Noob with rifles

[JStylz]

Hey guys, need a little help here. I have always been a handgun guy and think I'm gonna look for a small rifle I can shoot with my fiance. She has never shot before so I'm leaning towards a .22 rifle to get her comfortable with pulling a trigger. Problem is I have no idea what our(Ca) laws are towards rifles. I'm guessing the same laws towards amount of loads maybe??? Can I just order any .22 rifle or are there rules/laws I need to know about with rifles? I tried google but I just got a bunch of AR-15 and the recent SD ruling sites. Please help, thanks again!

[damndave]

Nearly all the CA laws are faced towards semi auto rifles, not rimfire. As long as the magazine is 10 rds or less, has a 16" barrel and is 26"+ OAL you are fine.

[DMotivate]

Sounds like you are looking at a semi auto? Maybe a 10/22? Just remember you are still limited to 10 rounds.

Of all my guns my wife enjoys shooting the AR15's the most. She gets to feel the power of a gun with very little recoil. She is a girly girl and a 12 ga gives to much kick for her liking and she views the 22LR as only a step above a pellet gun.

Semi Auto Flowchart: http://www.calguns.net/caawid/flowchart.pdf

[JStylz]

Nearly all the CA laws are faced towards semi auto rifles, not rimfire. As long as the magazine is 10 rds or less, has a 16" barrel and is 26"+ OAL you are fine.

Awesome, that answered all my Q's. Thanks!

[40calibre]

You should look into a M&P 22, my finance enjoys it so much, her favorite firearm so far. Much easier to transfer to a pistol to a semi atuo center fire . She now double taps a 9mm due to practice on the M&P 22.

Also she really enjoyed the 10/22 but became bored with it after 3 range trips. I'm even bored of it, just no satisfaction from me shooting it. I just keep the .22 rifle around because I love how reliable it is.

[JStylz]

Sounds like you are looking at a semi auto? Maybe a 10/22? Just remember you are still limited to 10 rounds.

Of all my guns my wife enjoys shooting the AR15's the most. She gets to feel the power of a gun with very little recoil. She is a girly girl and a 12 ga gives to much kick for her liking and she views the 22LR as only a step above a pellet gun.

Semi Auto Flowchart: http://www.calguns.net/caawid/flowchart.pdf

That chart helped, never seen it. Thanks!

[JStylz]

You should look into a M&P 22, my finance enjoys it so much, her favorite firearm so far. Much easier to transfer to a pistol to a semi atuo center fire . She now double tap a 9mm due to practice on the M&P 22.

Also she really enjoyed the 10/22 but has become bored with it after 3 range trips. I'm even bored of it, just no satisfaction from me shooting it. I just keep the .22 rifle around because I love how reliable it is.

It's a little weird, out of 4 kids in the family, she's the only one to have never pulled a trigger. She wants to learn but get's sketchy when the time comes. I have a 9mm for home defense and I know she wouldn't be able to even pick it up if she had to so I have talked her into the beginning steps of learning so I figure a .22 rifle will help her get comfortable pulling a trigger. Gotta crawl before you walk!

[40calibre]

Just my two cents a .22lr has no recoil at all what so ever either. But it sounds like your main question was answered, just needs the ten round magazine, atleast 16inch barrel. Luckily so far you don't have to worry about a bullet button, collapse stock on thread barrel on a rimfire rifle.

[smittty]

Your main questions are answered now you get to figure out what rifle.

I also find 10/22's boring after very short time. I keep one just because it's fairly reliable. I also got bored of my S&W M&P 15-22 so I sold it.

The girls I used to take shooting seemed to enjoy my 94-22 lever action the most. My suggestion is find a standard Henry 22 lever action or if you have some time and a few more $ find a Browning or Winchester 94-22 (no longer in production).

Another 22 rifle that has a fun action is the Taurus model 62 pump action which is a copy of another Winchester rifle.

Initially I think most new shooters get excited by a semi-auto but shortly afterwards they become bored with just squeezing the trigger. It's having to work the action that makes the lever and pump action 22's more fun to shoot.

[Whiterabbit]

so weird, this is not the first time I hear of gals preferring lever actions. And these aren't tom-boy girls either, we're talking pink, crochet, and arts-n-crafts. And they choose leverguns.

I wonder why that is? Dreams of pioneer woman?

[8mmFMJ]

What's all this mumbo jumbo?

Go buy a marlin model 60. It holds 16+1 and is Ca legal.

[NorCalFocus]

I'm not a fan of teaching new shooters with semi-autos. A 10/22 is the one exception I make but still prefer teaching a new shooter on a bolt action.

[RNE228]

If you get something, make sure she is with you, and that the rifle fits her. It is not much fun learing to shoot on a rifle that does not fit you or is uncomfortable.

As another poster mentioned, semi-auto's are fun, but when I teach someone new to shooting, I start them with the basics on a simple bolt action, usually working as single shot at start. Start with basic safety and marksmanship. Then, step to other action types.

[smittty]

so weird, this is not the first time I hear of gals preferring lever actions. And these aren't tom-boy girls either, we're talking pink, crochet, and arts-n-crafts. And they choose leverguns.

I wonder why that is? Dreams of pioneer woman?

My kids also gravitate towards the lever and pump actions. The semi-auto gets boring after the initial cool factor wears off. I figure it's 3-4 range sessions and it's no longer exciting.

Introduce the lever action and they don't put it down even years later. I think there's a satisfaction that comes from working the lever or the slide that gives the shooter a stronger sense that they are making "this" happen.

[Whiterabbit]

If you get something, make sure she is with you, and that the rifle fits her. It is not much fun learing to shoot on a rifle that does not fit you or is uncomfortable.

As another poster mentioned, semi-auto's are fun, but when I teach someone new to shooting, I start them with the basics on a simple bolt action, usually working as single shot at start. Start with basic safety and marksmanship. Then, step to other action types.