Shotgun Advise
11-22-2006, 12:37 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 2
Shotgun Advise
Hey everyone,
Was wondering if anyone could recomend a shotgun for next years Whitetail season. Would probably prefer a 12 gauge over the rest. Also what would be the expected range out of said. Rifled barrel or Sabot?Iron sights or other? New to shotgun hunting so any advise would be helpful. Thanks in advance.
Was wondering if anyone could recomend a shotgun for next years Whitetail season. Would probably prefer a 12 gauge over the rest. Also what would be the expected range out of said. Rifled barrel or Sabot?Iron sights or other? New to shotgun hunting so any advise would be helpful. Thanks in advance.
11-22-2006, 03:05 PM
#2
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Blissfield MI USA
Posts: 5,293
RE: Shotgun Advise
What type of hunting will you be doing? What kind of money do you want to spend? Do you want a pump, single shot or semi auto? Will it be just for deer hunting, or do you want one with some versatility to small game hunt with as well?
Answer those and we can narrow it down a bit more for you.
Also how do you feel about recoil? The newer 20 ga slug guns are pretty nice, they rival an inline muzzle loader for ballistics pretty much. Plenty to kill a deer at 100 yards, that's for sure.
Paul
Answer those and we can narrow it down a bit more for you.
Also how do you feel about recoil? The newer 20 ga slug guns are pretty nice, they rival an inline muzzle loader for ballistics pretty much. Plenty to kill a deer at 100 yards, that's for sure.
Paul
11-22-2006, 06:13 PM
#3
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 2
RE: Shotgun Advise
Thanks for responding Paul,
Strictly Whitetail deer , around $500, pump action, recoil isnt a factor to me. AlsoI was wondering if I should go smooth bore or rifled. Will probablybe adding some sort of optic wheather its a red dot or scopeI havent made up my mind. So far its looking like the Mossberg Slugster 535 is rightup my alley.
Strictly Whitetail deer , around $500, pump action, recoil isnt a factor to me. AlsoI was wondering if I should go smooth bore or rifled. Will probablybe adding some sort of optic wheather its a red dot or scopeI havent made up my mind. So far its looking like the Mossberg Slugster 535 is rightup my alley.
11-23-2006, 07:55 AM
#4
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Blissfield MI USA
Posts: 5,293
RE: Shotgun Advise
If you are going for a dedicated slug gun I woudln't get a pump. I would go for a H&R ultra or a savage bolt action. And for slugs the 20 ga guns are getting lots of good press. They have some very good loads that are matched well to the rifle twists in the guns. Plenty of range and power to take deer past 100 yards. And I think they will have the accuracy advantage, at the very least they may be easier to find a load that they like.
If I had it to do over I would have went with a 20 ga. Very close to the same performane, but a lighter gun with less recoil. Most of the loads out now are very simular to what you would use in an inline muzzle loader, and I really like my ML for performance.
If you are stuck on a pump in 12 ga I would say go with a browning BPS. It's not just a fine gun, both in looks and design, but it has better twist rates with the fully rifled barrels than remington and mossberg do. Nothing wrong with those guns though, especially for the money. You can get some decent combo models that come with a rifled barrel and bird barrel.
My personal opinion though is if you want a dedicated slug gun don't get a pump, get a single shot or a bolt action. They tend to be more accurate by design and handle recoil better. Unless you are talking about a deer slayer, but I don't think that is in your price range.
If you have an incling in your mind about scoping this gun and get a pump go with the cantilever barrel. This lets you mount the scope right to the barrel, not the reciever. Much more convenient and accurate then mounting a scope the reciever of a gun with a removable barrel. And the H&R and savage both are made to have scopes mounted to them.
If price is a concern my hands down pick is the H&R Ultra Delux in 20 ga. This would leave you money left over for mounts and a decent scope. If you not stuck on the 500 dollar limit I would get the savage bolt action. It costs a bit more but it's a nicer gun.
Those are my opinions, do with them what you will.
Another consideration is getting a good inline muzzle loader, this would also extend your hunting season for you. I hunted for three years just using my remington 700 ML. It worked very well for me. The only reason I got a shotgun was because I was lazy and didn't want to fuss with the ML anymore (cleaning, sighting in, loading). Performance wise it is still better than my shotgun in range and accuracy.
Good luck,
Paul
P.S. Don't be afriad to hit the used gun racks, I bought my H&R ultra used for 100 bucks less than it would have cost me new. And I got a A5 Stalker that looks like brand new but was made in 92.
If I had it to do over I would have went with a 20 ga. Very close to the same performane, but a lighter gun with less recoil. Most of the loads out now are very simular to what you would use in an inline muzzle loader, and I really like my ML for performance.
If you are stuck on a pump in 12 ga I would say go with a browning BPS. It's not just a fine gun, both in looks and design, but it has better twist rates with the fully rifled barrels than remington and mossberg do. Nothing wrong with those guns though, especially for the money. You can get some decent combo models that come with a rifled barrel and bird barrel.
My personal opinion though is if you want a dedicated slug gun don't get a pump, get a single shot or a bolt action. They tend to be more accurate by design and handle recoil better. Unless you are talking about a deer slayer, but I don't think that is in your price range.
If you have an incling in your mind about scoping this gun and get a pump go with the cantilever barrel. This lets you mount the scope right to the barrel, not the reciever. Much more convenient and accurate then mounting a scope the reciever of a gun with a removable barrel. And the H&R and savage both are made to have scopes mounted to them.
If price is a concern my hands down pick is the H&R Ultra Delux in 20 ga. This would leave you money left over for mounts and a decent scope. If you not stuck on the 500 dollar limit I would get the savage bolt action. It costs a bit more but it's a nicer gun.
Those are my opinions, do with them what you will.
Another consideration is getting a good inline muzzle loader, this would also extend your hunting season for you. I hunted for three years just using my remington 700 ML. It worked very well for me. The only reason I got a shotgun was because I was lazy and didn't want to fuss with the ML anymore (cleaning, sighting in, loading). Performance wise it is still better than my shotgun in range and accuracy.
Good luck,
Paul
P.S. Don't be afriad to hit the used gun racks, I bought my H&R ultra used for 100 bucks less than it would have cost me new. And I got a A5 Stalker that looks like brand new but was made in 92.
11-25-2006, 07:05 PM
#5
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location:
Posts: 111
RE: Shotgun Advise
Good advice from Mohr. If you do end up going for the pump, I recommend the Rem. 870 over the Mossberg. Winchester is OK, too.
I prefer open sights for any kind of cover, as I have a hard time picking up stuff in the scope. If you're in cover I suggest a scope of no more than 3 power.
I have a Win. 1300 synthetic that I'd let go for 280, shipping included (assuming you're in the lower 48). It's got a rifled barrel and a barrel with screw-in chokes. The whole set-up is in pristine condition.
I prefer open sights for any kind of cover, as I have a hard time picking up stuff in the scope. If you're in cover I suggest a scope of no more than 3 power.
I have a Win. 1300 synthetic that I'd let go for 280, shipping included (assuming you're in the lower 48). It's got a rifled barrel and a barrel with screw-in chokes. The whole set-up is in pristine condition.
11-26-2006, 05:04 AM
#6
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Danville Va. U.S.A.
Posts: 2,324
RE: Shotgun Advise
Like paul said.If you are going strickly slug get slug gun. You can pick up a Reminton 870 express just about anywhere for around $100 to $150.Then you will have 2 shotguns.One for any ocasion.
