Recommendations on youth rifle for 7 yo girl

[alabasterjar]

Looking for suggestions/recommendations...

So apparently, I have set a precedent for purchasing first firearm for my kids at age 7... My 6 yo daughter has been reminding me of this and that her birthday is at the end of December . I bought a Rossi 410/22 lr combo for my oldest boy and the Savage Arms Rascal Synthetic for my second boy, and am trying to figure out what to do for my daughter. She is petite, but crazy strong... I'm not necessarily worried about weight, but I do want to make sure the stock and grip/trigger combo are sized for her. She loves pink, but isn't afraid to play in the mud/pick up toads & snakes in her Sunday dress... I'd like to find something in pink, but it's not a deal breaker. I don't have a problem with purchasing a duplicate firearm (i.e. another Rossi or Savage), but I'm curious what my INGO peeps have to offer!

Thank you in advance to your suggestions!

 

[red_zr24x4]

Chipmunk / cricket come in pink. I believe the rascal does also

 

[Sniper 79]

My 7yr old girl loves my Savage 93R17FVSR. She calls it her baby and is a real dead eye with it. I get her set up with a target rich environment and load mags as she blasts away.

She wasn't impressed with the Cricket rifle and neither was I. We sold that one off. The 22lr ricochets and isn't real reactive on targets not to mention how filthy and inconsistent the ammo is. Pain in the rear loading one at a time. The 17HMR blows stuff up. Bullet frags out making it safer for everyone. Also shoots flat out past a hundred yards. Its a hoot.

 

[d.kaufman]

My daughter started out at 5 with the Savage Rascal. She graduated pretty quickly to the Ruger 10/22.
My advice is at 7 years old buy a 10/22. Teach her the fundamentals on your sons rascal and then move up to the 10/22. The 10/22 is highly customizable and everyone, even you, can have fun shooting it.

 

[Areoflyer09]

My daughter started out at 5 with the Savage Rascal. She graduated pretty quickly to the Ruger 10/22.
My advice is at 7 years old buy a 10/22. Teach her the fundamentals on your sons rascal and then move up to the 10/22. The 10/22 is highly customizable and everyone, even you, can have fun shooting it.

10/22 come in pink as well! It’s reallly pink, like a neon Pink Panther kind of pink.

 

[cg21]

My daughter (5) has a crickett she loves it. She also has the savage youth in muddy girl camo .243(50% off at Walmart who does that I couldn’t pass it by) we are going to start practicing with this year for 2019 deer. She has however informed me she does not want another bolt action for her collection. So a 10/22 will be in her future I’m sure.

My daughter is pretty strong also but even holding the cricket shooting wears on her fairly quick. So I built her a shooting table at the suggestion of a member on here.

 

[Tactically Fat]

As you know with your other kids - even child-sized "youth" guns are all pretty big as compared to a 7 year old. Even MY gigantic 4' tall 7 year old. The single shot Chipmunk rifle is just about "just right". And a 10/22 is all kinds of huge as compared to her. BUT - she'll eventually outgrow the Chipmunk, and she'll eventually grow INTO the 10/22.

If you have a shooting table and bags at the range you go to, then perhaps getting her something along the lines of what you got your boys would suffice - as something to grow into. Or snag a 10/22 (or 3) and allow them to grow into that platform as the kids themselves grow. Perhaps learning about all the stuff they can do with the rifle will cement them into this money-waster of a hobby we have. :-) (Says the guy who has 2 kids and 2 10/22 rifles in the safe awaiting)

 

[natdscott]

My 7yr old girl loves my Savage 93R17FVSR. She calls it her baby and is a real dead eye with it. I get her set up with a target rich environment and load mags as she blasts away.

She wasn't impressed with the Cricket rifle and neither was I. We sold that one off. The 22lr ricochets and isn't real reactive on targets not to mention how filthy and inconsistent the ammo is.

Well, I guess I've never heard that argument against .22LR for beginning shooters.

1) Pain in the rear loading one at a time.

(2) Bullet frags out making it safer for everyone.

(3) Also shoots flat out past a hundred yards.

In response,

1) It's SUPPOSED to be slower and one-at-a-time. That would be one of the very best ways to train a new shooter to value ONE round at a time: the one in the chamber.

2) That's false. Don't confuse the .17 HMR with something like a .17 Remington or a .17 Mach IV. The cartridge is NOT fast enough to cause consistent fragmentation of the bullets when they hit the ground beyond your target. Do some? Sure they do.

Anybody: don't be forming the opinion that ANY rimfire round is safer than another because it probably fragments when it hits the dirt.

3) I argue that brand-new shooters have no need need to be concerned with things past 100 yards. Really, not past about 25.



My opinion is that the very best thing for a brand-new shooter is to get them really excited and engaged in shooting, and to do that by letting them shoot a lot. That's not the same as saying let them 'spray and pray', but it IS saying that shooting nearly every day they want to shoot--and then letting them run through a box or more if they want--is a good way to start generating a shooter that might someday be really good with a rifle.

BB's are the best first start because they are lead-free, extremely affordable, and the guns that shoot them have NO recoil, and almost NO blast. Are they "cool", or "flashy"..well, they are as neat as much as you make them to your 7 year old. Try not to let your adult biases bleed all over their fun and practice, because the wrong bias at the wrong time can cripple a new shooter.

Make no mistake, it goes against every evolutionary influence for hundreds of thousands of years for a human to "get used to" an explosion right in front of their face. When a shooter can "take" the recoil and blast of a rifle---even a "Twenty Two"---and still control a rifle within +/- 0.010" and repeat, they have done something truly amazing, in the sense of the history of our species.

You don't have to stay on BB's for all that long. It may only be a year, maybe less...depends on the kid. When they are doing well with the BB gun, have some strength in their arms for a heavier rifle, and have eaten several hundred or a couple thousand BB's, maybe it's time to start moving. The biggest thing would be to make sure they are asking to shoot the "big rifle", or the "twenty two".

When you make that transition, it's for a lifetime, but watch very closely for them to begin developing a flinch. Even a .22 can cause this, so keep their ear protection and eye protection on, and go back and forth to the BB gun if you need to...tell them it's "to let the .22 rest", or just tell them the truth about why...whichever's your style.

Now, I am specifically skipping over pellets. The BB gun can, for the time being, teach them nearly everything they need before going to a rimfire, and it does so with no exposure to lead. The .22 Rimfire, then, allows them to handle the round either 1) by the brass, (2) by wax coating, and/or (3) by a copper-washed bullet. ALL of those options help to limit the lead exposure of your child, where nearly none are available to the accurate pellet rifle. And they still need to then go scrub their hands with soap and water before doing anything else.

At some point in their future, perhaps beyond the age of 12-13, a really accurate pellet rifle will be the hone they need to bring their shooting ability to the next level. Just not for a little kid.


On the next piece, a .22 rimfire rifle: you can't ever stop learning with one. It is the single best training device for firearms that was ever designed because it has the best combination of:
--low recoil
--moderate noise level
--accuracy (enough)
--economy
--poor ballistics
--supply & bullet choice.

Those are ALL things you need in a training rifle.

.17 HMR fails on noise level, economy, and arguably ballistics (at least at the short ranges where new shooters should be shooting). It can also be in short supply, and certainly has limited bullet choices.

That's not much of a passing grade when the .22 LR passes ALL of the above.


-Nate

 

[shootersix]

I agree with the 10/22 they make a compact model with a shorter stock and fiber optic sights and as she grows you can make the gun grow with her by changing the stock, adding scopes, changing the barrel and much more

 

[crewchief888]

I don't think you could go wrong with a 10/22.
They are reliable, customizable and with standard velocity ammo are almost silent. It's the most popular 22 rifle I see at steel matches.

Federal auto match out of my mossberg 715t has zero recoil and no muzzle blast.

 

[natdscott]

I personally think that an auto-loader is a bad idea for a beginner.

One shot at a time is enough at a time until they demonstrate responsibility with their muzzle and trigger finger, and also demonstrate that they value and respect the ONE round that is the chamber.

Same as with BBs, this process may not take years and years, but a single-shot bolt gun or a bolt repeater with a single-shot block/adapter is the way I'd go for the first .22 rifle.

-Nate

 

[Twinsen]

Get the savage rascal the cheepest you can find it, then rattle can paint it with her! Better yet, let her paint the one you have and upgrade the older boy to 10/22... Then in a few years.... Let her have and paint that too!

 

[bacon#1]

My kids all got a Cricket at 5. One round at a time. I watched someone who remain nameless hand a 5 year old a 10/22 with a 25 round clipazine. It was there first time handling a firearm. Ah no.

 

[Areoflyer09]

I personally think that an auto-loader is a bad idea for a beginner.

One shot at a time is enough at a time until they demonstrate responsibility with their muzzle and trigger finger, and also demonstrate that they value and respect the ONE round that is the chamber.

Same as with BBs, this process may not take years and years, but a single-shot bolt gun or a bolt repeater with a single-shot block/adapter is the way I'd go for the first .22 rifle.

-Nate

Quality of teacher matters more than the platform. You can teach responsibility.

Both of my nephews learned on a semi-auto Mossberg. I’d rather have them at the range with me than most people that show up.

If you really want to limit them to one shot, you can just put one round in the magazine or with a 10/22 pick up a single shot kit.

 

[natdscott]

If you really want to limit them to one shot, you can just put one round in the magazine or with a 10/22 pick up a single shot kit.

Indeed, there are those options.

However, taking a 10/22 mag in/out and reloading it with one round at a time makes a single-shot open-top bolt action look like a damn Ferrari in terms of speed. There IS a limit to how slow you can go in between shots before it looks more like a PITA than it does fun.

Too, the ejection port (NOT a loading port, was never intended to be such) on a 10/22 is not really conducive to single-round feeding, and has the potential to mash little fingers. Same for several other types of auto-loading .22.

Occams's razor sorta applies here, if a guy is asking us what to do BEFORE owning the weapons:

Single shot. Bolt action.

-Nate

 

[Kirk Freeman]

As Uncle Kirk, I have purchased a Gander Mountain of .22 rifles.

First choice, CZ452 Scout. Second choice, Marlin 15YN.

 

[Old Bear]

I just went through the same issue a couple of months ago. I looked carefully at all of the newer "youth" rifles and couldn't bring myself to buy any of them. I think a first gun should be something that is cherished and held onto for a lifetime. So...I went out and found an exceptionally nice Stevens Little Scout 14 1/2 falling block single made around the mid 1920's or so. It is super lightweight, good trigger and will last several lifetimes.

I know that several people will give me flak for giving a 7 yr old a rifle like this, but my grandson LOVES this thing. The grin on his face when he hits one of the spinner targets and the way he carefully wipes it down before we put it back in the safe, makes this the perfect first gun for the 7 yr old in my life.

 

[Mgderf]

I just went through the same issue a couple of months ago. I looked carefully at all of the newer "youth" rifles and couldn't bring myself to buy any of them. I think a first gun should be something that is cherished and held onto for a lifetime. So...I went out and found an exceptionally nice Stevens Little Scout 14 1/2 falling block single made around the mid 1920's or so. It is super lightweight, good trigger and will last several lifetimes.

I know that several people will give me flak for giving a 7 yr old a rifle like this, but my grandson LOVES this thing. The grin on his face when he hits one of the spinner targets and the way he carefully wipes it down before we put it back in the safe, makes this the perfect first gun for the 7 yr old in my life.

I have more rim-fire rifles than I can recall on a moments notice, but the "fun-gun" that always comes to mind when discussing rim-fires is my Winchester 1885 "Low-Wall" in .22Lr.

It is by FAR the most fun .22 I own. WAY more fun than the 10/22.

 

[Areoflyer09]

Indeed, there are those options.

However, taking a 10/22 mag in/out and reloading it with one round at a time makes a single-shot open-top bolt action look like a damn Ferrari in terms of speed. There IS a limit to how slow you can go in between shots before it looks more like a PITA than it does fun.

Too, the ejection port (NOT a loading port, was never intended to be such) on a 10/22 is not really conducive to single-round feeding, and has the potential to mash little fingers. Same for several other types of auto-loading .22.

Occams's razor sorta applies here, if a guy is asking us what to do BEFORE owning the weapons:

Single shot. Bolt action.

-Nate

I wouldn’t go the single shot in an SA, but it’s an option.

What does a single shot teach that a quality teacher can’t? I was taught the only round that matters is in the one in the chamber. I learned a lever action with a full tube. We counted time between shots using a steel spinner.

 

[BStarkey 46947]

I started my boys on a Youth model Henry .22 lever action. It is not auto feeding and has cool/fun factor for feeding the rounds.