Noob Shotgun Question
OK...so I grew up hunting...mostly dove, duck and goose. Occasionally quail, huns, pheasant. All on my trusty 20ga 870. But shooting skeet with it is quite a pain after awhile.
My current sitch is that my two sons are in a 4-H shooting club, and I would like to get them their own guns. I have asked the local shooters what they like...and of course the best guns are whatever the person is shooting at the time.
So...I'm in the market for 1-2 12ga or 20ga shotguns. Haven't decided whether I should go auto or O/U.
I'm looking of course at Beretta and Browning O/Us, but they are kinda expensive for a tightwad like me. I like the looks of some of the less expensive, Turkish made guns (Hatsan/Tristar), Spanish (Lanber) and some of the other guns that retail under...say 500-700 bucks. And of course I will look at used B guns if they are reasonable.
As far as autos...I have seen the Beretta Unico Xplor w/Kick-off, and was pretty impressed with it. I like this option because I plan on taking them hunting and it seems like a good double duty gun. I did a search on this forum, but couldn't find any info.
And also a question...is back-boring really necessary? Can it be found in the lower price point guns?
Any advice? [?]
My current sitch is that my two sons are in a 4-H shooting club, and I would like to get them their own guns. I have asked the local shooters what they like...and of course the best guns are whatever the person is shooting at the time.
So...I'm in the market for 1-2 12ga or 20ga shotguns. Haven't decided whether I should go auto or O/U.
I'm looking of course at Beretta and Browning O/Us, but they are kinda expensive for a tightwad like me. I like the looks of some of the less expensive, Turkish made guns (Hatsan/Tristar), Spanish (Lanber) and some of the other guns that retail under...say 500-700 bucks. And of course I will look at used B guns if they are reasonable.
As far as autos...I have seen the Beretta Unico Xplor w/Kick-off, and was pretty impressed with it. I like this option because I plan on taking them hunting and it seems like a good double duty gun. I did a search on this forum, but couldn't find any info.
And also a question...is back-boring really necessary? Can it be found in the lower price point guns?
Any advice? [?]
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I would get them an auto because it is a multi purpose gun. I would get them a 12 gauge mossburg. They make many great models. Look around at them and see what they will use them for mostly. 0 -
I always thought a shotgun was a shotgun was a shotgun. I could hit stuff, ducks and Ptarmigan pretty good, I had an 870, an 1100, a Mossberg 500 with three inch chambers. All of them were great guns, I thought.
Then about 15 years ago I bought a Browning Citori with my AK permanent fund check. A top quality gun makes a HUGE difference, the back-bored barrels help the fit and finish, all of it makes shotgunning 100% easier now. I shoot in some informal competition with it; I have not been beat with the Browning even when shooting against 10 or more shooters.
They are expensive, but will last a life time.0 -
Get your boys a Remington 1100 20g. and you will all be pleased. 0 -
+1 duckhunter 0 -
krono....thanks for your question. I would agree with the Browning Citori O/U suggestion and the Rem 1100 for the semiauto, in that order. If you look around carefully you might find a great deal on a Browning as the market is down. Several years ago at local gun auction I found a NIB Citori with the Browning hard case and the three Invector chokes for $800! Still had the gunshop tickets on it! So, good deals are out there particularly now as the market is a buyers market. The Browning will last forever and will never fail....just a wonderful shotgun IMHO.Good luck in your search and selection! 0 -
If cost is an issue, the Stoeger and Mossberg O/Us are a good deal for the $ 0 -
I would (and did) go for an 0/U for a couple of reasons.
You can have multiple chokes in at the same time. On doubles, the recoil from the first shot is less and allows a quicker followup for the second shot on doubles than on a single barrel. (I typically shoot the lower barrel first) The hulls can be saved easier for reloading (this is a big one especially if they really decide to get heavy into skeet shooting and a good reason to get a shotshell reloader).0 -
For a beginning gun I think you'd be hard pressed to find a better choice than the 870 you're familiar with. I'm a firm believer in the KISS approach to things like this. (Keep It Simple, Stupid)
They are inexpensive, easy to change barrels on and have few parts to go wrong. There are few if any shotguns that will "do it all" so some room needs to be left to make adjustments. AKA, long Bbl for ducks / pheasants, short bbl for quail and skeet. (and different chokes are required for each discipline)
Back boring is not something that comes on "factory" guns per sei. There are definite advantages to back boring but there is also a down side. The backbored gun that shoots great in the summer when the weather is warm can give some VERY erratic results if taken a field in the dead of winter....cold is not the friend of backboring!0 -
Don't overlook the CZs if you want and O/U or SXS. http://cz-usa.com/products/by-category/shotguns/ My ringneck has been a great gun.
I have a Beretta 391 Urika that is a great multipurpose gun. You could probaly find a good used one for a reasonable price if you wanted to do some searching.0
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