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Rimfire Firearms .22, .17 and other Rimfire Handguns and Rifles |
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#1
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Looking for a good first rifle for my daughter.
All be it shes a newborn right now, both the wife and I are huge proponents of teaching her to shoot at a young age and hammer down firearm safety.
So with some time from then and now. What are some good first rifles out there? I've been looking at a keystone Cricket for the longest time and thinking about getting one soon but I want to keep an open mind and get some insight before doing it. Whats yalls experience? What else do you guys suggest or should I look at? |
#5
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Winchester Wildcat , weight only 4#. New for 2019, not in the store yet, take a look at it before make a decision, you still have plenty of time.
Last edited by newbie1234; 08-15-2019 at 9:19 PM.. |
#6
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Quote:
How much? Im on LOA with work right now so I don't have to much spending money. |
#7
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I'm going to check that out, Thanks.
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#9
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My pre-teen son enjoys his CZ 452 scout, it’s been through several updates since to the CZ 455 and 457 currently - but the scout fits him great and he prefers the single shot sled over the 10 rd mag strangely enough.
Next I will move him to a ruger 10/22 collector series because it has an adjustable LOP stock. |
#10
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Need to determine whether you want a semi auto, lever action, or bolt action, or even a older pump action. Too many great options to name just one firearm without knowing your preference. Just a suggestion, but for a very young first time shooter seminauto would be a last choice to avoid any accidental discharges due to the shooters complete unfamiliarity with any firearms in general. Bolt and lever actions slow their pace. Breathing and trigger control are far more important than how quickly a new shooter can put rounds on target
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#11
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I like to check the used racks at the LGS for single shot or bolt actions.
I learned on an early 50's Mossberg 142 bolt action that my Dad learned on, my son learned on... The only thing with older rifles is detachable magazines might be hard to find if you need a replacement. |
#12
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BB gun at first.
Then, if you don't mind used, get her a vintage bolt action from Mossberg or similar. They're usually very inexpensive, reliable, and shoot well. My first gun was my father's 22 bolt that he got when he was 15 or 16. A Monkey Wards rifle made by Mossberg. A real tack driver, even today. Simple and easy to operate and clean.
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Let us not pray to be sheltered from dangers but to be fearless when facing them. - Rabindranath Tagore A mind all logic is like a knife all blade. It makes the hand bleed that uses it. - Rabindranath Tagore Talent hits a target no one else can hit. Genius hits a target no one else can see. - Arthur Schopenhaur |
#16
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OP, I was in the same situation as you. I wanted to introduce my daughter to firearms as soon as possible. I did not go the route of a bb gun. My thoughts on that were, it is like a toy, and I did not foresee her using it frequently like a boy would, and it avoided the signal that a bb gun is a toy and a firearm is not a toy.
I first bought her a Crickett .22. The stock on the Crickett was short, and the grip was close to the trigger and it is light in weight. A young child cannot hold a 10-22, the stock is too long and the hand grip is too far from the trigger for a young child and it is too heavy. The Crickett was a good rifle for my daughter from age 5 to 12. Once I got the Crickett, I also bought some snap caps, and once or twice a week, I would take the rifle out of the safe and we would go over muzzle and trigger discipline. We would go over loading, aiming, dry firing and unloading. I would limit these sessions to about 15 minutes. I would also take it out anytime she requested me to. I started my daughter doing this when she was five years old. After I was satisfied that she was able to safely and competently use the rifle, I took her to the range. After a few sessions, I just sat in a chair behind her watching her shoot without me doing or saying anything to her. After my daughter grew up, I bought her a Ruger 10-22 with a compact stock, which fits her, she is now 16 years old. Today, my daughter can competently and safely operate all of my handguns, rifles and shotguns. I now leave a Sig Sauer P239 9 mm, in a place where she can access it if an emergency arises when I am away from home. OP, if you are interested, I am willing to sell the Crickett .22. It is the stainless steel version and it has a pink plastic stock. I did not like the iron sights on the rifle, so I bought the scope rings and installed a 2X Leupold scope. The rings would come with the rifle, and I have the original box. Installing a scope really brings out the accuracy of the Crickett. It will group nicely at 25 and 50 yards.
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#17
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Ruger 10/22 - every American should own one.
Cricket single shot, bolt action with a pink synthetic stock will last forever.
__________________
Join the discussion at www.utahguns.net Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. |
#18
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Thats what my game plan is, single shot, get her to appreciate the fundamentals and shot placement and move on to more repetitive options as she grows.
As for buying the cricket pm me, can't say for sure I'll buy it off you this moment but I am interested. |
#19
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I started my daughter on a Daisy bb gun (started at age 5), then a savage rascal, then a ruger 10/22. She was and is small framed, and didn't fit into the ruger until she was about 12. The rascal was easy for her to operate and easy for me to monitor safety-wise. She took more than a few ground squirrels with it at ages 9 through 12.
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#21
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My kids first was a Cricket at the ages of 5 and 6
Still have that little Cricket, it is over 20 years old now. Will be my Grandkids first now. One thing that stinks about the cricket. The loading port is so small I had a very hard time loading it, A little better for small kid hands though. I always had to just drop the round in and jostle it into the chamber. |
#22
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After she hones her skills on that boring single shot...Find her a Remington Nylon 66.. That's what pops taught Myself, brother & sister to shoot with. perfect gun for making bricks of ammo disappear.. Only 4 lbs too
Last edited by beerman; 02-26-2020 at 8:05 AM.. |
#24
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Missing 90% of your shots isn’t fun, and if it isn’t fun, kids won’t want to do it. Congrats on your baby girl, btw. Bet you can’t wait for her to be big enough to pick up your brass!! That’s the only reason I had kids, carpool and brass rat. |
#25
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Disagree. Out of the box they are mediocre. There's better options like Marlin for less $$
10/22 are great if you want to throw most of the rifle away and replace with aftermarket parts |
#27
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I bought mine an AR7 at the time it was $39 small and light enough for a 4 year old. She's 47 now and still has it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ArmaLite_AR-7
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#29
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That's intesresting. Mine has been dead accurate from the time I took it out of the box and mounted my scope.
__________________
Join the discussion at www.utahguns.net Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. |
#30
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Another vote for the Savage Rascal.
__________________
"Show me a young conservative and I'll show you a man without a heart. Show me an old liberal and I'll show you a man without a brain." - Sir Winston Churchill "I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!" - Senator Barry Goldwater |
#31
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When my granddaughter was 9yrs old, I bought her a Pink Cricket Stainless, a Henry Youth Model and a Ruger 10/22.
Like Ar22 stated... My Granddaughter complained that the ejection/loading port on the Cricket made loading .22lr's difficult vs the larger loading port of the Henry Youth model. But did not care for the cheap flexible plastic sights on the Henry. The pink cricket is fun to shoot and accurate with a scope. Purchased a cantilever scope mount for the Henry, but the receiver is not tapped for scope mounting. Still looking for a reasonable gunsmith to tap. Granddaughter outgrew shooting the single shot .22's, but grandpa still enjoys shooting them. |
#32
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Just noticed Turners listed the 455 Youth/Scout on their closeouts for $250 - buy it, it’s modular, swap in a full size walnut stock and stow the youth beech until she’s ready to shoot and you’ll have worked The action smooth by then 😉
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#33
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Quote:
The one in this vid is actually a compact, and wears the TechSighs apertures. GR
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“...Cogito, ergo armatum sum..." (I think, therefore I am armed.) -- Lt. Col. Dave Grossman -- |
#34
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Way back when my daughters were young I had a Ithaca mil 49 little lever single shot they went on the other rifles and when my first grandson came along he started on that same little rifle, later my 10/22 was his favorite.
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US Navy Retired, NRA Lifetime member. Member CRPA |
#35
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Picked up a .22 Savage Rascal at an auction for $78 and took my daughter shooting for her first time last week. I wanted her to start off getting used to iron sights first and since it's a single shot, also working the bolt after each shot. Everything went well and my new shooting buddy can't wait to go shooting again, lol.
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#37
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I have never liked starting kids off with a semi-auto. They are too easily distracted - "Hey Look at what I did!" as they turn around with the gun, which is now ready to fire. (I ran a Boy Scout shooting range as a teen and this happened very often.)
I also don't care for the single shots with the cocking piece that is usually too hard for a child to cock. Also - they outgrow them. (I started with a Sears single shot with a cocking piece made by Marlin.) I started my son off with a Henry Youth Model. It is easy to see if the hammer is cocked or not and has to be manually, consciously cycled. It also worked as his first gun to hunt with for those reasons. I told him not to cycle the action until he was ready to shoot again, leaving the hammer down on an empty case when in the field. If he did cock it and not take a shot, it was cheap enough to have him just shoot it into a hill or bank. The hammer down was a good visual safety factor. He never gravitated to rimfire semi-autos, though I have a few. His favorite .22 turned out to be a Taurus pump .22, even though it doesn't have a scope. That Henry rode on his little atv for years and accounted for lots of small game. It is still small and handy, and he can order a full size stock to make it a Trapper version with its short barrel if he wants. |
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