You want ME to teach you to shoot!?!

Now, don't get me wrong. I like shooting. But . . . I am most familier with the M16A1, and following that, the M16A2. The civilian versions are ridiculously expensive. Do people really pay that much for things that work that poorly?

Wait, don't answer that. I won't pay for something like that.

But . . . I need to find an affordable, reliable rifle, bolt action is fine, that runs under $300, the cheaper the better. (The friend in question is a college student.) For someone who has never learned how to shoot. He's a righty, like me. (Lefty suggestions are welcome, however, as my husband and Hemi are both lefties, and while Hemi has a few years to go . . .) Our friend thinks he'd like . . . well, a lot of things, most of which are either impractical (No, you do not need a automatic rifle, nor the attendent paperwork and hassle.) or impossible (Yes, I agree a rocket launcher would be cool, but I don't think they'll let you have one.). I think he'd like something that won't break the bank and will work, is easy to take apart and clean (aside from those plastic guards on the M16s, they were what I would consider easy, probably why they jammed so much) and put back together again. He's basically a sensible guy, if given a bit to fantasizing (you should hear his plans for his eventual house/bunker!), or I wouldn't be considering teaching him to shoot, and his reasons for wanting to learn are the correct ones for someone who is a non-hunter, the sort of guy we'd want hanging around WTSHTF.

I'm not sure I'm the best possible teacher out there, but I do know the basics. I could use a rifle with the above qualifications myself, but I want to get my revolver first, and I know exactly which one I think I want, if I could just find one I could fire to be sure. In a pinch, I can always use one of Dad's rifles, after all. (But I will not ask Dad to borrow one of his to teach someone he doesn't really know how to shoot.)

I could teach our friend some with my shotgun, and perhaps that is my best bet. I learned first on Mom's .22 rifle, later the shotgun. I'm not sure the shotgun is particularly good to teach aim, it just has the bead on the end. But the most important thing he needs to learn are the two rules:

It's always loaded, ESPECIALLY when you KNOW it's not.
Don't point it at anything you don't want dead.

Once you've got those down, the rest is easy. Like anything else, it just takes practice.