I'm not sure if this is the right place for this or not, I'm sorry if it's not. Anyway, I'm looking for a youth model shotgun to get my girlfriends son hunting, and was wondering what would be a good gun to start him out on. He's come with me hunting, but he's to small to use my gun, But he likes walking around in the woods with me. I was thinking a 20gauge. I've heard .410's don't have a very good pattern. I'd love to get him a Rem 870, but there pretty expensive to start out with and I don't want to spend that much. So dose anyone have any sugestions for a cheaper/good deal on a gun? have you see any on sale? or does anyone have one for sale? thanks

How old is he?

My son started out with a remington 870 youth junior (20 ga) when he was 8 and did well with it last year at age 9. Very pleased with it.

look at a pawn shop for a single shot 20 ga. Best starting gun in my opinion.

i know mossberg makes a good youth 12ga and 20ga. and i think the price is fairly reasonable.

What price range are you looking at?

This is the old chevy vs ford vs dodge arguement. Everyone will have a different opinion, look at all the comments and then decide for yourself what is best for your child.

I spent a good amount of time looking at shotguns last spring (07). Tough to find but the Browning BPS 20 ga micro is one really nice gun. At almost $400 it should be. My son is big for his age and will probably out grow the gun by next fall. But the gun will ALWAYs be one great grouse woods gun.

Remington Youth 870 was a close second. Lot's of models and styles to chose from. Price at $100 less than the BPS.

Mossberg youth 20 gauge is OK. The working action is just not the same as the BPS or 870. JMO - not as well built. But I own one too. Last fall, I purchased a Mossberg Youth 20 gauge for deer season. On sale for about $210 for gun and two barrels. The one barrel being a rifled barrel and 4 power mounted scope. Shot a really nice slug pattern at 50 and 75 yards. Still stand by my original comment that the pump action is just not that great. Deer hunters need only one shot.

I started out with a single shot when I was 12. I handled three brands and just did not like any of them for several reasons. One shell in a pump is a better option....

Look for used - call first to save some gas $.

But at around $210 (sale) to $270 for a youth shotgun the Mossberg with two barrels (rifled deer w/scope and smooth bore) is great value.

Gun will always work in grouse woods where big is not better. Even as a deer stand gun, the youth model had a nice weight and swing from a deer stand.

I bought a Mossberg Bantam 20 ga. for my daughter (12 years old)
This has been a good gun used by both her and my nephew(also 12)
The recoil isn't bad and it is short enough for them to shoulder smoothly.

DL

I would probably go with a Mossberg bantam, also I think i would stick with a 20 ga. .410's are expensive to shoot, and you can find 20 ga shells for half the price of a 410. The price of the mossberg would be around $230, or you could get a combo for around $300. If you want to go a little cheaper route Rossi makes a pretty good line of youth single shot guns for the price, and you can get them in a 2 or 3 barrel set. Usually with a shotgun, rimfire, and centerfire rifle combo for a pretty good price.

As far as used youth guns go, I work at a gun store, and not a lot of youth guns come in on trade, I think alot of them are held onto or maybe sold privately.

Thanks for all the input. I've decided to go with a 20gauge. But not sure about make yet. I've been looking at the Bantam. Nice gun, But a little pricey. I would just hate to buy a gun for him just to not like it and have it collecting dust. Rossi's are a good price, but it makes me wonder about the quality. does anyone have one? what's your thoughts?

I was going to buy my daughter the Rossi Triple Play (.22/.243/.20), but before I could, my neighbor bought one for his son and offered to sell it to me the next day for $50. He said the recoil was way too much for his son. We borrowed it and took it out for an afternoon of clay birds. He was right, the recoil was unbelievable. Way to much for a first gun. I actually had trouble getting her to shoot the Mossberg for a bit because the recoil made her a little nervous.

My advice would be to call around to the big stores (Gander/Cabelas) and see what they have for used guns. I picked up a used Bantam at Gander for about $150.00 The nice thing about them is that kids are getting into hunting all the time, shouldn't have a problem selling a solid pump to another parent if he doesn't like it.

My .02

DL

Last fall I started my 9 year old with a single shot 20 gauge. I opted for the Remington SPR 100 (Russian import - Remington stamp). All Gander Mountain stores are currently carrying these for $100.00. Nothing fancy but a solid youth gun with a push button safety so he gets accustomed to safetys found on adult guns.

I didn't like the Rossi hammer/side safety handle do-hickey.

The youth model pumps are still a bit big for him. The SPR 100 fits him perfectly.

I wanted to start my son on a single shot to get him accustomed to aiming and not just shooting a lot of shells. He'll have outgrown it after this next hunting season but it will have served its purpose in teaching him good habits. I'll still have it for my daughter who will be ready in about 4 years.

The first fall went good. He shot a wood duck, teal, ringneck duck, some coot, a couple snowshoe hares, and a woodchuck. I started him shooting last spring - he was a hair skitish the first time but was shooting 3-inch magnums by duck season.

Just my 2 cents.

I corrected my links above. I paid $219 last fall for the Mossberg combo pack. Dick's sale price, plus rebate from mfg.

I think I've read somewhere that the shotguns with the external hammer are very unsafe, particularly for new hunters. You have to hold the hammer and pull the trigger to uncock the gun and there's a great chance of the hammer slipping. I guess I would stay away from anything like that.

I've read the entire post and I can appreciate that the original poster wants to limit his or her expense. But if you think about it spending money on a single shot you have to know that it will probably be a short term thing. Not to long and the youth will want to pull the trigger more than once - as we all do. I would suggest waiting until a 20 gauge pump was in the budget and skip the one shot.

As for the youth model idea - they are very hard to come by. It may make sense to buy a full size and cut down the stock. If you buy the right gun you can then replace the stock in a few years for a modest price and your investment will continue to be usable.

BradT-
Check your hotmail account and let me know what you think.

Rhino