I'd have to agree... I on the other hand started out with a .410 then progressed to 12 ga. I think no, I know if I had started out with the 22 I would be a much better marksman today. Just in the last year or two I have started hunting squirrels with my 22. I can already see an improvement. Many people are so tied up in deer or other big game hunting that they forget what many of the older generation consider a much better pastime in squirrel hunting.