So my 7 year old son is starting to get into guns, he sees me going to the range to shoot both my bow and rifles. He wants to go shooting but I think he's to young for handling the "firearm" range responsibilities. I would like to purchase some pellet rifles for us to use and teach him proper use that way. And as well take him out squirrel/rabbit hunting with them once he gets the hang of things. So my real question is what is a good pellet rifle for him to grow into? I want something that is going to last years to come, and something we can add features like decent scopes, tripods, strap. We are both going to have the same rifle so I'd like something affordable but of great quality, I don't mind spending extra if I have to. Any suggestions would greatly be appreciated! thank you
Pellet Rifle
- Thread starter 805er
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Check out pyramyd air. The crosman pump guns are accurate. But after a couple years you will want a break barrel. Any rifle with the nitro piston is good. All accurate and will last years. I've had my Benjamin npxl for 4 years now and my marauder for 2. For you I would recommend the npxl. Your son, something cheaper like the multi pump guns..
There have been some good suggestions.
Being that I started hunting with air rifles I would agree that shooting a .22 firearm is a bit easier, many times they are lighter and easier to be accurate with than most spring or nitro-piston air rifles. The reason I say .22 firearm is easier to be accurate with is that nitro and spring piston air rifles have what is referred to as "double recoil" due to the forward and return motion of the piston when fired. They require, typically, for the shooter to use the "artillery hold" (look it up if you aren't familiar with it) in order to achieve good accuracy. The one draw back with a .22 right now is getting ammo, while .22 pellets are readily available almost anywhere airguns are sold.
The Benjamin NPXL1100 is a nice break-barrel air rifle. However, the are heavy for a smaller person to carry around or shoulder in the field when hunting. The included scope is decent. The trigger is glitchy and needs work also. I did own one in the past and liked it, but I like my PCP air rifles better.
Benjamin also makes the Titan model which is a little smaller and lighter than the NPXL, but the pellet velocity is also lower (less powerful nitro-piston or spring piston).
Gamo's air rifles are typically lighter and they have allot of models for under $150 to $200, but most of those are spring piston models and the velocities they advertise are bogus because they get them by shooting their PBA ammo that is inaccurate past 10 to 15 yards. The scopes that are typically included are fixed objective and not very good (just my opinion). Also, one thing to keep in mind about spring-piston air rifles is that if you leave them cocked for extended periods of time the spring starts to compress, and this leads to a slow loss in pellet velocity over time.
Gamo does make an smaller sized air rifle called the Gamo Little Cat. It is a .177 caliber spring piston air rifle with a wood stock that has a length of pull sized for smaller arms. It had a loudness of Medium, with is about average. It will "pop" some, but not "Crack!" when fired. It is a break-barrel rifle that weighs about 5.5 pounds. You could probably expect velocities with lead pellets at around 600 to 650FPS, depending on the grain weight of the pellet.
As TaftHunter mentioned, check out Pyramydair.com before you go to purchase one. They have videos you can watch also too learn the differences in the various types of air rifles. Also in the specifications for each gun they let you know how loud you can expect the gun to be on a scale of 1 to 5.
If you have any other air gun questions I'd be glad to answer any you may have. I currently own a Crosman 2240 pistol (modified), a Benjamin Discovery in .22, (2) Benjamin Marauder Pistols (.22 cal (one is modified for my daughter to shoot it), Benjamin Marauder rifles in both .22 and .25, as well as a EunJin Sumatra 2500 Carbine in .25 cal. In the past I have owned the Benjamin Trail NPXL1100, Gamo Whisper in .22, Ruger Air Hawk, Ruger Black Hawk, Ruger Air Magnum, Crosman 1322 (I heavily modified it) and a Crosman 1377 (rebuilt and modified). I have also rebuilt and modified quite a few different air guns for friends and family too. I'm NOT posting that information to show off, it is just to let you know that I'm speaking from some experience with air guns.
One thing I thought I would mention since you mentioned taking your son hunting is that technically your son can't legally hunt squirrels, rabbits or other animals without a hunting license. He can go with you as a spectator without his airgun, but if a warden sees the both of you with guns (even airguns) he can ask to see both of your licenses. I know this because my 8 year old daughter goes with me on hunts without her airgun and we've been approached a few times. They've asked me if she's hunting and I tell them she is just watching and learning to hunt by watching me, that she is not shooting at any animals. I only mention this because some aren't aware of this and I wouldn't want anyone to get in trouble.
Whatever you decide to get have fun and shoot safe.
Being that I started hunting with air rifles I would agree that shooting a .22 firearm is a bit easier, many times they are lighter and easier to be accurate with than most spring or nitro-piston air rifles. The reason I say .22 firearm is easier to be accurate with is that nitro and spring piston air rifles have what is referred to as "double recoil" due to the forward and return motion of the piston when fired. They require, typically, for the shooter to use the "artillery hold" (look it up if you aren't familiar with it) in order to achieve good accuracy. The one draw back with a .22 right now is getting ammo, while .22 pellets are readily available almost anywhere airguns are sold.
The Benjamin NPXL1100 is a nice break-barrel air rifle. However, the are heavy for a smaller person to carry around or shoulder in the field when hunting. The included scope is decent. The trigger is glitchy and needs work also. I did own one in the past and liked it, but I like my PCP air rifles better.
Benjamin also makes the Titan model which is a little smaller and lighter than the NPXL, but the pellet velocity is also lower (less powerful nitro-piston or spring piston).
Gamo's air rifles are typically lighter and they have allot of models for under $150 to $200, but most of those are spring piston models and the velocities they advertise are bogus because they get them by shooting their PBA ammo that is inaccurate past 10 to 15 yards. The scopes that are typically included are fixed objective and not very good (just my opinion). Also, one thing to keep in mind about spring-piston air rifles is that if you leave them cocked for extended periods of time the spring starts to compress, and this leads to a slow loss in pellet velocity over time.
Gamo does make an smaller sized air rifle called the Gamo Little Cat. It is a .177 caliber spring piston air rifle with a wood stock that has a length of pull sized for smaller arms. It had a loudness of Medium, with is about average. It will "pop" some, but not "Crack!" when fired. It is a break-barrel rifle that weighs about 5.5 pounds. You could probably expect velocities with lead pellets at around 600 to 650FPS, depending on the grain weight of the pellet.
As TaftHunter mentioned, check out Pyramydair.com before you go to purchase one. They have videos you can watch also too learn the differences in the various types of air rifles. Also in the specifications for each gun they let you know how loud you can expect the gun to be on a scale of 1 to 5.
If you have any other air gun questions I'd be glad to answer any you may have. I currently own a Crosman 2240 pistol (modified), a Benjamin Discovery in .22, (2) Benjamin Marauder Pistols (.22 cal (one is modified for my daughter to shoot it), Benjamin Marauder rifles in both .22 and .25, as well as a EunJin Sumatra 2500 Carbine in .25 cal. In the past I have owned the Benjamin Trail NPXL1100, Gamo Whisper in .22, Ruger Air Hawk, Ruger Black Hawk, Ruger Air Magnum, Crosman 1322 (I heavily modified it) and a Crosman 1377 (rebuilt and modified). I have also rebuilt and modified quite a few different air guns for friends and family too. I'm NOT posting that information to show off, it is just to let you know that I'm speaking from some experience with air guns.
One thing I thought I would mention since you mentioned taking your son hunting is that technically your son can't legally hunt squirrels, rabbits or other animals without a hunting license. He can go with you as a spectator without his airgun, but if a warden sees the both of you with guns (even airguns) he can ask to see both of your licenses. I know this because my 8 year old daughter goes with me on hunts without her airgun and we've been approached a few times. They've asked me if she's hunting and I tell them she is just watching and learning to hunt by watching me, that she is not shooting at any animals. I only mention this because some aren't aware of this and I wouldn't want anyone to get in trouble.
Whatever you decide to get have fun and shoot safe.
Man, Ray! That is like a Wikipedia article! Great post!
I bought the quietest .22 I could find (Benjamin Regal) for shooting rats in my backyard vegetable garden without disturbing the neighbors. Had to learn about the artillery hold in order to get decent groupings, and eventually wiped them out. But I wish I'd been on SCH then to get help with selecting the right air rifle.
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I bought the quietest .22 I could find (Benjamin Regal) for shooting rats in my backyard vegetable garden without disturbing the neighbors. Had to learn about the artillery hold in order to get decent groupings, and eventually wiped them out. But I wish I'd been on SCH then to get help with selecting the right air rifle.
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AirRifleHunter
Ditto that is a great post. I know who to ask for info on air guns.
If you use the airgun in your own yard. in some areas it's legal. you have to check your local laws. and keep it low keyed from the neighbors.
as long as the pellets or BBs don't leave your yard. that is a big advantage. I like shooting the spin targets.
I would say a low powered BB rifle to start off.
& then single shot 22 rimfire rifle
LBH2.
Ditto that is a great post. I know who to ask for info on air guns.
If you use the airgun in your own yard. in some areas it's legal. you have to check your local laws. and keep it low keyed from the neighbors.
as long as the pellets or BBs don't leave your yard. that is a big advantage. I like shooting the spin targets.
I would say a low powered BB rifle to start off.
& then single shot 22 rimfire rifle
LBH2.
Bonejour said:
Very true.
In some areas you can shoot in your own yard. Where I live the city ordinances say "No" unfortunately.
Probably because I live closer to my neighbors than some other neighborhoods are set up. And I only mentioned about the hunting and license part because it sounded like he was going to take him out hunting in the field (public) and not in a back yard. One last thing on the air guns. I wouldn't recommend getting him a BB gun, but instead a pellet gun would be better i my experience. BB's are hard and have a tendancy to ricochet off of items, where a pellet tends to compress, fragment into flat pieces or indent itself into the object. Just a suggestion.
Hey 805er, If you have an opportunity to hunt Arizona, you are allowed two unlicensed youth hunters per adult license.They are only allowed to hunt small game. I have taken my boys out there before they could hunt in our home state. Arizona encourages and promotes youth hunting, check out the Arizona regulations on line they have an entire section devoted to youth hunting.
I would not recommend the same rifle for both of you, a scaled down version will be easier for him to handle and more fun to shoot. I have three boys that have been shooting .22s since age 6, high powered rifles and 20 gauge shotguns at 8 years. One of the keys to teaching them to shoot at those ages was having firearms that fit them and that would include air rifles. Good shooting and hunting to you and your little partner
I would not recommend the same rifle for both of you, a scaled down version will be easier for him to handle and more fun to shoot. I have three boys that have been shooting .22s since age 6, high powered rifles and 20 gauge shotguns at 8 years. One of the keys to teaching them to shoot at those ages was having firearms that fit them and that would include air rifles. Good shooting and hunting to you and your little partner
gteam said:I would not recommend the same rifle for both of you, a scaled down version will be easier for him to handle and more fun to shoot. I have three boys that have been shooting .22s since age 6, high powered rifles and 20 gauge shotguns at 8 years. One of the keys to teaching them to shoot at those ages was having firearms that fit them and that would include air rifles. Good shooting and hunting to you and your little partner
Excellent point GTeam ;D, and exactly why I mentioned the Gamo Little Cat. It is made for youth shooters/hunters. There is also the Air Venturi Bronco, which is proportioned for young shooters. There is one other, if I remember correctly, by Crosman called the Raven, which is also a youth sized air rifle. All three of those air rifles have a length of pull sized for young shooters (under 12 years old typically).
Pyramydair.com does offer their "Dads and Kidz" packages which have an adult sized air rifle packaged with a youth sized air rifle for a resonable price. Plus if you time it right, you can get 10% or more off with free shipping included. I definitely recommend checking them out.
Great info in this thread. Thanks guys! I've been thinking a lot about pellet guns lately as my son (3 1/2) has been very interested in my shooting since he hangs out in the garage with me when I'm cleaning guns and making ammo. It's still a bit soon to be thinking about putting anything in his hands but I started shooting BB guns at cans in the backyard when I was 5.
Hey air rifle hunter I too have a little one who would like to start shooting, and I was thinking about a co2 powered air rifle just to start. Seems like it would be easier to shoot and I have seen some smaller ones that weight in the 4 pound range. What is your opinion on this, I would love to hear your thoughts. Thanks in advance.
I have a air rifle that I absolutely love. It's the benjamin titan in .22 caliber. I've recently purchased two pump pellet rifles for my nephews and one level action style (the daisy red ryder) for my niece. They all seem to like shooting the red ryder because it's easier for them to cock and it takes them a second to cock the gun rather than having to pump the pumpmaster rifles up to 10 times. If your little one just wants to shoot with you for fun, then go with the red ryder, though it only shoots bbs as far as I know and not pellets.
http://www.basspro.com/Daisy-Model-1938-Red-Ryder-BB-Gun/product/25938/
http://www.basspro.com/Daisy-Model-1938-Red-Ryder-BB-Gun/product/25938/
Here's the other rifle I purchased for my nephew. You can adjust the stock to grow with your son as he gets older
http://www.crosman.com/airguns/rifles/pump/RCT525X
http://www.crosman.com/airguns/rifles/pump/RCT525X
I shoot a gamo big cat 1200 and it's deadly. I've killed foxes and raccoons with it. The key to killing power of a pellet gun in the pellet. I highly recommend the predator polymags. They're brutal and mt crawl away percent went way down.
Michael951 said:
Hi Michael951,
Sorry it has taken me so long to log back into this site and reply to your post, I had to get a new computer, it has taken me a while to get it all set up to how I like it.
Anyway to your question, a CO2 powdered air rifle is a nice option for young shooters. As you mentioned, they are typically lighter and don't require the shooter to posses allot of strength to cock or pump in order to be able to shoot. The main draw back with CO2 is that when the temperature drops, so does the FPS of the pellet. This is because the CO2 gets denser, or compresses within the cylinder and you end up losing power. The optimal temperature for CO2 is around 70 to 75 degrees and above. Also, most of the off-the-shelf CO2 guns range around 600 FPS and below; typically running in the high 400's to mid 500's in a .177 caliber pellet weighing around 7.9 grains. You will get around 20 to 30 optimal shots out of each CO2 cylinder, but can stretch that out to around 40 decent shots before the power really starts to drop off drastically. CO2 is typically easily available at places like WalMart or Big5.
If you are just looking for something to get your child started and learning gun handling safety, the CO2 just is a great start.
I just bought my son the air venturi bronco. he is eleven, but small. It's a bit heavy for him to shoot standing up, but we had a fine time knocking over water bottles in the back yard. I like the Arizona idea, Thinking about taking my kids over there for doves this year,Hallx7 said: