advice for new youth shooter

[Tylden]

My 10 year old son has been after me to teach him how to shoot ,and I'd like some advice for a good starter gun for him. He is fairly small for his age, and is left handed/right eye dominant, so I was thinking on starting him out shooting right handed, yes ?? Any advice/recommendations on a quality youth gun to start him out with ?? He doesn't have any interest in hunting, but would very much like to start target shooting. I've also been looking into a good youth firearms training program for him but haven't had any luck whatsoever finding anything reasonably local ( Frankfort, Kentucky). I appreciate an input.

 

[Eightball]

Welcome to THR! Marlin 39A. .22LR rifle, no recoil, fun little gun, teaches ammo conservasion (lever action), can mount a small 2x scope on there and be able to hit spent shotgun shells off of a fence at 75 yards (I was doing that yesteday with a buddy's gun with that setup--fun times!!). Might not officially have the word "youth" stamped on it anywhere, but I'm keeping an eye out for one myself--and I'm not a youth either .

EDIT: Just noticed your location. Look up Gilbert's guns in lexington (I think they've got a website), or you can come up to Knob Creek Range right outside of Louisville. It'd be a relatively short drive for you either place (I have one gun from Gilbert's myself ). KCR has lots of things for sale (Milsurps, AR, AK, FAL, .22's, Leverguns, Boltguns....basically everything), and has a conveniantly placed range nearby to test your new purchase .

 

[Ol` Joe]

Call some of the gun clubs in your area. I belong to two here and both offer training to kids. I`m only aware of hunter saftey which is required here for young hunters at the first, and the other club offers High power, IDPA and BB gun for club members and family.
I`m sorry but I`m not able to comment on the right eye left hand questions.

 

[dakotasin]

either a bolt action 22 or a single-shot break action 22.

i started my daughter out w/ a nef youth 22.

the safety aspect is easier to teach/grasp if there can only be one bullet sent downrange before having to manually cycle the next one in.

yes, teach him to shoot right handed.

 

[jefnvk]

The whole no-semi for a first shooter isn't exactly true. I learned on a semi-auto Browning .22. Standing there watching them shoot, and letting them know to slow down is just as effective.

If you want a bolt .22, the CZ 452's are real nice. Should run around the $300 mark (maybe a bit over). Ruger 10/22's are another great choice. Surplus Romanian trainer .22's are rumored to be excellent, and cost as little as $60.

There really aren't too many .22 rifles that you would go wrong with.

EDIT: I'd reccomed against a small youth sized one, such as the Chipmunk. Get something that'll still fit him when he grows.

 

[GunGoBoom]

I'd try to push him to shooting right-hand, so that his life is easier if he takes to it.

If I were in that situation, I'd seriously look at getting a Rossi single shot Youth matched pair (2 barrels) in either .22lr/.410 bore, or .22lr/20 ga - they have the short stock - unless he's a particularly large/tall kid.

All of these on these 2 pages are youth combos:

http://www.rossiusa.com/products/gunselector-results.cfm?series=MYR

http://www.rossiusa.com/products/gunselector-results.cfm?series=MYC

Rossi also has matched sets (3 barrels), new product, not shown there, which is something like .22lr/.410/.45 cal muzzleloader, IIRC, or .50 cal muzzleloader, but since he's not interested in hunting at this point, then I'd probably skip the ML combo.

 

[antsi]

I agree on shooting right-handed. I am left eye dominant and shoot left handed. I think it makes life easier to shoot to the dominant eye, not the dominant hand (especially since your son will shoot the much more easily available right-hand guns that way).

As far as what gun to get, I am with the bolt action folks.
I already have a good youth bolt action .22, handed down from 3 generations, but if I was looking for one today I would seriously check out this one:
http://www.cz-usa.com/01.detail.php?id=5
I don't have any direct experience with this particular rifle but my general experience is that CZ firearms are about the best buy $-for-$ out there - generally you are paying medium-low on the price tag and getting a real high quality piece of hardware.
(PS: you can usually get CZ stuff for somewhat less than they list as their MSRP).

 

[hps1]

First off, check out the Civilian Marksmanship Program for location of a CMP club near you. Many offer youth marksmanship training. Click on the following link:

Civilian Marksmanship Program

Select "Club Info", then "Affiliated Clubs"

Many of these clubs have rifles available for use by youngsters and you can try them out to see what works best for him. Most have certified instructors that will be glad to offer help/suggestions.

You might click on "Sales" and then "Rifle Sales" to see what CMP has to offer in way of rifles. They Used to have various smallbore rifles relatively cheap, but not sure what they currently offer. Our club had some CMP Mossberg 144's but found them to be too heavy for the smaller youngsters.

Definitely teach him to shoot right handed. My wife is nearly blind in her left eye, but is left handed. I taught her to shoot right handed very easily since she had never learned to shoot left handed. Much tougher to switch later on.

Agree w/previous posts suggesting a "full size" rifle as opposed to the chipmunks. Stocks can be cut to fit and either replaced later or put back together. If you plan to cut the stock and add the cut piece back when he grows into it, remove the butt plate and drill two 1/4" holes past the point you plan to cut off. This makes it simple to align the two pieces by driving 1/4" dowel coated w/glue in holes, then all you have to do is sand stock and refinish when piece glued back on.

Take the boy out and get him started! You'll both have a ball.

Regards,
hps

 

[30Cal]

I'm left eye dominant, right handed. I can shoot very well either way, but left handed is quite a bit better.

You might just want to go ahead and get the chipmunk. It'll give you an excuse later to go to a gun show when you need to sell it and buy something bigger.

Ty

 

[Master Blaster]

The gun needs to fit him if he is to have any chance of learning to shoot with it.

MAKE SURE YOU TAKE HIM with to look at the gun. Make sure that he can comfortably shoulder it, reach the trigger, and see the sights or scope.

I often read folks suggesting a full size adult gun for a small child, with the advice he will grow into it. A full size gun will work as well for him, if he is small, as an adult size 12 pair of basketball shoes but hey in 5 years he will grow into those too.

 

[scout26]

1. Get him a gun that fits. Bolt/Single shot/Semi doesn't matter. The right LOP makes all the difference. Have him bend his arm and measure from the inside of his elbow to the pad of his trigger finger. Find a .22 that has a LOP (From Buttplate to Trigger) of roughly (+/- 1/2") this same length. Have him check them out to see if he also has a good sight plane (He can see through the sights) when he has a proper cheek to stock weld, without having to twist/stretch or otherwise contort his neck. My daughter and I had a great time at Gander Mountain one day. She literally tried every shotgun (much to the exasperation of the salesman), before she picked/decide on a Bantam 20ga Mossberg. Find a well supplied gun shop and try 'em all, great fun for you and the boy (Just warn the salesperson what your doing ). Plus when he outgrows it, you have an excuse to buy a new gun. Super Double Plus, When it comes time for grandkids to learn...."This is the rifle your father used when I taught him to shoot."

2. Let him decide which way he wants to shoot or teach him to do it both ways. Whatever feels more comfortable to him. I'm also cross-eye dominant but feel comfortable shooting either way. (I'm better left-handed, because I have to slow down and think about what I'm doing, but feel "more" comfortable shooting right handed). I think I have an advantge over most people in that I don't have a "weak-hand" or "weak-side".

3. Make sure he has fun with the whole process. NoFun=Iquit.

 

[Tylden]

First, I'd like to thank all of you for your excellent posts ! To update everyone, I think we've found the PERFECT rifle for him....a CZ 452 Scout. I don't know who is more excited about it, him or me ! It's a pretty little rifle, seems to be very well made, and from what I hear the accuracy is great. It's a bolt action .22, 12 inch legnth of pull, and comes with a 5 round magazine and a 10 round is also available, and at $200, it doesn't break the bank....fits him like a glove. His birthday is coming up and I think he will be a VERY happy boy !

One more thing....aside from getting more opportunities to go to the range and shoot and/or farm for plinking, I'm REALLY excited about spending quality time together with him and having a hobby we BOTH can enjoy doing TOGETHER ! Life is good.

 

[GunGoBoom]

The 452 scout is a great choice - congrats!

 

[pauli]

2. Let him decide which way he wants to shoot or teach him to do it both ways. Whatever feels more comfortable to him. I'm also cross-eye dominant but feel comfortable shooting either way. (I'm better left-handed, because I have to slow down and think about what I'm doing, but feel "more" comfortable shooting right handed). I think I have an advantge over most people in that I don't have a "weak-hand" or "weak-side".

quoted for great justice.

best way to find out how someone will shoot best is to not even mention the subject of hands and eyes. let them figure it out. then, later, mention that they might want to try the other hand or eye.

me, i'm left handed, but right eye dominant. not an issue in handguns, though i do look pretty funny trying to figure out how to hold my p22 with my right hand. i'm hoping to buy a 39a this weekend, and fire a longarm for the first time in... fifteen years we'll see how i shoot it.

 

[Chipperman]

I agree with the sentiment of allowing him to choose which way to hold the rifle.

The only caveat to that is if the non-dominant eye is so weak that hecannot effectively use it.

I am Lefty and Right eye Dominant. My left eye works fine though, so I shoot Lefty and just close my right eye.

 

[Tylden]

He seems to be doing okay so far with the Crossman bb gun shooting right handed...still working on his trigger squeeze and technique, but I think he'll be just fine with a little practice. He's putting them on the paper at 25 yards....just need to tighten up his groups. That will come though....the main thing is he is having FUN and shooting safely.