11 year-old niece--CZ Scout? Recommendations?

[stiletto raggio]

I didn't get to see my niece on mid-tour leave due to a conflicting obligation, so my sister (her mother) thought it would be good for us to spend some time together when I got back. She suggested (somewhat to my surprise) that I teach her to shoot.

Being a large guy, my first .22 was an adult-sized gun. She is five feet tall already, but I still think a youth-sized gun would be best for her to learn on. After reading numerous threads on this site and others regarding youth rifles, I am leaning heavily toward the CZ Scout for several reasons.

1) It is a repeater that comes with a single-shot adapter. This means that once she has learned basic proficiency, she can use the 5- and 10-round magazines. I think this makes more sense than buying a single shot (which I doubt would hold her attention for too many range sessions).

2) It is a quality gun, built on the same receiver as an "adult" rifle, and has a reputation for accuracy. It does not look or feel like a toy and having something that shoots well will encourage her.

3) Availability of factory peep sights. The CZ factory peep sights look to be of high quality, with a click-adjustable rear and a fiber-optic front. Teaching a kid to shoot with fuzzy, black-on-black open sights seems far from ideal.

As I said, she is already five feet tall, so I think the LOP and overall size of the rifle is appropriate. Is there anything else I should be considering before I plunk down $400 or so on a training rifle, sights and a couple mags?

 

[armoredman]

I can say, heck yes! My son loves his CZ 452 Scout,



Still big enough for a grown up to shoulder,



Darn good looking high quality rifle,



It's a rifle to pass down, sir.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

The scout is a very good rifle. My only complaint is the excessively thick grip on the stock. Cz missed this one by a mile.

I have handled thousands of rifles in my life and cannot recall any nearly as thick as the scout (a rifle marketed to kids).

 

[dc.fireman]

Go Tacti-cool?

Stiletto - I've recently begun teaching my 8 y/o daughter to shoot. I picked up the Savage Mk. II TR from Dick's sporting goods for $380 out the door here in Va. It's slightly long in the stock for her - but she's only 4 1/2 feet tall. It came boresighted, with a cheap no name scope from Savage, installed, and one five-round magazine.

Her first time out was last week, and she's already been back to the range 2 more times, including this morning. It has the Accu-trigger, and the stock is a wood stock made for Savage by Boyds - Dick's ended up having theirs painted desert tan; the others are black. I adjusted the accu-trigger (which is pretty simple in itself) after our initial sight in, down to about 2lbs. (the lowest setting it will go).





As you can see, my son is still a little short for it, at 3 1/2 feet tall. I imagine a 5 ft. individual would have no problem with the length of pull.



How does it shoot? Pretty darn good for a training rifle - off the bags she scored her first bullseye today, at 50 meters. She can hit the steel plates at the 35, & 40 meter marks with no problem, so today we moved out to 50.

I wanted to buy the CZ at first, but availability in my area was/is slim - I ended buying the off the shelf Savage, for nearly the same price as I could get the CZ - plus it came with the scope.

With my local club opening up our .22 rimfire gallery this spring, it has since become my favorite rifle to shoot - I added a Harris Bi-Pod I had laying in the closet last week. Good Luck on your decision!

 

[stiletto raggio]

dc,

That is a sweet looking rifle. I've actually thought of buying one of those for myself! Did you start them on 22s or try an air rifle first? I'm torn on that one. Air rifles are so much harder to load!

I have also thought of putting a scope on this rifle, but it seems like it would be best to teach her iron sights first. Yes, it will take a little longer to get her familiar and shooting straight, but I figure if I start at close range and gradually work out, she should have no problem. Heck, I'd never used a scope until I bought my own as a teenager.

 

[stiletto raggio]

ArmoredMan,

If you don't mind me asking, how tall is your son? And what do you think of the factory irons?

 

[dc.fireman]

Stilletto - I actually started them on .22 - It was just a matter of economics, really. I thought about a starter airgun - everything $250 and under is made in China (at least that I could find). I figured by the time I got where I wanted to be with the airgun, I'd have been close to $300.00 invested in the Peoples Republic. I just decided to buy a keeper, made here.

On our range, the rule for the rimfire gallery is standard velocity softpoints, or subsonic softpoints only. So I started with the CCI .22 subsonic bricks. After three hundred rounds of that, they're comfortable enough to move out to the 50M paper target range ( 5 ft. to the left of the rimfire gallery). It's been a great joy for me to teach them about something I love to do. Good Luck, and better shooting...

-tc