ryru14

I am a Navy vet who had rarely shoat a gun before joining, and never hunted before, but fell in love of shoot while I was in.
I am looking for a good deer and turkey gun(s) for a beginner on a budget.
Also what do you think about the rifle and shotgun combos?
Thanks
Ryan

ryru14

BTW I'll be hunting in Northern Georgia. I live in Lawrenceville and work In Winder.

huntII

hey and welcome. i'm new to this site as well. 870 Express is a lot of gun for the money. I bought mine for $220. It chambers 2 3/4 in. and 3 in. shells. If you want to varmint hunt, the combo guns are good. They're single shot, but you have the versitility of long and close range. Hope it helps.
Les H

North Texan

Howdy and welcome to the forums!

A shotgun is probably the most versatile gun you can get. For turkey, you need a shotgun. For deer, you can use a shotgun. After a while, you may want to advance to a rifle for deer.

There are a host of manufacturers that make good shotguns and rifles. My suggestion is to go to some stores, handle some guns, and see which one feels right to you.

James B

Welcome aboard from another Navy Vet. I had a combo Savage rifle shotgun that was 30-30 over 12 Ga. I really liked it. Pretty good dual purpose gun. We hunt deer with rifles up here but a good 870 shotgun would sure get the jobs done.

Paul L Mohr

If you are truly on a budget I would suggest looking at H&R/NEF. You can get a single shot rifle/shotgun fairly cheap. If you are looking for a slug gun, get the 12 gauge ultra slug gun, and have them fit a 10 ga turkey barrel to it when you order it. You would be covered for both. If you want a centerfire you could get a centerfire version in the caliber of your choice ( I would get a .243 or .270) and then have it fitted with a 12 gauge turkey barrel. The H&Rs are decent rifle/shotguns for the money and if you get the right frame you can swap them from rifle to shotgun in a matter of minutes. The down side is they are single shots. You can also get a 20 gauge heavy slug barrel for it as well.

Paul

hardcorehunter

Welcome. If you want a gun for both get a shotgun and shoot slugs for deer with it. You can by a slug bbl for your shotgun to make it more accurate with todays' sabot slugs.

renfrowridge

if money is all, take a look at the old army mauser's great gun for the money you can find them in 6.5 , 7 mm or 8 mm all or good guns the model 98 start at about $125.00 up the model 95 in 7mm start at about $150.00 and up the model 96 in 6.5 cost the most starting at $250 to $500.00 but it is the best of the lot. The old model 98 after you drill and tap for a scope and get it ready to shoot about $175.00 plus the scope. you can;t go wrong with any of these. just my 2 cents

ryru14

I purchased a Schmidt & Rubin K31 and 200 rnds of ammo for $100, and am now looking for a reloader system, to keep the cost of importing the 7.5mm x55 ammo down. Any Advice?

Ideaman

My vote for shotgun is the 870.

If you mean rifle/shotgun combo as in 1 gun that has a rifle and shotgun over/under, my vote no.

If you mean rifle/shotgun combo as in interchangeable barrels, my vote no.

Both cases of the combos are too novelty. Jack of all trades, master of none comes to mind.

Low price does not mean good value either. How can quality be too low a price.

I would get a good shotgun first, the best home defense made and you can hunt almost anything with it if you are a good enough hunter.

Next a good bolt action rifle in a common caliber with a heavier bullet(308, 3006). Yes there are many other great rounds but you can do most anything from varmit to elk with a 30 cal. ( Savage, Remingtonare good values)

A good 22 rifle is fun, cheap. Rabbit, squirrel etc. (Ruger, Marlin, Reminton)

If you can, try a gun out, or one like it before you buy. There a a lot of good used guns, and some real lemons. If you can buy from a reputable dealer, that will stand behind what they sell,used can be a good value.