Question for you all on a holster setup for my son

[champ198]

My son is 9. his mother and I are divorced and he lives with her. he is her middle child and has a younger sister that is mine also.

he is a very timid, shy kid and I think that is a lot due to not getting the attention he should from his mom being the middle child. my daughter who is the youngest is spoiled badly by her mother and gets the majority of the attention. its a pretty tough thing as a divorced dad to try and deal with with out much control over the situation.

the reason that I say this is not for a sob story but I am looking to possibly trying to see if my son would like to shoot steel challenge with me. I Shoot USPSA and have just started not long ago also, but have never shot steel challenge but I am thinking it would be something that my son and I could do together and not a lot of young kids he knows do it so would hopefully be a confidence builder for him and give him something to strive for and work at.

I am looking at getting him his own gun probably a Ruger Mark IV or something similar but I don't know much about the holster rig rules for something like this being youth or junior and am looking for some ideas if you guy have some it would help a lot trying to figure things out.

 

[kmca]

Unless the rules have changed, no holster required for rimfire.

[Thomas H]

2 minutes ago, kmca said:

Unless the rules have changed, no holster required for rimfire.

 

Correct, which really simplifies things.

 

The child doesn't need to learn how to draw or re-holster safely, they'll start with the gun already in both hands.  You could even start them with a .22 rifle instead of a pistol, if you wanted.

 

Rimfire Steel Challenge is a great way to get kids started safely in the shooting sports.

[champ198]

for rimfire on steel challenge I would assume that there is no mag reloads needed either?

 

and would a Ruger Mark III or something along that lines be better than something like a Ruger SR22? don't know much at all about the Rimfire pistols

Edited May 16, 2017 by champ198

[kmca]

Just now, champ198 said:

for rimfire on steel challenge I would assume that there is no mag reloads needed either?

not on the clock,but it's a good idea to have at least 5 loaded mags

[firewood]

At that age rimfire is probably the best option. There are several kids shooting steel challenge in the series I shoot in, some shoot pistol and some shoot rifle. For rifle a suggestion is the S&W M&P 15-22 with a dot sight and as mentioned a few extra mags. These are good shooters and the stock is easy to adjust. For pistol the Ruger Mark III or S&W Victory 22 or Browning Benchmark. Either way all you would need in addition to the firearm is a case (you have to take the gun to the line in a case), eyes and ears, extra mags and of course plenty of 22 LR ammo. Lots of fun.

[jkrispies]

I'd recommend going with a .22 rifle.  Depends on how big he is but a lot of kids can't get their hands around the grip of a pistol.  With a rifle the learning curve is not only a lot shorter but there's some flexibility with swapping out stocks as he grows or using a collapsible stock.  

[tomfturner]

As has been mentioned here already the M&P 15-22 is a good rifle option and any of the big 3 rimfire pistols (Browning Buckmark, S&W Victory, Ruger 22/45 or Mark IV) would be good options.  There are no requirements for holster in steel challenge, you could also look into the NSSF Rimfire matches as well.  Depending on his strength and size I'd recommend a 22/45 Lite til you know what he really wants to do that would be a good choice.  The advantage of the M&P 15-22 is that it allows him to grow with it.

Hope any of this helps.

 

 

[s2000red]

My daughter shoots steel challenge with me.  She is now 10 but started when she was 9.  She shoots a Ruger MkIII 22/45 lite.  The pistol fits her hands pretty well.  One issue she originally had was not having the strength to rack the slide.  I put a Tandemkross charging handle on it and it helped her a lot. 

 

Whatever way you go, my suggestion is to make it fun for him.  When she first started I would staple small balloons to cardboard targets and let her shoot those.  She liked that and also shooting clay pigeons that I placed on the berm.  We usually go eat lunch or get a special treat (slurpee or ice cream) after matches and practice. 

[LeviSS]

23 hours ago, champ198 said:

for rimfire on steel challenge I would assume that there is no mag reloads needed either?

 

and would a Ruger Mark III or something along that lines be better than something like a Ruger SR22? don't know much at all about the Rimfire pistols

Get the Mark 4 22/45.  Better trigger and SA only.

[kmca]

I like my Ruger and Buckmark equally.  I'd also suggest a S&W Model 41, if your budget allows, that way, when he discovers girls, it's yours