A good starter gun?
- Thread starter made Man
- Start date
start him with class, canuck style 
get a nice cooey 39, 75 or 60. for 150 you could get a cooey and enough ammo to make him a crack shot.
If you really want to impress an 11 year old, find someone in your area (tack shop, gunsmith) that can make him a sling for the rifle with his name on it.
get a nice cooey 39, 75 or 60. for 150 you could get a cooey and enough ammo to make him a crack shot.If you really want to impress an 11 year old, find someone in your area (tack shop, gunsmith) that can make him a sling for the rifle with his name on it.
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my first was a cooey single shot, then I got a lakefield MarkII, some of my best memories of shooting is with my little .22's!! I still have both.
My dad gave me the cooey and it was in rough shape, we sanded it down and re-finsished the wood and the barrel, made me feel proud to use it!
Just remember the first gun doesnt have to be pretty!
My dad gave me the cooey and it was in rough shape, we sanded it down and re-finsished the wood and the barrel, made me feel proud to use it!
Just remember the first gun doesnt have to be pretty!
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
I think its a mistake to go too cheap. A decent rifle costs $500, it doesn't matter if its a rimfire or a centerfire. If you spend less, you get less. If the kid looses interest, the rifle can be sold, but buying junk is false economy and poor performance from his rifle could easily dishearten a youngster.
CZ makes an entry level rifle called the Scout. I would choose this as the basis for the youngsters first rifle, it will become a cherished heirloom, but IMHO its not quite right out of the box. I would replace the rough factory sights with a decent receiver sight and front post, and install a set of swivels and a leather sling suitable for use as a shooting sling. If the action needs to be slicked up a bit the gunsmith can do that when he installs the appropriate sights.
http://www.cz-usa.com/product_detail.php?id=5
CZ makes an entry level rifle called the Scout. I would choose this as the basis for the youngsters first rifle, it will become a cherished heirloom, but IMHO its not quite right out of the box. I would replace the rough factory sights with a decent receiver sight and front post, and install a set of swivels and a leather sling suitable for use as a shooting sling. If the action needs to be slicked up a bit the gunsmith can do that when he installs the appropriate sights.
http://www.cz-usa.com/product_detail.php?id=5
Not exactly 100% in agreement with this.
If you can find one, get a nice Cooey single shot bolt-action. I lucked into one for 50 bucks in EE and I won a rimfire competition last July and placed 2nd with the same rifle the July before... And I can get it to reach out with half-assed accuracy at 100M !
It's built like a tank, has a fairly heavy barrel and is DEADLY accurate with it's ironsights! I'd recommend a Cooey single shot to any new shooter, as you can get them in lighter models as well, and they're more than affordable than spending 500 bucks in a rifle.
- Location
- Winnipeg,Man.
the older guns have the "bugs" worked out of them already. The sights are usually set for the gun. They do not require a new set of sights, trigger, etc. to make them function and can be fixed with a paperclip rather than a trip to a gunsmith.
if the youngster decides that they are not really interested, you have not spent big $ to get a gun and the rest can buy ammo. And the older guns are gaining in popularity and value. And do not have to be kept for 50 years to be a heirloom....they already are. I would not trade my 70 year old Mossberg in for any of the new models. Thousands of shots thru her and still hits where she is pointed.
if the youngster decides that they are not really interested, you have not spent big $ to get a gun and the rest can buy ammo. And the older guns are gaining in popularity and value. And do not have to be kept for 50 years to be a heirloom....they already are. I would not trade my 70 year old Mossberg in for any of the new models. Thousands of shots thru her and still hits where she is pointed.
skeetgunner
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Burlington
A Savage Mark II with accutrigger, synthetic stock and heavy barrel can be had for $150-ish.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
I grew up with Cooeys, thats why I prefer other options now. A Cooey rimfire that can group well at 25 yards is the exception to the rule, and the one that can group well at 100 is truly exceptional. The triggers have creep and over-travel, and to call the sights crude is to be overly generous. After the first case of ammo went through them ejection became erratic. Usually at some point in time, ignition became equally erratic. Some of the old Savages, Remingtons, and Winchesters shot very well and continue to shoot well to this day, but today they are cost far more than a new CZ Scout. The CZ Scout runs about $300 and will still be under $500 with the mods I suggested.
I'd go with something along the lines of a Marlin 925 or a Savage Mark II. Or I'm sure every gunstore has a rack full of great .22's for $100.00. As far as spending $500 + to get a "decent" .22 rifle I just think that's nuts.
- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Why would you expect less from a rimfire than a centerfire? What are you prepared to give up? If the purpose of the rifle is to teach marksmanship, the rifle needs to be able to produce at least 4 MOA. Thats not asking much, but many of those $100 .22's wont even do that, not even on the day they came out of the factory. Give the kid a chance and start him with something good, or just forget the rimfire business all together and start him shooting cast bullets in a centerfire.
- Location
- Winnipeg,Man.
I have an early Cooey 60 that with the addition of a 3x9x scope have been able to knock over vermin at over 100 yards. No one said to use the open sights for that distance. but up to the 50 yard under 1'' moa shooters, many are scoped and the cheap $100 dollar .22s can match if equipped similarly.I have never replaced an extractor nor ejector nor firing pin in the gun and thouands upon thousands of bullets have passed thru her.
realistically, we have to see what pleases the young shooter. My son was happy to be hitting paper at 100 yards. it started the wheels rolling into the centrfire rifles. Precision is not a MUST at the beginning, just developing the interest is important. I have not bought him a new gun ever and he shoots a 70 year old Mossberg in competitions along with many of newer rifles. Accuracy gets built into the person not into the gun.
realistically, we have to see what pleases the young shooter. My son was happy to be hitting paper at 100 yards. it started the wheels rolling into the centrfire rifles. Precision is not a MUST at the beginning, just developing the interest is important. I have not bought him a new gun ever and he shoots a 70 year old Mossberg in competitions along with many of newer rifles. Accuracy gets built into the person not into the gun.
I was in the local gun shop a while ago looking at the used guns, and some douche came in with a buddy that was just starting to hunt and wanted to buy a rifle. "This is what you should come home with" as Mr. Douche gets the shop owner to pass a Tikka T3 in stainless to his friend. " 1000 dollars isn't a bad price for 300 mag" he says.
I'm thinking what I had as a first rifle, I think it was some beat up milsup that was probably worth more as scrap steel then as a rifle.
"Tikka's are awesome, and top of the line, but do you really need a 1000 dollar rifle that you'll to put a scope on to be your first?" the guy behind the counter says. The guy looks at me puzzled, "Look at a Savage, or Remington 308" I say. "Nope this is the gun you want!" chirps The douche bag.
I didn't stay to see if the greenhorn bought the gun, but walked out thinking, "Douche is going to get a nice rifle in a few years when he buys that rifle off his friend when he decides hunting isn't for him"
I'm thinking what I had as a first rifle, I think it was some beat up milsup that was probably worth more as scrap steel then as a rifle.
"Tikka's are awesome, and top of the line, but do you really need a 1000 dollar rifle that you'll to put a scope on to be your first?" the guy behind the counter says. The guy looks at me puzzled, "Look at a Savage, or Remington 308" I say. "Nope this is the gun you want!" chirps The douche bag.
I didn't stay to see if the greenhorn bought the gun, but walked out thinking, "Douche is going to get a nice rifle in a few years when he buys that rifle off his friend when he decides hunting isn't for him"
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And, as Whelen once said, only accurate firearms are interesting...but, seriously speaking, it pays to be able to hit what you fire at.
