Youth Rifle for Daughter

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Airgead

Airgead

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Does anyone have some recommendations on a "budget" youth rifle in .22LR for a small youth? My daughter is now old enough and mature enough to shoot and I want to get a rifle for her. However she is quite small for her age. My Marlin 989M2 is a few inches too long for her even at bench rest but the biggest problem is she can't pull the trigger on it when a round chambered. She practiced with me in the basement dry-firing first, learning basics of gun safety, sight alignment, etc. But when we got out to the range the first time, she couldn't pull the trigger with the round loaded. I think the round in the chamber puts enough pressure on the trigger to make it a shade to hard for her right now. The old Marlins have a pretty heavy trigger. She was pretty disappointed and I want to make it up to her.

So I was looking a few models that are more modern and made for the youth shooter. Among them is the Ruger American Rimfire Compact and the Savage Mark IIGY. I'm trying to avoid models like the Crickett (looks incredibly cheap) and the Savage Rascal (would prefer multi-round capacity). I found the local Field and Stream has the Ruger in stock but they're not keen on letting youth handle firearms nor on dry firing. I haven't found anywhere with the Savage in stock. I hate to order one blind and have the same problem.

Any suggestions out there, either other models or how hard your kids found the trigger to pull?
 
I think the Cricket is just fine for teaching a youth how to shoot. A single shot that has to be manually cocked is nice safe, simple rifle. If you want something a bit more upscale, take a look at a CZ Scout.
 
I would get her one of the AR-pattern .22's. With a telescoping stock, it will grow with her. I was at the range Friday and watched a father work with his daughter to take her first shots with a S&W M-4 clone. It had a cheap RDS, and she was hitting just fine at 50 yards in no time.
 

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I can't recommend the Cricket rifles as they're a pain to shoot (manually cocking is not a safety feature, but a design flaw -- likewise exposed mainsprings) and they're a pain to load (no loading ramp so you have to fumble-finger each round directly into the chamber which is tough with adult-sized fingers). While they do function, they're more toy-like than a real rifle.

The Savage line like our Cub or the newer Rascal are much more developed rifles, and as small as you can get. Considerably smaller than even the CZ youth rifles. I've started our kids as young as 3 y.o. with ours and by about 6 they can manipulate the gun on their own. The Accu-Triggers are pretty awesome, too. A heavy, unrefined trigger is just a frustration for a kid -- again, NOT a safety feature.

Some words of comparison with other youth rifles:
The question here really comes down to how young/small does he plan to start his kids out? I've started most of mine pulling triggers at 3-4 (sitting in my lap with my arms around them) and they were handling the rifle without assistance by 6 or so. That's not going to work with a Ruger American or Marlin youth model. Those have relatively short (for an adult) lengths of pull at 12" to 12.5", and around 6 lbs total weight, but a 6 or 7 year old needs a considerably shorter and lighter weapon still. The Rascal's length of pull is only 11-1/4" and it weighs a flyweight 2.66 lbs. That's a whole different ballgame for a little guy or gal.
Click to expand...
 
Remington makes a single shot bolt action youth rifle that she would be pleased to use up into her teen years. It is a step up from the cricket and with scope mounts. I believe the model is 512.
 
CZ Scout. Can be set up for single shot or box magazine. The triggers can be tuned simply and cheaply to whatever pull you desire. When the shooter grows out of the youth stock the barreled action can be dropped into a CZ adult sized sporter stock with no mods. CZ firearms become addictive, caution is advised.
 
get her a 10-22, no sense wasting money on a crappy cheap gun when for less than $100 more you can get a nice one, the 10-22 will be in her grandkids safe if properly maintained. other than that i second the cricket, i bought one for myself for days i wanted to conserve ammo but still shoot, and works alright.
 
Bolt, bolt, bolt for sure.

ANY kid I have seen at the range, including my grand daughter first time out with a semi will tend to go fast instead of following instructions and self discipline.
 
I bought a T/C Hotshot with a 4x scope that was made for that rifle. She is small, but the pistol angled grip helps her a lot. It is an accurate rifle, but is kind picky with ammo. It likes standard velocity CCI 40 grain, and it has a full length 19" barrel vs. the 16" that most 'youth' rifles have which I like. It helps her have better accuracy and keeps velocities up.

Good thing about this rifle is that it will shoot .22 L, .22 Shrt, and .22 LR. It shoot Super Colibis' very well. I find that the break barrel action of the T/C Hotshot is good practice for the shotgun i.e. single or over and under that she will be shooting in Jr. High for the Trap Team. She can carry it with the action open on her shoulder when walking in the woods or at the range, and it is not a safety issues for patrons around her.

I also have a Ruger 77/44 that she deer hunts with as her deer rifle. I like the 3 way safety it has for her. If we move positions in the woods she has a way to lock the bolt handle, and that helps make me comfortable.
 
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Quit dry firing a .22. Breaks 'em.
A round in the chamber puts no pressure on the trigger.
What's her LOP? And your budget?
 
Mossberg 801 Half-Pint,,,

Mossberg 801 Half-Pint,,,
This is a very nice little rifle,,,
A friend of mine bought one for his 7 year old son.

Click here please.

But there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Crickett,,,
I purchased one used to have for children of my friends to use.

It is very basic with no frills whatsoever,,,
But my young range buddy can hit a 1/2" dot sticker at 25 yards.

I'll put a target with 20 stickers on it,,,
He sits at the bench using a range bag as a rest,,,
20 rounds later he will have hit at least 18 of the dots.

There are certainly better made rifles than a Crickett,,,
I just hate to read people who bad-mouth them.

They are a great first gun for the young folk,,,
Accurate, inexpensive, and sturdy.

Aarond

.
 
One of the nice things about the Ruger American is that the butt on the compact and fullsizes are interchangeable so you can make the compact have the same LOP as the full size as she grows.

The triggers are adjustable too.
 
fouled bore said:
Remington makes a single shot bolt action youth rifle that she would be pleased to use up into her teen years. It is a step up from the cricket and with scope mounts. I believe the model is 512.
Click to expand...

I couldn't find a Remington youth-specific model. The 512 looks like an old rifle model. The 597 has a picture of a kid shooting it in on the website but it doesn't appear to be "youth" in size.

sunray said:
Quit dry firing a .22. Breaks 'em.
A round in the chamber puts no pressure on the trigger.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I know it's not the greatest to dry fire a rimfire, but we weren't doing it that much and I wanted her to feel confident with the rifle and what she was doing before we hit the range.

I wouldn't have thought the round in the chamber puts any additional pressure on the trigger but it certainly does in my Marlin. I have to really focus on the trigger pull but I can notice the difference between an empty chamber and a loaded chamber. For my daughter, it's just enough extra grit that she can't squeeze off the shot.

Eb1 said:
T/C Hotshot with a 4x scope
Click to expand...

I couldn't find this on T/C's website. Is it a discontinued product? I saw some circa-2011 marketing info on it but nothing recent?

danez71 said:
One of the nice things about the Ruger American is that the butt on the compact and fullsizes are interchangeable so you can make the compact have the same LOP as the full size as she grows.
The triggers are adjustable too.
Click to expand...

The adjustable trigger is what I thought might be really good for her.

So far what I'm going to look at is the Savage Rascal, Marlin XT-22Y1, CZ 452 Scout, Mossberg 801 Half-Pint, and the Ruger ARC. I appreciate the suggestion about an AR15-22 but I want to start her off on basic rifle platform first. I'll have to see if there's some local shops with some of these.
 
Savage rascal. After checking out several options this was the one under the Christmas tree last year for my youngest. Happy with the choice. We like the weight, adjustable trigger, the safety and bolt cocking and even the peep sight. The Henry was a bit heavy for my son.
 
I couldn't find a Remington youth-specific model. The 512 looks like an old rifle model. The 597 has a picture of a kid shooting it in on the website but it doesn't appear to be "youth" in size.
Click to expand...
Not many of the "youth" marketed rifles are really appropriate for a young person, though they are nice for teenagers and smaller adults.

Just to reiterate:
The question here really comes down to how young/small does he plan to start his kids out? I've started most of mine pulling triggers at 3-4 (sitting in my lap with my arms around them) and they were handling the rifle without assistance by 6 or so. That's not going to work with a Ruger American or Marlin youth model. Those have relatively short (for an adult) lengths of pull at 12" to 12.5", and around 6 lbs total weight, but a 6 or 7 year old needs a considerably shorter and lighter weapon still. The Rascal's length of pull is only 11-1/4" and it weighs a flyweight 2.66 lbs. That's a whole different ballgame for a little guy or gal.
Click to expand...

When you start looking at the few actually SMALL rifles, most of the "youth" models look HUGE by comparison. If you're shopping for your 13 year old, that's fine. For a 6-year old... no.

Quit dry firing a .22. Breaks 'em.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I know it's not the greatest to dry fire a rimfire, but we weren't doing it that much and I wanted her to feel confident with the rifle and what she was doing before we hit the range.
Click to expand...
This is somewhat an old wive's tale. SOME rimfires aren't able to be dry-fired safely. Many, especially modern ones, are certainly perfectly acceptable to dry-fire. Check your owner's manual. Having been a smallbore competitor in previous days, I've put probably 100,000 dry-fire "clicks" on rimfire rifles worth an awful lot of money.

That Marlin is gettin' on toward antique status and it would be wise to check with the maker about this. Don't grab an antique .22 LR and do it wantonly, but if the manufacturer says it's ok, then it is a WONDERFUL (some would say a critical) way to practice and develop good techniques.
 
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Sam1911 said:
When you start looking at the few actually SMALL rifles, most of the "youth" models look HUGE by comparison. If you're shopping for your 13 year old, that's fine. For a 6-year old... no.
Click to expand...

This is a great point and I realize I was vague. My daughter is 8 ("and a half!" I hear her saying in my head as I type). So when I mean youth model I really am meaning a small rifle.

Sam1911 said:
That Marlin is gettin' on toward antique status
Click to expand...

Ssssshhh! It'll hear are you! :) Without looking, IIRC, it's a 1967.
 
I started taking my daughter to the range when she was four. That was four years ago. She'd sit on my lap and shoot my Browning ATD. I started shopping around a little over a year ago. I can't argue with anything anybody has suggested so far. As my daughter seemed to want to shoot ambidextrously though I ended up going with a Rossi Matched Pair in .22/.410. She likes the fiber optic sites on the .22 barrel and I like the .410 for hunting rabbits. Definitely not my first choice but I feel like I went with what was easiest/best for her.
 
I bought my boy a TC hotshot. Decent little rifle, but wouldn't do it again. Found one of the ones with the finish that looks like stainless...thought would be better than the plain one. I'm not sure now. Shoots ok...have some ammo bought from the cmp that doesn't go on the first click. Trigger just average. Once cocked must let hammer down or shoot... went this way b/c I really don't like Crickets and he's a little funny...writes LH, throws baseball and bats LH, is right eye dominant and has shot RH from the beginning.

Just bought the girl a Savage Cub. Much better. Nice trigger, shoots good. Has a safety and can open bolt with safety on. I'm not quite as impressed with the rear sight, tough to adjust and keep it adjusted it looks like. Also need to do some more measuring but it looks like it may fit into a Mark 2 stock if desired. ..kids are starting to shoot in 4-h so single shot is all that needed there.

Also have a Ruger American around...if I had it to do over, the boy would have a Savage or a Ruger over the TC...but didn't know then if the RH was going to stick.
 
I don't know if it is not for sale anymore, but I have a boyscout model brown stock and blackened metal. I do find that it will not shoot sometimes with cheap ammo, but with CCI standard ammo we have not had any issues at all. So that is what we use.
 
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