.22-250 too much gun for a 4 year old?

[Team Roper]

My dad was a firearms instructor in the Army. After the Army he went into law enforcement did/does all the firearms and tatical training for a 2 SOs. I was raised with a gun in my hand. He started me off with a bb gun at 2 (took a saw to the stock and shortened it so it would fit), at 3 a chipmunk .22 with shorts then longs, at 5 I was shoting a Remington 660 .222. I killed a 3 pt that year. I was a big kid 6' by 14. Don't rush your kiddo and don't start them out with 22-250. The focus needs to be developing good shooting habbits and becoming accurate/consitent. I've killed several deer with a 22 hornet. Consistent well palced shots are 100x more important than fire power. My 2 cents!

^^^^^ That is some good advice there now.

[Bigboss]

Way I did my boys was. They had to be able to hold the gun up on their own without bracing. So we started at a bb gun and went up. Learning all the while.

[Capt Glenn]

It really does just depend on the kid.

Some of ya'll were early bloomers I guess. My son was still in diapers on his 3rd birthday. I guess if I'd have started him with a BB gun at 2 he could have tucked his extra BBs in his Huggies.

I started my son shooting a BB gun at around 5. He still couldn't cock a Red Ryder on his own but I'd sit and help him and he'd shoot some cans. At 6 he started shooting a Crossman pellet gun and got pretty good with it. By the time he was 7 he was shooting a .22 at the range very well and a scoped Gamo at home. He was practicing with his scoped pellet gun just about daily in the back yard and was starting to work on the bird population. When he was 7 we started going to the range a couple evenings a week and shooting my scoped AR in .223. He got good with it quickly. We moved on to a .243 and he was shooting it well in no time. I was looking for a certain level of proficiency and comfort before I'd let him shoot at a deer. He was going to have to be ready to make the shot on his own before I'd let him shoot at a deer. Ever since then he has been on a pretty good roll.

At 7 he killed 3 deer, two bucks and a doe. He is 9 now and just killed his 10th deer on Monday. I am the spotter. He does everything with the rifle. I have never helped him hold it or shoot it in any way when deer hunting. I feel like if I have to hold or manipulate the gun for a kid the kid really isn't ready to be shooting deer.

I also feel like there is a difference between putting the crosshairs on a deer and pulling the trigger and understanding the situation and the seriousness of taking a life. I just can't see a 3 or 4 year old fully comprehending what they are doing.

My advice is don't rush it. Practice, practice, practice and be honest with yourself about their ability. They are ready when they are ready.

[TxRip]

Too young. BB gun or cb