Shotguns! Can We Chat?!

[1MoreFord]

OCD cleaning compulsion? ...................................................................................................
Why change the oil in your vehicle? It will run with dirty oil in it!!!

If you don't have an OCD compulsion cleaning your gun then do you change your oil nearly every time you drive your vehicle?

 

[forktender]

If you don't have an OCD compulsion cleaning your gun then do you change your oil nearly every time you drive your vehicle?

Only after 4500 mile trips.

 

[1MoreFord]

Only after 4500 mile trips.

I feel the same way about full disassembly of guns for cleaning. Better have been shot a lot or thru rough conditions.

 

[gnappi]

When my son was 10 I got him a Beretta 391 "youth" which worked pretty good for him. Unfortunately I think they're no longer made and most other shotguns do not work well on a youth's body type unless they're large.

 

[chopsaw]

My first shotgun was a Single shot 20GA sear & Roebuck Ted Williams model, I got it when I was 5 or 6 yrs old, and I still have it.

Yup . J C Higgins , then Ted Williams . I have one too , ( single 20 . Full choke ) . It just says Sears Roebuck on it , but I looked up the number , and it's made by Stevens .

 

[normanaj]

Yup . J C Higgins ,

Not to hijack this thread from it's original intent but I had a JC Higgins "Westerner" bb gun from Sears. Have no idea what ever happened to it.

 

[texomakid]

I had to get some of mine out this morning too . Lol .
I know nothing about that , but would love to own one , and for you it has personal value . That's the best kind .
Love to research this kind of stuff . Here's a link . Looks like it's made by Noble . Model 60 .
First I've heard of Noble .

Westernfield E-X - Gunners Den

Gunner's Den exists to be the internet destination for all things guns. From concealed carry to collecting, we're your source for information.

gunnersden.com

This is so cool. I appreciate you sharing that Chop. I'd love to know what dad paid for it new but my guess is probably less than $100 and in the late 60's he was hustling a full time job with about 3 side ventures just to make ends meet. Money was tight!

Quail hunting was a big part of that time period. Papaw, dad, and uncles hunted a lot. Around Thanksgiving every year they would start hitting the fields. Papaw had a couple of pointers that he trained. Ladybird & Duke. I can remember walking around Southern Oklahoma pastures & woods around the Blue River early in the morning. Wet, cold, dogs working. Sometimes a group of guys, Sometimes just me and papaw. I was probably around 5 yrs old when they started taking me with them? We ate a lot of fried quail (but they fried everything back then.) I was taught to hunt that shot with my tongue while eating quail and spit them out - same with bones eating catfish!

I probably consumed a lead pellet or 2 back then

 

[chopsaw]

I had a JC Higgins "Westerner" bb gun from Sears.

Did it look like this ? That one just says " Sears Roebuck " on it .

 

[normanaj]

Pretty much but I think I remember it having some kind of medallion on the stock and lever was stamped sheet metal.

 

[chopsaw]

That one has plastic stocks , but the rest is stamped metal . Nothin fancy .

 

[forktender]

My Gramp's was one of the US ARMY men that stormed the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. Gramp's drilled taking care of your weapons so the chance of failure to feed/fire, and last were one of the utmost important things a person could do to assure their weapon was ready when need be. He was adamant about cleaning guns after each use, not cleaning your guns is just plain laziness, what does it take? 10 to 15 minutes max.

You would be amazed at how many guys don't know how to break down their weapons.
I clean guns from two buddies that run waterfowl guide services, they shoot these guns 120+ days straight without cleaning them, and they hunt either brackish, or straight up salt water, and hunt grain fields out of layout blinds. They own several Benelli, and Beretta shotguns for themselves and have a few for loaner guns for their clients.
These guns get completely trashed for 120+ straight days and are a nightmare to clean.
After a few failures in the field, I've finally got them to wipe down the exterior with a lightly oiled rag then a bore swab and a few drops of Shooter's Choice FP10 (which is the best gun oil on the planet). Just that alone has really helped extend the life of their guns.

Yup . J C Higgins , then Ted Williams . I have one too , ( single 20 . Full choke ) . It just says Sears Roebuck on it , but I looked up the number , and it's made by Stevens .

Same here, when I got the gun it was a hand me down from my older bruth'a, by the time I got it the extractor/ ejector lip was broken off. My Dad tried to braze on a new lip to the eextractor, but it was unsuccesful. So I had to carry a three piece wooden gun cleaning rod to use as a ramrod. LOL!!!
I got good with my reloading, and on a big group of geese I could get two shots off. I'd hold an extra shell in my mouth, eject the shell and pop the new shell in.
My Dad and his buddies would watch in amazment, laughing their asses off at me.

One of my Dad's old bosses heard about my reloading skills using a broken gun, and had my dad bring me to his fancy Trap and Skeet club to show them off. Atfer shooting half a round of Skeet, they stopped in the middle of the round and proceeded to give me a pristine Sweet 16Ga Saint Louis Browning A5 with the most amazing wood you've ever seen on it. H is boss got up a collection from his shooting club members to buy me a new gun, well one of the members, his name was Mr Jimmy, didn't like the gun they bought me and pulled me away from everyone to trade me for his Sweet 16 Ga that his father bought him many yrs ago, I remember my Dad had a tear in his eye when I asked him if I could trade for Mr Jimmy's Browning. Damn that was 50+ yrs ago!!!

The gun still looks as good as it did when I got it, the wood is a little darker but works flawlessly still. Thanks to my Dad drilling into my head that guns get cleaned after each use.

 

[bill ace 350]

870 or Mossberg 500

12 gauge.

 

[pineywoods]

Here's what I'd buy
835 Ulti-Mag
3.5-inch Chamber: The primary advantage, allowing the use of all 12-gauge shell lengths, from 2 3/4-inch to 3.5-inch.
Good all around gun and very reliable I've had one for years but mine is just a black composite stock that's all there was back then. I've shot deer, hogs, squirrels, and dove with it in the past

 

[801driver]

Older experienced used Remington 870s with a few scratches are very plentiful and relatively inexpensive. (Better than the newer ones in my opinion) They are very dependable with lots of aftermarket spare parts if ever needed. It should be easy to find a 12ga that will shoot light load 2 3/4 in shells for now and then later increase loads and later will also accept 3in heavier loads even up to some pretty stout slugs if desired. Yep, there are a lot of different shotguns, some very specialized.

My opinion, a Remington 870 is just a great all purpose workhorse firearm. Been shooting them for over 50 years, bird hunting, skeet and clay pigeons. I have one by each door living out in the country for armadillo, possums, skunks, etc. I have only replaced one spring in all those years with many cases of shells. Good luck to you

 

[Buckeyedude]

Im a bit late to this thread, but hey, better late than pregnant! A lot of good info posted!
I am a shotgun hoe and a 870 whore! I cannot tell you how many 870's I have....definitely not enough( just bought a 12ga field/FR slug combo last week) All 3 of my boys have 1 or more 20 ga and a few 12's floating around also!
Having said that, I am not a 870 purist! I've ran a Super X2 for over 20 years, unfortunately I never got a SX3, but have gotten a few SX4's! All great guns! The guns that see the most use (waterfowl) are my Maxus 2 wicked wings, Rem SP-10 and Ben SBE3.
We are planning a snow goose trip here in a bit and I will take my SBE3 as my main gun and SBE2 as a backup.
I believe someone mentioned a Beretta 390....awesome gun! I wish I still had mine!
Beretta A400-awesome as well!
I've got a few A-5's and A500's and a Rem model 11that see some dove action or an occasional pheasant hunt. Can't beat that ole humpback!
I'm not going to list everything I have and use, but wanted to chime in with what works well for me and most of it correlates with what everyone has chimed in with! Try to find a friend that has what you are considering purchasing and shoot it to see if it feels right!
Have fun and aim at cigars close and yardsticks farther out!

 

[pineywoods]

Justin did you find one yet?

 

[hoity toit]

Hey all, so just to be clear and kinda shamed to say… but I don’t know much about shotguns now days. I have used them and broke them down after hunting years ago (single shot .410 which I loved but was taken… have shot 20 and 12 gauge) also taken a few game birds (grouse and geese)… but I have never really gotten into bird and/or short range big game hunting. I have always for the most part hunting wise been into big game hunting with rifles.

I have been into muzz hunting and enjoy that.

But recently my 16 year old son has got the hunting fever on any and every game animal. Been looking at 20 gauge shotguns as at his age… want him something he can shoot repeatedly and not hurt too much… I know some 12 gauges can kick pretty good. He wants to get into bird and waterfowl hunting… our season is coming fast.

I am asking for your opinion on what 20 gauge to literally pull the trigger on?! This will be used for grouse, duck, geese, and I’d like one too that can also do short range big game hunting… but that’s not a problem if not.

I have done a ton of research and have 3 in mind… one mainly… but I would like to hear what some of your thoughts and experiences are with what you hunt with and what you would recommend. ( I don’t want to sway any opinions with the 3 I’ve been reading about).

These shotguns will be put thru their paces… so need a reliable, tough and effective one for sure. The weather can be not so pretty here especially during the winter months.

Let me note, we will be buying 2 shotguns. My son at his age is wanting to go hunting and hang out with his old man… I am all for going and hunting… and supporting his additional hunting interests. I feel I am never too old to learn a bit more and he’s a great young man. And with all the negativity in this world… if hunting is his passion… I’ll support

Thanks for sticking with me and any suggestions are welcome!

Ha, I do have to share… he and his buddy are talking about getting into trapping as well… but that’s another subject!

you get the 20, he gets the 12. He will grow into it.

 

[hoity toit]

Im a bit late to this thread, but hey, better late than pregnant! A lot of good info posted!
I am a shotgun hoe and a 870 whore! I cannot tell you how many 870's I have....definitely not enough( just bought a 12ga field/FR slug combo last week) All 3 of my boys have 1 or more 20 ga and a few 12's floating around also!
Having said that, I am not a 870 purist! I've ran a Super X2 for over 20 years, unfortunately I never got a SX3, but have gotten a few SX4's! All great guns! The guns that see the most use (waterfowl) are my Maxus 2 wicked wings, Rem SP-10 and Ben SBE3.
We are planning a snow goose trip here in a bit and I will take my SBE3 as my main gun and SBE2 as a backup.
I believe someone mentioned a Beretta 390....awesome gun! I wish I still had mine!
Beretta A400-awesome as well!
I've got a few A-5's and A500's and a Rem model 11that see some dove action or an occasional pheasant hunt. Can't beat that ole humpback!
I'm not going to list everything I have and use, but wanted to chime in with what works well for me and most of it correlates with what everyone has chimed in with! Try to find a friend that has what you are considering purchasing and shoot it to see if it feels right!
Have fun and aim at cigars close and yardsticks farther out!

The A-5 is a good one.

 

[Fueling Around]

...
and a Rem model 11 that see some dove action or an occasional pheasant hunt. Can't beat that ole humpback!
...

Forgot about the 11 OK a Browning knockoff, but still a very fine shotgun.

 

[Buckeyedude]

Forgot about the 11 OK a Browning knockoff, but still a very fine shotgun.

Yessir! Hard to come by anymore also!