A couple questions for you guys

[russian rocket]

Hey guys i have a couple questions for you guys with kids. i have a 5 year old son and a 6month old daughter. my son is getting curious about stuff and doing stuff that he knows hes not supposed to. i guess my question is, at what age did you introduce your kids to guns? when did you teach them gun safety and how did you go about it?

 

 

 

 

my other question does not pertain to the above, but i was wondering if anyone knew of any stipulation of importing ammunition from russia? i still have some family over there and was wondering if it would be worth trying to get them to mail me some? are there anything hoops to jump through or is it just like mailing a gift?

[Ackbar00]

I really started with my oldest at 5, always showing them the gun and letting them hold it. And really drilling their minds on how dangerous they are. Always doing little "what if" scenarios with them just to make sure they remember. Finally let him shoot when he turned 8. Just practice a lot with them and always remind them what could happen if they play with them (Not to mention, how bad you will beat their asses if you catch them holding it without your permission )

[jeffro]

Start with BB gun, Upgrade to pellet gun. Preach importance of keeping gun pointed away from people, houses, etc.. Upgrade to .22lr at 14ish. I suppose this has alot to do with where you live, too. I grew up in the country and was free to roam the country side shooting shit.

 

Thats how it was for me, and i have the utmost respect for firearm safety.

[sol740]

I've been training my 4 and 6 year olds in a makeshift range in my basement. Airsoft rifles and sticky targets. They both know to point downrange, keep their fingers off the triggers till on target, and I'm trying to teach proper handling but it's difficult being so tiny. I've also been teaching them the difference between toys, airsoft/bb guns, and true firearms, and what to do if they ever find one. I'm proud to report my son found my AR lower on my office desk a while back, and immediately ran to tell me.

[2011SVT]

Whenever the subject has come up I have drilled my youngest kids on the 'Eddie Eagle' rules (they get the same thing at summer safety camp too). I figured there was plenty of time for learning how to handle firearms later. For now, I want them to regard them as 'child dangerous' and not to touch, leave the area, and report.

 

That said, my oldest of my younger set turned 9 this year and like Ralphie he got a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas.

 

Unlike Ralphie (and me when I was a kid) he did not get turned loose unsupervised in his PJs to go shoot his eye out. I worked with him on 4 simple rules of firearms handling until he could repeat and say why each was important:

 

1. Don't point the gun at anything you don't intend to destroy.

2. Keep your finger off/away from the trigger until ready to fire.

3. Treat every gun as loaded at all times.

4. Be aware of your target and what's beyond it.

 

I know there are others that are important but I figure if I can get these 4 to be second nature, then the risk of accident goes way down.

 

Then we sat down to work on the mechanics and he did really well for his first time

[sol740]

Just in case anyone is curious, the targets are hung from the ceiling, then I hung a loose bed sheet behind each target, that feeds the BBs that miss the targets down into a box. It actually works very well, I'd say 95% of the time. Which is why we also wear eye protection.

[russian rocket]

thanks for the help guys, i think im going to talk to him about it tomorrow