Youth shotgun

I am in the market for a first shotgun for my 10 y/o son and would like some suggestions from those of you who've already raised your kids. What would be the best choice as a starter gun. I'm thinking of a 28g Remington 870 Express, because I can buy an after market youth stock easily and it weighs only 6 lbs. My other thoughts are to buy him a 20g O/U or maybe the New England Firearms single shot youth 20g and using a gauge reducer until he is big enough to handle the recoil. I'm reluctant on an O/U because I'll have to shorten the LOP initially. It seems that the traditional first gun is a .410. To me the recoil from a 28g is not that much different from a .410 but the pattern is much bigger. We will be wingshooting and I don't want to handicap him with a .410 when he's trying to learn. I've let him shoot my Benelli Montefeltro 20g, which I believe to have a light recoil, but he found the kick too much. Any thought?

Hi, I can make this suggestion... You'd mentioned a NEF 20g, but perhaps a better idea might be to purchase your son a NEF .22 Hornet or even a .223. That way, you can purchase a 20g accessory barrel from NEF to fit that gun. NEF rifle receivers can be fitted with NEF shotgun barrels, but the shotgun receiver cannot be fitted with a rifle barrel. (unless they've changed recently) NEF rifes run about $210, accessory barrels run about $75, and it's a great way to get basically two single shot guns, perfect for a young man to learn, for less than the price of most other guns.

My daughter started shooting a 20 ga. NEF single shot at about 12 and it still is her favorite gun. the recoil was a little hard for her to get used to until I got her a 'PAST' shoulder recoil pad. The pad is adjustable and will fit just about anyone. After that my only problem was never having enough ammunition and clay birds!! If your son is going to be using the gun mostly for hunting, you should consider a shooting vest with the pad as part of the vest.

I bought her an 870 Express combo pack with both a smooth bore choke tube barrel and a rifled slug barrel and it has worked out well. Its a nice combo and is upgradeable to a full sized stock with kits from both Remington and aftermarket. Might be a good deal for you if there is a possibility of your son taking up deer hunting later on. My personal recommendation would be to go with the single shot. It is the easiest and safest to learn on and inexpensive compared to most any other type of shotgun.

I know the general way of thinking is that the .410 is a 'beginners' gun because of the lack of recoil, but I would call it more of an 'experts' gun! Trying to hit any type of clay target or game with a 410 is a lot harder than a larger gauge. It seems to me that when teaching someone to shoot they are greatly encouraged when they can see some targets breaking. High scores and technique can come later, some hand thrown targets that the new shooter can break often go a long way in keeping them practicing. Light loads in a 20 ga. seem to be a good compromise between recoil and results.

Another thing to consider is cost. When my daughter started shooting the 20 ga. I didn't have a reloading setup for it. I can go to Wal-Mart and buy a 'Value Pak' of either Winchester or Federal shells for about $14 for 100. They are called 'universal loads' usually stocked in #7 1/2 or 8's, with a mild powder load and 7/8 oz. of shot. They are pretty much equal to a standard target load. On the other hand a box of 25, 3', .410 shells cost me about $9.99! Not much to consider there. As for 28 ga., they are rare around here, I have no idea of there cost but I assume its pretty high.

The shell reducer idea sound good except for one problem. I have been looking for a pair of 'Savage 410'ers' to use in an old Damascus 12 ga double I own so I can shoot it on occasion. Every time I locate any they seem to be going near $100 a piece. There is still a company that makes them for high end doubles (Brilley ??) but they were priced way out of sight. I believe there are other types of reducers available, but they don't work with the guns ejectors, you have to manually load and remove the case of the smaller gauge shell each time.

I am sure there are a lot more opinions out there, hope mine helps.

Richie

I remember I got an Ithaca ultra light pump in 20 gauge. I never enjoyed pulling the trigger until later when I got a Rem. Model 1100 which was a dream. The Ithaca was fine to carry but it had as much recoil as a 12. In fact, a single shot 12 was more of a push - this thing had a wickedly fast return. I think it is false economy to get a super lightweight gun for a child because of the recoil unless it is in a gauge that you can't really hunt with.

20 ga. if for no other reason, the cost of the shells for it. you won't notice that much difference 'tween it and the 28 ga.Sr.