Just starting my 2 younger boys [9&14] on clays and hopefully, soon, on wing shooting. Bought the little Savage 28g o/u, but its too long for the 9 yr old to shoulder [Just a tap long for the 14yr old - we breed jockies...]. Am depating having the stock cut down so it will be a 13" pull for the 9yr old and use a slip on butt pad for the 14yr old.
I have looked high and low for a small 28g and dont particularly want to make a $400 purchase into a 1400.00 end item.
Am debating a 410g o/u Stoeger for the 9yr old but it leaves me in the same quandry with which I went into this.... Id like to have him in a guage that he can hit things with
Thoughts...?

The follow up to this is that I was trying to get one gun and Im afraid a 20g light enough for the 9yr old will be too much recoil for him. Small kid. Mean as a snake, but small

SESOLINC,

What you did not say were how much do each of the boys weigh. Yes, that is correct weight (not age) is the factor in how soon can you start them with shotguns. Boys (and girls) should be introduced to shotgunning when they are right around 95 lbs in weight. So age has nothing to do with how soon can you start a kid with shotgunning. So a 10 year old 95 pound girl can start shooting earlier than a 12 year old 85 pound boy. Why 95 lbs ??? Well that is the golden number where the kid has enough mass to easily take on the recoil.

.410 Bore
Keep them away from .410...that is a very frustrating bore for the young ones and they may loose interest real fast if they cannot hit flying objects.

20 Gauge
20 gauge may have too much recoil for them unless you equip the gun with a recoil reducing system.

28 Gauge
That is the best gauge to start kids with. Minimum recoil with great hitting potential. Hopefully you will hook them on for life.

Remington makes 1100 series Sporting guns in .410, 28 and 20. They are middle of the road pricewise, have minimum recoil and you can cut the stock yourself to give each kid the appropriate length of pull.

Good luck.

52 and 72 pounds. Both have shot a bunch of 22 and 410 off supports, but, obviously, the gun length is not such a problem when they can lay it on the dock rail.
I agree with you on the 410 for flying targets as the "puff" is the positive reinforcement and you saw my 20g comment for the same reason.
Im wondering if cutting the stock down on the 28g Savage is gonna completely screw them up on the barrel length [CG].
The 100 is a good idea. Ive got 2 and did not even think to look for it in 28

Gun fit for kids can be (is) real tricky. Problem for parents is that they are continuously growing, so whatever fits them today maynot fit them 6 months down the road.

Length Of Pull:
If you take a regular field model made for an adult and cut the stock down to fit the kid, the weight will be unevenly distributed (especially if you go down under 14") that will make the gun front heavy and harder for the kid to keep under control.

YOUTH MODEL:
Given the weights of your kids, I would suggest any youth model gun in 20 or 28 gauge. Before you cut the stock down on one of your guns, call around a bunch of shops in your area and ask if they have the youth models. Take your kids with you, ask them to shoulder the guns and see what fits them best. Length of pulls on youth models are usually short, their receivers are skinny and they are light. With a little bit of creativity on your end you will be able to fit the gun to the correct dimensions.

LIGHT LOADS
To start your kids off, use lightest loads you can find (if you load your own then lookup a light formula) ask an oldtimer skeet shotoer, they are masters of light load concontions that will hit the targets hard without much recoil.

I cannot stress enough how important it is to look after the comfort of your kids in these fragile beginning stages.

Check this webpage out...for reference only...the key is to keep the gun weight around 5.5 lbs and barrel length around 24". A gas action or inertia action of a youth 20 ga will feel like the recoil of 28 ga.
http://www.ocshooters.com/Gen/...g/youth-firearms.htm

We have kids in our Scholastic Clays Target Program that are the same size as your kids. They all shoot 20 gauge autoloaders. None of them have any problems with recoil. Get a youth autoloader 20 gauge, shorten the stock as needed. Buy a new stock for it later when the boys grow. The cost of 20 gauge ammo is half of the 28 gauge stuff. If you reload, you can make reduced recoil target loads if the kids are sensitive.

Webly and Scott has a nice 28 ga w/ a youthor Jr. frame that looks nice. I thing the stock has a 12 1/2" LOP

quote:

They all shoot 20 gauge autoloaders. None of them have any problems with recoil. Get a youth autoloader 20 gauge, shorten the stock as needed.

This is certainly how I'd do it. The Rem 1100 20 ga is what I'd get. IIRC Rem makes or made a youth model with shorter stock. Ones like that are probably available and they are less spendy than many alternatives.

It's a gas-op with real mild recoil.

For a lot of obvious reasons, I wouldn't pick the 28 to start a youngster out on, unless you just happened to already have one and don't mind cutting it down. Keep it mind, that would probably end its useful sale value.

Mossberg makes a fine youth gun in 20 Ga and 3/4 Oz loads are available for the 20 Ga

Sell the gun when the kids grow into a adult size stock!

Darn things work fine and won't break the bank.

If the kids can't tolerate the 3/4 Oz loads, they probably should wait a year before starting to use a shotgun.

quote:

Originally posted by collector:
SESOLINC,

What you did not say were how much do each of the boys weigh. Yes, that is correct weight (not age) is the factor in how soon can you start them with shotguns. Boys (and girls) should be introduced to shotgunning when they are right around 95 lbs in weight. So age has nothing to do with how soon can you start a kid with shotgunning. So a 10 year old 95 pound girl can start shooting earlier than a 12 year old 85 pound boy. Why 95 lbs ??? Well that is the golden number where the kid has enough mass to easily take on the recoil.

.410 Bore
Keep them away from .410...that is a very frustrating bore for the young ones and they may loose interest real fast if they cannot hit flying objects.

20 Gauge
20 gauge may have too much recoil for them unless you equip the gun with a recoil reducing system.

28 Gauge
That is the best gauge to start kids with. Minimum recoil with great hitting potential. Hopefully you will hook them on for life.

Remington makes 1100 series Sporting guns in .410, 28 and 20. They are middle of the road pricewise, have minimum recoil and you can cut the stock yourself to give each kid the appropriate length of pull.

Good luck.

excellent post! +1

Sesolinc- I wish we lived closer, you and your young'uns would be welcome to borrow my 28 ga 1100.

SESOLINC Don't worry about cutting the stock. Make it fit and the kid will be a shooter. When my boy's out grew the youth gun they had i sold it for $50.00 less than what i paid for it. Got 4 years of good use for $50.00.Not bad IMO