Nutn, I want to thank you. I'm a 22-year-old avid shooter who grew up without the benefit of a firearm heritage or even any real firearm training until I was a young teenager, though from a young age, I had an affinity for firearms. Luckily, once I was exposed to firearms I learned quickly and have since built my own AR-15 and taught my wife to both handle and effectively manipulate firearms. "Children of the Gun" has REALLY made me look forward to having children to share my passion with.
Wow. You won't believe the timing on this, my two year old is VERY interested in guns and I was unsure how to proceed with that. Thank you so much for helping me think of great, safe ways to teach him!
Thank you Nutn for this video. I'm 16 and have been handling guns my life. I feel like I'm almost a "Jedi" and I have a little 11 year old brother who has very little experience to guns and I would love to teach him safe gun handling, but certain factors in my life make it hard. Thanks Nutn again.
i cant get enough of your videos. keep makein them and we will all keep watchin i watched both of these and its better than any movie out... thanks bud.
Great series Nutn. I've been shooting guns since I was 5. I learned the hard way about handling a loaded gun in my Grandpa's house. I was grounded from shooting guns at his house for a year. It was a great lesson.
Great series. I feel the same way in many of the philosophies you talk about in this series and I hope to be able to teach my future sons or daughters to be safe and competent in the use of guns and other dangerous things. I didn't personally get to learn these things when I was a child and I would be a much more competent shooter now as an adult. Thanks for the videos you make.
As a 16 year old Canadian boy, I don't have great experience in firearm use. However with the many tips you go over, I use these skills when using my Sig Sauer p226 X-five. I go over safety and handeling daily before I go to bed and with my older brother when my parents are not around, as they disagree with firearms. One day I hope to find myself in the military enjoying life on the range with a glock 17 in hand and maybe my family along side. Thanks for being a outstandng teacher.
Great series! You have such a talent for talking about your key points and adding great detail, even citing references. Thank you and TNP crew for all the hard work as always, and thanks for posting! I just took a friend shooting for their first time and we had such a great time. I was glad I heard this series before going =D
I grew up with firearms and was trained from a young age on their safe and proper use. Although my Father and Grandfather did not have specific stages of training, they taught me to be a responsible shooter with exactly the same method you are advocating. I like how you incorporate safety, achievement, rewards and possibly most importantly heritage. I think you will actually save lives with this video and that is what being a Sheepdog is all about!
Nutnfancy, I'm a 30 year old tadpole. I'm about to buy my first gun ever. (Walther P22) I have every intention of teaching my son and daughter to shoot once I am comfortable with my own knowledge and competence. I just want to say that your videos especially this one has been an enormous inspiration to me. Thank you for everything you do. Keep up the great work.
I also teach my children gun saftey and heritage, just as I was taught. Thanks nutn'. Its good to see some still know what America is, lets never forget! You don't know what you've lost if you don't know what you have. Everyone.... teach your children what is is to be an American. Long live the Republic!
i am a single father and i am a civilian sheep dog , i have been training my children about gun safety for the past 4 years. i know for a fact that this will make their lives safer , and they understand our heritage more. The constitution is a great thing pass it on to the kids. God bless you and your squad.
This is a great thing to get out there. My father and grand father had never had any firearm experience, but as a child I was introduced to the world of action movies and video games, as my life progressed on I found these videos to be a great base on what to aim for saftey of fireamrs,I thank you for this great information, I would also recomend you find people that you trust with you child that are knowledge about firearms to help you out
"Regrouping" .... yeah... I need to do more of that when I see the eye's glazing over. LOL! Luckily I don't see that a lot when we're at the range thank goodness, but it does tend to happen. I think that regrouping goes hand in hand with just about anything new that you're trying to teach your child. I really like how a lot what you have to say can be brought to bear in other aspects of life as well. Great vid and thanks for your efforts Nutn!
I know it is a different world now but, when I grew up, there was a shotgun leaning in the corner of our living room. I grew up with 3 sisters and a little brother and we were taught about firearm safety. I completely agree that by making it taboo you are just creating a curiosity that could result in tragedy. I can remember shooting bb guns from about 3 years old. I was given a .410 shotgun for a Christmas gift in 1976 and I was 11 years old. It is all in how you raise kids. Great video.
My wife and I were just talking-if things got nasty and Nutn was like-ok guys-and organized a response based on his sub list-There'd be 80,000 strong! Not even counting their 'scouts' or jedi's! Rock on guys! keep up the great work!! God Bless
Great video! I'm sure this will be a big help to a lot of parents. This video played like a replay of the way my father taught me how to respect, handle and use firearms.
Your videos have brought me to Rock River LAR-15 (bought it!), and these vids coupled with the NRA guidelines have helped me have an idea how to teach my eight year old better about firearms. Thanks! Keep up the good work...we love it man!
Thanks for opening up these videos for Mobile Users! Mobile is my primary way of watching your videos due to work and traveling in a car. Awesome videos and completely on board with everything here. My son (Zygote phase) an I have already went over naming some of the parts of my Savage Bolt gun.
My Dad put gun safety at the top of the list and from a young age both me and my son were taught how to use firearms of all kinds, safely, As a 47 yr old adult I am now forever thankful for the gift my Dad gave me. I recently purchased my first firearm, a ruger sr9, and oddly I am having the same problem with mine out of the box as you did. Hopefully I can get it resolved. My Dad would have been proud of my perfect score on the CA gun safety test you have to take too. :-) Have a great day!
after the war, the gun was mostly an avoided subject in the home, mostly due to my mom's request. my dad did start teaching me gun safety and all, but it took time to sink in and obviously didn't sink in enough. I'm not happy with the way i learned it, but i am very glad that i did learn proper firearm safety and attitude with, regardless whether i ever do own a real firearm or not.
This is exactly what I have been trying to tell my friends and family forever. They all freak out when they here that I have guns in my home and that my kids shoot too. I couldn't say it as well as you did though. I bought my oldest son a rifle when he was 5 and he shoots a single action pistol now too. Its all about training and consistency, and as a parent I have to be responsible to do my job and teach them.
Great vid NutN!!! Good ideas for the tadpoles on the range. I always try to set mine up to succeed without making it 'too' easy. Metal dueling trees and a couple of .22's always bring smiles. My kids all get their first firearm, usually a hunting shotgun, at age 11. This gives them a year to practice with it before heading out bird hunting the following fall. And its up to them if they want more....and they usually do.
Great series of vids! Just got my shirt today.Ordered it three days ago and like you said,here in three days all the way to the east coast! Great Quality Thanks for all the TNPer's do!
Do you teach your kids how to use a car's manual transmission? That was one of those things that I LOVED. It really clicked with me - having more control over a vehicle. It was a scary business at first, but so worth it. It's still something that brings me great pleasure, and it's something that I continue to learn each time out. Shifting points, heel-toe downshifting, weight redistribution - it's super-cool for blokes.
Funny story. We were at the range this past Sat. During a total line cease fire, just about everyone took off their ear protection to chat or BS or what have you. I took "ears" off to talk to another member and my son started taking his "ears" off and I said "Hey buddy, keep those on please...eyes and ears all the time." he goes..."But you have yours off Dad!"..."You're right buddy, I better put them back on right?". ALWAYS watching... they will humble you and make you smile. Fun times!!
You seem like a great dad nutn my father showed me how to shoot and be safe with a .22 and a 20 gauge when i was very young and i am very blessed that he did i grew up and now i own 6 of my own guns including handguns and i will teach my child when the time comes
My parents never gave me gun safety training beyond a couple of times they reiterated the basic safety rules of treat it like it's loaded and never point it at something you don't want to destroy. I use these videos as training on how to properly train the children I will someday have.
Awesome vid nutn. One of my buddies has an 18 month old and I'm gonna have him watch these for when next year or so for when she's ready for the zygote phase.
Awesome i was handling my fathers browning hi power at the age of 8 or 9 before he sold it.. then as an adult got my own and became proficent in firearm use and safety.. thumbs up bro kick ass at impact!!
I love this series. I am following a very similar path with my children. I believe an educated child is a safe child. Right now I am letting my son shoot a BB gun with limited supervision. I built a deflecting backdrop that will allow him many different types of target potentials and the BBs deflect down into sand. I started him out (Zygoat) by reading the rules to him and help teach him what they mean. We would also go out on the porch and shoot cans at our range. He used to think that hitting the target was impossible, but I would show him just how accurate HIS Red Ryder could be, and that inspired him to keep trying. After about a year of strict supervision and watching him handle his red ryder properly I would allow him to shoot with me stepping back farther and farther, to the point now were if he wants to shoot I allow him to shoot so long as he asks me first. His accuracy with the BB gun went from the occasional miss to now the groups are 2" on paper from about 30'. My daughter is going to get her first Red Ryder here soon and start advancing in her "Zygoat". Both my children have fired with supervision my Marlin 60, and I just bought an XT-22 to start teaching my son to handle the "real" gun. He doesnt know it but there is a crickett coming to him here really soon too. It is good to know that there are others out there that believe the same as I do. My sister thinks I am wrong for teaching my kids how to use guns properly. Dom.
nutnfancy, you rock! Now I really like to know how I can introduce guns to adult friends who have never have touched a gun before for some reason but will probably like guns if introduced properly.
I wish my dad would have started me on a 22. He started me on a 12 gauge Winchester and i was scared to shoot guns for a while. Oh well; I got over it but still. Great video, Man!
My first gun was a youth model mossberg 500 in 20 gauge. I was about 8 or 9. My dad made sure he got me light loads. However the first gun I shot was a single shot Marlin 22. When I got my first gun I think it was the best day of my life. I have gotten and bought guns by myself since then but none were that special.
Awesome, Nutn. There was a recent tragedy in the news that could have been avoided if the parent had seen this video and taken it seriously. You'd think parents would know these things already if they introduce their kids to guns but sadly... many don't. Or they don't take it seriously enough. It's obvious your boys are no fools though. There oughta be more parents like you.
I'm an 18yo in the Jedi phase, and my 25yo sister is in the zygote phase. I think men may have a propensity to be drawn toward guns in their childhood. Girls are still playing with dolls while guys are plinking with Red Riders when they're 5yo. Thanks for the video series Nutn. I'll be sure to apply this when I start a family in the future.
Great series as always, keep it up. When I was five my Dad gave me a 20 gauge, and a 30-30. I remember at first I was a little dissuaded from shooting, but I never quit, and now I'll shoot anything. Oddly I was shooting a 30-06 before I ever even touched a bb gun. I suppose it could be considered "depussification."
Excellent video and message! I believe in everything you delivered and can’t wait until my 2 Tadpole sons (6&8) graduate to Jedi Status! Thank you for sharing your wisdom. Just a thought- it would be so cool if there were philosophy vids of your boys sharing their thoughts and experiences so we could have our Zygote & Tadpoles watch. My boys watch TNP vids with me all the time and they dig seeing your boys and I think it builds their confidence and they can relate. I love TNP! Hi Veri! SD
Very nice vid, love those philosophycal half hour show. Great refresh for me and make me think of how i want to introduce gun handeling whit my 7 years old kid. Thanks for all these infos, love your vid, keep em comin!
Awesome, Nutn. There was a recent tragedy in the news that could have been avoided if the parent had seen this video and taken it seriously. You'd think parents would know these things already if they introduce their kids to guns but sadly... many don't. Or they don't take it seriously enough. It's obvious your boys are no fools though. There oughta be more parents like you. Safety consciousness is a lifelong thing and it's obvious you know that. ALL of us gun owners need to be vigilantly safe.
I remember one time I was in Alaska, the first centerfire rifle I shot was my dad's friend's 45-70, slapped me in the shoulder, but it was my fault because I didn't tuck it in hard enough.. it was a blast to shoot :) I liked it, but my shoulder sure didn't. I was pretty new to shooting then.
I have been grown up wih the concepts Nutn discribes here. But mostly with air pellet guns as soon as i could cock them. My father procured an iron target, that was used as folding man target on army shooting ranges. Later he introduced me to .22 and to larger calibers. That was more and around 20 years ago. Man, it is still fun to do some 1000 shots with and maintain thoose old air pellet guns from back then . And it is for sure that i one day start to own my own rim and centerfire guns.
great concepts. my father instilled gun safety in me at an early age as well. i shot my first white tail deer at age 7 with a bolt action scoped 30-30 while hunting with my father. now as an adult and firearm owner i still carry those concepts with me today that where instilled in me at an early age.
aww, nice old family shooting photos and video clips. man, kids seem to grow up fast dont they? again, i really look up to your different parenting/teaching your boys with guns. unfortunately for me, im not even close to their level, even their 'tadpole' level with guns..... i was just never really interested (only knives) til now, but im gradually getting into it, learning about them, etc. and maybe one day ill have enough knowledge to teach my kids.
I love it! My daughter has shown excellent safety awareness and pretty decent marksmanship with our little BB gun, so she is getting a little pink Crickett for Christmas.
Another great video Nutn! I don't have children but I do have a new roommate who has never had any exposure to firearms. I gave her a safety brief about the guns I have, where they are stored, and under what conditions they can be used but now after watching this vid, I'm going to go further and adapt this concept of gradual proficiency in my household. Would you do things any differently when introducing an adult to firearms?
Now, my dad is a hunter and very smart man, but why i didn't develope proper firearms attitude by then for several reasons. The fact that while i was 3-4, my dad was fighting on the front didn't help. I had developed a good idea of what weapons can do, from my personal experiences from the war (almost lost one of my knees to shrapnel from a artillery shell and saw my dad injured, so those kind of things stick with you, even that young)...
as a child years ago, when my dad brought a gun into the house he showed us how it works and to never point it anyone. i was never curious about it after he showed it to us,because it was not forbidden by him to access the firearm. however, now as an adult i dig guns and the right to possess them.
GREAT video! I have an 11 yr. old son that I have spent a great deal of time with training using almost identical techniques and philosophies as yours. He currently competes in local USPSA and IDPA matches with me.(I have posted video responses.) I also have 2 daughters, ages 6 and 9, that I am basically just starting with. I wanted to let you know that I WILL be using your videos as a reference in their training...Thank You!
My parents are protectionists. When I was 9 I got into shooting from the N64 Goldeneye 007 video game. After that my parents wouldn't let me near a gun. They even told relatives not to buy me any or teach me about them. They didn't think I could distinguish between a game and reality! I did my best to teach myself later, not because of my parents but IN SPITE OF THEM. Strangely, my parents recently bought a gun but instead of becoming competent they bought the gun with the most safeties.
I was at wal-mart with my daughter today. I pulled out an orange toy gun from the shelves and pointed it at her and went "bang". She ran over and says to... me. . . . "No daddy, never point it at anything you don't wanna kill." IT CAN BE TAUGHT!
I remember when I was a kid and shot a remmington 1100 in 12 gauge (the first firearm I had shot) and I loved it. Good thing I had built up my skills up on air rifles.
Nutnfancy, great mention of not using a high recoil weapon for a novice. My wife of many years, when with an old boyfriend, shot a 30-30 as her first firearm. At this point, nearly 10 years later, she is just now warming up to guns. My point being, a "young" shooter should NEVER shoot any sort of a high recoil weapon.
Awesome vid nutnfancy, I agree with everything said,also I wanna remind every one that gun safety NEVER goes away no matter what level the shooter is. thanks ... MoJo
Excellent videos man, I've aready begun teaching my 3 year old about guns. I live by a simple principle... People die or get hurt because a lack of knowledge.
Great instructional video for all the parents who have a passion for firearms, but were not raised knowing the fundamentals. Thank you for laying the foundation for affective communication between parent and child re: firearms. I normal don't comment on negative posts, but I have to say this. I respect your right to voice your opinion. However, I cannot fathom why you would watch a channel that you do not agree with. Do you honestly think your comments will sway other people???
My family comes from a small town, but my dad wasn't a big fan of hunting and guns. He and my mom moved to a city and now we live in a neighborhood and they say that they don't want me to have a gun because we live in the city and there is no reason to have one. Which makes sense. But Hopefully when I move out and have kids I can let them have their own gun.
cool effect there with the backlit shot there, was that snowfall around in the shot? makes the still look really cool with the backlit nightshot. Sweet!
Excellent video man! Indeed a full set of knowledge for all parents. One question though. How would you (I guess you 've been there already) deal with the fact that the kids would like to invite other kids to shoot with? Do you call their parents to get their approval? I think that's the best way to deal with that. Glad to hear your side. Keep it up and ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
