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Guns and kids!!!

cteaglesfan

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2012
Messages
133
Location
Branford
I have a really intersting question that I know I'm going to get a bunch of different responses on. I have a 9 year old daughter who I would like to one day soon introduce her to firearms. I've always owned them and once she got old enough to know what a gun was and saw it on my hip and asked about it, my response was 'daddy has a gun because he loves you and doesn't want anyone to hurt you' I also told her that if she ever sees my gun or any other laying around DO NOT touch it, run and tell an adult. I USED TO BE bad about coming in the house and just un-holstering, not caring where I put it.

The problem is I don't want her to fear guns, but you know how our society is with guns and kids. The funny thing is her mothers side of the family is from Kansas. If you guys know anything about Kansas, states don't get much more conservative than Kansas. So I won't have any objections from her mother at all. I'm just not sure how to introduce her because you have to be REALLY careful with kids and guns these days.

REALLY interested in what Rich has to say :lol:
 

brk913

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 10, 2007
Messages
370
Location
Plainville, CT
My son is almost 4 and I have taken him out shooting a single shot 22 rifle already. By 6 or 7 I bet I will have him able to shoot most pistols and rifles. You just need to smart small, I started with 10-15 minutes at a time and let him pop a few balloons, any more that that and he would get bored. It's really up to you to teach gun safety from day one, stop, don't touch, go tell an adult is OK, but teaching your child to understand what guns are all about and allowing them to use them gives them more respect for them in the long run. My friend started his son about the same age as mine and he is now in his late teens, he was shooting competitions at age 9-10 against adults and still is today, both rifle and pistol....
 

ScottE

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2012
Messages
140
Location
Minnesota
My 14 year old daughter claims she wants to get into hunting, so I'm looking to sign her and I up for a rifle class or two.
 

cteaglesfan

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2012
Messages
133
Location
Branford
My son is almost 4 and I have taken him out shooting a single shot 22 rifle already. By 6 or 7 I bet I will have him able to shoot most pistols and rifles. You just need to smart small, I started with 10-15 minutes at a time and let him pop a few balloons, any more that that and he would get bored. It's really up to you to teach gun safety from day one, stop, don't touch, go tell an adult is OK, but teaching your child to understand what guns are all about and allowing them to use them gives them more respect for them in the long run. My friend started his son about the same age as mine and he is now in his late teens, he was shooting competitions at age 9-10 against adults and still is today, both rifle and pistol....


I just dont have anything that she can shoot. I have a .40, .357 Sig and a FN 5.7. What would be good to start her off with, maybe a .22 rifle?? Can you or anyone else send me any links to guns made just for children, if there is such a thing
 

cteaglesfan

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2012
Messages
133
Location
Branford


WOW, that's perfect!!! That's A LOT!!!!!!! The funny thing is I just got something from her school asking parent not to dress their kids in halloween costumes that have anything to do with blood or GUNS and I wasn't quite sure what to think about that, but I understood why they did that. Funny enough, my daughter came home today with a story about how her teacher talked for a half hour about why she was a vegetarian. It just made me uneasy because it says to me that you can have an agenda as long as its a socially acceptable agenda. But I've been known to dig into stuff too much
 

EMNofSeattle

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2012
Messages
3,670
Location
S. Kitsap, Washington state
I just dont have anything that she can shoot. I have a .40, .357 Sig and a FN 5.7. What would be good to start her off with, maybe a .22 rifle?? Can you or anyone else send me any links to guns made just for children, if there is such a thing

My first rifle was a Marlin 980s
http://www.marlinfirearms.com/firearms/BoltAction22/980s.asp

.22LR Bolt Action, 7 shot magazine very reliable and legal in all 50 states.

This would be my recommendation for a first gun.

If you own any glocks you can order conversion kits to .22 here
http://www.advantagearms.com/

But she can fire a 5.7mm or even a .40 no issue once she's used to it, my younger brother was roughly 8 or 9 when he began shooting 9mm and .38 pistols with us. after those first couple shots people get used to it. just go to the range or wherever you shoot.
 

davidmcbeth

Banned
Joined
Jan 14, 2012
Messages
16,167
Location
earth's crust
Insuring your guns are secure from unwanted handling (even from your own kid) is not showing that the gun is evil ... only that you want it secured.
 

Rich B

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2009
Messages
2,909
Location
North Branford, Connecticut, USA
Insuring your guns are secure from unwanted handling (even from your own kid) is not showing that the gun is evil ... only that you want it secured.

This.

Now, a disclaimer, I don't have kids, so I am not at all 'experienced' on this subject matter.

No matter what anyone says or what the law is, you have a responsibility to keep your firearms out of the hands of your children without your permission and supervision.

On the other side, I definitely agree that you should get your kid started in safe gun handling and shooting at as early an age as you believe they are ready. Spend a lot of good quality time teaching about them and showing that they are a good, responsible tool for a human being to own, enjoy and protect themselves and their loved ones with.

I personally recommend an air gun if you have a place to shoot it since they are a ton of fun, and a .22 rifle. Learning on these is a lot of fun and can really teach a good kid some serious discipline (the good kind) and responsibility.
 

cteaglesfan

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2012
Messages
133
Location
Branford
This.

Now, a disclaimer, I don't have kids, so I am not at all 'experienced' on this subject matter.

No matter what anyone says or what the law is, you have a responsibility to keep your firearms out of the hands of your children without your permission and supervision.

On the other side, I definitely agree that you should get your kid started in safe gun handling and shooting at as early an age as you believe they are ready. Spend a lot of good quality time teaching about them and showing that they are a good, responsible tool for a human being to own, enjoy and protect themselves and their loved ones with.

I personally recommend an air gun if you have a place to shoot it since they are a ton of fun, and a .22 rifle. Learning on these is a lot of fun and can really teach a good kid some serious discipline (the good kind) and responsibility.

You guys hear all the stories about the accidents with kids playing with guns, so securing them is a MUST. I just want to find a balance between a fear of guns and a healthy respect. I really think it will benefit her later on in life. And there's nothing wrong with a little exta daddy/daughter time.

Question, I ususally shoot in B-port or Wolf's in Bristol and I don't believe she can see over the table to shoot. Would an outdoor range be best and are there any public outdoor ranges in the New Haven area???
 

cteaglesfan

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2012
Messages
133
Location
Branford
Blue trails in Wallingford.

Chris' indoor in Guilford might be able to help you out by removing the shelf. I know they come out, not sure if Chris would be willing to let you remove it for her.

I think I will start her off with an air rifle and see if it's something she loves to do, before I spend the money on a real rifle.

Thanks again Rich!!!!
 

Rich B

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2009
Messages
2,909
Location
North Branford, Connecticut, USA
I think I will start her off with an air rifle and see if it's something she loves to do, before I spend the money on a real rifle.

Thanks again Rich!!!!

Check with blue trails, I think they allow air rifles, but I am not 100% sure. I do remember they have kids air rifle clubs or something (hopefully someone more in tune with this could chime in), they might also have kid's instruction.

If she does get into it, consider doing an appleseed shoot with her.

http://appleseedinfo.org/
 

MKEgal

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2010
Messages
4,383
Location
in front of my computer, WI
Definitely an air rifle / pellet gun. Inexpensive to purchase, ammo is cheap, and it's quiet.
EMNofSeattle said:
If you own any Glocks you can order conversion kits to .22 here
http://www.advantagearms.com/
I bought one for my G17 & the only thing I'd change is to have a larger magazine.
Seems well made, very few misfeeds or FTFs.
Getting it off the pistol is a little different, but read the directions & it's not hard.

ETA: also check out www.corneredcat.com the section about kids
Kathy Jackson has some really sensible ideas.
 
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mobiushky

Regular Member
Joined
May 30, 2012
Messages
830
Location
Alaska (ex-Colorado)
This is just my own experience. I have 3 kids. 16 yr old girl, 13 yr old girl, and 9 yr old boy. This summer my wife and I decided that we needed to be more proactive about protection and teaching our kids gun safety. Short background. I grew up around shooting and hunting, wife did not. She was never anti-gun, but she was always afraid because of how she was raised. She decided she didn't want our kids to be that way. Fast forward, we bought out first handgun together in May, Glock 19. But it wasn't exactly a "kid friendly" choice for my son. My girls can handle it, but the boy can't. So we told the kids we would not be shooting together until we could all go. So couple months later we got a Ruger SR22 pistol. I also borrowed a Ruger 10/22 from a co-worker.

We spent the next 2 weeks teaching them safety and proper handling and drilling in always demand an open action when you are handed a gun. Stuff like that.

One thing I did was be very upfront with them about everything. I let them hold the gun even if I knew they couldn't shoot it. Curiosity is really the main reason kids play with guns. SO if you dispel that innate desire to want to know about it, they aren't as likely to play with it. SO they got to hold it unloaded. Look at what ever they wanted all in the safety of me watching and explaining muzzling etc. Same went for bullets. I let them each handle them as much as they needed while I was watching so they could get it out of their system.

Finally we all went to the range together and everyone got to shoot whatever they wanted. My son loved both the 10/22 and the SR22. I have a great picture of him shooting it. Talk about natural shooting stance... LOL.

I guess my point is this. Fear is derived from a lack of knowledge and understanding. My kids were afraid of guns but still were very curious. After shooting it and seeing the damage it can do (btw, first shot of the range day was me shooting a milk jug with a JHP) they now respect them and know how to handle them to the point that I know how they would handle a gun if the saw one at a neighbors house.
 

cteaglesfan

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2012
Messages
133
Location
Branford
This is just my own experience. I have 3 kids. 16 yr old girl, 13 yr old girl, and 9 yr old boy. This summer my wife and I decided that we needed to be more proactive about protection and teaching our kids gun safety. Short background. I grew up around shooting and hunting, wife did not. She was never anti-gun, but she was always afraid because of how she was raised. She decided she didn't want our kids to be that way. Fast forward, we bought out first handgun together in May, Glock 19. But it wasn't exactly a "kid friendly" choice for my son. My girls can handle it, but the boy can't. So we told the kids we would not be shooting together until we could all go. So couple months later we got a Ruger SR22 pistol. I also borrowed a Ruger 10/22 from a co-worker.

We spent the next 2 weeks teaching them safety and proper handling and drilling in always demand an open action when you are handed a gun. Stuff like that.

One thing I did was be very upfront with them about everything. I let them hold the gun even if I knew they couldn't shoot it. Curiosity is really the main reason kids play with guns. SO if you dispel that innate desire to want to know about it, they aren't as likely to play with it. SO they got to hold it unloaded. Look at what ever they wanted all in the safety of me watching and explaining muzzling etc. Same went for bullets. I let them each handle them as much as they needed while I was watching so they could get it out of their system.

Finally we all went to the range together and everyone got to shoot whatever they wanted. My son loved both the 10/22 and the SR22. I have a great picture of him shooting it. Talk about natural shooting stance... LOL.

I guess my point is this. Fear is derived from a lack of knowledge and understanding. My kids were afraid of guns but still were very curious. After shooting it and seeing the damage it can do (btw, first shot of the range day was me shooting a milk jug with a JHP) they now respect them and know how to handle them to the point that I know how they would handle a gun if the saw one at a neighbors house.



We have a father of the year candidate over here!!!!!!!!:lol:

That's makes perfect sense. You simply take the curiousity out of the whole thing. If they know that they can handle it when you are around they have no reason to try and sneak and do it behind you back. Thanks to safes and trigger locks, that isn't even possible
 

LQM

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 26, 2007
Messages
101
Location
Branford, Connecticut, USA
Blue trails in Wallingford.

Chris' indoor in Guilford might be able to help you out by removing the shelf. I know they come out, not sure if Chris would be willing to let you remove it for her.

Chris' Indoor does indeed allow one to remove the top shelf for younger shooters or others who may need a lower bench to shoot from.
 

ccwinstructor

Centurion
Joined
Jul 11, 2008
Messages
919
Location
Yuma, Arizona, USA
Fatal accidents involving children under 14 are incredibly rare

Insuring your guns are secure from unwanted handling (even from your own kid) is not showing that the gun is evil ... only that you want it secured.

We are doing an excellent job at reducing gun accidents, especially involving children. Fatal gun accidents (which are the only ones tracked nationally) involving children 14 or under, are in the one in 10 million range, about 30 or less per year. To put it in an easily understood perspective, swimming pools are about 100 times more dangerous to children than guns are.

The major reason that we are so obsessive about guns and children is that the MainStream Media has been pushing its objective to disarm the citizenry for decades. A large part of that effort is to convince women that they should never allow guns in their homes.
 
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