so on - but that's the way things are in Jaysunville.

[hiredhand]

That is so seriously cool. I came to shooting late, but I had an instance like that also. It ended with a good old boy patting me on the back and saying, "Well, I guess it's not your father's Oldsmobile."

Now that I have a daughter, I need to start thinking about when to teach her to shoot. I like the idea of making her earn her own money to buy one. I also like the idea of finding a mother/daughter gun saftety course we can attend. I can always use a brush up!

Thanks for all the informed thoughts.

There's a lot of value in making them EARN the money for the weapon! In fact, all three of mine either paid (mostly) cash, or worked off the debt. My daughter is still "borrowing" one of my Tasco World Class scopes, and a Harris Bipod.

A good gun safety course is ALWAYS good! For a long time, we did 90% gun safety, and 10% shooting. Now, safety has become more of a habit than anything. I'm usually the defacto safety officer though, and I keep a VERY close eye on them and make sure that safety is enforced!

This is VERY demanding with the CQB drills that the boys run....and I have to move with them. I didn't realize they were so fast until I had to keep up with them! I'm 40, and they're all under 14! :-)

Girls that shoot are the best! :-)

[Dashing Dasher]

Thanks for the story!
She sounds awesome!

[hiredhand]

Thanks for the story!
She sounds awesome!

You're welcome! She IS awsome! :-)

[Jaysun]

I just realized what your name represents. We get a box of the good stuff from Germany once a month.

[Tijeras_Slim]

You are the best judge of your child's maturity and ability, but there is no reason that an 11 year cannot safely use a firearm under adult supervision. Most kids who get started on shooting early under the care of a parent gain a better sense of responsibility than their non-shooting peers. I support your decision completely.

[Gingersnap]

"...instead of needing to track a wounded rifle through the brush."

Don't you hate it when that happens? They're tough and cagey, too. But I just can't stand that sound they make, especially the bolt actions, so I always go after them. LOL!

[lindor]

I appreciate your straightforward answer. I don't agree, but that's what makes the world go around.

Yes, that's my favorite chocolate too and it's the absolute best for making chocolate chip cookies. I can find it locally but maybe that's because there are many German and Swiss in this area.

[TMSuchman]

BTTT

[Shooter 2.5]

High Power Rifle Match

IDPA Match

[supercat]

I said, "There are three more rounds in the weapon....you gonna shoot em?" She smiled, looked at her target, and then across the group of young men all standing around, and she said, "Nope! I'm done!"

Shouldn't the weapon be cleared before a person walks up to the target? Unless the magazine was removed, locking the slide back doesn't seem sufficient; pistols have been known to slam-fire.

[hiredhand]

Shouldn't the weapon be cleared before a person walks up to the target? Unless the magazine was removed, locking the slide back doesn't seem sufficient; pistols have been known to slam-fire.

Well.... :-) She didn't lock the slide back. She flipped the slide lock safety upwards, and (as I remember) without pointing it in an unsafe direction, handed it over to me.

If the 1911 slam fires, the weapon has a MAJOR problem and probably shouldn't be in active use anyway.

I'm pretty sure after she said she didn't want to shoot it anymore, I holstered it, and there it stayed. :-)

[ExSoldier]

I started my stepdaughter with helping me clean my guns when I came back from the range. She was seven then. By age ten I was teaching her to shoot (I am a certified firearms instructor, after all) my Ruger 10/22 rifle, and from there to my Ruger Super Single Six SA revolver and finally (by age 12) to the Ruger SP101. I started her out on light 38sp reloads and moved her steadily until she can handle a full house .357 125gr SJHP. I tried to get her to try semiauto pistols, but she said there was too much moving at once for her to concentrate. So be it. She got married last July and I gave her the gun as hers forever. Plus a custom holster and a CCW permit. Now all I have to do is train her new hubby to be as good as she is....or at least close enough that she doesn't shatter his ego on the range.

[TMSuchman]

BTTT

[supercat]

If the 1911 slam fires, the weapon has a MAJOR problem and probably shouldn't be in active use anyway.

Oh, I don't disagree with you. But it would seem on principle that clearing all firearms before going downrange would be a very good habit to instill (holstering firearms may be an acceptable alternative, but in your original post you didn't say you did that).

BTW, why did John Moses Browning design the 1911 so that the safety had to be on "fire" to rack the slide? If the safety could be put on "safe" when the pistol was decocked I could understand it (since attempting to rack the slide in such a case could put undue force on the safety) but given that it can only be put on "safe" with the hammer cocked, why is it should it not be possible to rack the slide in such a condition? Any idea why Browning made it that way?

[scottywr]

I bought my son that rifle and he just loves it. He has to hide it from me because that is the first gun I'll grab if I'm going out plinkin'. If you are interested in getting your daughter into shooting but not hunting you should look into your local 4H shooting sports club.

[Jack Deth]

Good choice in shootin' irons, TMS.

.22s can be a lot of fun. Cheap. Low recoil. Great for learning the fundamentals and hopefully instill a greater interest in larger calibers.

Don't be surprised if your daughter shoots well right off the bat, either. Most of the teenage girls I've watched at ranges appear more calm and deliberate behind a firearm than boys.

Boys seem to like the noise more than lining up a good shot.

I'm sure you'll have lots of quality Father/Daughter time with your Henrys.

Jack.

[packrat01]

Something about giving an 11 year old girl her own rifle just doesn't feel right.

ditto here. she shoulda got it when she was 8. handguns are for 11 year olds...

[B4Ranch]

>>I personally feel quite different about the matter when we're talking about a son rather than a daughter.<<


Having two attractive daughters who both started shooting when they were about 9 or 10, both were qualified with .22 handguns and rifles through .30 cal carbines when they were 14, I have to strongly disagree with you.

Who do you read about in the newspaper being kidnapped more frequently, young boys or girls?

As teenagers they both carried .38's in their saddlebags when they went riding with friends in the hill. Both now have CCW's.

And I wouldn't want to be the unfortunate attacker who attempted to abuse either of them. It would very likely end up with a short funeral for the attacker while she was out buying a new purse because the old one has a new hole in it.