American Gun Co. 12 gauge Hammer Double Barrel. Kicks like a mule and knocked me on my a$$ first time I fired it. Did teach me a great respect for guns though.
Posted on 12/08/2011 4:11:32 PM PST by smokingfrog
“...single shot bolt action 22 rifle”
Best advice yet.
Got my first one at 7 years old for Christmas (53 years ago.
Nothing about a 10/22 teaches bad marksmanship. Its the teacher and the shooter.
At age 6, I learned on a Mini-14 chambered for .223. I could handle it, but my first gun as a kid was an Iver Johnson .22. I don’t know where the IJ is, but the Mini-14 is with me, still after 30 years.
Wow. I knew the Remington Nylon 66 was a popular, almost indestructible little rifle, but $825? Ouch!
My Dad’s wouldn’t be worth that much. It’s a well used little tack driver... ;-)
You’ll put your eye out!
hey Breeze - take a gander at this thread!!!!!
I never said it did. But there is a reason why single shot rifles are very popular for teaching young shooters who are going into hunting, especially if they are going into black powder hunting.
Now if you are just teaching a kid how to bang away at a tin can, then a single shot rifle is a waste of time. Just hand the kid one bullet at a time until he learns the operation of the gun, then let him go at it and bang away.
Marlin 795. Load mag with one bullet to start. Most important, get to an Appleseed. See my tag.
Stainless laminated stock Ruger 10-22.
For a Pistol the Ruger .22 Standard.
After that the Ruger Mini 14 and a 1911 style 45 with a .22 conversion slide.
Yeah I guess semi-auto’s really do force bad behavior on people.
my first rifle was also a Marlin/Glenfield .22 bolt action , think it cost $29.00 with a little scope. my daughter has been shooting single shot .22’s with the 4H , she’s about to inherit dad’s Marlin.
I saw 2 or 3 of those at Gander Mt. a year or two ago. They looked like they had been through 3 or 4 wars, and weren’t really that cheap either.
Though it’s a bit more expensive, I would start a child with a pump BB/pellet gun, because it provides a lot of training in use, handling, targeting, technique, and accuracy. When a child has fired a canister or a few of BBs, and a box of soft lead pellets, they are going to have a very good grasp of gun use.
Next, I would move up to a .22 with a scope. Even then, start with .22 shorts, and using iron sites. The old standard for expertise with those was being able to shoot the “o” out of a Coca-cola bottle at 50 feet. The report from a .22 short is negligible, but gets them thinking about hearing protection, and keeping their rifle clean and maintained.
The jump to .22 LR and a scope seems like moving up to a bicycle with the training wheels removed. For the first time, they are dealing with real range and potential for harm, and safety and ethics become important. The are now dealing with a weapon, not just a training or practice device.
Children also need to be taught what a .22 can do, and what it can’t do. And they should also learn first aid, and what they need to know about other people, who many have no experience or training, and guns. They can do everything right, but one of their little friends could do everything wrong. And someone could get hurt.
They also need to know something about local laws, and how to behave around police who may not be as familiar with the law as he should. Or who just has an attitude.
Once they are comfortable with a scoped .22 LR, they need experience with handguns. Shotguns I would save for last, along with any training in explosives beyond fireworks.
This one was in pretty good shape and was like $250
Is the .600 Overkill a good starter gun?
Rossi makes a nice single shot youth gun with two interchangeable barrels, a .22 with a .410 or a .17 with a .410
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