# Hunting shotguns.



## Magus

Something decidedly NOT a fighting weapon with "hillbilly/hunter" written all over it.any recommendations?it's to be used in the southeast and needs to be accurate and reliable, eying several brands of singles and doubles.


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## MsSage

Remington 870 is nice


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## WatchUr6

I know that you're looking at singles and doubles, but for a little more, you can get a pump action.

I have a Mossberg, which I like. I just bought my youngest boy a Remington 870, which feels very solid (feels better than my Mossberg). My oldest boy has a Weatherby, which is on the more expensive side. If you're looking to save money, I would go with the Mossberg. Although it doesn't feels a sturdy as the other two, I'm sure it will hold up just as well.


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## Sentry18

I use a Ruger Red Label O/U with a 26" barrel. Mine is about 15 years old and I bought it used. Still looks great and runs like a champ. A buddy of mine has a cheap NEF single barrel 12ga that kicks like a mule but drops birds just as well as my Ruger.


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## sailaway

This post couln't have come up at a better time. I just willed my grandpas 1953 J. C. Higgins 12 guage to my youngest cousin. Grandpa got it right out of the Sears & Roebuck Catalogue, you can't do that anymore.:brickwall:

I'm looking for a new 12 guage also. I primarilly bird hunt, pheasants. My bro says the lighter field guns kick more and the heavier trap & skeet guns don't as much. Being able to deer hunt with it woulod also be a +, although I have never done that before. Ohio laws dictate a shot gun for deer. 

I have done some turkey shoots where a longer barrell would be of benefit. I do like the idea of a double barrell, but not sure about O/U or S/S.

I'm not considdering the gun for a defense weapon, but more for putting food on the table. I do have enough Cabelas points to get a freebie new or used. Older used guns would be of interest to me. 

Any thoughts would be appreciated. Sail


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## biobacon

Hey Sail, you can also use black powder and dont have to wait around for a background check if you dont want to.


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## Startingout-Blair

My favorite is the Browning Cynergy over/under. It is light weight and very accurate. Bad thing is it is quite expensive. A medium range one is $2000. The Citori are also very nice, but again a bit pricy.


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## Caribou

Some of the pumps mentioned have easily changed, and readily available, replacement barrels. Whether you want an 18" or 28" buy as many lengths and chokes as you want.


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## lotsoflead

Magus said:


> Something decidedly NOT a fighting weapon with "hillbilly/hunter" written all over it.any recommendations?it's to be used in the southeast and needs to be accurate and reliable, eying several brands of singles and doubles.


 , you can't beat a single or double for an all around gun,only a couple moving parts to break or wear out. ck out Reloading 12GA with (Pyrodex) Black Powder in the Field and Using the H&R 12GA for a Muzzeloader on U-Tube.


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## UncleJoe

WatchUr6 said:


> I know that you're looking at singles and doubles, but for a little more, you can get a pump action.


Agreed. Rem 870 pump. Simple and basic with a proven track record of reliability. You can get one for under $300. Well, I don't know about now with the frenzy that's going on.


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## Huntmaster

870 or mossberg... Lots of parts for either one! Mossberg are usually a little cheaper. I have 2 mossbergs and a Winchester...no complaints here!


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## jsriley5

I"ll plug for the youth model mossberg 500 in 12 ga. just bought my second one of them a couple months ago. I know I"m not a youth but after getting the first one for my boys and shooting it a bit I fell in love with thge shorter length of pull and the set back pump. The handy barrel lenngth it has porting which likely helps though I could probably live without it if I hgad to but it hurts nothinbg and who knows it might help alot. Screw in chokes of course and it is still a 500 frame so you can add any other barrel you want such as a cantilevered slugger with a nice optic on it. 

IF you look at doubles I want to say one NOT to look at. I grabbed a Outback from stoeger think it's part of their condor lineup anyway went through three of them finally just getting my money back. The Barrels were poorly regulated. It felt great was comfortable to shoot a real sexy gun but useless to me if the barells wouldnt group slugs and of course if they are spreading the slugs then it is centering the shot patterns off as well. Guess getting a double barrel over under for that price range WAS too much to hope hope for. If I had the money I"d get a Citori or somthing like that cut down and re choked along those lines though I loved it's handling characteristics.


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## Huntmaster

I bought the 500 youth model for the kids a couple years ago! I love that little gun! Very manageable! Also got the 935 for myself. My 2nd oldest girl shot her first turkey last spring with my 935!


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## sailaway

biobacon said:


> Hey Sail, you can also use black powder and dont have to wait around for a background check if you dont want to.


I do have 4 black powder shot guns right now, 3 of them date to the 1860's:2thumb:


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## Magus

I should have mentioned, it HAS to be a single or a double.it has to be as liberal proof as possible for hassle free transport


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## jsriley5

http://www.cabelas.com/shooting-toys-outdoor-hunter-double-barrel-shotgun-toy-1.shtml

there that is asd close to liberal proof as you are gonna get. Eventually all the others will be confiscated. And then they will go after these as well.


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## labotomi

Ever looked at Stoeger?


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## fondini

labotomi said:


> Ever looked at Stoeger?


My wife has a stoeger, great gun.


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## Magus

Good idea!


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## cowboyhermit

We are up in Canada so I guess not the info you are looking for but we see a LOT of American hunters up here, especially for the geese. If you don't want to stand out, the 870 is exactly what you are looking for. Anything other than a pump is going to attract a bit of attention for hunting in these parts. Semi-auto is still a bit frowned on and single/doubles are an oddity.


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## sailaway

I solved my shotgun dilema, tradded in all my points at Cabelas for a free L. C. Smith 12 guage doule barrel field gun.


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## AdmiralD7S

I own 4 New England Firearm "Pardner" series in various garages, and I've been extremely happy with them. I got my first (the 20g) when I was in 4th grade; 17 years and many thousand rounds later, it's STILL my "bunny buster" most winter Saturdays. It hasn't ever misfired, jammed, or other malfunctioned. At around $100-$150 a pop, they're an excellent series that I encourage you to look into. Please note that H&R bought out NEF; their line of Pardners is just them making NEF's guns.


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## OldCootHillbilly

A single say stevens, new england er such, can be bought fer bout 75 dollars at a show er sale.

Ya can use it just like a muszleloader, load black pwder shells to.

Also ya can get adapters what let ya use other p!stQl load as well. 

Can become a perty versital tool. Ain't much ta go wrong with em niether.


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## HozayBuck

sailaway said:


> I solved my shotgun dilema, tradded in all my points at Cabelas for a free L. C. Smith 12 guage doule barrel field gun.


*Sail is that an older used "Elsie"? or one of the new ones I think it was Marlin brought out?

I got a nasty case if gun trade feaver and sold my 1928 Elsie...I hate myself at times*


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## Guest

Remington 870 or Mossberg 500 are hard to beat for an all purpose hunting shotgun.

GC


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## Sweeper

I've bird hunted with the same Mossberg 500A for 16 years now. Roughly 10k rounds through it so far with ZERO repairs needed. Just liberally douche it with Brake-Kleen, then do the same with WD-40. Doesn't scream *******, hillbilly, taktikewl or anything else. Just a basic flat black gun with OD green furniture.


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## Fn/Form

Think about choke sizing if you're going to shoot slugs. An extra tight choke is not a good thing--might damage the barrel or choke. IC usually works best.


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## jsriley5

Decided to see if my idea of perfect was being made and am sad to say it is not. I can find the reasonable priced 20 ish inch barreld over and unders. But not with screw in chokes auto ejectors and double triggers.  Only way to get what I want is to buy one of the stupid priced things and then spend a whole bunch more getting it cut down re choked not happenin for me. Id even have taken no ejectors but the double triggers are rare it seems.


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## zombieresponder

jsriley5 said:


> Decided to see if my idea of perfect was being made and am sad to say it is not. I can find the reasonable priced 20 ish inch barreld over and unders. But not with screw in chokes auto ejectors and double triggers.  Only way to get what I want is to buy one of the stupid priced things and then spend a whole bunch more getting it cut down re choked not happenin for me. Id even have taken no ejectors but the double triggers are rare it seems.


Try Stoeger.


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## Guest

Try the Mossberg HS12

http://www.mossberg.com/product/shotguns-break-action-maverick-over-under-hs12/75460

GC


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## jsriley5

Looked at both of those only double triggers are the stoeager SxS Mossberg skips the screw in chokes I really did look I just can't get what I really want. With the double triggers on a over under being the hardest to find feature and the one that is not negoatioble. I got a outback a few years ago when it was relatively new. It was a single trigger I hated that. and distrusted the resett that requires recoil to set the next barrel. and it wasn't selectable I couldn't decide which barrel to fire. It did have screw in chokes but didn't have auto ejectors. I ended up with a refund though because after going through three different guns They couldn't seem to find one that had properly regulated barrels. It has fixed sights so obviously youd expect to be able to fire slugs and it fired them fine single barrel groups were what you would expect for rifled slugs in a smooth bore. The problem was the barrels when fired together did not print anywhere near each other. more than 12 inches apart if I recall at about 30 yards and if they are opening that much you know at 50 or a hundred they are going to be way worse. 

Perhaps I just expect to much from a 450 dollar gun but I don't think so. I wish they could have gotten me a properly regulated one I loved the way it handled.


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