The 597 (or it maybe a similar, older model) has been my "truck" gun for 15 years. I bought it a Wal Mart to shoot the hordes of ground hogs on the farm when we moved here.

Lots of fun, accurate enough and I never sweated the inevitable scuffing it took. I used to carry it between the front end loader hydraulic lines just in front of the controller. Tractor noise seems to mesmerize the little bastards, to the point where they would literally stop and stare: stop, load, aim, shoot. Unload, holster in the lines, continue bush-hogging:)

Hangs in my tool room.

All of the guns mentioned in this thread would be a first gun any young man would covet.

Excuse me? This thing belongs on someone's fireplace, not with a kid shooting. Besides with a cartridge this size it better be a really big kid. This is a surplus antique military weapon, not a plinking rifle.

Have you ever shot a Mosin? Kick like hell, shoot fire, and can't hit the broad side of a barn... I mean its fun but not a good plinker... Oh and 7.62x54 is pricey ****....

How much you want to spend would help narrow it down but everyone should have a 10/22 (some people have three or four).
Jim

I've owned both a Ruger 10/22 and Remington 597.

The 597 was head and shoulders above the 10/22 in accuracy and feel out of the box.

The 597 was also a royal b**** to clean, where the Ruger was easy in that department. I sold the 597 because cleaning it was an exercise in futility as you had to line up the bolt on two rails and compress both springs at the same time while tightening one at a time--it only worked successfully one out of 100 times. The other 99 times the spring (and sometimes its tiny set screw) would go sailing across the room. In the year I owned it, I lost 5 set screws and bent two springs.

My recommendation? Get him a bolt action .22 Mag or .17 HMR. I have both and this is what I keep instead of a .22 semi. A little more powerful than a .22LR (and thus a little more cooler), way more accurate, and very simple to clean.

Old: Savage .22 /.410 O/U. best of both worlds.
Stevens "crack shot" or "favorite"
Remington rollingblock #4

Take him to a gunshow and let him pick it out.

New: Savage Mk III .22 bolt action with accutrigger. Or .17 HMR Savage 98 same trigger. A lot more range with the .17.

Hmmm....love the AR-15 styling and like the price of .22 ammo. When you try to do both you get an AR style gun that shoots .22. Both Colt and Smith & Wesson now have one. It's on my list to purchase one day. I think they were in the $400-$500 range which is cheaper than a real AR with a conversion kit.

Smith & Wesson M&P 15-22
Smith & Wesson M&P 15-22, AR-15 Style .22 Long Rifle Semi-Automatic Carbine

Colt M4 .22
http://www.gunblast.com/Colt-M4.htm

What ever flavor of .22 you choose - what a nice idea for a gift, a gift to last a lifetime.

Actually it is a decent way to introduce a kid to centerfire rifles. The 1891/30 is a long heavy rifle, and recoil is manageable and surplus ammo is relatively cheap. As a bonus you can teach help them to be responsible by making them clean it after firing corrosive surplus ammo.

I like Mausers better, but they are not as available and more expensive (although Big-5 has Yugo Mausers from time to time), and ammo is more expensive, ~$250/900 rounds.

Cool thing about rifles 50 years+ old is they are cash and carry in California, no dealer paperwork/fees/mandatory gun lock purchase or 10 day wait required.

Speaking of which, if I was in SoCal, this would be interesting:
FS/FT: Yugo M24/47 Mauser, CZ-82 LA Area *Price reduction* - Calguns.net

Sounds like a perfect plinker to me.:D

Really? For centerfire ammo, ~$85 for 440 rounds is pretty cheap, about 20¢ per round. Yeah, it isn't 22LR cheap, but still not expensive.

It sounds like the kid has learned to shoot already, and has done the single shot routine with the Scouts. In light of that, I think you can skip past the entry-level single shot stage and go straight to a repeater. Pretty tough to beat the 10-22 on many levels, from out-of-the-box utility to the ability to customize one. He might have as much fun "making it his own" as he does shooting it. Lots of cools stuff for a kid to add to one of these.

This close to Christmas, availability may be the deciding factor. I'm sure you all know my affinity for lever guns, and Marlins in particular, but they are way, way behind these days. Last I checked there were no 39A's in the pipeline, nor any of their semi-autos. There are always 10-22's available. So, before you get your heart set on a particular rifle, check with your dealer and see what he has or can get. That may settle it.

Coming late to the party here. I would not get an auto. I do not think they are safe for a kid. Too easy to mess up with a round chambered. I recommend a bolt action - that's what he will shoot if he ever gets into big game hunting.

George

shot placements is KING!

Man, that's a fun idea but a poor execution. There isn't enough leverage on that wheel. I'd imagine a larger diameter wheel with some mass to it would make a big difference. Of course, a drop of oil may go a long way too - the cam is squeaking pretty good in that vid. :rolleyes:

George

Any .22 is fine. Marlin makes some really nice ones, for cheap.

We all have our favorites, but in reality Snipe pretty much nailed it. The kid will be happy with pretty much whatever you buy him.

Well, I think I've narrowed it down to this 10 .22 - it's nice to know it is so well liked.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1259861089.jpg

It's a little more than a standard edition, but for gift giving I much prefer to spend my $$ on something that someone can own for the rest of their life. This one is a special edition (whatever that means) with a nicer walnut stock and stainless receiver/barrel.

Good choice... Lots of upgrades available for the 10/22. And man that one sure is purdy...

i started with (i think) a marlin model 60. it had a tube magazine where you drop the bullets into. it was a total miracle that i didnt lose the spring loaded tube. i was eleven, and foolish. i killed a jackrabbit first day out. dad made me cook it and eat it. we were only supposed to be plinking...but this jackrabbit hopped by....GAME ON!

if i had a kid, i would opt for a nice bolt action. i needed slowin down, and would assume my kid would too. that 10/22 is nice. bonus is: even adults love it. he could keep it forever.

Cliffy shot a Jack... SHAME SHAME.... the little furry ones are game on round here... We leave the jacks alone as they are pretty rare...