Advice for buying my own shotgun?

Redcobra · Apr 18, 2012

PJDiesel said:
Okay, since others have already mentioned some PROPER sporting guns, I'll go ahead and say it.

Buy once, cry once. It's very simple, I can shoot as well (rare as I may be) as guys with K-80's, and I, (with an A400 Excel) be shown up by a kid with an 870.

That being said, you can skip a few painful and expense steps by just getting fitted with the RIGHT gun and being done with it.

I shot a 625 Golden Clays tonight just to feel it out, Im now on a mission to own one.

You can buy 4 guns over the next three years and cry 4 times, or you can pony up the cash ( the cry ONCE part) and have a fine crafted TOOL for the rest of your life, 100K+ rounds no problem.

But: You can never have too many shotguns

ps: There are Browning people and there are Beretta people. They feel and swing differently. Those who like one B don't often like the other. Try em then buy em.

PJDiesel · Apr 18, 2012

Redcobra said:
ps: There are Browning people and there are Beretta people. They feel and swing differently. Those who like one B don't often like the other. Try em then buy em.

Agreed.

circleshooter · Apr 18, 2012

I think you've gotten good advice so far. But I'll add my two cents. Fit is indeed everything. A gun that doesn't fit you well isn't fun to shoot - especially if it's 12 gauge. And you'll miss. Staying on the shotgun is probably the most important aspect of clay shooting. Raise up off the gun....you miss.

Also - PJDiesel's "buy once, cry once" advice is also good. If you want to shoot clays a lot then get yourself a good, well fitting gun. An 870 can be a decent trap gun, but shooting skeet or sporting clays with a pump is a pain. If you want a semi-auto, just buy a Beretta and be done with it. Really. As RedCobra said Loch Raven rents guns and they have 391's and 4 new A400's. You could try 12 and 20 gauge.

For O/U's the sky's the limit. Just make sure it fits. In this case, I'd frankly recommend you go see Jack Bart (Bart's Sport World). He is great at fitting guns to folks and he has a great selection of new and used O/U's.

Have fun!

Wolfmetalfab · Apr 23, 2012

circleshooter said:
I think you've gotten good advice so far. But I'll add my two cents. Fit is indeed everything. A gun that doesn't fit you well isn't fun to shoot - especially if it's 12 gauge. And you'll miss. Staying on the shotgun is probably the most important aspect of clay shooting. Raise up off the gun....you miss.

+1 to what he said, Fit is everything on the shotguns. I have a weatherby athena o/u 12ga that I hate to shoot because it doesn't fit me at all (I'm 5'6") and I'm pretty sure the lop was for someone 6'5". But, if you do find a shotgun you like but doesn't fit right, you can always have the stock shortened, tho I am unsure of the cost of having that done.

blackthorne · Apr 23, 2012

For a lady shooter, a Beretta 391 RL model is a good choice. LOP wise, it's between a standard length (too long) and a youth gun (too short).

PJDiesel · Apr 23, 2012

I have a Browning 425 (Golden Clays) on the way! If anyone is interested in trying out an A400 Excel in 30". It will be offered for sale (964 shots fired since new) at Oxford tomorrow and next Sunday.

It's a SUPER soft shooter, with a little shortening it could make a nice ladies sporting gun.

BrowningBeauty · May 4, 2012

Thanks for the advice, everyone! In case you care to know, I ended up buying a used Franchi Veloce 20 gauge o/u w/ 28" barrels. I was finding I really really liked the 5-7 lb guns and this is about 5 lb 8 oz I believe. But with so light, I figured I'd better go 20... Without a pad, it is only a tad long, but ouch, the recoil. Right now I have a slip on pad for it until I get it shortened/fitted and a real pad installed. I was planning on going back to Atlantic Guns to get fitted, which was recommended to me and where I ended up buying my gun.

Had trouble shooting trap/clays at first, need to sight a little different that my husband's 12, but by the end I was hitting 4/5 at a station, which is good for me!

wilcam47 · May 4, 2012

http://www.berettausa.com/products/ambidextrous-gel-tec-recoil-pad/og8500010560/

Redcobra · May 4, 2012

BrowningBeauty said:
Thanks for the advice, everyone! In case you care to know, I ended up buying a used Franchi Veloce 20 gauge o/u w/ 28" barrels. I was finding I really really liked the 5-7 lb guns and this is about 5 lb 8 oz I believe. But with so light, I figured I'd better go 20... Without a pad, it is only a tad long, but ouch, the recoil. Right now I have a slip on pad for it until I get it shortened/fitted and a real pad installed. I was planning on going back to Atlantic Guns to get fitted, which was recommended to me and where I ended up buying my gun.

Had trouble shooting trap/clays at first, need to sight a little different that my husband's 12, but by the end I was hitting 4/5 at a station, which is good for me!

So, Pictures??

blackthorne · May 4, 2012

That light of a gun is going to kick. If you reload, try loading it down to 1150fps or load 3/4oz loads. When you put a pad on, make sure it's a soft one. A Kick-Eez modified trap pad would work well for a lady due to the shape.

blackthorne · May 4, 2012

One other thing. Parts are not easy to get for that gun, but the only thing that seems to break on them is firing pins. You might want to order a pair of pins now and have them on hand rather than waiting (maybe a long time) to get them after one breaks.

BrowningBeauty · May 5, 2012

good advice

blackthorne said:
One other thing. Parts are not easy to get for that gun, but the only thing that seems to break on them is firing pins. You might want to order a pair of pins now and have them on hand rather than waiting (maybe a long time) to get them after one breaks.

Thanks for the advice on both the pad and the firing pins! I'll have to do that. Too bad I already put in my order for chokes.

blackthorne · May 5, 2012

The other Kick-Eez pad that will work is called a rocker pad.

wilcam47 · May 7, 2012

blackthorne said:
One other thing. Parts are not easy to get for that gun, but the only thing that seems to break on them is firing pins. You might want to order a pair of pins now and have them on hand rather than waiting (maybe a long time) to get them after one breaks.

Ive had my 870 going on 19 yrs and I have yet to have any problems with it... :innocent0

Advice for buying my own shotgun?

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