I wish somebody would invent what I consider the ideal youth training 22 LR rimfire rifle it would have the following characteristics:
1-- Bolt action, box magazine fed. Mags hold at least five rounds, but no more than 10.
2-- Barrel would be 20" long, not too heavy or thick. It is free floated and not pressed against the stock at any point more than a couple inches forward of the chamber. It will be nicely crowned at the muzzle.
3-- Trigger must be adjustable, with a minimum setting of 2 1/2 pounds, and the maximum setting of 4 1/2 pounds. Some matches may require a minimum amount of trigger weight, while other matches would be unlimited, so if you're going to shoot this in a match where you're allowed to have a 2 pound trigger, great. But for beginners who aren't used to that light of a trigger, or when the match requires a service rifle type trigger, then you use the 4.5 pound setting.
4-- The gun shall come with three sets of sighting options, all quick detachable, all together in the box with the gun.
(a) It will have open sights with a notch for a rear sight, mounted just forward of the receiver.
(b) It will have a set of military style peep sights, with the rear aperture being an M-16 A2 style located at the very back of the receiver, sitting up taller than the open sight set, and an extra tall front sight would be supplied. Standard USGI style with protective years on each side and an height-adjustable post in the middle.
(c) It will come with an inexpensive red dot sight, which can be mounted either at the back of the receiver (where the rear sight assembly would be), or it could be mounted forward of the receiver in place of the notched open sight. Both of the rear sight locations would have the right base that this red dot would fit on in -- probably a short section of Picatinny rail or Weaver base.
(d) It would not come with a magnifying crosshair reticle scope, but it WOULD come with bases and rings so that any conventional 1 inch tube rifle scope of standard length and dimensions would be mounted on this gun easily.
The scope mounting system would be designed to give enough clearance over the action so that manual loading of single rounds (without using the magazine) could be easy. Some matches would require single loading right through the top of the action.
(5) The magazine release mechanism would have to be easy to operate for a child with a weak finger strength. It must be suitable for one hand only mag changes.
My Savage 64 rifle miserably fails in this regard; it takes an enormous amount of hand strength, sometimes even with two hands, to change magazines.
(6) (a)The stock on the rifle must be slim. Most wooden stock rifles are awful in this regard-- the wood is thick, not contoured to fit the shape of human hands, and especially awkward around the wrist area of the stock.
(6)(b) The stock should have a quick-adjustable buttstock or butt plate which gives an overall trigger reach or "length of pull" between 12.5 inches and 14.5 inches. Yet it has to lock in position solidly with no wiggle or play in it.
(6) (c) The stock should have a sling attachment point on the front end that is suitable for using a tight rifle sling from the prone position, really snuggling it up tight under tension.
(7) The cost for this rifle package should be about $325. Now you can get a .22 youth training rifle for only $150 but I think adding all these extra features would about double the cost.
The sights could be made in China, built of plastic or cheap zinc diecast metal. They don't have to be very precise because this is for training youth and they don't have to last 10 lifetimes either. The manufacturer could probably contract-out to have the sights built for only $30 per set, so that's a total of $60 for two sets (open style and then the taller USGI peep style).
The included red dot optic could be something cheap from Tasco or Leapers that only costs $25 wholesale and would sell for $35 retail at Walmart.
Scope bases and 1" rings, machined specifically for this rifle, should probably only cost the manufacturer another $35 for the set.
Let's say the mechanism that is used to make the buttstock have a 2" adjustment range in length-of-pull will cost another $20 above and beyond having a fixed geometry stock.
Finally, The manufacturer would probably have to pay $25 more to put an adjustable trigger in that gun rather than going with a standard fixed weight trigger.
That all adds up to $175 extra above and beyond what a cheap 22 youth rifle would normally cost, about 150 bucks. That's where I get my $325. figure from.
1-- Bolt action, box magazine fed. Mags hold at least five rounds, but no more than 10.
2-- Barrel would be 20" long, not too heavy or thick. It is free floated and not pressed against the stock at any point more than a couple inches forward of the chamber. It will be nicely crowned at the muzzle.
3-- Trigger must be adjustable, with a minimum setting of 2 1/2 pounds, and the maximum setting of 4 1/2 pounds. Some matches may require a minimum amount of trigger weight, while other matches would be unlimited, so if you're going to shoot this in a match where you're allowed to have a 2 pound trigger, great. But for beginners who aren't used to that light of a trigger, or when the match requires a service rifle type trigger, then you use the 4.5 pound setting.
4-- The gun shall come with three sets of sighting options, all quick detachable, all together in the box with the gun.
(a) It will have open sights with a notch for a rear sight, mounted just forward of the receiver.
(b) It will have a set of military style peep sights, with the rear aperture being an M-16 A2 style located at the very back of the receiver, sitting up taller than the open sight set, and an extra tall front sight would be supplied. Standard USGI style with protective years on each side and an height-adjustable post in the middle.
(c) It will come with an inexpensive red dot sight, which can be mounted either at the back of the receiver (where the rear sight assembly would be), or it could be mounted forward of the receiver in place of the notched open sight. Both of the rear sight locations would have the right base that this red dot would fit on in -- probably a short section of Picatinny rail or Weaver base.
(d) It would not come with a magnifying crosshair reticle scope, but it WOULD come with bases and rings so that any conventional 1 inch tube rifle scope of standard length and dimensions would be mounted on this gun easily.
The scope mounting system would be designed to give enough clearance over the action so that manual loading of single rounds (without using the magazine) could be easy. Some matches would require single loading right through the top of the action.
(5) The magazine release mechanism would have to be easy to operate for a child with a weak finger strength. It must be suitable for one hand only mag changes.
My Savage 64 rifle miserably fails in this regard; it takes an enormous amount of hand strength, sometimes even with two hands, to change magazines.
(6) (a)The stock on the rifle must be slim. Most wooden stock rifles are awful in this regard-- the wood is thick, not contoured to fit the shape of human hands, and especially awkward around the wrist area of the stock.
(6)(b) The stock should have a quick-adjustable buttstock or butt plate which gives an overall trigger reach or "length of pull" between 12.5 inches and 14.5 inches. Yet it has to lock in position solidly with no wiggle or play in it.
(6) (c) The stock should have a sling attachment point on the front end that is suitable for using a tight rifle sling from the prone position, really snuggling it up tight under tension.
(7) The cost for this rifle package should be about $325. Now you can get a .22 youth training rifle for only $150 but I think adding all these extra features would about double the cost.
The sights could be made in China, built of plastic or cheap zinc diecast metal. They don't have to be very precise because this is for training youth and they don't have to last 10 lifetimes either. The manufacturer could probably contract-out to have the sights built for only $30 per set, so that's a total of $60 for two sets (open style and then the taller USGI peep style).
The included red dot optic could be something cheap from Tasco or Leapers that only costs $25 wholesale and would sell for $35 retail at Walmart.
Scope bases and 1" rings, machined specifically for this rifle, should probably only cost the manufacturer another $35 for the set.
Let's say the mechanism that is used to make the buttstock have a 2" adjustment range in length-of-pull will cost another $20 above and beyond having a fixed geometry stock.
Finally, The manufacturer would probably have to pay $25 more to put an adjustable trigger in that gun rather than going with a standard fixed weight trigger.
That all adds up to $175 extra above and beyond what a cheap 22 youth rifle would normally cost, about 150 bucks. That's where I get my $325. figure from.
