moresmoke

Well-known Member
Location
E ND
I'm looking for sugesstions on what to get for an air rifle to start teaching my kids about firearms with. Primarily will be just target use, occasional pest control duty. I would like to have one that is accurate enough to not cause frustration trying to hit a target. Also have one kid that has arm strength issues, so would prefer a rifle that has a fairly easy pump/cocking action. Anyone have experience with what is available? Prefer to pay the money for quality if necessary. I haven't done much with air rifles since i was a kid... Had one that was pretty good, and used several that would have had a hard time hitting the side of a barn from ten ft!
 
Daisy 880 cheap powerful shoots bbs or pellets. Needs adult supervision though, like I said powerful Twin killed his brother accidentally with one.
 
Get something they can cock. I don't recommend pump types. My first one was really hard to cock so I'd bend over it with the heels on my hands on the pump grip and push it down until it cocked. Another kid tried to cock it and when his hands slipped off the "pump" he almost lost an eye. gm
 
My kids have 2 kinds. We have the daisy air rifle and The daisy red Ryder. The red Ryder is hands down more accurate and consistant, the air rifle definitely has more power. I can take the red Ryder and hit very consistently but the air gun tends to wander with no pattern. I had a Crossman as a kid and it was pretty good. If I was to buy another air gun it would not be the same daisy as what I have.
 
Break barrels are kinda like low powered .22's. probably not exactly what your looking for.

If ya want easy cocking and decent accuracy, Daisy red riders will do that job just nicely. Only like $35 a gun. Not really going to deal with any pests though.

I have a daisy 880 and I love it. Around $50 and get it with a scope for couple bucks more. Very accurate and you can fill it up with BB's and shoot each shot with 1 pump or you can kill rabbits with pellets and 10 pumps.
 
I started my daughter out on a Benjamjn .177 cal. pump air rifle. After she learned how to use it safely then she went to a Ruger 77/22.
 
As others have said, the Daisy 880 is a nice air rifle for the price. I've bought three or four of them for my grandkids, and the only problem I've had is the kids wanting to pump up too much power. FWIW, the older 880 made of metal is tougher than the new ones made of plastic, but good used ones cost more than the plastic new ones.
 
I got a Benjamin .177 when I was about 10 years old. Still have it, still works 50 years later!

Don't know if they still make them, but it has been a good one!
 
Thanks for the replies. I would have never guessed that the Red Riders would have much accuracy. That my be the way to go. Mostly just looking for something to start with that doesn't have the "bang" factor to deal with starting out.
 
Another thought, while the red riders are great little guns, be especially careful at close ranges. They don't have as much power as they used to and they will ricochet
off tins cans and things most BB guns would get through.
 
i have the amarex surge xt ,i use it for critters in my back yard . its.177 cal.and is real accurate . IF i use the premier brand pellets ,super match competition grade 12.00 for 500 .last time i had it out i bagged 5 squirrels in one hour all head shots at 20 yards.might be more than your looking for @ 140.00
 
We lost the .177 cal. in a break 3 years ago. I have my dad .22 cal. that's about 70 years old. You can get Benjamin air rifles from Pyramydair . The model 392 is .22 cal. and model 397 is .177 cal. they both are priced at $169.00 each.
 
(quoted from post at 04:08:12 04/18/16) We lost the .177 cal. in a break 3 years ago. I have my dad .22 cal. that's about 70 years old. You can get Benjamin air rifles from Pyramydair . The model 392 is .22 cal. and model 397 is .177 cal. they both are priced at $169.00 each.

Benjamin is the successor to Sheridan Blue Streaks. My Blue Steak is 51 years old, three pumps is more than enough to shoot. Add more as the kid gets stronger. The break barrel springers need somebody really strong to cock them, then you have the spring held by the sear while you're placing the pellet in the chamber. My neighbors kid lost an inch off his right index finger while loading the rifle and the sear let go. I have a springer and don't use it for the finger in the chamber reason.

The Blue Streak is really accurate; I could shoot a group of 5 shots at 25 yards you could cover with a dime. Iron sights too. I have a Remington 541T heavy barrel target rifle, .22, 24x scope, shooting Federal Ultra Match, which was $15 for 50 20 years ago. That had a bigger group from 25 yards than the BS.
 
Daisy 880. They have a long enough pump arm that even 10 pumps doesn't take a lot of effort. I shot the pump out of one as a teen. Shot dozens of pigeons and hundreds of sparrows with it. You can also short pump it to 4 or 5 pumps for less power. Can't tone down a break open one.
AaronSEIA
 
Sorry, but as a youth instructor I feel a need to add some things that may be repetitive but as others may be thinking of starting kids should be said.

BB;s will not only ricochet, they will bounce straight back. Please consider pellets, and teach kids to wash hands thoroughly after handling them.
Spring breaks can be handled and cocked much safer by loading the pellet on first break and then cocking, but as was mentioned, they really don't fit into this scenario.
Eye protection is an absolute necessity.
Start with a blank 9" paper plate and teach sight picture before giving them anything smaller to shoot at.
Teach muzzle control first, trigger control second, ammunition control can be kinda useless on most repeaters but may be applicable.

JMHO
 
The Sheridan air rifle came into production in 1947 (1947-1977) and was patterned off of the Benjamin air rifle design which stated production in about 1901. In 1977 Sheridan was bought out by Benjamin air rifle company and in the 90s Benjamin air rifle was bought out by Crosman who still builds the Benjamin air rifle.
 

Find a firearm that "cocks" using a lever to pull instead of the barrel.
My idiot kid let go of the barrel with it 9/10 cocked. The barrel whipped back against the stops and bent the barrel. It cost 3/4 the price of a new gun to replace the barrel.
 
If he goes with pellets, which would be a good idea but with a bit more power, use something like these. Made by Crosman, I've found they have much better accuracy and the metal part will useually go into something and the plastic part may or may not fall of. I have never had a straight back ricochet that I know of with them. Led free.
a224184.jpg

Link to my favorite lead free pellets.
 
(quoted from post at 06:40:15 04/18/16) Sorry, but as a youth instructor I feel a need to add some things that may be repetitive but as others may be thinking of starting kids should be said.

BB;s will not only ricochet, they will bounce straight back.

JMHO

As a youth instructor, you should be teaching and adhering to the 10 Commandments of Gun Safety. ALL projectiles can ricochet under the right conditions. If you're at risk of BBs bouncing straight back, you are doing something WRONG. This should NEVER be an issue if a proper target and backstop is in use.

The Fourth Commandment: Know Your Target and What Lies Beyond It. Teaching this Commandment should also involve a discussion of the dangers of a ricochet and the need for proper target backstops and to never shoot a rifle at the surface of the water.

Unsafe airgun / firearms handling practices are NOT made safe simply by avoiding this/that type of projectile. Unsafe is always unsafe.

+1 on the Daisy Red Rider. A tremendously accurate and easy to cock rifle for the price. Very enjoyable for both my sons and dad takes the occasional shot as well, just to show them the Old Goat still has it.

The only problem with the Red Rider is that while walking the rifle from the self to the checkout counter, you will have to endure at least 3 people quoting that awful line from A Christmas Story. I kid you not.

While buying my oldest son's rifle, I stood in line and this woman came up to me and said, "I'm sorry, but I have to say it..."

Me: "Please do not."

Woman. "No, no, I have to. I can't stop myself."

Me. "I wish you wouldn't. Maybe you should say a prayer for Jesus to grant you some self-restraint?"

Woman: "I can do that later. Now I have to say it. I have to. 'You'll shoot your ...' "

So then I got to the checkout woman. And she says...

"I have to say it. Have you seen that movie with the boy who want's a Daisy Red Rider..."

Me: "Help me, Jesus..."

It was the longest 15 minute trip to Walmart in my life.

Grouse
 
Thanks for all the info, folks. It looks like the red rider is the way to go for the kids, and maybe a 880 for me. I am definately aware of how shots can ricochet or skip. It was interesting to hear my grandfather describe how he shot a hole in the side of his pickup, when trying to hit a duck with a .22. Luckily it passed about 1/2 inch below the gas tank!
 
Well I may as well throw in my 2 cents.
Red Riders are easy to cock and shoot, BUT not real accurate you can see the bb travel and watch it go this way and that from point of aim. May be good for first start up but if they want to stick with it will soon get tired of not hitting where they want to. I had a Crossman pump as a kid and it wandered shots too. It did not have a rifled barrel. I got the kids a Crossman pump with a rifled barrel and with pellets it can shoot straight. It may not be the easiest to pump up though ? Kids and I used to have fun after Halloween using the .410 single shot and blasting the pumpkins ! Easy to shoot and makes a dramatic effect when it blows the pumpkin apart.
 

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