Best Shotguns for Sporting Clays

hornet52

Looking for some opinions so I can hopefully form my own informed opinion on what 12 ga shotgun I should get for sporting clays. Here's some specifics that I already know:
I want a semi-auto not a pump. If money were no object I am pretty sure that I would go for a Browning Citori over & under or even better a Beretta over & under. But I'm going to have to take some baby steps before that's gonna happen so that's why I'm probably back to a semi auto. Right now I've got an older Bereta semi-auto model 302 20 ga but I want to go to a 12 ga. I'm going to have to keep the price definitely below $750....$500 would be much better.

I am just a beginning sporting clays shooter & have everything to learn.

Given all that, what are my best options?

Thanks

duckhunter

Benelli. Should be able to find a good clean one for your price.

Wehrmacht_45

Well a Remington 1100 or 1187 would work well. So would a Browning Gold/Silver or a Winchester Super x2 or x3. All would be available new or used like new in that range, around here atleast. Gas operated guns tend to have a little less recoil than the recoil operated guns from Benelli, but Benellis are reliable and a bit more trim.

1KYDSTR

Stoeger is making a semi-auto (model 2000) that uses the license built version of the Benelli recoil operated sytem. these are retailing for about $500, but have sold many recently for $300 on NOS clearance. They seem to be universally liked by the dozen or so people that have bought them. They are definately NOT a Benelli SBE II, but they are affordable, and seem to be reliable. If you got one for under $400, it would be a nice cheap way into the beginning of your sporting clays addiction. Having said that, why not look at some O'U'ers? These can be very nice field guns if you stay away from something REALLY pretty that might suffer from a little weather! Franchi is making a really nice looking O/U for about $700 that might really surprise you. Seeings as how it is only perhaps $200 more than a "Remington Spartan", you might want to place them side by side and see what a real O'U is supposed to look and handle like. The Spartan is a tree limb. Clumsy, ill fitted(ergonomically) and appearing as though "Ivan the Butcher" banged it together, the Spartans are a real price point nightmare for me. When Baikals were going for $350, I could really see the resoning behind a decent, workmanlike O/U. Since they put the Remington name on it and did a little laser engraving they seem to think that warrants a $150 price jump. Barnum may have been right, but the internet does sorta level the playing field a little! Again, the Franchi swings nicely, is well balanced, has proportionate recievers for gauge, decent walnut and some really tasteful engraving on the coined reciever. For the price, I'm not sure there is a better O/U gun out there. Hope this helps a little.

Tailgunner1954

The one that fits you like a glove.

If it dosn't fit, it ain't worth a chit.

HandgunHTR52

quote:Originally posted by Tailgunner1954
The one that fits you like a glove.

If it dosn't fit, it ain't worth a chit.




+1

I would also add that you should get one that has a good availability of aftermarket extended choke tubes. With sporting clays you need to change out the chokes a lot and having the extended tubes helps big time. I say aftermarket because there are some really good ones out there that cost a lot less than factory offerings.

hornet52

Thanks for all the feedback. I've got a number of things I can look at now.

For Tailgunner1954 (or others), what am I looking for in a good fitting shotgun? Maybe a stupid question but I don't exactly know the answer so I'm going to ask. How do i go about understanding if a gun fits me good?
Also what barrel length should I be looking for?

For HandgunHTR52 (by the way that's a good number....its on the side of my race car), can you tell me more about the need to being able to change out chokes often in sporting clays?

Once again I appreciate all of you guys that have shared info with me. Hopefully others reading this forum can get some good out of it also.

Thanks,
Terry

HandgunHTR52

I think that I should be able to answer both your questions.

As for fit, what you want is a gun that comes to your shoulder easily with the comb (the top part of the stock) firmly against your cheek. You want the gun to come to your cheek, you don't want to bring your head down to the stock. When it comes up and you have a good fit your eye should be looking right down the rib naturally. There are a few guys here who are very good shotgunners (bobski being one) who can probably explain it better than I just did. I guess what I am trying to say is that it should shoulder naturally, you shouldn't have to fiddle around getting it to feel "right"

As for having to change out chokes often when shooting sporting clays, there are many different stations in that game. One station might be crossing targets at 30 yards (like doves in a field) where an improved cylinder or modified choke might be best. Another could be targets that come from in front of you and pass over your head (like ducks flying low) where a cylinder or skeet choke would be best. Yet another could be fast targets heading straight away (like flushing pheasants) where an improved modified or full choke might be best. I guess what I am saying is that sporting clays should be set up to cover most shotgun hunting situations. These different stations will require the use of different choke tubes. Using extended choke tubes will make changing the chokes from station to station much easier.

Hope that helps.

Tailgunner1954

This months Americian Rifleman has a decent article on shotgun fitting.
To put it in "race car" terms, you want everything adjusted to YOU, not to what works for me. No stretching or "crunching" required to reach any of the controls. IOW You want it to point naturaly, almost as if it's driving (aiming) itself instead of you having to force it/hold it back. When you "test drive" one at the store, pick out 3 spots on the wall (1ea to your left, right, and straight ahead). Close your eyes, mount the gun and it should be pointing at the spot you selected, with your eye seeing only the back of the rib and the front bead. Repeat with each of the spots.
You sound like your new to shotguns, so I'll give you another tip, swing from your ankles elevate from your waist.

bobski

'do all' guns today have taken the guess work out of fitting guns to people. adjust it and youre set. and when you sell the gun,(for whatever reason,) you can adjust it back for the next fellow.

in the old days, you bought a gun close to your fit, and had a smith fit it the rest of the way. the result was you had a custom fit gun designed for YOU. it cost money, but was the way to go. like the other fellow used cars as an analogy, allow me to use the 'shoe theory.' a shoe with socks will fit your foot perfectly, but not anyone else. only you know if its perfect. thus the custom gun world flurished making guns for a very narrow market....one person.[;)] like socks are to a shoes, WOOD is to a gun. wood was fit to the shooter, and then the gun was fit into it. follow me?

in defense of gun mfg'ers i will say this, the majority of guns made thruout history will fit the general public. theyve had a lot of time to figure it out. there is a general fit for the average man/woman. thus, it becomes the starting point for most shooters to buy a gun prefit and sold from the factory. if youre beginning, the single most important thing to do is to pattern a gun. if it shoots where you are looking, you have a winner. if it takes extreme discomfort to distort your head or arms to get a straight shot, its a loser.

the best way to buy a gun is to shoot someone elses first. this is one of the reasons why gun clubs exist. you need to test drive one before you buy it. thats my advice. go shoot a friends at a club and see how it swings and aims. then commit to a gun.

personally, i dont like gizmos and the adjust this and that guns. i like classic lines. to me, a browning citori cant be beat. and with o&u's, you dont have to tip a puller to pick up your hulls.[;)]

the countless generations before me were able to shoot everything that flew with 2 chokes, mod and full. try that for a starter. semi autos lock you in to just one choke for both shots, no choice. and remembering the second shot moves further away if you miss, youll need a tighter choke to go 'get it.'

hope this helps.

bobski

dont forget to tell us what you ended up doing![:D]

Maalox

Check out the Beretta 391 Urika. With the Urika 2 just hitting the market, you can find some good deals on the original Urika. My experience with fit is that the beretta 391 has less drop than I would like. I put in the shims to maximize the drop and this is about right for me. The nice thing is the adjustability of them.

If you are just starting, don't worry so much about choke selection. I consider choke selection the "Fine Tuning" of sporting clays. In my case, I need to concentrate more on the basics instead of which choke to use.