Post by: police women of America on February 29, 2016, 05:59:33 PM
So here's the facts: it will be a pump action, we probably will be hunting goose, ducks, and possibly turkeys with this shotgun. I'm not to concerned with the recoil of the shotgun but I don't want anything to extreme since my adult siblings might use it someday if we do some sort of family hunt. So which gauge do you think would be best?
Thanks!
Post by: 270Shooter on February 29, 2016, 06:05:32 PM
Post by: jennyfell55 on February 29, 2016, 06:27:50 PM
Post by: AWS on February 29, 2016, 07:22:53 PM
Upland hunting, involves a lot more carrying than shooting, quick handling modest weight are an advantage as are lighter loads, upland game seems die a little easier and usually has no place to dive or swim away.
I have lightweight 12's, 16's and 20's all right at six pounds and are a pleasure to carry in the field, interestingly I shoot pretty much the same load in each, an ounce of shot and they work about the same and really have no preference other than aesthetics.
Handling and fit are everything in a shotgun, you point a shotgun and aim a rifle. The better the fit the easier it is to point it where you want it. Try a lot of guns and see which fits you the best. I'm fairly short 5'7" and have short arms 29" sleeve, I need a shotgun with a youth stock or have to cut the stocks up to an inch to be comfortable with it. Long barrels I find awkward and on a pump gun find 21" to 26" work for me with 24" and 26" barrels ideal.
If you are restricted to one shotgun err on it being a little too heavy as it will allow you to be comfortable practicing more on the trap, skeet and sporting clays courses. Swing smoother in the duck bind and feel better with the heavier waterfowl loads. If upland hunting turns into a passion for you you can always upgrade in the future.
Post by: 12Gauge on February 29, 2016, 07:34:24 PM
Search the internet for shotgun fit, it is very important. You could have a $20,000 and not hit a damn thing if the gun does not fit you right. I learned that the hard way.
I would go with a semi auto 12 gauge 3" mag.
Post by: police women of America on February 29, 2016, 09:27:03 PM
I'll make sure to hold the guns and make sure they are comfortable before buying them.
Post by: jennyfell55 on February 29, 2016, 10:29:43 PM
Post by: 12Gauge on March 01, 2016, 07:50:58 AM
Thanks for all the answers! :tup: I'm definitely thinking of getting a twelve gauge since about all of you recommend it.
I'll make sure to hold the guns and make sure they are comfortable before buying them.
The fit talks about the length of pull, the drop in comb, drop in heel & tilt. Make sure it fits.
Post by: Henrydog on March 01, 2016, 07:52:50 AM
Post by: C-Money on March 01, 2016, 08:05:48 AM
Post by: jackson7 on March 01, 2016, 09:32:31 AM
Post by: birddogdad on March 01, 2016, 09:39:39 AM
I would go 12 for the game you also specified. Plenty inexpensive options.. try them out, SIZE / FIT is essential for you... depending on your arm length and build, you may need to modify stock/recoil pad. also, and I cant stress this enough... make sure it accepts choke tubes, not having a fixed choke (many older guns don't have tubes) will make your shooting experience a happier one. all can plug to 3 shot rules... Possible sling options too.. I would retract this 12 GA if you have a difficult shouldering a heavier gun.. if so, then go 20 they may suit you better..
Post by: GrampasGuns on March 01, 2016, 01:58:09 PM
Post by: thinkingman on March 01, 2016, 03:15:53 PM
12 gauge. For shooting targets there is little difference in recoil between the two. When shooting at game you don't feel the recoil as much or at all due to adreniline. The 12 is a much better killer than the 20 in the hands of an average shooter.I don't consider my self an average shooter.
I'm lucky to score 15 at the trap line.
That said, I've killed many more birds with my 20ga than my 12 due to the fact the 20 fits me and the 12 does not.
Fit is what kills birds, not bigger payload.
I shoot 3" 20ga 1 1/4oz loads at roosters and I used to think that was a pretty hefty 12ga round back in the day before 3.5" was available.
Go to a shop with a good selection of shotguns and see what comes up to your shoulder and eye most naturally and buy that shotgun, not somebody else's favorite.
Post by: T-Bone on March 01, 2016, 03:28:35 PM
Depending on where you're located in western WA, you're welcome to check mine out. I had the stock chopped down so it would fit me better, since I'm only 5'3"
Great advice! My wife is 5'3", as well. A Youth Model generally fits her very well. An ill fitting gun can heighten felt recoil sensation and cause other problems, as well. If you go with a 12 Ga., non-Youth Model, I suggest having the gun fitted to you by a professional gunsmith.
Post by: NRA4LIFE on March 01, 2016, 03:32:12 PM
Post by: Fishnfowler on March 01, 2016, 11:28:16 PM
Post by: jackson7 on March 02, 2016, 11:16:40 AM
Post by: police women of America on March 02, 2016, 05:46:52 PM
Post by: asmith on March 05, 2016, 10:14:20 AM
Post by: Tiger1358 on October 17, 2016, 05:16:56 PM
Thanks for the awesome advice! Definitely learning a lot.If you want a cheap, but a bomb proof shotgun, I'd recommend Mossberg 500 All Purpose shotgun, you can get a brand new one from Walmart for $250. Pump action, holds 5 in the mag and one in the chamber, has a 28" barrel and wooden stock. I've been using the same for a few years and never had even a single problem. If you don't care about the recoil, I'd recommend 12 gauge,it's a great caliber for both small and big game.
PS. that gun has a 10 year warranty and it's made in USA.
Post by: fethrduster on October 19, 2016, 07:14:05 AM
IMO, going off what you listed as birds you would be hunting, I would get a 12 gauge that can hold 3.5", 3" and 2.75" shells. That way you have the options covered. I use a benelli nova as my all around gun, for everything. A bit on the heavier side, but you can beat it up and it still works.
A 3.5" magnum howitzer isn't necessary and just adds extra weight you don't need. Shotguns are more efficient with lighter loads, not heavier ones. Anything that flies can be killed cleanly with 2.75" loads of 1 to 1.25oz shot. My favorite duck/goose load is one ounce of reloaded ITX #4's in a 2.5" or 2.75" hull. Deadly.
Post by: nwwanderer on October 19, 2016, 07:31:29 AM
Post by: boneaddict on October 19, 2016, 07:34:48 AM
But to,answer your question, having the 12 would give you the most options.
Post by: theleo on October 19, 2016, 08:32:31 AM
Now, with the generic advice out of the way, I'd recommend you get in touch with some members on here and see if some are willing to meet you at a trap club for a round or two on you, in exchange for them letting you try their bird guns.
Post by: JDHasty on October 19, 2016, 08:35:20 AM
Best pump shotgun ever marketed, even the 3" guns handle more like a shotgun than a gas pipe. There isn't another 3" pump gun on the market that is a decent upland gun.
Designed my J.M Browning. Unlike the Winchester Mod 12 (designed by T.C. Johnson) it is a simple design. J.B. Wood said that it is hands down the finest pump action shotgun ever.
Post by: JDHasty on October 19, 2016, 08:38:12 AM
IMO, going off what you listed as birds you would be hunting, I would get a 12 gauge that can hold 3.5", 3" and 2.75" shells. That way you have the options covered. I use a benelli nova as my all around gun, for everything. A bit on the heavier side, but you can beat it up and it still works.
A 3.5" magnum howitzer isn't necessary and just adds extra weight you don't need. Shotguns are more efficient with lighter loads, not heavier ones. Anything that flies can be killed cleanly with 2.75" loads of 1 to 1.25oz shot. My favorite duck/goose load is one ounce of reloaded ITX #4's in a 2.5" or 2.75" hull. Deadly.
I have a 3 1/2 inch Beretta Explor Unico that weighs 6.5 lbs dripping wet. So that is not necessarily true. It handles like a 2x4 on upland birds though. It is a great pit gun, target gun, turkey gun, but it is a lousy upland gun.
Post by: jetjockey on October 19, 2016, 10:59:21 AM
Post by: JDHasty on October 19, 2016, 11:06:35 AM
As I shoot more and more game birds, the more I realize a 20ga is all anyone really needs. In Souh Africa two years ago we hunted geese, ducks, francolin, guinea fowl, doves, pigeons, and even crows. My Father In Law and I both brought 20ga O/U's (against the booking outfitters wishes). The first morning we hunted decoyed Egyptian geese and the PH brought 12ga semi-auto berrettas for us to shoot since according to them, our 20's would be a little light. We did just fine with those decoyed geese using 12's, but I hated it and wanted my 20. That evening we hunted ducks and they let us have our our 20's back. We started smoking ducks left and right and then the passing Egyptians starting flying by. After we smoked 3 or 4 of those the PH looked at us and said "well I guess you guys didn't need those 12's this morning did you". We just grinned until we saw a spur-wing fly by. Admittedly, the 20 would have probably been no match for one of those. However, I'm not convinced a howitzer could bring a spur-wing down. If you don't head shot one, even a 12 would be light... The point is a 20ga will kill nearly any game bird in the world just fine. Buy the gun that suits you best and don't get hung up on the big boomer craze. You don't need 3.5" 12ga guns to kill birds. You need to be able to shoot well and put lead or steel on target.
I pretty much shot a 20 until the non-toxic mandates came along. I still use it for upland hunting whenever I legally can.
Post by: boneaddict on October 19, 2016, 02:05:16 PM
Quote
Best pump shotgun ever marketed, even the 3" guns handle more like a shotgun than a gas pipe. There isn't another 3" pump gun on the market that is a decent upland gun.
Post by: police women of America on October 19, 2016, 04:11:24 PM
I actually got my shotgun a couple months ago. Unfortunately I haven't had time to shoot it, but after deer season I will. And maybe I'll give another update on how it shoots. After all the replies I decided to get a 12 gauge Remington express model 870 26" barrel and it can hold 3" or 2-3/4" shells. It's a beautiful gun, and I got it for a great price too it was only $300. I'm still deciding whether the second one should be a 20 gauge, but I think I'll shoot this one first before I decide.
Post by: boneaddict on October 20, 2016, 08:44:00 AM
Post by: JLS on October 20, 2016, 09:18:45 AM
Post by: JDHasty on October 20, 2016, 12:06:05 PM
A very solid purchase. I killed a lot of birds with my 870 before I upgraded. Good choice on the 26" barrel, that will make it a much better upland gun.
26 or 25 is my favorite.
Post by: jetjockey on October 20, 2016, 02:53:19 PM
Post by: Alpine Mojo on October 20, 2016, 05:26:11 PM
Post by: jackson7 on October 21, 2016, 10:44:11 PM
Post by: MP123 on October 22, 2016, 03:47:53 PM
Seriously, it more about stock fit than gauge...
Post by: police women of America on October 23, 2016, 12:39:14 PM
Post by: nwwanderer on November 01, 2016, 04:39:42 PM
Post by: police women of America on November 01, 2016, 09:55:18 PM
Great choice, especially with all of the barrel options available. You might want to expand your horizons for #2, pick them all up and point them, you might find a 28 gauge that just falls into place. Stack barrel even. Who knows?Thanks for the advice! That's true, there might be one that fits me a little better. I'll definitely test out all my options before buying the second.
Post by: Wacenturion on November 06, 2016, 08:39:04 AM
Great choice, especially with all of the barrel options available. You might want to expand your horizons for #2, pick them all up and point them, you might find a 28 gauge that just falls into place. Stack barrel even. Who knows?
Been shooting 28 gauges since the late 60's. Still have one 12, a short barreled turkey gun that I use, but quite honestly the range I self impose on myself to shoot turkeys, a 20 or 28 would work just fine. I used a 28 on just about everything upland and as long as you know the capabilities of any shotgun, they all work. An open choked 28 in a duck blind on close (25 yards and under) decoying birds is an absolute killer. I might add that a more open choke will make you a better wingshot. JMO
Post by: huntingfool7 on November 06, 2016, 05:08:48 PM
Post by: jetjockey on November 06, 2016, 05:40:28 PM
Post by: police women of America on November 18, 2016, 11:02:58 PM
28 gauge is a great bore if you're a reloader. Otherwise ammo choices are exceedingly limited and carry very high prices compared to the more popular 20 gauge. However, pack that little hull with handloaded HW or TSS and it'll kill way out of proportions in a five pound shotgun.Yeah I really want to get into releoading but I won't be able to offerd all the tools for another five years or so. Thanks for the tip!
Post by: police women of America on November 18, 2016, 11:06:55 PM
With the ease of buying ammo online and having it delivered to your house, the 28 is a fantastic little round. You can buy premium RST Pigeon loads for $12.50 a box. Those little buggers are 1oz of #7 1/2's at 1300fps. I watched a guy smoke wild late season SD rooster after rooster with those loads..... Wih that said, I have a sidelock 12ga SxS coming my way that i really don't need. I have found no reason to need a 12 bore, but this one has a lot of personal meaning as it belonged to one of my best friends, and the guy who bred my current trial dog. He lost his life 2 weeks ago flying home from a hunting trip in Europe. I will happily carry that gun in the field and hopefully kill many, many birds over it in his memory. The last thing he and I talked about was me possibly buying that gun from him.Thanks for the advice! Sorry to hear about your friend. Hopefully you'll be able to get some good birds for him!
Post by: RadSav on November 19, 2016, 04:11:55 AM
When my wife told me she wanted to start upland hunting I had her shoot one of my shorter LOP guns long enough to determine if it really was something she would enjoy. She hit not one single bird in flight, but confirmed that she enjoyed the experience of watching the rooster rise and the happy tail of a dog goin' birdy.
It was time to get the right gun for her...and the decision was a really easy one for me. Franchi! There are a number of shotguns with adjustable drop and cast, but few that catered to her short arms so she could swing without being over extended and even fewer in the weight she preferred. After I cut down the stock to match her LOP we spent a few minutes each night for a week learning how to properly shoulder the gun and aiming at a piece of black tape on the wall without using the bead.
Looking over her shoulder for a few days I started adding the shims for cast and drop. With the shortened stock I even made an extra cast shim to adjust a little bit more. By the end of the week she was always on the tape when the gun came to her shoulder. A few shots into a patterning board and the fit was confirmed. No piece of the beautiful wood or finish was harmed and the barrel was still as straight as the day it left the factory!
I figured it was time to throw her in the fire so I booked a day hunt with Skip at Mayfield Flats reserve and had 40 roosters released. I told her I'd let her take the first two shots at any rooster that came up. Took less than five minutes before the Skagit pup put up the first rooster. She missed her first shot, missed her second shot and before I could get a clear shot she busted the bird with her third! Next bird one shot, then another bird first shot, then another and another... After 15 straight birds I decided enough was enough and started to shoot a few myself. By the end of the day we had not only picked up our 40 birds, but another 20 that had escaped previous hunters.
After the hunt I asked her how she was liking the gun, "I love it!" Then I asked what she thought of pheasant hunting, "They don't make fun like that in the city!" She has been a bird huntin' fool ever since! And the Franchi still remains her choice when restocking the freezer becomes serious business!!
Post by: police women of America on November 22, 2016, 01:48:50 PM
Over the years I have taken a good number of beautiful guns and tuned them for women shooters. And it breaks my heart to take a rasp to a perfect piece of walnut, leave putty where there was once a high gloss finish or bend a perfect blue tube. Most OTC shotguns just do not fit the average woman worth a darn!Thanks for the tip! I'll have to take my sisters to try out some of those and see how they feel. Eventually I want to get shotguns for my whole family so we can all go bird hunting. They all don't have experience in hunting so I think bird hunting would be a great place to start when I get the money. Which of course will take lots of practice before hand to make sure they can all hunt safely. But I'll definitely keep Franchi in mind for them!
When my wife told me she wanted to start upland hunting I had her shoot one of my shorter LOP guns long enough to determine if it really was something she would enjoy. She hit not one single bird in flight, but confirmed that she enjoyed the experience of watching the rooster rise and the happy tail of a dog goin' birdy.
It was time to get the right gun for her...and the decision was a really easy one for me. Franchi! There are a number of shotguns with adjustable drop and cast, but few that catered to her short arms so she could swing without being over extended and even fewer in the weight she preferred. After I cut down the stock to match her LOP we spent a few minutes each night for a week learning how to properly shoulder the gun and aiming at a piece of black tape on the wall without using the bead.
Looking over her shoulder for a few days I started adding the shims for cast and drop. With the shortened stock I even made an extra cast shim to adjust a little bit more. By the end of the week she was always on the tape when the gun came to her shoulder. A few shots into a patterning board and the fit was confirmed. No piece of the beautiful wood or finish was harmed and the barrel was still as straight as the day it left the factory!
I figured it was time to throw her in the fire so I booked a day hunt with Skip at Mayfield Flats reserve and had 40 roosters released. I told her I'd let her take the first two shots at any rooster that came up. Took less than five minutes before the Skagit pup put up the first rooster. She missed her first shot, missed her second shot and before I could get a clear shot she busted the bird with her third! Next bird one shot, then another bird first shot, then another and another... After 15 straight birds I decided enough was enough and started to shoot a few myself. By the end of the day we had not only picked up our 40 birds, but another 20 that had escaped previous hunters.
After the hunt I asked her how she was liking the gun, "I love it!" Then I asked what she thought of pheasant hunting, "They don't make fun like that in the city!" She has been a bird huntin' fool ever since! And the Franchi still remains her choice when restocking the freezer becomes serious business!!
Post by: jetjockey on November 23, 2016, 08:20:35 AM
Here ya go. It's 12 bore semi auto, but you will appreciate the lighter recoil.
https://syrenusa.com/syren-xlr5-waterfowler/
If your going to primarily hunt upland, skip the autos and SxS's and go straight to a double. Doubles are much better upland guns.
Post by: merkelman on November 26, 2016, 04:40:57 PM