Jacqui... they lure you in with rich polished hardwood, and deep bluing or bright stainless steel... then you end up with all of your game guns being non reflective, with black polymer stocks...

And a lot of reviews on it that arent flattering....growing pains apparently.

On the original topic, I just wanted to say that...if you are looking for a firearm for yourself and your son to shoot, it might be a good idea to look into firearms labeled as, youth size. Youth sized firearms have a shorter length of pull, which is basically the length of the stock.

When firearms are designed, they're typically designed with the average size man in mind. Women and children are of a smaller stature on average and therefore typically need a shorter length of pull to shoot a firearm comfortably and properly. Otherwise, shooting a firearm with too long of pull can be extremely uncomfortable and often quite unsafe.

This is one of the reasons why adjustable stocks have become so popular on modern firearms, as they can fit a wide range of shooters. Though, I don't know what the legalities of adjustable stocks are your location.

How about a Mexican Mauser in 7mm Mauser with a 13-inch pull and 16 1/8" barrel that is totally free floating? I call it my "pocket rifle". Tons of fun to shoot and not that bad on recoil.

Those are beautiful classic guns. Sorry, but nothing wrapped in black plastic even comes close!

Byrd_Huntr...as I get older, my gun games have changed.. the current one is 3 gun, and it really is tough on equipment...black plastic works... I've managed to break a VietNam era A1 stock for my AR already

pic of old fat guy on the Sniper Range at Ft Benning 3 Gun 2007...long range rifle and shotgun stage

i've found having the same sort of rifle allows me to focus on the situation instead of how each firearm works. handling becomes instintive. plus the rimfire version offers inexpensive practice to the centerfire versions.

here my set of lever action marlins, all with the same ashley peep sights, which can cover anything from squirrels to buffalo, in 22LR, 45 Colt and 45/70:

Nice trio of leverguns there wileycoyote!

I'm right behind you ... I have the .45colt and the .22LR levers, and the .45-70 will be added some day (my shooting buddy has his on the "bucket list" for transfer to me when he croaks). But I'd rather have my shooting buddy than the .45-70, so I'm willing to wait indefinitely. .45-70 is a bit much for plinking at the range anyway, which is what we do 99% of the time.

Nice Wiley.Have that in 30.30

Me too, and I agree that is a very nice set of rifles.

My Marlin 336 is my only 'high power' rifle. The area that I hunt deer in is slugs-only, and since I am primarily a byrd_huntr, I have a selection of shotguns. My other rifles are vintage Remington .22's. Here's the Remington Fieldmaster .22 pump.

And Les,

Your collection is great too. I'm not a competitive shooter, so I was only speaking of the aesthetics of woodgrain and blue. I know synthetic stocks provide several advantages. I'm old fashioned in the sense that I will give up a little in performance for the feel and look of wood.