Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Air Guns First pellet rifle for 8 yr old dude

My grandson lives in Old Metairie. His Dad is a high priced tax lawyer, has his own firm at age 40, but knows nothing about guns.

The boy was at a friend's camp across Lake Pontchartrain, and got to shoot a .22 rifle. He did really well and now he wants a rifle.

His Dad would accept a pellet rifle before a .22 and the boy could shoot it more than a .22, probably could shoot in his back yard if it was pretty quiet. I'm thinking a pellet gun would be better than a BB gun, probably safer due to bounce back.

What gun would you guy recommend in such a scenario? Probably needs a shorter LOP, like 12" or so. High end accuracy not a major issue, but quality enough to learn to shoot well.

DF

.177 would be a great choice, nice and quiet. These days they come with great little scopes as well.

When I was 9, I got my first pellet rifle, and killed so many birds primarily Starlings, squirrels, and other critters with it, as in hundreds, it made me into the shooter I am today, it taught me the dynamics of shooting. The Starlings in the trees with the wind blowing was fun, but not for the Starlings lol

If you want him to become a great shooter, open sights all the way!

I sorta like this one. What ya think?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0030NZ5UE?&tag=gunmann02-2

DF

Looks sweet to me, nice and light.

If I got that when I was 8 I would promise to cut the lawn all summer for free

One thing that has changed dramatically since I was a kid, 55 years ago is the availability and wide selection of pellets. I purchased a pellet rifle 7 years ago, a .177, to get rid of a Magpie infestation. Was shocked at the selection. I had one choice, came in a tin of 500. for $1.00.

I ordered 6 different brands and types. They are NOT CREATED EQUAL, and just like our hunting rifles the barrel will prefer one type of ammo over the rest for better grouping and more accurate shooting. I would do some research on the best pellets today, order several types, and have some fun with your grandson to see which type of pellet works best in his new rifle.

If killing birds, squirrels and rabbits is the game, I have found that heavier pellets are the best.

Have fun DF!

Thanks.

Good advice.

DF

If you end up going with that Ruger try checking Walmart. The one here has that model for considerably less, $60/70 iirc.

I ended up getting my boy a Daisy 880 back in the spring as an upgrade from a BB gun for backyard plinking. I'm a fan of multipumps mostly because you don't have to worry much about hold sensitivity like you do with a lot of springers or NP guns. Being able to adjust power level to tune your noise level and load is nice, too.

He's 9, and the LOP is still a wee bit long for him, but he can still shoot it pretty well.

The Umarex rifle you found on Amazon Is what I got for my daughter.

I bought mine direct from Umarex. Zombie Green was the color when I bought..

It's a decent shooter and it's tough enough and simple enough for a kid.

I put a Bug Buster scope on this one but the sights work fine and adjust normally.

Thanks guys.

I see that direct from Umarex is cheaper than some. Bud’s is even less. Will check with Wally World.

Seems to be a simple, well made gun. And LOP is around 12”. I like the idea of pellet vs BB.

DF

I bought a used Crossman pump .22 for 25 bucks, put an 11 dollar kit in it off ebay. Worked good for the littlest grandson who did not have the strength to cock a spring gun. When he was 8 or so he could get about 3 pumps, plenty of power for Wildebeeste, now he is strong enough for 10 pumps, Cape Buffalo tremble in fear. Those old time guns have wood, steel and brass..a lot of value on the cheap.

A good old Benjamin pump would be a great start for any young shooter.

Good copy of the old Crosman. I have one and it'll kill squirrels under 15 yds.

https://www.pyramydair.com/product/beeman-qb78-deluxe-co2-air-rifle?m=4120

Plus, Archer has all the parts you need: https://www.archerairguns.com/qb78-airgun-family-air-rifles-s/27.htm

Talked with my daughter, she’s not too excited about him having a pellet rifle at their home.

Agreed. I’ll buy it to have here for when they visit. They’ll be here a couple of days for Christmas. So, I ordered one from Bud’s. They had the best price. I’ll research pellets, get some from Midway. We’ll have a couple of days to play with it.

In the mean time, I’ll get it sighted in and play with it myself.

More than one way to skin a cat.

DF


Edited to add, Midway shipping high costs killed that deal for me. Shipping was about as much as the product.

Amazon Prime with free shipping and EBay with free shipping got my business.

DF

Hi DF,

As mentioned with such a selection of pellets these days, it's important to select the right ones so your grandson feels great about his shooting abilities.

When I was testing different pellets a few years ago, I took photos of all of the different pellets I shot. Without question, the best-performing pellets I shot out of my .177 were Air Arms Diabolo Field Heavy in 10.3 gr. Not only did I get great groups with them, but they also put the hurt on them poor magpies lol.

This picture is a picture of the target I shot with them at 20 yards. If you are training your grandson how to understand shooting and rifles, while you test different pellets out of his new rifle, he will learn that not all ammo works the same in a specific rifle's barrel. He will be ahead of the game with that knowledge and if he wants to be a hunter he will be killing deer and such in a few short years thanks to his grandfather.

Good luck Sir!

20 yards - 2 3/4" diameter target





Another great pellet is JSB Match Diabolo Exact .177 Cal, 8.44 Grains, Domed. Although excellent they did not have the Killing power the Diabolos's do. 2 gr's less, is my guess why.

20 yards - 2 3/4" diameter target

I even tested the retention of various pellets before I decided which pellet to use. The pictures speak for themselves.

The Diabolos stayed uniform, and flattened out as well as the others.

You guys are most likely laughing, but when it comes to killing animals or pest control, I prefer to despatch the animal as humanely and as quickly as possible. lol

Whether it's a deer, moose, elk, or a bear, I don't want to see them suffer, if you know what I mean.

Thanks, KB.

I ordered an assortment of pellets. Will have it all worked out before Grands arrive.

DF

Good luck. Fair warning, air rifles can get addicting 😉

They can be amazingly accurate, fairly inexpensive to shoot, and just a blast for backyard plinking and pest control.

My Pleasure DT, trust me on the brands and types I recommended, Air Arms Diabolo Field Heavy in 10.3 gr. are the way to go based on my testing of many different brands and types of pellets.

Some reviews from other shooters: https://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=48728.0

Here is one review by another shooter, found it interesting that he came to the same conclusion, even though he shoots a much better pellet rifle:

72-yard target

The A.A.s are the top diamond and the JSBs the lower diamond. I used Hawk Optics ChairGunPro to determine the correction for distance. (Which again was really, really close!) I found that a 2 mil-dot hold over OR +30 clicks put me very close to my point of aim as I moved from my 50 yard zero out to this 72 yard distance.

This is where the extra tightness of the A.A pellets become apparent. I suspect that being tighter in the breech allowed a bit more pressure which gave a slight bump in velocity - the point of impact was just a bit higher than the JSBs.



Merry Christmas to you and your family. Since firearms make for the very best Christmas gifts, I do believe that your grandson will be elated when he sees what Santa brought him this year

KB, think you’re right, he’s gonna be thrilled to open that present. I’m getting it Tue or Wed. Will have time to check it out, try a dozen different pellets. Then I’ll wrap it for under the tree. They’re gonna be here for a couple days. He and I will shoot it and it’ll stay here. Will report.

DF

DF, was just thinking, would be nice to see a picture of your grandson holding onto his first rifle

KB, I was thinking the same.

Great minds?

I had an old Banner 4X scope I mounted in its rimfire grooves. I was having a hard time with the fiber optic sights. Hard to get my head down to see them and they were blurry.

I want to use the scope to try various pellets to see just how accurate this gun actually is. Plan that tomorrow.

DF