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Recommendation for junior shooter starting out


Brent D

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My 11 yr old daughter wants to get started shooting with me. She would like to learn enough to be able to shoot some matches in the future. I'm excited and would like to put together some kind of a .22 with possibly a c-more. I saw a junior steel match and the kids were shooting something in this configuration. It would also be great to use it myself for inexpensive open practice. Thx for any recommendations.

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My boys (10 & 12) use a Smith & Wesson 22A, but it is difficult for them to rack the slide because the sights prevent an overhand grip.

If I were to do it again I would look at the Mark III or something similar that has "wings" on the slide to provide a better grip.

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My 11 yr old daughter wants to get started shooting with me. She would like to learn enough to be able to shoot some matches in the future. I'm excited and would like to put together some kind of a .22 with possibly a c-more. I saw a junior steel match and the kids were shooting something in this configuration. It would also be great to use it myself for inexpensive open practice. Thx for any recommendations.

If you already have a STI 2011 open gun with CMore, you could get a Tactical Solutions conversion kit to put on your STI. If your STI has an extended 9mm/38 Super ejector, then you'd have to modify the ejector to fit into the Tac Sol slide and put some spacers on the Tac Sol mag to prevent the mag from hitting the ejector (I use rubber bands at the baseplate. But then you'd have to adjust the zero on the Cmore when switching to the .22lr.

If you have a 1911, then you could still use that same TacSol kit (different mag) and mount a slide ride Cmore on the TacSol picatinny rail. 90 deg mounts are also available for mounting the Cmore onto the picatinny rail. On the TacSol slide, the picatinny rail stays stationary.

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My daughter found it very difficult to rack the bolt on the Ruger Mark 3 22/45 and the standard Mark 3 due to the smallish ears that you have to grasp. It was fine if the hammer was back, but if the hammer was down she couldn't rack it. Another minor issue with the Ruger is that those ears tend to pinch the skin if you ride the bolt closed when closing it after unloading. The Browning Buckmark gives you a bit more area to grab on its slide so that one would have been a little better choice when my daughter was younger. The Allchin C-more mount on the Buckmark (or Ruger for that matter) is pretty sweet. Make sure she goes with you to the store to get it. One reason for this is that you should have her try the different brands/models grips out and make sure it fits her hand ok and she can reach the bolt/slide release and mag release. Another, more important reason IMO, is she'll have a great time/memory from going with you to pick out 'her' gun! :cheers:

Edited to add, unless you want a 2011 conversion kit for yourself as well and/or you know she's going to get really into it, I would suggest the Ruger or Browning. Either of these can be had for less than the conversion kit AND the mags are much cheaper. Best to have 5 for steel challenge and with the TacSol 2211 conversion you're looking at $95+ each!! Even if you find them severely discounted somewhere I bet they're still gonna run you 60 bucks a pop.

Edited by trodrig
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There is a gentleman on rimfirecentral.com that maks a nice slide racker for a ruger mark 3 or mark 3 22/45 that runs 33 bucks and is similar to the regular open gun style rackers. I have one on mine and and have another one coming in for a fellow shooters sons gun. It makes racking the slide VERY easy as you dont have to grab anything. I got one a while ago and now several shooters are sporting them at the steel match.

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=394321&page=3

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That's a pretty sweet racker! Thanks for posting that. My daughter is older/stronger now and can rack the 22/45 bolt just fine now but that would be nice for a younger shooter IMO.

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In my opinion, new shooters especially kids, and especially girls should learn on a lightweight .22 revolver. If you're set on a semi get a lightweight aluminum one. Iron sights only. If they don't learn on iron sights they may never go back to them. I can't stress enough to master the basics (at home) first, which I am sure you will do. "Sight Picture" will never mean much to someone who learns on a red dot. Remember fatigue sets in fairly quickly with an 11 y/o.

When she is ready, the Ruger Steel Challenge is a great venue to start. I R/O for that event and most of the kids that step up to the firing line do not have the safety basics or grip, stance, sight picture, etc. in memory. I hope this helps.

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