Advice on youth .22

[RMG]

Bud's Guns has the standard 22" Ruger American for $190.

https://www.budsgunshop.com/mobile/product/90217/ruger+8301+american+rimfire+22+lr++22"

I just picked one up. Hard to pass up on that price.

Agree with everyone on recommending the 10/22 - so versatile - you can custom it to fit when they are wee ones, then retro it as they grow.

That is a GREAT price on the Ruger American .22

 

[DoggyDaddy]

A good fitting rifle is the ticket.

When my youngest daughter started seriously shooting rifles, I found that the Ruger 10/22 Compact fit her like a glove. Added a sling and a scope, attended a few Appleseed (now Revere's Riders) basic rifle classes and she earned her rifleman status. We did have to build up the comb with pipe insulation and vet wrap to get her a proper cheek weld and alignment with the scope.

If you go with a scope, get something decent and mount it to the rifle with a solid base and rings. We used a Vortex Crossfire II 2-7x32 Rimfire V-Plex scope, EGW base and Warne rings.

But the sighing system isn't the issue with kids and their great eye sight. It's all about the stock fit. I've witnessed too many youth trying to cope with an adult sized stock and it always ends up as a lesson in frustration management.

As an aside, I'd stay away from the tiny single shot rifles. Those stocks become too small too fast.

Agreed. Just my two cents, but I think it makes more sense to get them something they'll grow into instead of growing out of.

 

[Hookeye]

Ya know. If your kid outgrows a Chipmunk rifle, you can buy another rifle. And have the smaller one for the next kid that comes along.

I had a cheap bolt .22 and a brand new walnut 1022. Was a small kid.....and the bolt rifle shot better.....so thats what i preferred.

The Glenfield 20 was not cut down.

 

[patience0830]

My oldest is already 5’3” and the youngest isn’t too far behind her so I’m not looking at the Cricket types.

Ruger American Rimfire. Adjustable. Teaches how to use a bolt action. Accurate little guns in my experience.

 

[Sniper 79]

I feel like the 17 is safer and doesn't ricochet and is a lot cleaner and far more accurate. It also is explosive on targets and makes it a lot less boring. The 22lr is pretty lame, dirty and bounces around like a rubber ball.

If your stuck on a 22lr I would roll with a Ruger Charger with a micro dot optic or cut down a cheap old Marlin bolt gun.

 

[johntheplinker]

ANother vote for the Ruger American Rimfire. The stock has interchangable butts, compact, regular, high, low. Decently accurate, the 3 I've had were all under .75" at 50 yards with most ammo, and pushed hard into the .5" area with their favorite ammo types. Good trigger, and uses the same mags as the 10/22. Relatively inexpensive also.

 

[Hohn]

Buy a good bolt gun and a set of binoculars. Teach those girls to shoot and spot for the other.

Too often we want to teach our kids how to just make noise with a semi-auto. Marksmanship first, fast later.

That was my thinking too. Until my kids could barely cycle the bolt on my tightly-fitted CZ. It's well broken in now and still takes some effort to lift. My kids are big enough now that this is moot, but if you're thinking a kid < age 7-8 or so, it might matter.

The 10/22's ability to mag dump ammo doesn't REQUIRE that you do it. You can still enforce one-shot discipline with a simplicity that might be more approachable for a kid. Hand them a 10/22 with a bx25 under it and they you can shoot for awhile with no need to do anything but flip the safety off and pull the trigger.


I'm NOT a fan of the 10/22. But it's really hard to argue against it as a .22LR that a kid can grow with. The huge aftermarket means you can buy a child-appropriate rifle and they can update it as they need to until they passing it down to their grandkids. 10/22s and cockroaches will be the two items that survive a nuclear holocaust, lol.

I'd prefer to buy a good American-made rifle, too. But these days it seems that "good" and "american made" don't go hand in hand until you are into really high end goodies that cost a fortune.

 

[diveski11]

Tippmann Arms owner started a company to build a decent .22 for his kids. These are "AR-style" so you have an adjustable stock which can be replaced with any mil spec stock. Same with hand guard, grip, and trigger. Only the barrel and magazines are proprietary. And, they are made in Ft. Wayne, IN. Shop All - Firearms - Tippmann Arms Co., LLC

This became my second .22 rifle after starting off with the M&P 15-22 as my "learner". I found too much play from the plastic hand guard pulling on the barrel when using a sling in prone and random groupings. But, that was an fully grown adult. A smaller framed person will have less of that. If not using a sling then no issues. I went from 4-6 MOA groups (at best) to 2 MOA at 25 yds right out of the gate. Their customer service has been excellent.

 

[Mgderf]

I started both my kids with a New England Arms break action single shot, moved to bolt action and after control and responsibility were established they got semi-auto experience. If you start with a semi-auto then only allow 1 round per mag load till they get experience under their belts.

I taught a couple of my nieces and nephews using a Rossi youth matched pair.
It is a single-shot with interchangeable barrels.
Started off with the .22lr, and moved to the .410 barrel for a little more excitement.

That little rifle/shotgun is still in my safe, and easy enough for me to shoot accurately as an adult.
It's inexpensive to buy, and teaches patience, as well as marksmanship.

 

[MCgrease08]

If you wanted to go in a completely different direction there is the KSA mini Mosin-Nagant.

It's a single shot based on the Cricket action.

[video=youtube_share;QSTAzE7Id7w]http://youtu.be/QSTAzE7Id7w[/video]

 

[johntheplinker]

That was my thinking too. Until my kids could barely cycle the bolt on my tightly-fitted CZ. It's well broken in now and still takes some effort to lift. My kids are big enough now that this is moot, but if you're thinking a kid < age 7-8 or so, it might matter.

The 10/22's ability to mag dump ammo doesn't REQUIRE that you do it. You can still enforce one-shot discipline with a simplicity that might be more approachable for a kid. Hand them a 10/22 with a bx25 under it and they you can shoot for awhile with no need to do anything but flip the safety off and pull the trigger.


I'm NOT a fan of the 10/22. But it's really hard to argue against it as a .22LR that a kid can grow with. The huge aftermarket means you can buy a child-appropriate rifle and they can update it as they need to until they passing it down to their grandkids. 10/22s and cockroaches will be the two items that survive a nuclear holocaust, lol.

I'd prefer to buy a good American-made rifle, too. But these days it seems that "good" and "american made" don't go hand in hand until you are into really high end goodies that cost a fortune.

A short length of pvc that will fit over the bolt knob will take care of that problem. 3

If you wanted to go in a completely different direction there is the KSA mini Mosin-Nagant.

It's a single shot based on the Cricket action.

[video=youtube_share;QSTAzE7Id7w]http://youtu.be/QSTAzE7Id7w[/video]

Use that to take care of garden pests and you can play "Enemy at the (Garden) Gates"

 

[jndturner]

Well I decided to go with a 10/22. I went to pick one up that I ordered from a LGS. For the first time I have been delayed on the NICS check. I have had long waits before but never a delay. I have a fairly common name and there is probably someone out there that is not a proper person with the same name. I wish I could use my Global Entry in place of NICS.

 

[DadSmith]

My first 22lr was a marlin model 60. I absolutely loved it. I now use a 10/22 for hunting etc. I still kick myself for selling the model 60 off back in my young adult days.

You can't go wrong with a 10/22 though. Buy lots of ammo children and semiautomatics seem to burn through a lot in a short amount of time.

My grandchildren come over and shoot i go through minium of 300rds. I have three grandchildren age 17 down to 8.