So, my son turns 7 in May, and I'd like to get him his first gun. What do you suggest?

So far all he has shot is a Daisy BB gun. He's not a big kid, but he tends to be a bit more on the more thoughtful side vs impulsive, which is good.

Do I go with an Air rifle? A .22LR? 410ga? Something else?

Thanks,

Jeff

I suggest a Single action 22 revolver (Ruger wrangler) or bolt action rifle in 22 LR .

Savage Rascal . I'm extremely impressed with the one I got for the Mooselette.

Single shot .22 bolt action of some kind. Kids have been learning to shoot with one of those - and make each shot count - for a few generations now.

My Dad had me shooting one at 6, he'd load it and hand it to me to fire, and I was shooting in NRA Junior marksmanship programs at age 7. He kept the rifle and bolt separate but I could see it and handle it anytime I asked him so it wasn't some big forbidden fruit temptation.

Oh, I like the idea of keeping the bolt and rifle separate, thanks for that.

Any kind of a handgun is a bad idea. Much easier for a kid to cover part of their own body with a pistol.

Single shot bolt .22 LR for the win.

This ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Savage Rascal has been a winner at my house. Have two of them.

Agree

I would give him a good quality .22. My father gave me a BL-22 when I was 10, 40 years ago. I still have it, treasure it, and hunt with it every year.

Thanks guys, really appreciate the insight. I note that no one mentioned an air rifle. That was my first gun as a kid, even though i was barely strong enough to give it 3 pumps. It was fun to plink with, but not really a hunting tool, and I graduated to a 22 when I was old enough to go for squirrels.

Anyone think 7 years old is too young for a 22? I think he can handle it mentally with good oversight and teaching, just curious what others have found.

"Good Oversight" being the key. 7 year olds tend not to have a long attention span and forget teachings quickly.

I've got a 6yr old and will be heading out soon with a Savage rascal.

I'd stick with a bolt action 22 sized appropriately for the kid.
Avoid the crickets the cocking lever is a pain. The rascal is light has decent adjustable peep sights and an accutrigger. Single shot with a load ramp size on the small side for smaller shooters. I think I picked it up for right around $110 with a rebate a year or two ago.
The other good option would be a CZ trainer rifle. Bigger size and weight but quality and would be usable significantly longer. I'll likely see about building a folding stock later to use the rascal as a pack rifle when my boys outgrow it.

I'd be jhappy with the BB gun.....but an air rifle sounds like a reasonable step up.

Double post.

I stand by comment.

I too agree with this logic. Get a good bolt action rifle. A hand gun is not a good option for a 6-7 year old kid.

I'm not familiar with the cricket, or Rascal so I can't comment on them but I would get a good Remington bolt gun not too heavy or too long. But I don't personally prefer the extra small ones because he'll grow fast and be stuck with a too small gun. If it's a little big for him he'll soon grow into it. Right now he will probably be shooting off a bench while hes learning to shoot so a gun a little bigger won't be a bad option.

As for a shot gun, don't make that big mistake and get a .410. Get him a 20 gauge or better still a 28 gauge pump or even a single shot break open. A .410 is for experienced shooters not for kids.

Yup. Especially not a Ruger Wrangler. I can't hit [bleep] with mine. And I'm usually a decent pistol shot.

This. No matter how mature a kid seems, it must always be remembered their brains and mental processing are not the same as an adult.

Around the age of 7 or so I think a rifle is best. Much harder to sweep himself and much easier for the adult to grab the barrel in the case of a momentary lapse in muzzle discipline.

Depends upon when/where/how you will let him use it. Unsupervised? Daisy BB gun versus paper targets.. In a couple or three years maybe a pellet rifle. Other side of 10-11 years old, a single shot .410 or maybe a .22. A lot depends on the surroundings you live in, how disciplined the lad is and how much oversight you will invest IMHO.

For perspective, I was 11 or so when I shot myself in the big toe on a freezing cold morning with a .22 air rifle. It was a painful lesson and I'm more than thankful dad didn't let me run loose with a .22 or shotgun on my own.

Mine shoots really well. 15 yards I can cover the group with a 50 cent piece.

But not for a 7 year old.

Call me old school... But if a 7 year old has not been exposed to any firearms at all, I'd start with a quality air gun. Teach him the safety and basics and turn him loose with it.

Next Christmas would be a great time to graduate him to a 22 rifle.

If he's already been shooting a BB gun perhaps it's time for a 22. Gonna add my vote to those who said "Savage Rascal". Got one over a year ago for the grand kids to plink with. I like it so much I wind up shooting it as much as them. Love that aperture sight and it even has an Accutrigger and it's accurate to boot. Nice little single shot makes them concentrate on their marksmanship vs. spray & pray. The one who recently turned 16 has sort of outgrown it but she still loves shooting it. It's currently just right, size wise, for the 7 year old. I will even confess to plinking with it when they aren't around because it's so much fun.

Started my boy at 5 with a Lil Henry mini bolt 22 LR. Can’t count how many birds, rabbits and squirrels he killed with that thing.

https://www.henryusa.com/rifles/mini-bolt-youth/

Another vote for single shot .22 bolt rifle. I started with a Remington 514 about 52 years ago. Still have it. Will go to my grandson at the appropriate time.

I also like the idea of keeping the bolt separate.

Good to hear. I was worried they were all like this. I have a long history with Blackhawks but this Wrangler makes me look stupid.

Exactly what digital dan said. Exactly.

An air rifle is plenty of pop to learn basics of riflemanship and safety, and modest enough to limit the damage when he makes a mistake in the process. Between simple mistakes in learning, to the boneheaded stuff we all did at least once, to poor backdrops and things we shouldn’t have been shooting at... part of growing up.

Edit to say, pellets ricochet less than bb’s, so kinda prefer them. More things learned the hard way as a kid.

Marlin youth 22. Put a cheap scope on it. I have one in safe. It was my boys, will soon be his son’s.

I started with a bb gun, moved to a pellet rifle, then a Remington mdl 24 .22 and a 28 gauge. Planning on starting my daughters with a bb gun, then a pellet rifle, and once I feel comfortable I have a TC Hotshot 22 that I picket up for them a couple years ago that I think will be perfect. Oldest will be 4 in March so I still have a little time.

This is good.

This. I've yet to meet a 7 year old who exhibits the maturity to be issued a powder burning rifle of some sort. Hell, when I was 7 I was eagerly shooting my sister's in the butt with a BB gun whenever no one was looking (especially them) and my old man was a strict disciplinarian who thought I was cool with a gun. A couple more years ain't gonna hurt to wait. Don't rush him or, more importantly, yourself.

This. No pistols for starters.

I got my and daughter a 22 single shot rifle.

It is a Stevens and the bolt has to be pulled every time.

I have a 22 single shot lever rifle and use it foe the 3 Grandsons when we go.

The oldest is getting large enough that he can handle a larger rifle and may get one of his Dad says ok.

He might have other ideas.

When i got my first gun it was a 20 gauge single shot and i used it to shoot deer in MS.and have even used that full choke thing for quail and doves.

I did give it up after tearing up to many birds.

Assuming he's grown up around guns, and knows gun safety, I think something that you'd feel comfortable turning him loose on his own with. Something he could use even when you weren't there.

I would say a Daisy 880 because it's accurate, powerful, and easy to pump. And it was my first "hunting rifle". It's what I really learned to shoot with. I wore that thing out. But the length of pull is kind of long.
So maybe the Daisy 35. It's smaller, and less than three pounds, but a smoothbore. So not quite as accurate. But powerful and not a bad shooter. Not bad at all. And cheap enough that he could use it for a couple of years and then get something a little bigger with rifling.

Ruger 10/22

don't hamstring the kid with a no-fun single-shot hard-to-manipulate too-long too-heavy bolt-gun.

Ruger 10/22, short stock, 25-round magazines loaded with cheap bulk ammo, and get the kid shooting and having fun. He'll never not want to go out for some range time, and he'll learn trigger control a lot faster if he gets more of it.

You guys sound like ridiculous killjoys.

Santa was good to my 6 and 9 year old.




A few hours later. One shot.


They’re kept in one of my safes. Only used when I’m within arms reach of them.

I bought the Browning SA22 because I thought they were neat, historic, and could be kept the rest of their lives and not be handicapped using them as they grow old.

My local gun shop gave each of my kids a Cricket bolt-action .22 when they were born. My son is five now and can shoot his pretty well. He struggled with the concept of the sights so I mounted an Aimpoint and he immediately started making hits. I recommend some type of reactive target so that they get instant gratification as well as positive feedback.

^^THIS^^

Started both of my kids out on Red Ryders around the age of 5. By the time they were 7, both we're shooting 10/22's and having a ball. Teaching and ensuring their understanding of gun safety was key. Both of my boy's are fairly good listeners, so this helped.

Lots of different ways to look at this. Appreciate all the opinions. Obviously good gun safety teaching is paramount. Think I’ll go with an air rifle this summer and upgrade to a 22 when he proves he’s ready by the way he handles the air gun.

Every child is different: I would trust my 7-year-old daughter with nuclear launch codes but not my son. When he shoots, I am in physical contact with both him and the gun at all times-- I want to whet his appetite but I'm not comfortable walking away. My middle daughter has no real interest in it so I don't push.

I received a Win single shot 22 "boy's rifle" for my 7th birthday - parents wouldn't let me have a BB gun. Too dangerous.
After impressing me with the power of the 22, when ~ 8, we had moved to a small farm, and Dad let me go bring in the milk cow - carrying my little rifle.
"Don't shoot toward the road, or the house, or the animals."
Many jack rabbits were killed.

Well my first firearm was a Sears .410 bore bolt action single shot. My dad purchased it for me with the thinking that a .22 with its much greater range was more of a danger if the "know what is downrange rule" was not followed. Not arguing whether that thinking is sound but I sure had a lot of fun with that old shotgun. Killed a lot of squirrels, rabbits and quail with it. Now there were .22rf in the house to use but the .410 was mine.

I think one advantage of the .410 is that it is easier to hit with so a kid can make shots on squirrels, rabbits, etc. and that makes using it so much more fun. If you are only interested in teaching marksmanship and not also having hunting part of the experience then of course the .22rf makes sense.

Yep. Gotta learn to know your backstop with a rifle.

Got my son one of those Cricket bolt-action .22s when he was about 5 or 6. that is what he learned to shoot with. Great little guns for beginners. When we go to the mountains and I take my 22 rifle, my wife gets the cricket out and she loves shooting it. So you are never to old I guess.

I started my boys out shooting a kids size .22lr single shot when they were 4 years old. They learned the rules of safely handling a gun quickly and moved into a mini-14. The strict structure of safety first isn't a habit until you make it that way. But it sticks. They were killing coyotes by seven.


P.S. Wish I could add pictures!

14 in my family that pre dates Daniel Boone is the minimum age on centerfires, or Rim fires.

Children have no concept of the damage that a gun can do.

Age 7 is for BB guns and pellet rifles. Teach them safe gun handling.

Note: at 13 my cousin shot the top of his brothers head off with a 20ga Stephens Single shot while quail hunting on Thanksgiving day in 1963, he survived....barely.

When Children make mistakes with a gun, you do not get a re-do.

I started my boy with a red rider BB gun to learn open sights, safety on/off, trigger finger.
I take him out hunting and he carries his red rider to learn to carry his rifle and once again muzzle control.
He’ll be 9 on Monday and he likes to shoot the RAR with open sights from the bench as it’s still little big for him.
I also let him go to town with the 10/22 sometimes

Not a gun writer but my 8-year old and 12-year old have been shooting a Savage Rascal for years, and they still love it even though I have a Ruger Charger and other rimfires for them to use. We started shooting Colibri rounds in the Rascal and now shoot CB Longs. It's quiet, accurate, and a ton of fun. In fact, it's one of my favorite firearms that I have owned. I will never sell that Rascal. My 2-year old daughter will learn to shoot with it.

I originally bought a Cricket in 2011, but quickly found out that it sucked. Sold it, and bought a Rascal, probably in 2011/2012. After 8 or 9 years, we've shot a lot of Colibris and CB in that Rascal. We don't shoot many standard or high velocity 22 LR rounds through it though.

Jason

The older boy had a 10/22 with a scope at 8. I think the temptation of rapid fire retarded his proper handling of a firearm. Likewise, the scope handicapped his ability to shoot iron sights.

The younger boy had a Red Rider at 5. At 6, I got him a CZ 452 bolt-action. Its akin to a Cricket, but the Cricket has that case rupture vent hole that can blow out brass and carbon into your face. The CZ also had a magazine box blank that made it a single shooter. Slowed him down and kept the focus on each individual shot. Kept it iron sights. Picked up a MkIII at 8. He’s now 10 and has a RAR 6.5CM and 870. Still shoots the CZ for fun (indoors) and he loves shooting bug holes unbenched. Wouldn’t do it any other way.

I started my three sons with a small bolt action 22, what a disaster, they took forever to line up to shoot and then trying to cycle the action. It was a process of much frustration and little hands have trouble with heavy, breaks-like-an-old-pine-limb triggers, not to forget inexpensive "starter" rifles typically lack the finish of moving parts that make things work smoothly. I bought a Ruger 10-22 and installed a Timney trigger and our troubles were solved. Children do not typically have the strength, coordination or dexterity of adults so their needs are quite different. Frustration takes the fun away from shooting. Also, targets that react, steel plates, targets that spin or balloons make it more fun for them. Shooting holes in paper gets boring fast. This was my experience, yours I'm sure will be different. BTW, their next rifle was a Winchester 70 in 250-3000.

Fantastic!

I have seen several kids with 10-22s that scared me badly enough I refuse to rabbit hunt with them with their 10-22s. With a loaded magazine a kid kills a rabbit and starts running to it. They fail to recognize the gun has reloaded itself. They do not get enough trigger time to realize what they are doing. A Rascal cures the issue while they are learning. At less than $150 they are nearly disposable, or can be resold easily.

My son got his first centerfire at 6 when I stocked a 700 in 243 for him. He only got to handle it when closely supervised. My 3 year old granddaughter got an 870 youth 20 gauge. Again, she does not get to handle it until she has a lot more trigger time. She is 4 now and gets her trigger time with her Rascal.