I am wanting to buy my son a 20GA youth shotgun. I want used because to spend $$$ for just a few years doesn't make sense to me. But I have looked in every pawn shop and local online sales spot and LGS and no one has used youth shotguns? Why? One would think there are hundreds of them out there cuz they get outgrown quickly. I can easily buy a used 12GA much cheaper than a new youth 20GA but my boy is small and can't handle the 12GA recoil yet. I finally did find a break action 20GA that he shoots very well but it is time to move up to a pump or semi due to time needed for reloading while we hunt.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
Where are all the 20GA youth shotguns?
- Thread starter hbhobby
- Start date
Omaha-BeenGlockin
New member
My local Walmart always seems to have a Youth Express 870 or Mossberg Bantam 500 in stock
Dreaming100Straight
New member
If the 12 gauge recoil is too much, still get him a 12 but buy some 7/8 ounce 12 gauge loads.
Are the youth shotguns actually smaller in the metal? Or, is it just that they have shorter stocks/barrels? I know with youth rifles, they are just adult rifles with shorter stocks. If that is the case with youth shotguns, you could spend the $ for a new youth shotgun and then upgrade to a longer stock later.
If 12 gauge recoil is too much, then 20 gauge recoil is too much too. The benefit of the 20g is better slug accuracy and a lighter gun to carry in the field, not less recoil.
There are a plethora of low recoil 12g loads that recoil less than the 20g.
Fit and technique is very important for recoil control and comfort on a shotgun. A poorly fit gun will not be a small statured person's friend.
There are a plethora of low recoil 12g loads that recoil less than the 20g.
Fit and technique is very important for recoil control and comfort on a shotgun. A poorly fit gun will not be a small statured person's friend.
Dreaming100Straight
New member
There are a plethora of low recoil 12g loads that recoil less than the 20g.
Are there low recoil 20g loads available and if so would a 20 not recoil less than a 12? Bear in mind that a 20g built on a 12g frame, as some are, will exhibit less felt recoil than one built on a lighter 20g frame.
A couple weeks ago we bought our son a Mossberg 500 Bantam 20ga that came with a slug barrel, which is great because we live in a slug only zone for deer hunting. He is 11 yrs old and weighs 68 pounds(he's a little runt). I've been buying 7/8 oz trap loads and he can easily shoot 50 rounds of that without issue. Usually he wants to shoot more at that point. He LOVES this thing. We already have 8-10 boxes of shells through it. Recoil with these loads through this gun is certainly less than 12 ga rounds. But like someone above mentioned, fit is everything.
After I handled a youth model, I realized what I've been missing all these years. I have a BPS and a cheap Remington/Baikal over under. I'm only 5'5", so every full size shotgun is too long for me. The youth/compact models are just right. I bought a Savage 220 20ga slug gun a couple years ago and got the compact version. Love it.
After I handled a youth model, I realized what I've been missing all these years. I have a BPS and a cheap Remington/Baikal over under. I'm only 5'5", so every full size shotgun is too long for me. The youth/compact models are just right. I bought a Savage 220 20ga slug gun a couple years ago and got the compact version. Love it.
Usual answer.. use light 12 gtauge loads. second answer cut stock.
WRONG.. WRONG. Short people have small hands too. The pistol grip needs to also be addressed. So does forearm location, barrel weighting, etc.
A Proper Youth model does several things to deal with the several variables that contribute to an unnatural mount and excessive FELT recoil.
WRONG.. WRONG. Short people have small hands too. The pistol grip needs to also be addressed. So does forearm location, barrel weighting, etc.
A Proper Youth model does several things to deal with the several variables that contribute to an unnatural mount and excessive FELT recoil.
I took a slightly different approach. I found an 11-87 lt-20 youth at a gun show but it's still too heavy for my son. He's also extremely recoil shy. At the same show, I happened to find a .410 Mossberg bolt action. Its light and slim with very little recoil. I cut two inches off the stock and installed a limbsaver recoil pad. He hit a clay pigeon on his third shot with it.
Before anyone says it, I know that a .410 is not a great kids gun and doesn't build confidence. It will mostly be for squirrels and targets and I want to teach him to pick his shots on doves. Mostly, it's just to get used to the noise and mechanics.
Once he's over the fear of recoil and a little stronger, I'll move him over to the 11-87.
Before anyone says it, I know that a .410 is not a great kids gun and doesn't build confidence. It will mostly be for squirrels and targets and I want to teach him to pick his shots on doves. Mostly, it's just to get used to the noise and mechanics.
Once he's over the fear of recoil and a little stronger, I'll move him over to the 11-87.
I personally like the 410 approach. I asked the question about 410s a few years ago and got both sides of the story, many people discouraged it. I went ahead and bought a Mossberg 510 mini. Yes, it's tough to shoot flying objects with a 410, however, a young kid can learn lots with these guns. Such as, proper gun handling, gun safety, gun ownership pride(you should have seen my son's smile every time he laid eyes on his gun), cleaning and maintenance(my son took a big interest in cleaning when it was his own gun), and the list goes on.
We went small game hunting quite a few times, mainly squirrel. My son still talks about the first time we got a squirrel and made squirrel stew.
I started him out with stationary targets on the ground(clays, pop bottles, cans, etc) Once he had that figured out, we moved to rolling targets. I bought a case of rabbit clays, then I would stand right behind him so they would roll straight away from him, so he was only dealing with one axis. Then we moved on to diagonally moving rabbits. For flying targets, we started with Frisbees(seems like we always have lots laying around from parades). Frisbees are big and slow, so they have some success with these.
So no, a kid won't be knocking pheasants and geese out of the sky with their 410, but there are so many other things they can do with them. We have countless hours of quality bonding time at the range. I also bought a reloader and the kids love reloading too. So more bonding time there.
If I had to do it all over again, I'd buy that little 410 again in a heartbeat. He has outgrown it, but our daughter will be growing into it soon, so it will get more use.
We went small game hunting quite a few times, mainly squirrel. My son still talks about the first time we got a squirrel and made squirrel stew.
I started him out with stationary targets on the ground(clays, pop bottles, cans, etc) Once he had that figured out, we moved to rolling targets. I bought a case of rabbit clays, then I would stand right behind him so they would roll straight away from him, so he was only dealing with one axis. Then we moved on to diagonally moving rabbits. For flying targets, we started with Frisbees(seems like we always have lots laying around from parades). Frisbees are big and slow, so they have some success with these.
So no, a kid won't be knocking pheasants and geese out of the sky with their 410, but there are so many other things they can do with them. We have countless hours of quality bonding time at the range. I also bought a reloader and the kids love reloading too. So more bonding time there.
If I had to do it all over again, I'd buy that little 410 again in a heartbeat. He has outgrown it, but our daughter will be growing into it soon, so it will get more use.