Airgun shooting is precision marksmanship at close range, with BB guns, air rifles, and air pistols. It is quiet, low-recoil, and easy to set up, which makes it one of the best ways for new shooters to learn the fundamentals — and a competitive path of its own, with its own Kansas 4-H match series.
Safety comes first at every level: eye protection on the line, guns cased until the range is ready, and a coach beside every new shooter. Our airgun coaches are the same coaches who lead our smallbore rifle and pistol programs.
What we shoot
4-H Rules & Safety at a Glance
Kansas 4-H air gun matches follow the Kansas 4-H Shooting Sports Spring Match Championships General Rules (updated March 2026) and the national rulebook for each event. The current official rules and each match's bulletin always come first.
Who can compete
- 4-H membership is required. Youth must be enrolled in 4-H and be 9–18 (as of January 1) to compete at the state match. Air pistol starts at age 10.
- Divisions. BB gun Juniors are 9–11 and Seniors are 12–15 (BB gun shooters may compete until their 16th birthday). Air rifle and air pistol Juniors are 13 and under and Seniors are 14–18.
Getting to the state match
- Qualifying scores are earned at a sanctioned qualifier, in a single relay: BB gun 335 of 400, air rifle 450 of 600, air pistol 280 of 400. A shooter gets one try per discipline at each qualifier.
- Teams are picked from the top state-match scores: five shooters in BB gun, four in air rifle, and two in air pistol. Juniors and Seniors can be mixed.
- BB gun also includes a 25-question written test drawn from the NRA BB Gun Rules and the Daisy 10-Lesson Curriculum.
Equipment
- Air rifle and air pistol use .177 caliber flat-nose wadcutter pellets only, with a clear barrel (or chamber) indicator in every gun that is not on the firing line.
- BB guns never get a clear chamber indicator — it is not safe in a BB gun.
- Air pistol: a signed Handgun Permission Form must be with the shooter on the line. Juniors may use one or two hands; Seniors use one hand; everyone shoots standing and unsupported.
On the range
- Eye protection is required for anyone in front of the ready line. Check each match bulletin for hearing-protection rules.
- Guns stay cased until the shooter is ready to take the range and the range officer has declared it ready. Actions stay open with an indicator in when moving, and muzzles stay pointed in a safe direction.
- Shoes must completely cover the feet on the shooting line, and no phones, ear buds, or smart watches are allowed near active competition.
Interested in Airguns?
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