Henry Mini Bolt Youth

The Henry Mini Bolt is the youth single-shot for families that want Henry's build quality and lifetime support behind a first rifle. It is a single-shot bolt .22 with an 11.5-inch length of pull and a 3.25-pound weight, dimensions that put it squarely in the same youth class as the Savage Rascal and Keystone Crickett.

Two things separate it from the pack. The barrel is stainless steel, which forgives the neglect a kid's first rifle inevitably gets, and the sights use bright orange front and rear inserts that a young shooter aligns faster than black-on-black irons. The bolt is a manual-cock design, so the striker must be cocked after chambering before the trigger will fire, the same deliberate safety step the category is built around.

Henry updated the design to the Mini Bolt Youth G2, which adds an integrated loading ramp that makes feeding a cartridge into the chamber easier for small hands while keeping the same overall dimensions. Current production is the G2 in black (H005R) and Muddy Girl camo (H005RMG). It costs more than a Crickett, but the stainless barrel, the orange sights, and Henry's reputation for service justify the step up for many first-rifle buyers.