TargetTalk

I have a 12yr old girl who would like to shoot some clays this summer. Any recommendations on brand/type/LOP? would be appreciated. Thanks.

One of the mistakes I made when my girls were young was to get a 20ga single shot break action ... the gun was lightweight and even light loads kicked them badly.

But ... a 12 year old is small anyway so there is going to be a thump.

What I have done with out 4-H shooters that start out is to start them with an inexpensive over/under that has some weight to it and use light 20 ga loads. Then Trap, Skeet & Clays are easily shot without pumping.
I like the Yildiz youth guns like here:
http://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/yildiz- ... un&Ntk=All

Another option that is used a lot is a slightly heavier 20ga semi.
many brands out there.

I prefer the O/U as I can more easily keep an eye on what is loaded and they seem to have an easier time with the loading/unloading manipulations.

Just don't stick them with something that kicks the snot out of them ... they'll lose interest fast.

jhmartin - thanks for the recommendations and insight. I was looking at an Escort youth semi-auto, but you make a good points about the O/U model. Thanks!

There are many brands but I prefer Mossberg. It consists of 2 barrels, 28 for accuracy 18 for wider spread at little bit closer range. 8 shot will be the suitable for a girl. But if you want short barrel then you can’t hit longer range targets. Other option is clays 20, it is nice and sporting gun.

When my very petite GF was looking at shotguns, we ended up with a Remington 870 Youth Model in 20gauge. It fit her nicely, was light and cheap, and I've used it quail hunting in rough terrain myself.

I picked up a cheap reloader and made up some extra light loads for her to play with, but the cheapies at Walmart were fine.

Look at the Tristar Viper Youth. I got my son (very small for 12) the 12 ga youth for around $440 on sale. He moved from a Mossberg Bantam 500 - 20 ga to the 12 ga a couple of weeks ago and his trap scores increased dramatically. The Tristar has a LOP of 13" on the youth stock, not very heavy, and the recoil is very manageable. You also have the option to purchase a full sized butt stock if they out grow the youth stock.

My daughter, 15, moved into a 12 ga 870 express last fall. I put an ATI Akita adjustable stock on it to reduce the LOP to about 13.5 for her. It's quite heavy for her, but that helps mitigate some of the recoil as well.

Depending on the game, 12 ga. is the way to go. Also shells are more economical and readily available.