BB Gun Review: The Daisy Red Ryder Carbine

Millions of American men remember shooting a Daisy Red Ryder BB gun long ago as a kid. For those of us who had to wait, grow up, go to college, get a job, and buy our own BB gun, the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine is available as a slightly upsized version of the classic BB gun. Without the rose colored glasses of nostalgia, I can review the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine fairly and dispassionately. Is the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine a nice BB gun? Is the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine accurate? Is the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine fun to shoot? Is the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine worth the price tag?

My Daisy Red Ryder Carbine called my name from a Walmart shelf. It had an amazingly low price and I simply could not resist. When I got home, I was gratified to unpack it and find a surprisingly nice BB gun. The Daisy Red Ryder Carbine has the classic styling of a cowboy carbine. However, the Daisy Red Ryder carbine measures 35.4 inches long and weighs only 2.2 pounds. While the Daisy Red Ryder carbine is a little smaller and lighter than a real lever action rifle, I found it very comfortable to shoot.

In a world of plastic, the Daisy Red Ryder has a nicely stained wooden stock and forearm "branded" with the Red Ryder script and Red Ryder cowboy with lasso and galloping horse. The Daisy Red Ryder Carbine is assembled here in the United States with American and Chinese made parts. Most of the gun appears to be made of wood and metal. However, the cocking lever, trigger, and safety are made of durable looking plastic. Even a loop of leather is tied through the saddle ring. For a very low cost BB gun, the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine will inspire pride in ownership. The packaging, materials, and apparent build quality of the Daisy Red Ryder exceeded my expectations.

I had to wait until I was able to shoot my Daisy Red Ryder. At age 42, I couldn't simply walk around my apartment complex looking for targets of opportunity. Instead, I made an indoor shooting range using our walk-in closet, a moving blanket, and a BB trap made from a cardboard box, an old telephone book, packaging paper, and scrap cardboard. I decided to test the Red Ryder Carbine indoors at a range of around 20 feet. The Daisy Red Ryder is advertised to shoot at 350 feet per second which is not excessive in a properly constructed indoor range. The Red Ryder is not overly loud and sounds like a heavy duty stapler. I doubt that the noise travelled beyond our apartment.

Unfortunately, my initial shots were very disappointing. I had Crosman gold BBs that came with another BB gun and, although they were the .177 caliber of traditional BBs, they simply did not work well with the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine. About half of my shots failed to feed or fire. Dejected, I considered returning my Red Ryder Carbine to the store, calling Daisy for service, or simply throwing it away. However, I persisted and got some Daisy Brand Premium BBs from the store. These are the simple silvery steel BBs that almost everyone is familiar with and they worked fine in the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine. I was able to crank through about 75 shots with few failures to fire and no jams.

The Daisy Red Ryder Carbine is a lever action, spring-air, BB gun. It loads a BB and is cocked for firing by fully cranking the lever forward and bringing it back. For close range indoor shooting, I adjusted the rear sight to it's lowest elevation setting. The trigger had a good feel and the Daisy Red Ryder had almost no recoil. The Daisy Red Ryder will encourage good shooting habits and is capable of decent accuracy. I found that the elevation was right on and many of my shots went just slightly to the right. While the Daisy Red Ryder Carbine's rear sight is not adjustable for windage, I'm sure I can achieve consistent bullseyes by either aiming the gun slightly to the left or by very gently pushing the rear sight towards the right. While I love the leather strap tied through the saddle ring, I found that it would regularly get trapped between the cocking lever and the buttstock of the BB gun. My Daisy Red Ryder Carbine may soon be strapless. After a few minor adjustments, I was routinely chewing up the bullseyes of my targets. I used the targets posted freely here on Associated Content for testing my Daisy Red Ryder Carbine.

I truly enjoyed shooting my Daisy Red Ryder Carbine, but there are some significant safety concerns with BB guns. First, BB guns need to be used with proper eye protection and under the supervision of a responsible adult. Most basic gun safety rules must be followed with BB guns. This Daisy Red Ryder Carbine has a 650-round BB reservoir. Once this reservoir has been filled, it can be difficult to tell if a BB gun is unloaded. It can also be tempting to leave one sitting with BBs in the reservoir. There is a small opening on top of the barrel just forward of the forestock band that lets you see if BBs are moving from the reservoir to the firing chamber. But, unlike a conventional firearm, you can not tell with 100% certainty whether this type of BB gun is loaded or not. Generally, if you don't hear any BBs rolling around, the reservoir is empty. However, there could be a BB in the chamber or jammed in some part of the reservoir. Also, when BBs strike hard objects, they can ricochet back towards the shooter. So, all shooters and bystanders must wear proper eye protection. You can put an eye out with a BB gun. However, when used properly, a BB gun like the Daisy Red Ryder is a lot of fun and can be an important aid in teaching responsibility and gun safety.

The Daisy Red Ryder BB gun was first introduced in 1940 and remains one of the most popular BB guns in the world. After buying and shooting one, I can certainly see why. The Daisy Red Ryder Carbine is well constructed, fun to shoot, and a real bargain.