Daisy Red Ryder: “Airgun Americana” by Nutnfancy04:33

You will be hard pressed to beat this much fun for $30. The Daisy Red Ryder BB gun is pure “Airgun Americana.” It arrived on the American sporing scene in the 1930s and has been around ever since. Wisely Daisy has kept the Ryder in basically the same form: wood and steel. There are a few plastic parts but they are high strength polymer and don’t seem to detract from the lever gun format that is so attractive to us. The Red Ryder gets its name from the comic book cowboy from the 30s and it’s still a winner. Though it is lost on the newer generations, many of us grew up watching John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Steve McQueen, Yule Brynner, Charles Bronson, and other western tough guys clean house with their lever guns. The Red Ryder captures this mystique and packages it into a fast firing, reliable, lightweight, accurate, and durable BB gun for both young and old. In 1938 the Red Ryder was a ground breaking design, setting new standards of excitement because of its repeat fire capability. Even today this simple, rapid fire BB rifle that needs no batteries, CO2 cartridges, multi-step loading procedures, or multiple pumps to keep it in the “fight.” It is simple and time proven. Add in a 650 shot BB reservoir and the fun will go on for hours (it does with the Nutnfancy crew…as shown!). Don’t expect high velocity from this little BB carbine however: my chrono work showed the guns achieving about 250 to 265 fps. Some may think this is much too low to achieve any accuracy or levels of fun. They would be wrong. Despite having a smooth bore, I find that in my years with the gun, the Red Ryder is accurate to about 10 yds and very accurate at my recommended range of 15 to 25 feet. Reference targets are shown. At that closer range, its very limited power will have more capability to inflict damage on your army men targets and plastic toys (wear safety goggles). The limited velocity is a actually a benefit here too: it is easy to setup of safe backdrops with the RR and shooting it is almost silent. The gun adapts quickly to a wide variety of shooting ares to include inside ranges, backyards, and campgrounds. It is in these convenient venues that the RR can do valuable duty in the instruction of markmanship and firearms safety fundamentals. The buckhorn sight is rudimentary but gets the job done at these limited ranges. The rear sight is windage adjustable. At only 2.2 lbs, the RR is a pleasure to shoot for extended sessions. I find the single stage trigger perfectly suited for this POU (recreational, training airgun). The stock while best sized for younger shoots, can work for most adults too. Several cool “Chief AJ” RR accessories and special edition gun are shown and discussed for interest. The Chief’s larger stock, large loop lever, and optics rail are fun additions to the gun. But even in its pure stock box form, the little Red Ryder is a capable performer and delivers lots of fun. I recommend putting several in the family so your group gatherings can benefit from some “BB Gun Assault” challenges. When you do this you will soon find the charm of the Red Ryder still firmly intact, even in this digital age. There is a reason this little gun continues to be a best seller. It transforms time spent with family and friends into something fun and memorable. And that will make the $30 you spent on your Red Ryders seem almost free. //////Nutnfancy Likability Scale: 10 out of 10 ////////// ///Music: “Kids Then Age” by Fireproof Babies