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My son is turning 4 next week. I want to start teaching him to shoot with an airsoft gun, as he already knows some of the basics. (he plays with a water gun and knows not to point it at people, buildings, etc.) My wife is raising he11 over this, but I remember learning at that age, and was shooting .22's by age 5. Gun culture may be demonized these days, but I still feel its ok to start early as long as the training is well regulated. I'd rather my son learn about guns from me than some other kid at school who brings one.
 
I was probably about 10-11ish when my Dad let me start taking a box of 22 bullets and a rifle to go out and shoot gophers where I grew up. By the time I was 13 or so he would let me drive on the ranch roads and we would road hunt gophers. Ah memories!
 
My son is 5 and my daughter is 6. They have their own BB pistols, and we had a great time shooting their .22's. This weekend I'm going to help them with the .410 barrel. They love it, my wife loves it, it's a family thing for us. I grew up in Nebraska, in the country, and I can't even remember living without one.
 
I was 5. Dad trained me on his .22 8 shot revolver. He always gave me the option of sticking toilet paper into my ears if I thought it was too loud! After a few years he trained me on the lever action .32 Winchester Special. I got my first deer with that rifle.
 
i started at 18... my parents SUCKED.

my oldest started at 5, and all my others will too- so long as they show the same degree of control and attention. i don't think there's any set age that's appropriate for all kids, but if your kids listen and obey, 5 seems to be a great age.. just barely old enough to figure out how to get into a good shooting position, just old enough to manipulate the weapon, and just young enough that whatever you teach them will be ingrained into their very soul.

but there are certainly 7, 8, 10, 12 year olds out there- and plenty of them- that couldn't be trusted with a single shot bolt action .22 under direct adult supervision... YMMV
 
I was about 4. I have pictures of me at about 3 with a BB gun under my arm, but it was 4 when I started shooting my dad's Mosberg .22 target rifle.
 
Hmmm, well, shot my parents winchester sxs 20g during a home invasion when I was 11, the only thing that got shot was my parents bed. After that, took my dad a few years, I was about 15 or so when he took me out, with a 30-30. I did not learn how to shoot a hand gun until I went into the service, my parents did not have one. Shooting was not a priority, not because my parents are anti gun, actually just the opposite. But we did a lot of other things, like canoe building, wood working, farming and the like.
 
4 or 5 I believe I got my first BB gun. The next year I got to start carrying my dads Rem. 572 around to squirrel hunt, until I saved up enough money to buy my own .22 which was about the next summer.
 
BB gun at 4
.22 at 5
20 gauge at 9
.243 when I was 11
Grew up shooting rifles ALL the time. I lived in the middle of nowhere and we had 10 acres. No other kids around to really play with so I was always outside killin' cans or G.I.JOE's, or "tweety birds", or squirrels, or cats, or rats, or dirt clods, or whatever.... We had a rifle range set up and reloaded alot, so we were constantly shooting.

Never shot pistol as a kid though. Didn't learn that until grown and in the military.
 

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