Upgrade suggestions for kid learning to shoot

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  • JoeRinMD

    Rifleman
    Jul 18, 2008
    2,014
    AA County
    So my 11-year-old is outgrowing his Keystone Cricket .22 with iron sights. Been teaching him how to shoot for last 1 1/2 yrs. Mainly 25-50 yds at paper targets (max has been 80 & 100 yds). Just taught him fundamentals of safety, body positions, sight picture, trigger pull, breath/relax/aim/squeeze, etc... and Cricket has been great but it is getting a little small for him. Was thinking of upgrading to full-size .22 this year and introducing him to optics. But then thought maybe a slightly higher caliber rifle would be more practical for the future. Just wondering y'all's thoughts on this. Do i keep him training on larger .22, or was thinking maybe .243 or similar caliber to give him more options/flexibility in the future. What are your thoughts on caliber / rifle for next steps?

    The most important question is what do you see him doing with the rifle in the future. From your description above (highlighed in red), if you think he may want to continue on that path, you should find a nearby NRA Smallbore program. Based on my son's experience, it was a great way to get him started in shooting. He learned all the fundamentals, both of safety and also marksmanship. It required the discipline of weekly practices, but also gave direct feedback seeing his scores improve and earning his way to the next rank or bar.

    He also got a chance to shoot in real matches, which gave him a taste of true competition. A scored target doesn't lie. It dispels the "...I can shoot MOA, all day long" BS.

    JoeR
     

    newmuzzleloader

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Apr 14, 2009
    4,765
    joppa
    Ruger American Rimfire .22 Compact Bolt action. It will still fit him. It uses 10/22 mags...single shot, five, and 10s available. When he gets bigger for about $20, you can swap out the stock module for full size. To swap modules, you unscrew the sling stud and pop off the module. Great little rifle, my wife and I both have them. Used for Scouts with great results.

    FYI - we both have 10/22s, but semis are no-nos for Scouts.

    Sent from my SM-J320P using Tapatalk

    I was looking into this but they don't make a left hand model. My boy is left eye dominant so he shoots left handed
     

    fidelity

    piled higher and deeper
    MDS Supporter
    Aug 15, 2012
    22,400
    Frederick County
    Following on JoeR's line of thought as well as suggestions of a CZ-452 Scout (nice rifle!), another option is the Savage Mark II with aperture sights from CMP if you're able to order it (through a local shooting club). With the sights, it's a pretty good deal and can be used in NRA-Winchester training programs. These rifles also fit 11-yr olds pretty well.

    http://thecmp.org/cmp_sales/rifle_sales/22-target-commercial/

    Although we don't own one, my son had shot one when younger through a marksmanship class he was taking. When the students grow in size, they're often using Remington 513 rifles or Savage Anschutz Mark 10/10B rifles (that have an Anschutz Model 64 trigger group).

    Another decent smaller rifle to look for at GunBroker or elsewhere (out of production) is the Remington 514. It's just slightly larger than the above Savage Mark series but smaller/lighter than the Remington 513 target master series.

    Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
     

    alucard0822

    For great Justice
    Oct 29, 2007
    17,643
    PA
    Depends largely on the type of shooting you want him to get into, and the suggesations will probably revolve around what the poster likes. Personally if he's got a couple years under his belt with the Cricket, and knows the basics, get him something fun, a reward, probably an M&P15-22 or something similar. Adjustable stock, "modern" look and design, iron sights with an option for an optic, and semi-auto. After that, when the time is right you can go with a hunting rifle in appropriate caliber, centerfire AR( could also serve the role as a hunting rifle), 22 handgun, or 20ga shotgun, depending on what activites you want. Handing over 1 round at-a-time slow fire gets boring, and there is so much more to learn.
     

    tmd99

    Active Member
    Aug 22, 2015
    446
    Frederick
    thanks for the suggestions on here. will look at all the options you all have presented and maybe narrow it down to a few and show him and see which he gets excited about and is interested in. the points about keeping his interest i think are important and i want to make it as fun for him as i can while he builds his skills but also have a rifle he can hold on to in the future. thanks again everyone.
     

    Minuteman

    Member
    BANNED!!!
    If you want to sort of cover both the traditional (lever action world) and the tactical-cool with picatinny rails, might also want to consider this ~$450 option:


    43025-1-300x300.jpg


    Mossberg 464 Tactical 18″ 13+1 Lever-Action .22 LR #43025
     

    rob-cubed

    In need of moderation
    Sep 24, 2009
    5,387
    Holding the line in Baltimore
    Semi-auto mag fed.

    Ruger 10/22s are popular and endlessly accessorizable, though honestly I like CZs and Savages and Marlins better (though the latter has had some QC issues after moving their facilities a few years ago).

    My daughter who is now 15 started shooting my .22 AR at age 11, the adjustable stock allowed her to fit LOP easily as she grew. It's still her favorite thing to shoot, and transitioning to .556 was easy for her.
     

    Kman

    Blah, blah, blah
    Dec 23, 2010
    11,988
    Eastern shore
    How about Marlin 795 with Tech Sights?

    We have a few 795's and the one with Tech Sights is a blast.
    Cheap, light and dependable. Feels like a small pellet gun.
    It's a blast and a good trainer for aperture sights.
     

    photoracer

    Competition Shooter
    Oct 22, 2010
    3,318
    West Virginia
    Well the Monocacy Pistol Club in Frederick shoots rimfire silhouette. They call it the Critters match. Scaled down targets at 15, 20, 30. and 40 yards. Free-standing for 17 and older and supported off the table for juniors. And for those that want to possibly graduate to action shooting they have Speed Steel which can be shot with both .22 rifles and pistols (its similar to Steel Challenge). They also shoot bullseye pistol and Winchester NRA Qualification matches.
     

    JoeRinMD

    Rifleman
    Jul 18, 2008
    2,014
    AA County
    Well the Monocacy Pistol Club in Frederick shoots rimfire silhouette. They call it the Critters match. Scaled down targets at 15, 20, 30. and 40 yards. Free-standing for 17 and older and supported off the table for juniors. And for those that want to possibly graduate to action shooting they have Speed Steel which can be shot with both .22 rifles and pistols (its similar to Steel Challenge). They also shoot bullseye pistol and Winchester NRA Qualification matches.

    That's a very good point, Photoracer, about rimfire shooting events. I was thinking about traditional smallbore matches and completely spaced one format that we shoot at my own club. At AAF&G there's a monthly Rimfire Action Shooting event, with both 2-gun and Steel Challenge stages. We've had younger kids attend and they love it. They get a chance to shoot fast, which is always fun.

    JoeR
     
    Feb 22, 2012
    61
    Baltimore County
    There are a lot of good options. For my son's 18th birthday, I bought him a Marlin XT-22 magazine-fed bolt action rifle. He loves it and one of his friends liked it so much, he bought one for himself. I also have a Mossburg 702 Plinkster (the non-tactical style), it's a magazine-fed semi-auto with traditional style stock. The only problem that I have with it is that my wife hogs it at the range as it's her favorite rifle to shoot.
     

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