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Thread: Rifle for baby boy due in June

  1. #1
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    Rifle for baby boy due in June


    *** UPDATE POST # 48 ***



    I have my first child due this June and want to have a rifle put back for him to have when he gets old enough to shoot and enjoy it as his own. I'm not 100% on what will be best in 8 years or whatever.

    Standard 6920 or 6720
    6920 OEM 1 or 2

    For those that have young boys - do they care at all about the details of a gun or if it looks like daddy's gun or any of that?

    I remember when I got my first rifle as a boy it was a Marlin 336, which my dad had bought some time prior. At the time, late 90s, bolt guns with huge muzzle brakes and big scopes were in and I recall thinking that old lever action wasn't that cool. Kid logic.

    For what it's worth we are a no cable TV household and will not be doing the vidya games nonsense either. I'm sure all that Call of Duty garbage twists boys expectations of real world guns all up. I'll be teaching him on a single shot 22 rifle, then a 10/22, etc. I just figured I may as well buy the AR now while they're so dang cheap.
    Last edited by grizzlyblake; 12-30-19 at 06:51.

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by grizzlyblake View Post
    I have my first child due this June and want to have a rifle put back for him to have when he gets old enough to shoot and enjoy it as his own. I'm not 100% on what will be best in 8 years or whatever.

    Standard 6920 or 6720
    6920 OEM 1 or 2

    For those that have young boys - do they care at all about the details of a gun or if it looks like daddy's gun or any of that?

    I remember when I got my first rifle as a boy it was a Marlin 336, which my dad had bought some time prior. At the time, late 90s, bolt guns with huge muzzle brakes and big scopes were in and I recall thinking that old lever action wasn't that cool. Kid logic.

    For what it's worth we are a no cable TV household and will not be doing the vidya games nonsense either. I'm sure all that Call of Duty garbage twists boys expectations of real world guns all up. I'll be teaching him on a single shot 22 rifle, then a 10/22, etc. I just figured I may as well buy the AR now while they're so dang cheap.
    I started off on a 10/22 at that age, being taught just the fundamentals. Your son will likely be happy with whatever he gets, and will very likely adopt your attitude about firearms.

  3. #3
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    I have kids, one boy.

    By the time he's old enough to shoot that gun it will be a long, distant memory. He might not care for guns and might not be the kind of kid you even want with guns.

    Spend the money on things useful to a newborn.

  4. #4
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    I understand your excitement. Congratulations. Personally, I'd wait until he's old enough and demonstrates interest. As to getting an AR15...IMHO it's likely that possession of such a weapon will be illegal by the time he's old enough to shoot it.

  5. #5
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    Congratulations on your first arrival. Who knows what they'll want if anything. But in the interim, you now have license, free reign, to purchase and purchase and purchase in thee interest of the child.

    Regarding those games, last year I indoctrinated my 7 year old grandson to a M&P 15-22. Like a duck to water. He likely knew as much about red dots as I did. I was amazed. I took him through safety and all that prior to live firing. Quite a bit of training actually prior to hitting the range. He gets straights A, plays football, etc. Not cooped up all day / night zombied-out with an electronic device. But he does get his "kill 'em all " device time in. Very well round (imo). "yes sir / no sir" all that. My impression of some of those games are they act as junior league simulators.

  6. #6
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    When my son was born, I also thought of buying him his own gun to give to him when he was old enough to shoot. I thought of buying a cricket rifle. I'm glad I didn't. He'd have outgrown it before he was interested in guns.
    He's now 10 years old, and he just started shooting last year. I let him ask me himself to go to the range. he's been around my guns his whole life; whether I was cleaning them or handling them, so he grew up used to seeing them. He didn't really get interested in guns until he started playing nerf guns with kids at his school, and watching nerf gun vids. then he started asking the questions (around 8 years old) and i answered them. when he expressed interest in real guns, i started him out handling a blue gun, then progressed to airsoft, then an air pistol. when i was confident that he could handle them safely, knew how to load/reload etc, and understood the fundamentals of sight alignment, i took him to his first range session. he shot my .22LR walther P22, which was perfect as he has small hands.

    he also shot my .22LR AR, which was too long/heavy for him to shoot offhand, so i just finished building him a .22LR AR pistol. while the idea of a boy's first rifle is nice, i think it doesn't really matter until they're into shooting more. the P22 is now 'his', and so will the .22LR AR pistol be. i also think that he's getting more out of watching me build him a gun from parts than if i had bought one years ago and gave it to him now. every component is chosen for him (he's a lefty like me), so he understand the choices as i put it together.

    i'd recommend just playing it by ear. congrats!

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    My son was twelve when he shot his first rifle, my first LMT 16" carbine scoped with a TA01NSN. That upper is now my daughters', who shows less interest perhaps but knows how to shoot that and a G19. He's moved on to bigger things, but for the long haul they are hooked up.

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    I would have been really happy if my dad gave me an SR-15 when I turned 8. That's what you should give him- smoother recoil for the youngin'!
    On the seventh day God rested; Marines filled sandbags

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by 17K View Post
    I have kids, one boy.

    By the time he's old enough to shoot that gun it will be a long, distant memory. He might not care for guns and might not be the kind of kid you even want with guns.

    Spend the money on things useful to a newborn.
    Best advice and early in the thread too. If you just have to buy a firearm, but one you like because odds are against most kids getting in to it unfortunately.

  10. #10
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    If I may add my $.02 worth, MM's advice is spot on. My son is seven. He has shot a Walther P22 and found it to be great. Small enough for his hands, light recoil. He was pretty happy with it. For fun, I saddle up behind him and let him put a few rounds through a 1911 and some Glocks. They're a bit much and he doesn't enjoy it as much. When it comes to rifles, he isn't as interested as he's still too small to really handle anything outside of an M1 carbine with a shortened length of pull. His interests are in other things but when he does ask to shoot, we normally break out the bb guns and step into the back yard and that suffices for now.

    If I may add, as many have pointed out this market is at a low and now is the time to buy. What I did was simply put together something simple and lightweight that simply added a backup in the stable and, when the time comes, the FSB and Daniel Defense rail will certainly be dated. Some may argue they already are. But, in a few years time, when he comes to me and says "I want a rifle" I'll be able to give him something to start with. Like most of us, I'm sure he'll hold on to it, even after it doesn't see much use. My first shotgun was a beat up Ithaca 37 Featherlight in 20 gauge. I haven't shot it in years, but I still won't part with it.

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