[kimbernut]

Asking for guidance or suggestions for my 9 year old grandson's first air rifle. His LOP is only about 10.5" so whatever we go with may need to be cut down. He has been to the range with me with both a 10/22 and a .308 boltgun but I had to aim so he could squeeze the trigger.The smaller air rifles all seem to be smooth bore. Are they accurate enough for 25 yard practice?Any suggestions appreciated.Thanks in advance!

[eagle45]

Have you considered one of the air gun pistols? No stock length to worry about. Only air rifle I have is the Gamo Hunter, 1000 fps not really suited for a youngster.

[Legionnaire]

My recommendation would be a pneumatic like a Benjamin. They can be shot at different velocities by pumping them up to different levels. And having a youngster pump between shots is, in my opinion, a "good thing." I've ordered from D&R with satisfaction over the years.

Benjamin Model 397 (http://www.dnrsports.net/miva/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=DSC&Product_Code=CRO00066&Category_Code=airgunscro)

[Black Majik]

How bout' like a BB gun, like a lever action.

My first BB gun I got was a Daisy Lever action BB gun, I taught myself pretty well with that thing. It it only had a velocity of 450 fps.

It was a good starter BB gun to get me into shooting. :)

[Calumus]

My first air rifle was a daisy 880 that my father bought me. Great little gun and they still sell them at walmart for under $50. Shoots BB's or .177 pellets, and definatly took a beating. The new ones I've seen come with scopes too. Its worth checking out. Cheers,
Shawn

[Leatherneck]

Hey kimbernut, I just bought my Grandsons' first BB gun. It's a shared asset among the four of them, and it lives at Grampy's house. :D

I chose the Daisy Competition Match 499B Target BB Gun; it's a lever-action, single-shot target shooter that uses precision-ground steel BBs. The adjustable sights make it very accurate with the precision BBs. I bought it at Russell's for men for $99, but you possibly could find a better deal. I'll attach a pic of it as well as a snapshot of our first shooting session. Note that GS #3 pictured went 23 straight hits on a can at 25 feet last Sunday during his second session. :D

TC
TFL Survivor

[Bwana John]

I would NOT get him a BB gun, BB's bounce back way too much, get a pellet gun that is rifled, like a Sheridan, or Benjamin, if hes too small to pump it he is too young.
Have you thought about going strait to a .22? That way he starts out with a real firearm, and you can instill in him the respect that is due to "guns". There are some great first rifles (chipmunk, old favorite, CZ452 scout). You keep the rifle, and it gives him (and you) incentive to spend time together.
You can make it a tradition, (a .22 @ 10, a 20 ga single shot @ 12, a bolt action deer rifle @ 14, a 12 ga pump or autoloader @ 16, and a EBR @ 18 and a pistol @ 21. You tell him that if he is a responsible person he gets them all when he is legal, it give him incentive not to screw up as a teenager.
This is you big chance, concider your choices carefully.

[Leatherneck]

Nothing wrong with a .22 if you've got the room to shoot. Although we used to shoot extensively in our pasture at home, nowadays development has encroached so much that anything beyond a BB gun is out of the question. And I like being able to just step around the shop and shoot rather than having to pack up for a trip to the range. Convenience => more shooting.
BB's bounce back way too much Depends on the backstop and target. Open woods and aluminum cans have caused no ricochet problems. And at 325 fps, a BB isn't going to bounce back with much residual energy anyway. Your option...

TC
TFL Survivor

[borderguy]

Get him a Red Ryder and give it to him after watching "A Christmas Story" He can move up to the pump models when he gets older. Seems like every kid on my block had a lever BB gun.

[Dave Markowitz]

My first gun was a Daisy 99 BB gun, given to me at the age of 8 by my dad. I learned a lot on it.

That said, a better choice is a break-barrel spring piston air rifle in .177 caliber. My choice would be the RWS 24, which is available in a youth model. Here's why:

--More accurate than a BB gun.
--Lead pellets are less prone to ricochet than steel BBs.
--They require only 1 action to cock and prepare for shooting
--Good quality spring piston guns outlast good quality pneumatics, because the valves on the pneumatics wear out faster than the seals on a springer.
--Pneumatics offer less consistent shot-to-shot MV than springers because of variation in how you pump them.

[Bwana John]

Open woods and aluminum cans have caused no ricochet problems.
My open woodland (pondersosa pine, juniper, oak) bounces BB's everywere. I wouldnt call them ricochets, more like totally elastic collisions.

a BB isn't going to bounce back with much residual energy anyway.
I would still have the child wear saftey glasses(as well as myself). Never to young to start with good habits.

[jefmad]

How about one of these http://www.funsupply.com/airguns/b18.html ? A nice airgun for under $100. Its supposed to be a copy of the Gamo 220 for a great price.

[DF357]

A cuppla years ago I bought my 10 yr old granddaughter a Cricket .22. Her first gun. Small, kid's size, single shot bolt action, pull the button to cock. Very safe and a lot of fun. $90 at Wally's place.

For Xmas this year, she's getting a Henry lever action.

Consider a .22 if you can. The noise automatically makes them more respectful. It's not as much of a toy to play with for a kid.

[kimbernut]

Wow! I knew I could count on you all but I didn't really expect so great a turn-out.I appreciate all the input.Pistols and .22 RF are not options at this point but will be considered in a couple more years.I'll be taking a tour of WallyWorld in a couple of days and I'll see what they have to offer.
Right now I'm considering the break action and the Daisy Comp. Match that Leatherneck has recommended but in checking Crosmans in the American Backyard store the model 1760 and 2260 sound good but I've never had any experience with CO2 guns.Any thoughts on CO2? I like the idea that its single shot, bolt action,and crossbolt safety.Thanks again all!

[Leatherneck]

As I said, I got it with some other things I ordered from Russells for Men (http://www.russellsformen.com/01collectibles01/dai-499.html) and paid $99 there. Here's another place (http://www.pilkguns.com/d499.htm) where it's 10 bucks cheaper. Nice little gun, and the boys (and even Grammy and Mom) enjoyed shooting it. I was the "target" provider. :evil:

TC
TFL Survivor

[larryw]

I bought a Daisy Powerline 880 for my son, now 9. At 25 yards, soda cans are in grave danger and the gun is good past 25 yards with pellets: I use it as pest control in our back yard (very effective on some large birds that like to poop in our pool).

Gun was a bit big for him, but it was easy to trim the plastic stock down and we made a project of it. I trimmed the stock to proper LOP (cut and measured a couple times so he was happy with the custom job), then fit and epoxy'd the buttplate back on. You don't notice it unless you look carefully.

http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews3703.html

[Dave Markowitz]

Any thoughts on CO2?

Pros:
--CO2 guns are completely recoilless
--Allow you to have neat action types, e.g., revolvers and semiautos

Con:
--Unless you use a bulk fill system it gets expensive

[Wedge]

My brother and I had Crossman Outbacks as our first air guns. They basically looked like AR-15s, and I am pretty sure that they have been discontinued (they weren't all that great even though we still have the rusted hulks at our parents house).

My father set up a range in the basement and gave us a safety lecture. For about the 1st month we had to have mom or dad down in the basement to use the guns. Then we got to where they would let us use them on our own (as long as they were home). My parents were both Cub Scout BB gun range instructors... Yeah, it sounds a little hokey but I will say that they set up and ran a really nice range in the basement and safety was always stressed.

The lessons learned early on always stuck with us. My brother is definetly not a responsible person except around firearms and I think that comes from being exposed to them (even a BB gun) early on and having the rules drilled in.

Good luck!

[lee n. field]

The Gamo Delta is a small, plastic stocked, break barrel spring piston rifle. It's pretty light, easy to cock and not too powerful.

I got one for one of my sons some years ago.

http://www.airgunexpress.com/ProductPages/GamoAirguns/onlinegamodeltaairrifle701-11-5254.htm

[DF357]

The CO2 will be expensive to feed. If you don't finish off a cartridge, you've wasted what's in it because most won't hold the charge if you leave it in the gun.

If a .22 is not inthe cards because of it's power, be aware some of the CO2's are DARNED powerful.

[Dave R]

I 2nd something like the Gamo Delta. I remember very well when I was a Kid, and had my Red Dyder levergun. The accuracy was bad enough that it did not do much to teach good marksmanship. No matter what I tried, I couldn't hit much beyond 10 yards.

When I got the equivalent of the Gamo delta (mine was some Czech import) my enjoyment of shooting went way up. I could shoot things further away, and hit them. It was rewarding to improve my hold, trigger skills, etc. and watch the groups improve. Or just hear the "ping" from farther away.

BTW--BBs DO ricochet from wood. One scary moment from my youth was when I shot at a piece of paper on a telephone pole. Yeah, I know, dumb thing to do. I was 6-7. The BB ricocheted back and HIT ME IN THE EYE. I saw a bright flash, and felt the impact in my eye. Boy, was I scared. I thought my Mom would kill me! Turned out it was going slow enough it just lodged in my lower eyelid. But I learned about Rule 4 that day!!!