is 3 yrs old too young to help dad clean ar?

[eljimbo142]

i was cleaning my rifle @ my work bench when my almost 3 yr old son told me he wanted to help. after a pause i told him to pull up a chair. i had already wiped off most of the carbon with a dry rag. i gave him a q-tip w a drop of fireclean and put him to work on the bolt carrier. he kept at it for about 45 min. thats a long time for a 3 yr old. it was an enjoyable afternoon w my boy. i even talked him through the bcg assembly. fireclean says its non-toxic and thats all i use. should i be worried about the carbon fouling? he washed up real good after he was done. i was not raised around firearms so was wondering if this is normal father/son bonding.

dissclaimer: no child accessible loaded firearms on property

[Surf]

Perfectly normal. But I suspect those on this forum would have a similar perspective. Asking that same question at another venue where the view might be counter to those shared here, might put you into the same category as those who club baby seals.

It is my view that education from an early age is important. Safety especially. For children who do not view things as being "off limits" often have a lesser amount of curiosity to explore when the parent is not present.

[ST911]

Expose your children to firearms progressively as they are able to process and safely integrate information. When my kids were old enough to sit up and hand me things, they have helped out around the house (and gun room) in as many ways as they could and were interested in. It was somewhere between 2 and 3 that one of mine understood the orientation of a pistol magazine spring and follower to the tube, and the buffer and spring to the receiver extension, all from helping dad.

Anticipate they will have shorter attention spans, will be easily distracted, and more accident prone, but let them help where they can.

[St.Michael]

My kids are ALWAYS around when I clean. One of the reasons I swapped to Frog Lube this year. They are allowed to pretty much touch anything that is NOT put together. So basically parts. They ask questions. I tell them what parts are and what they do. The only thing I don't show them is how to operate any of the fire arms or put any together. I think that needs to be done at a much later date.

[nolt]

carbon fouling probably no big deal. pm sent...

[SeriousStudent]

Just wait till they are old enough to stand on a stepladder, and drop brass into the Dillon 650 while you reload range chow.....

Seriously, why the heck not? If you are following normal precautions, it sounds like a fun time with Dad. I used to help my grandparents clean firearms all the time, it was just another chore. You cleaned all the tools before you put them away - shovels, axes, hoes, shotguns, rifles.

[cwgibson]

My three year old loves to help dad. She has an old pair of gloves she wears when handling brass and such. I got her a Red Ryder BB gun and we have been going over how it works, how to load it, line up the sights, etc. I also believe the younger the better and she seems to really understand the importance of it all. Honestly my biggest concern would be the friends they have over when she is older.


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[TAZ]

My some went through the same thing round 4 or 5 ish. Looked at it as a great teachable moment to really begin instilling the 4 rules and common sense ideas for youngsters around fire arms. Don't touch, tell an adult that sort of thing. If they are interested they will pay attention and learn it. To his day he has good muzzle discipline with everything but his Nerf guns. Is aware of muzzles when we are at the range or gun store... Don't waste a good moment to make a difference in his life. Could mean life and death. Once he figured out that cleaning guns was work... not such a cool thing anymore

The whole lead, chemical paranoia is out of control IMO. I grew up with lead paint, played with lead toy soldiers, dunked my hands in kerosene while cleaning car parts and used real MEK to degrease stuff. According to my doc I'm in good health aside from high cholesterol. Use common sense. Don't let your kid drink Hoppe's or Frog Lube. Don't let him stick his hands in his mouth... He's more likely to drown or get hurt at the playground than die for touching the bolt of a rifle once a week.

[Digital_Damage]

Ya... too young... to many toxins and Lead. It is better to side with a caution, your kid has a whole life in front of him it would be terrible to start him off on the wrong foot.

[DaveK]

As long as the kid is past the point of putting stuff in their mouth and washes their hands, when finished, I think it is a great Idea.

Hell, my 7 y/o daughter loves to sit and clean weapons with me. She doesn't do very good getting the small crevices clean, but I don't tell her that. And she loves using the bore snake!