When I grow up, I think I want to be a shooter.
Savage calls it the Rascal, but by any name, it is simply a lot of fun. Briefly, the Savage Rascal is a single-shot, .22 rimfire rifle that is scaled down in size to fit very small shooters. We’re talking kid’s gun here.
With a 16-inch barrel, the diminutive rifle is but 31.5 inches long overall and weighs a nominal 2.66 pounds with synthetic stock, or 2.95 pounds with hardwood stock.
Among other features:
• Manual safety
• Unload without pulling trigger
• Adjustable peep sight
• Adjustable Accutrigger
• Feed ramp
• Cocks by lifting bolt
The Rascal is available with a hardwood stock in both right and left-hand configuration. Synthetic stocks are available in a variety of colors: black, pink, blue, red, yellow, orange and green.
Heck, these rigs even come with sling swivel studs. Nice touch.
Very small guns for very small people/kids are not new – I have a tiny muzzleloading fowling piece that is about the same size as the Rascal, yet it is over 100 years old. And then there were micro rifles like the Hamilton Model 15 and the Quackenbush "Boys' rifle” that were sold in large numbers in the 1890-1920 era.
However, the Rascal offers a total shooting package, all wrapped up tidily in a small package. Two things about the Rascal really stood out as I was putting the rifle through the paces at the range. First, the aperture rear sight really helps in the delivered accuracy department (much easier to use effectively than normal open barrel sights). Second, the trigger pull is really nice. It is helped via the Savage Accutrigger system, which allows for manageable trigger pull weight while still remaining totally safe. It came from the factory with a clean 2.5-pound trigger pull.
Youngsters can shoot such rifles, because of their size and weight, and they can be shot well by them because they fit. Even beyond fit is weight. Sometimes small shooters simply do not have the upper body strength to handle heavier guns.
I’ll give a quick note of advice for parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents and the like: Shooting the Rascal can be habit-forming for adults, too. It shoots so dog-gonned well that it is simply a fun gun for any size folks at any age.
It is the kind of rifle that tends to make grownups want to shoot it at least as much as youngsters.
Straight from the box, the rifle was pretty much on-target at 25 yards. It took just a minor tweak to put bullets into a nice cluster.
The Rascal handled a variety of .22 long rifle ammo with aplomb. In fact, it did not seem to dislike any brand – which is not always true of .22 rimfire rifles.
Without question, the Savage Rascal represents a whole lot of bang for the buck for those who want to find a rifle that is just the right size for little folks.
Steve Comus is a nationally recognized hunting editor with Safari Club International and a former WON Guns and Hunting Editor. His column appears every other week in WON and he can be reached at scomus@cox.net.
SAVAGE RASCAL FITS SMALL folks just right, which makes it easier for them to shoot effectively.
SHOWN WITH TWO centenarian cousins from a different century is the Savage Rascal, bottom. At top is a Quackenbush Boys’ Rifle, and center is a Hamilton Model 15 -- .22 rimfires all.
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