Airgun Recommendations (Special Kid)

[getom59]

Airgun recommendations please.  I want to get my 16 year old son who has some cognitive and fine motor skill disabilities into shooting with me (of course he’ll be supervised by me or someone qualified at all times).  I was thinking about getting him a .177 caliber airgun and mounting a red dot scope on top of it.  I’d like to keep the cost of the gun and scope to around $200.  I was looking at two different ones, the Gamo Shadow 1000 and the Crosman Quest 1000X, until I seen this forum and thought I’d post here to see what you have to say.  

This airgun will be used primarily for paper punching but I am sure he’ll want to carry it along (when and if I feel he’s ready for that responsibility) when he tags along with me hunting.  The other thing to consider is that he does things both left and right handed (writes LH, bats ball RH, etc.) and I am not sure which way he’s going to want to shoot.  What I consider important are safety, ease of operation and loading, accuracy, trigger pull, and reliability.  

What do you think?  I am interested in any and all opinions.

Thanks...

Glenn

[Lawdog]

Glenn,

Gamo Shadow 1000 and the Crosman Quest 1000X

The Gamo, don't care which model, is a good one to stay as far away from as you can.  Gamo doesn't believe in standing behind their product.  I have been around the horn with Gamo over one of the POS air rifles.  The Quest 1000 is made in China and I have not heard any good reports on it.  Personally I would go with a Benjamin/Sheridan pump with a pep sight mounted.  Still under your budget and a great trainiong tool.  Lawdog
 

[dave]

If its a choice between the Gamo and the Quest, stick with the Quest. The Crosman crowd loves them, and they seem to be fairly decent out of the box. It seems to be one of the better Chinese guns.
The new Benji guns seem to be of lesser quality than those made in the past, and they seem to have had more than their share of problems lately, especially with barrel production. Also, no longer do they have walnut stocks, but rather some sort of  generic hardwood with a crummy varnish finish. Most owners also find the trigger to be awful, and all that pumping can be difficult for the unaccustomed in an extended shooting session. I have a late model 392 and 397, and I wouldn't reccommend one as either a first gun or a trainer. A gun that is inaccurate and/or hard to operate and isn't made well can easily discourage a beginner. A bad first experience can be hard to reverse, and if he really doesn't enjoy the gun he may not want to shoot it anymore.