Question for the grandpas out there

[skeeter1]

I'm not a grandpa, but my best friend's kids are getting into shooting sports. They're in their 20's.

As time goes on, I get as much satisfaction from helping them learn as I do shooting personally.

Oh, I'll blast off a few, but I like being the "range buddy" to help them out.

Anyone else feel the same way?

 

[bennnn]

Yes I do.

I have been helping my good friend's sons learn how to shoot, they have the benifit of having both of us around. I'm over 30, and getting ready to have my first child, I'm glad I have the opportunity to get some "practice" teaching my buddy's boys though.

 

[tony pasley]

It is a great feeling when you help some one to learn to shoot. Watching them start and when they get thier first bulleye then when they get the grouping down. I raised 4 and taught them and many of thier friends to shoot and enjoyed it very much.

 

[Chuck Dye]

Check out

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=56574

in which I posted:

A crew served Ruger MkII: a cautionary tale for fathers, uncles, and others.


The best friend and I, doting father and honorary uncle, took the eight year old shooting. Dad and I had some brief fun with the 9 millimeters, the .45ACP, and the .44 magnums, but soon fell into reloading magazines for the kid as he wrung out the Ruger MkII and both scoped and iron sighted 10/22s (N.B.: Two adults can keep one kid supplied, but they must concentrate on business!)

WARNING! THE KID WILL SHOOT YOU DRY! Take a limited amount of ammo!
__________________

In addition to arranging to run out of ammo in a reasonable amount of time, starting late in the day on the unlighted range has proven useful.

 

[oldmaster111]

Well, I am a Granpa. Taught both of my sons how to shoot and my oldest grandson. His 8 year old brother is counting the hours until he is 10 to go with me and much to my family's horror, my 5 year old granddaughter will be going with me in five years. Here in Arizona, there are a lot of guns and my kids and their kids will learn to respect them and how to use them if necessary or for fun. I'm a real stickler for gun safety for us all, no matter how old and so far, everyone is having safe fun with the family firearms collection.

 

[ammo.crafter]

I get great satisfaction when I indocrinate a new shooter. Brings new blood into our passion!

 

[old 12 gauge]

I'm a GP and have let the GKs shoot the 22s if they want to, i don't encourge it as I feel it's up to their parents. If they are at my house and ask to shoot, I take them out back and let them shoot away, 22s for the little ones and 410 for the older ones. one daughter-in law don't like guns so i let them make the first move.

 

[Mac's!]

My nine year old Grand Daughter lived with us for her first four years. Because I have a lot of firearms and even though they are all "safed" because of her, I still started her early on a training program. She was NOT taught that guns were bad. She was taught that they are dangerous, like the stove or the hot water faucet.
Later, when she started Kindergarten, we taught her gun safety for freinds houses...like when little johnny says hey look at my dads gun! We taught her to leave the area and go/call home. Now, at an "old nine", she's comfortable around firearms, knows the rules and even makes sure I have my ccw when we go any place.
I have no fears that she will ever shoot someone accidently. If she does shoot someone, it won't be an accident!
Keep yer powder dry, Mac.
Tuff-Gun Finishes. The name Says It All
Mac's Shootin' Irons
http://www.shootiniron.com

 

[Toolman]

I'm a Grandpa, I have a g'daughter & a g'son.
My dad started me out when I was about 8-9.
I raised three sons. I started them early by teaching them gun & hunter safety. They also went thru hunter's safety in middle school (was mandatory for boys & girls in Indiana at the time). They all belonged to 4-H Shooting Sports until they were too old to participate. They (and I) enjoyed it so much that I went for firearms instructor training during their years in Shooting Sports.
Now their all grown up, on their their own and all three generations shoot almost every weekend. We use the range all year long. Grandpa & Grandma get a lot of pleasure watching the kids & grandkids at the range. We have even had cookouts during our days at the range. Everybody likes that!
This is a fun sport that whole families can & do participate in. Besides, you know where your kids are & what they're doing.

 

[swmike]

I have 5 grandkids and have worked with 3 so far at the range. The remaining two are just getting to the age where they will be going as well (6 and 8).

I can't think of a better way to interact with your grandkids and give them a skill that they too will be able to share with their grandkids. For some reason, they listen better to "Grampa" than their parents.

As to them "shooting you dry", isn't that why .22 ammo is so cheap and dirty?

You can take enough with you without having to take out a loan first and after a couple of hours that old reliable Ruger 10/22 is too dirty to chamber another round. Makes for a good excuse to quit for the day.

PS: My grandkids, when the shoot with me, have to clean the weapons they shot. Usually before leaving the range. IMO that's when good habits begin. When they are young.

Besides, when I am nice to my grandkids, "Nana" usually rewards me with a nice big kiss

 

[Pointer]

I feel that way...

I taught a total greenie how to shoot the .22 rifle his grandpa left him...

I was gratified to see that no one had screwed him up with crappy principles or the lack thereof...

When he went for his hunter safety course, he aced all 50 rounds at 50 feet with open sights...

One hole about the size of a half dollar...

Grandpa Pointer was sooooo proud!

 

[cochise]

I taught my children to shoot early. My daughter was at the range at three years old. My son at age ten used "our" .38 door gun to stop a home invader. The man ran when he saw my boy pick it up and point the revolver like he knew how to use it.

My grandson started early also. He wrote a class paper at age 10 about shooting the 9mm and .22 with grandpa. His mother got called into school to explain how a 10 year old knew so much about guns.

He has a few of my guns now. He is graduating H. S. and will off to college next year so I gave him my WW11 .30 cal carbine because that was the rifle he liked to shoot when he was a "little guy". My other grandchildren don't get to do much shooting since I moved out of state. I don't know who is more disappointed, them or me.

 

[skeeter1]

Thanks for all the responses

One of my favorite shooting buddy's just got promoted to 1st LT in the US Army. He's still in Iraq, but rumor has it he'll be back on US soil next month, 172nd Stryker division in Alaska. I don't know when he'll be back in Ohio, but I'm looking forward to shooting with him again. I'll supply all of the firearms and ammo.

You hear all of the stories about how bad kids have become, but as as far as I'm concerned, he is truly a gentleman.

Shooting sports can indeed bind us together. When his nephews grow up a bit (they're still toddlers), I'm hoping to help foster some more members into the shooting fraternity.