Teaching Grandson to Shoot - Caliber Progression

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cetanner

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I have a grandson that will be 10 years old in August. For the last 2 yrs I have been teaching him about rifle and handgun safety and how to shoot. We started with an old 22 single shot rifle of mine and more recently he has shot a 22 revolver I have owned for a number of years. He is doing great, is an accurate shot and demonstrates good gun safety. Recently he has asked me if he can shoot something bigger. I take that to mean something larger in caliber than 22lr. At what age does it make sense to let a child shoot a 9mm or something else? At what age and what sequence makes sense? Your own experience and suggestions are appreciated. Thanks
 
My friends 9 year old daughter shoots his Colt AR-15(.223) and 410 shotgun. She has never fired his hand guns because her hands are not really that big to get good hold on the gun.
 
I think higher recoil handguns are risky in the hands of young shooters but I have no experience in teaching the art so I'll leave that to others.

For rifles, I see no reason that a 10yr old (and actually considerably younger) can't shoot any rifle if they're not bothered by the recoil.

I'd start as mild as possible, something in the 223/22-250 type recoil range and work up toward 243, 25-06, 7mm-08, 308...

Until he's bothered or doesn't handle the gun well.

I don't think there's a generic answer. Let his actions and reaction guide you.
 
With younger shooters I think firearm fit is very crucial. Others have noted that younger shooters cannot get a proper grip on many handguns, my experience with younger shooters is that even with 22s stock fit is critical.
 
Keep it reasonable and fun !!!

The one grandson that I am most active with, just turned 11 and we have been progressing very well. It's important that whatever they shoot, they can see some good results and success. He won't be ready for the .44 Mag for some time to come. Currently we are at a .38 Special. I still have him on open sights and when I see that he has this down, will introduce a scope. Surprisingly, he loves the lever actions. .... ;)

I have seen too many adults, burn out their kids and spouses, on shooting too large and too fast.. ... :(

When teaching M/L's, we teach the kids on reduced loads and some are 10 and 11.

For now, I am my Grandson's coach and one day, his cheerleader. .... ;)

Be Safe !!!
 
I did not take my 15 year old grandson to the range until he mastered all safety rules, diassembly/assembly and cleaning of a S&W M&P and a .22 rifle. My grandsons first trip to the range was with a Mark ll. The following range trips he slowly progressed through all the different calibers up to the .45. He is most accurate with the XD40. I plan on outdoor range training starting with the .22 rifle through the .308 in the near future. His favorite weapons in my collection is the Mosin Nagant 91/30 and the Colt model 1901.
 
Once you've been through the gun safety, let them shoot whatever they can hold. You've done well starting him on a single-shot .22 and a .22 revolver. If his hand is sufficiently large to handle a larger pistol, let him try. My 10-year-old is a small boy, only about 80 lbs and while he loves going to the woods with me and will sit in a deer stand for hours, he's simply not yet interested in shooting. I think that he's too small to handle the centerfire rifles, but he does okay when he shoots the .22. Body development at that age is really individual, with some kids much larger than others.

You're doing great with your grandson. Don't rush it and you both will have memories for a lifetime.
 
We are blessed with 12 grandkids (5 girls & 7 boys). Two years ago I started the boys (at 7 years old and up) with a BB gun and back yard targets. My purpose was to teach gun safety, sight picture, how to aim. etc. Now, 2 of the 7 have gone to the gun range with me & their dad for 22LR rifle practice. They have learned to be good shots!

My 9 year old grandson went deer hunting with me last season. He shot his 1st deer (a doe in the Texas extended season for antlerless only) using a 9mm rifle (Rossi) that his dad bought for him. I admit I had concerns because he is of rather small stature. But he paid attention, recited the gun safety "laws", remembered his time at the gun range and placed his shot perfectly.

Each kid is different & Caleb even though small is a willing student & a quick learner. I will reward him with the tanned deer hide (with hair) at his next birthday.
 
Thanks to all for their replies. We have taken it slow and he has progressed well. He is just anxious for something more than the 22 to shoot. I am cautious and want to bring him along slowly. He is average size for a 10 yr old but does have large hands. I guess this helps. What is the next step up in cal from a 22?
 
I agree that hand size is the big deciding factor in my book. My 9 year old niece shoots my Glock 26 9mm quite well. In fact due to the grip fitting her small hands so well she shoots it better than most of the adults that have shot it have. She tried my P-64 in 9mm Makarov. She shot it ok, though she thought it was too snapy, and the thinner back strap dug into the web of her hand too much. She put 7 in the 9 ringe at 15 yards with it though.
 
I would hesitate to let kids that age shoot an autoloader in anything larger than a 22. But a full size 357 revolver with some light 38 special loads would be ok. I would recommend having kids shoot off a rest since they may not have the strength and large enough hands to hold the gun up and work the trigger safely at the same time. I let my kids (8yr old son and 10 yr old daughter) shoot my Dan Wesson 357 using some light 38's I loaded up(140 gr bullet going about 600 fps). I have also let my son shoot my BFR 460 off a rest. Of course he was only shooting 45 Colt loads. Those are very mild in that gun, but a hoot to shoot for a little kid.

Basically any large revolver with light loads would work. Like a Ruger Super Blackhawk or Redhawk in 44mag loaded with some light 44 Spec loads.
 
I would say go from the .22LR up to a good .38 Special revolver and later to 9mm and so on. This has been the progression for my oldest son and he is doing great.
 
As a highschool teacher I am aware that each kid learns at a different speed and in different ways. You can't lump them all together and expect to get the same results. That being said, let your grandson learn at his own rate and when he asks for a larger gun, let him try it and evaluate the results. He will probably tell you if it doesn't work. Kids tend to tell the truth about such things.

As an example, I was always a big kid growing up. I started with a .22 when I was 5. My dad had me banging away with a 30-06 when I was 12. It worked for me but I certainly wouldn't suggest it for all kids. I have a grandson coming up and with the variety of guns I have he will be able to pick what ever he wants to shoot when ever he is ready, as long as I feel good about his knowledge and ability.
 
Cetanner
My 11yo daughter started with what we had access to; a rental Ruger MKII and now shoots our new MKIII. My son who's 14 now moved through a .22 revolver to my LARGE 9mm pistol because that is what we had. He has shot a .45 as well without incident but although not especially large he is very strong. When my daughter is ready to move up we will go to a Medium or large frame .38 revolver from the rental case. Her problem biggest problem is the strength to hold the gun up with her arms extended.

So all that to ask:
1. What do you have available that he could move up to?
2. Is he strong enough to hold whatever that is up?
 
i definitely wouldn't hand him something with a short trigger reset or extremely light pull. double fires would be a very big danger in someone who could barely hold onto the gun. get him something with a long stiff trigger reset to try first.
 
blackpowder youth shoot

I think my boy was 11 when he shot his first big bore, a reduced size muzzleloader in .36 caliber. It was a youth shoot sponsored by the local Mtn Man re-enactment club.
They had several instructors and the kids lined up 3-4 deep,starting with the biggest first, 25grns @ 25 yards after that some did 50grns @ 50 yards with a .50 cal.
Those guys were very in tune to how the kids reacted and didn't push the hesitant ones.
Those kids(hesitant ones) would ask the others "how was it?" Cool ! was the usual response.
By the end of the day everybody was shooting, they even let me shoot! It was Cool !
Fast forward, my boy just turned 15 he has a .50 cal Hawken, a Spanish 7x57 mauser, a 20 gauge pump gun and a 38 revolver.
He only shoots what he wants to, fired a couple of different magnums once, and said I'm good, I'll shoot mine.
When I started him on auto pistols, I gave him one round in the mag, after he mastered that I gave him two. and so on.
 
A lot of good advice. Thanks. Grandson (almost 10) wants to shoot something bigger than a 22. I have a Ruger SR9C I use for CC and a Walther PPQ in addition to the 22's he has already shot. The Walther has a short/quick reset trigger and more muzzle flip than the Ruger so I don't want him to shoot that one. I think I will load one 9mm round in the magazine of my SR9C and let him shoot that and gauge his reaction and the result. I don't have any larger revolvers to let him try.
 
It depends on the kid ...physically and mentally ...( I start the grandkids shooting around 10 .../ and I have some as old as 21)..../ some adapt quickly - some don't ...

But in general, I stay with guns that are thin profile ( like a 1911 ) ...or a Sig 239 ( single stack gun ) ...in 9mm.../ or a J or K frame S&W revolver chambered in .38 spl or .357 mag ( but I load some .38's in it for them ...and since I reload / I can keep some "softer shooting" loads for them). With the semi-autos --- we load 1 round at a time in a mag until they get really consistent with the manual of arms / reaching the mag release, safety, de-cocker, etc...

The kids aren't revolver fans.../ because its not what they see in the movies / or on video games. They want to shoot a 9mm ...so a 1911 ( I have a Kimber Tactical Pro model 4" barrel, alloy frame in 9mm ) and some steel 1911's 5" barrels in 9mm...and they can handle all of those.

Its still a .22 --- but I bought a tricked out Browning Buckmark ...and put a red dot sight on it ....( it has Tactical solutions barrel, compensator and grips on it ...) so it looks a little cooler...

getting them into shotguns as well ...if they have the upper body strength to swing a gun at a moving target...is a big deal to the kids as well ....and I have some 28ga guns that are ideal ( about 7 lbs gross weight ) ...nice pattern out of a 28ga ( way better than a .410 )...so that's what I use. My range has rental guns too ....so we rent to supplement / after they can master my 9mm's ...( for the tactical stuff - that I don't want to buy )...
 
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Down here in the South the kids are banging away with what they can hold in the dove field. I have seen 10 year old girls shoot as well as daddy with 12 ga. It all depends on the kid and what they are ready for.

I think if you hold them back too much they will lose interest. My kids and grandkids all started with a .22 and bb guns but quickly moved up into larger weapons as their size allowed. They all were using 12 ga. or .243 by the time they were 12.

They could not use semi-autos until they could pull the slide back. But poured lots of .22 through some old pistols. I have a 15 year old that is a great pistol shot with everything from a .22 to .45.
 
I take my 11 year old Grand daughter to the range often. She shoots Buckmark browning 22cal. She also shoots the Ruger 10/22 rifle. And she shoots the Smith and Wesson 640-2, 38Spl. The biggest thing of all emphasized when we go is safety first, firearm pointed down range at all times, loaded or unloaded. Fingers off the trigger until you have sight picture. Plus wearing all the safety equipment, glasses, ear muffs etc. She does very well for an 11 year old girl.
 
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