Shotgun

It’s hard to get a coherant answer out of the FW…when she’s sleeping.

I’m hoping for Friday/Saturday and Sunday night. Don’t want to over do it you know.

I have never been much of a hunter, but I am thinking I might like to get a little more into it. Right now, pheasants are what is peaking my interest. So, I will probably start researching shotguns as a replacement for my ancient 16 gauge.

I will more than likely buy used. I like the O/Us that I have shot, but good ones seem to be quite pricey. I’ll be looking at semi-autos unless the right O/U presents itself.

Not knowing a whole lot about used shotguns, what are some good used guns to look at? What are some not so desirable guns? And what kinds of things should I look at when inspecting a used shotgun? Keep in mind that I don’t want to spend an arm-and-a-leg. I just want a reliable shotgun that I can shoot some birds and bust some clays with.

Thanks.

IMHO, Nothing wrong with Remington 870 pump There is a fair amount around.

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IMHO, Nothing wrong with Remington 870 pump There is a fair amount around.

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Yes, except I want a semi-auto or O/U, and an 870 doesn’t meet that criterion!

Remington 1100 quality solid shooting trouble free auto. Used very reasonable price, usually $200 to $400 depending on grade and condition.

A used Remington 1100 in 12Ga or 20Ga. Lots of them around used $250 to $350.

Mwal

Remington S/A are usually a safe bet, but there are other options. I was in the same boat months ago and between shotguns. I ended up with a Winchester SX3, and have been very, very happy. Smooth shooting, quick to pull up, and just a joy to carry around all day, like you would do hunting upland game. I am usually an advocate of buying cheap, beater guns, but went out of the norm on this one. I catch myself babying it, so if I know I’ll hunt more rough terrain, the mossy 500 comes out.
I am also looking at O/U, or S-S, but anything of decent quality that is trouble free, is quite a bit more than I am willing to spend.
As far as caliber goes, I grew up hunting pheasants and always carried a 20 gauge. I have switched to a 12, but there are days where I wish I hadn’t. 20 gauge is plenty for all birds and big game “deer” in MN and WI.

All the guys I hunt pheasants with have Benneli’s or Berretas. All Semi-auto.

What about a Browning A5? I handled a few this weekend and they felt good.

I think if you buy Winchester/Remington/Browning/Beretta/Benelli etc… You don’t have to much to worry about mechanically. It really comes down to the gun that comes up the best and fit’s best.

I’m a semi fan, I don’t believe the OU/SS give me enough shots… Lots and lots of great guns out there. I’ve found some guns work better with certain brands of shells under certain conditions. For example, my Benelli would only shoot Remington shells in January during those last few extreme cold weather goose hunts. The rest of the warmer weather months I could shoot anything.

I think you are going to be in one of those situations that are difficult. Cost vs quality. It is hard to get around that you get what you pay for in guns.

Remington 1100 is a good option
Beretta – I have heard very good things
Benelli – almost can’t go wrong

I chose to get a Benelli Super Black Eagle II a couple years ago and it is a great gun, but pricey if you don’t use it often.

I used to have a Browning gold hunter. The only guy I have ever owned that I did not like. It tended to gunk up with field debris (seeds, grass, etc.) and I would have to stop hunting mid day and open it up or it would not cycle shells. I could never figure out how that stuff got into the mechanism.

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I think you are going to be in one of those situations that are difficult. Cost vs quality. It is hard to get around that you get what you pay for in guns.

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I’m not afraid to pay for a quality gun, but I don’t want to spend a couple grand.

Slghtly more than half that will get you into a fine Italian auto loader. Come on over to the Ferari/Lamborgini club!!! Glad to have you!

CIAO!

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Slghtly more than half that will get you into a fine Italian auto loader. Come on over to the Ferari/Lamborgini club!!! Glad to have you!
CIAO!

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Beretta or Benelli? My bro-in-law has a nice Benelli, but it’s a lefty.

I have a Benneli M2. I have used it for several years on pheasant. My buddies have Berretas. They all share a similar action. If I bought a new one today probably Benneli and probably a wooden stock. My M2 is plastic. No problems but I still admire a wooden stock.

I have this one and love it… CZ O/U

It must be fate. I was browsing through my latest issue of Field and Stream–there’s an article on buying used shotguns!

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I have a Benneli M2. I have used it for several years on pheasant. My buddies have Berretas. They all share a similar action. If I bought a new one today probably Benneli and probably a wooden stock. My M2 is plastic. No problems but I still admire a wooden stock.

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Not to go all geeky on you, but Beretta and Benelli actually have completely different actions. Benelli uses a recoil-activated action whereas Beretta uses a gas-activated system.

There is no objective answer as far as which is better. The recoil system has the advantage of fewer moving parts and Benelli’s version is certainly light in weight and reliable. Many people contend that they are also lower maintenance, although I would question if this benefit really applies to the average hunter.

Gas-operated systems like Beretta’s use the spent powder gasses to cycle the action. This use of spent gasses has the effect of reducing felt recoil because some of the gasses are diverted into the action and therefore they do not create the opposing force that is transmitted to your shoulder.

Some contend that gas-operated systems require more maintenance because they are routing burned powder gasses through the action. Again, this may or may not apply to a given hunter depending on how many and what type of rounds he or she fires. It also may be worth the extra cleaning because the recoil reduction can be significant.

In older shotguns, the most famous recoil activated shotgun ever has already come up in the conversation. John Browning’s famous humpback A5. For a time, Browning licensed his patents to Remington and they made the lesser-seen but equally good Remington Model 11. My father has had a 20 gage Model 11 since he was 8 years old and he has used that shotgun to very good effect. When I got out of college I bought him a matching 16 gage Model 11, which has become his standard pheasant gun.

By contrast, Remington’s long-running 1100 series is a gas operated autoloader. While some 1100s did have issues with o-ring failures, I believe this problem was overplayed. The o-rings are readily available and if it becomes necessary, the fix is simple.

If looking for a new shotgun, I’d check out the Stoeger lineup of autoloaders like the Model 2000. I bought one of these a few years ago to use as a rough-weather pheasant gun to save some wear and tear on higher cost doubles and autoloaders. It uses the Benelli Inertia action and the street price is less than $400 including a full set of choke tubes.

Grouse

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If looking for a new shotgun, I’d check out the Stoeger lineup of autoloaders like the Model 2000. I bought one of these a few years ago to use as a rough-weather pheasant gun to save some wear and tear on higher cost doubles and autoloaders. It uses the Benelli Inertia action and the street price is less than $400 including a full set of choke tubes.

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Anyone handled a Stoeger M3500? My bro-in-law has an M2000 (along with a Stoeger O/O and S/S) and told me to check out the M3500.
I’ve been playing with some used autos. I like the Browning A5, but have some specific wants, so I’d need to find one that fit the bill. The Remington 1100/11-87s are decent, too.
Found a sweet Japanese Charles Daly O/U…but it was too rich for my blood.

oops. Bet I was thinking Benneli and Stoeger? Thank you for correction. I hate to pass bad info.

Oh and thank you mr. knowitall.
Meant in a fun and positive way.

Mike, thanks for the poor information

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Anyone handled a Stoeger M3500? My bro-in-law has an M2000 (along with a Stoeger O/O and S/S) and told me to check out the M3500.
I’ve been playing with some used autos. I like the Browning A5, but have some specific wants, so I’d need to find one that fit the bill. The Remington 1100/11-87s are decent, too.

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I have handled the Stoeger 3500. This gun’s reason for being is that it can handle 3.5 inch mags. In other words, it’s built for the big spread goose and duck hunter. Other than extra weight, there’s no difference in feel between the 3500 and the 2000.

The A5 is a classic and like classic cars, they have their fans. I would say that the Humpback is an aquired taste and some may never aquire it at all. The A5 has a unique two-way recoil action and sound that goes “bang-pang”. I can tell when it’s my father shooting at a pheasant versus others in the party because of this unique sound.

By modern autoloader standards the A5 is heavy. My father’s 16 weighs more than my 12 gauge Remington 1100.

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Oh and thank you mr. knowitall.
Meant in a fun and positive way.

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Wherever there are people who are wrong on the internet, it’s my duty to correct them. It’s my job, sir. I can see I’m going to have to keep a close eye on you.

Grouse

Pointing out injustices and untruths online? I would never do that…..

Well, my search has come to an end. Thanks to TheFamousGrouse, I’ve got a new-to-me Remington 1100

Welcome to the 1100 club! Sweet gun. I’ve had one for a long time and it has been good to me.

Nice! I just realized I forgot to post a pretty good Horse and Hunt groupon the other day. Would have been a nice way to break it in.

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I just realized I forgot to post a pretty good Horse and Hunt groupon the other day. Would have been a nice way to break it in.

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My buddy just bought one

Here she is. It’s an 1100 Special Field.

oooooh. English stock. Interesting.