IDO’ers, after asking about experiences with this autoloader, I went ahead and bought one for my son as a starter gun for his first youth trap season. I promised a full review, so hopefully, this helps anyone who is looking for youth shotgun.
TriStar Viper G2 Synthetic Youth 20 Gauge
The growth and popularity of youth trapshooting have been a pleasant surprise for the shooting sports community in recent years. And now it is my kids’ turn to get in on the fun! My eldest son Henry turned 13 this year and was able to start shooting for his school team.
But there was a problem. Some who know this writer would be shocked to learn I didn’t actually have a suitable shotgun in the collection for a youth to use for his first trap season. Oh, I have shotguns, to be sure, but none that fit Henry well and none that I would even contemplate cutting down the stock to youth dimensions. So time to do some shopping.
I wanted my son to start with a 20 gauge because nothing sours youthful enthusiasm quicker than having their shoulder beaten to a pulp. At his age and experience level, my opinion is that it’s more important for him to enjoy shooting than it is to maximize pellet counts and scores. To minimize recoil, I’ve always favored gas-operated autoloaders. I think it’s always better to start off on the right foot and that sent me searching for an affordable gas-operated autoloader with a youth-sized stock option. Not an easy quest!
I had seen TriStar shotguns at trade shows and in gun shops, but I hadn’t really really given them a thorough look. In researching options for youth shotguns, I found TriStar offered several shorter-stock options in their Viper line of autoloaders. A closer look showed that they offer the Viper G2 Synthetic youth autoloader in a 20 gauge version that includes both the youth and adult stocks. An excellent idea.
TriStar Viper G2 Synthetic Youth 20 Gauge – 2 stock combo Item #24130 includes:
Youth stock offers 13-inch length of pull.
Adult stock with 14.5-inch length of pull is also included.
A 24-inch barrel and an included barrel-extension tube can be used to bring the total barrel length to 26 inches.
A 3-inch chamber allows for use of both 2-¾ or 3-inch magnum loads.
3 Beretta®/Benelli® style Mobil Style Choke Tubes (IC, M, F) and choke tube wrench.
Stock shim kit to adjust both cast and drop.
As with all gun reviews, I give the actual weight of the tested firearm, which for the TriStar Viper (with youth stock) is 6.37 pounds according to my scale.
I ordered the gun online and after picking it up at a local FFL, it was time to do a thorough inspection before testing.
The TriStar comes well packaged with good instructions, but continuing the trend I’ve noticed with entry-level guns, the gun arrived absolutely slathered with oil. And upon closer inspection, the trigger mechanism had also been zealously greased. So before even assembling the Viper for the first time, a good cleaning and degreasing were in order for both function and safety.
After the cleaning, light lubrication, and inspection, it was time for assembly. The shotgun goes together easily following the included instructions. The barrel slides into place and a slight working of the action is sometimes required in order to seat the barrel the last half inch so it touches the receiver. Care must be taken to ensure that the gas piston is in the correct orientation on the magazine tube during assembly. Also, the magazine cutoff plug is not retained until the magazine cap is tightened in place, so care must be taken not to let the plug slide out and get lost.
It’s important to note that this Viper G2 youth model with two stocks ships with the youth stock installed, so no stock installation is required for a young shooter. After assembly, I installed the barrel extension tube and inside that tube, I inserted the full choke. Time for Henry to hit the trap field and try the gun.
A few comments on the fit of the TriStar as it relates to a young shooter. My son Henry is big for a 13-year-old. He is 5’7” tall and weighs 135 pounds. With that in mind, the TriStar with the youth stock installed fit him almost perfectly. I did not adjust the drop or the cast with the included shims, but they are available if the need arises. He commented immediately that he liked the TriStar’s fit and lightweight, with the balance point being directly between his hands. Having a gun that is the appropriate weight is a key concern I have for starting shooters.
I like the texture of the synthetic stock. It has a soft, grippy feel, not the slippery-smooth texture of some synthetic stocks. The shape of both the stock, pistol grip, and the forend are slim and their dimensions are well suited for the smaller-framed shooter who is also likely to have smaller hands. Fathers take note, the dimensions and fit of the Viper would, IMO, be excellent for daughters as well as sons.
Time for Henry to hit the trap field and try the gun. Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to test-fire the gun before the first trap practice. I will point out that TriStar recommends a break-in period with heavy field loads, but unfortunately there was no time to do this before the first practice. So it was sink or swim time for the Viper right from the first call of “pull”.
The Viper was flawless from the first round fired. Shooting Winchester white box ⅞ ounce loads of #8 shot, the TriStar fired, cycled, and flung the empties perfectly. As of this writing, the gun has fired over 1000 rounds of varied target load ammo with not a single malfunction of any kind.
The real advantage of gas-operated actions as they relate to a young shooter is the reduction in felt recoil. On this point of low recoil, the Viper G2 delivers in spades. My son never mentioned recoil. Ever. He shot 100-round practices. He shot two-round tournaments multiple times. He never even mentioned a sore sholder and if he even noticed the recoil at all, he never said a thing about it. In my opinion, this alone is a major point ins the Viper’s favor when it comes to starting off a young shooter. The less they experience or, indeed, even notice recoil. the more they will enjoy the sport and far fewer issues will emerge down the road.
The Viper has an interesting characteristic that is worth mentioning here. When ejecting the spent hull, it throws the hull further forward of the shooter than any autoloader I’ve ever used. This appears to be by design and it does not cause any functional problems. It simply looks a little odd, at least to my eye.
After 250 rounds, I took the Viper into my shop and took it apart for inspection. Disassembly is easy and follows the standard method of breaking down most gas-operated autos like the Remington 1100 and the Beretta A series. The only trick with the Viper is that getting the bolt handle to release and pull free from the bolt such that the bolt can be removed is a frustrating process. Sliding the action bars to push the bolt backward, there is one very, very specific position the bolt must be in to pull the bolt handle free. The manual does cover this process, but a warning that achieving the proper alignment is a fussy process. When you do find the right position, the bolt handle pulls free easily. You just have to keep slowly moving the bolt until you find the release spot.
While the gun had the usual powder residue stains that every gas-operated autoloader gathers along the magazine tube and the gas piston, there was not enough residue to cause concern and prompt a deep cleaning after 250 rounds. Therefore, I wiped the magazine tube and gas piston clean, reapplied my favorite lube, and reassembled the gun.
I thoroughly cleaned the shotgun after 500 rounds. It was dirty, but there were still no functional issues and not a single ejection failure by this point. My overall conclusion is that this shotgun is certainly not a maintenance diva. Even as a target gun firing many more rounds per week than most hunters would fire in a season, this shotgun requires very little to keep it functioning.
One thing for owners to be aware of. I mentioned earlier that the shotgun comes with a barrel extension tube to bring the 24-inch barrel to 26 inches total length. The choke tube is then installed inside of this extension. When using the barrel extension tube, I noticed that it worked itself loose after the first 25 shots. This is a safety concern! I hand-tightened it as tight as I could, but by the end of the next round of 25 shots, it was loose again.
I fixed the problem by applying Loctite Blue (the “temporary” Loctite that releases fairly easily, not the red formula) to the threads of the barrel extension and tightening it in place by hand. Do not attempt to use the choke wrench to tighten this extension by applying more pressure to the screw-in choke. You will over-tighten the choke and mushroom the end of the extension! After applying thread locking compound, the extension hasn’t budged for over 350 rounds.
Overall, I’m very impressed by the quality and function of the TriStar Viper, but more importantly, my son Henry loves it. He doesn’t mention a sore shoulder at all and says the shotgun is enjoyable for him to shoot because of its light weight. He has shot up to 75 rounds at a single practice session and he didn’t even mention the recoil.
The Viper is an excellent choice for a youth–boy or girl– just starting out in the shooting sports and the gas-operated auto soaks up plenty of the felt recoil for far more shooting enjoyment. The included adult stock and adjustment shims give excellent adjustability for nearly any shooter.
In my opinion, the Viper G2 possesses unbeatable value and absolutely should be on the list for anyone who needs to start off a young shooter or hunter. TriStar are, indeed, the value experts.
