First shotgun advice and try before you buy

scrumbag

Well-Known Member
Hello all,

Am looking for some advice. A good mate of mine has recently taken up clay pigeon shooting and really enjoys sporting and has said he’d like to try the live stuff too. (Another convert, winner!) He’s had the FEO over and has been told to expect his SGC shortly.

As such, he’s looking to pick up his first shotgun. I’ve given him some advice of going for

  • 28/30” Sporter
  • Multichokes
  • 3” Chamber
  • Steel proof
  • Not fancy grade wood
  • Second hand Browning / Miroku or Beretta whichever fits best

(My thinking being he’ll be able to do most shooting he seems to be interested in with that and won’t lose too much if he changes it for something when he has a better idea of his preferences)

So, does anyone reckon I should give him different advice or have missed something?

Also, one thing he’d like to do is get the chance to rent a couple of the above and try out on some clays.

Next question: can anyone recommend a clay ground with a good second hand selection within a couple of hours of London? Also, heading up to the CLA so we can have a look at a few SGs there side by side (excuse the pun)

Thanks in advance,

Scrummy
 
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Bisley has a couple of clay layouts and tow places to see and try shotguns.

Personally I would not bother about 3" chambers as unless one is wildfowling then it's just not needed. Having std 70mm chambers opens up more options used gun wise. I would also not get hung up on those makes either. It's a first gun and in all honesty how many stay with their first gun????

There are other makes that will suit his needs perfectly well and will cost him less. Just make sure the guns fits him!!!!
 
Your advice is mostly sound Scrummy. However, Brithunter's very last statement is probably the most essential bit - make sure it fits!!!
One of the surest ways to put him off, is if he can't hit the targets, and the surest way to do that is to buy a poorly fitting gun!
Best go to a decent sized shop and get ALL of the guns out that are in his price range. Then get him to mount each one and see if it fits. A decent shop will do this for you and even alter to suit as required.
MS
 
Your advice is mostly sound Scrummy. However, Brithunter's very last statement is probably the most essential bit - make sure it fits!!!
One of the surest ways to put him off, is if he can't hit the targets, and the surest way to do that is to buy a poorly fitting gun!
Best go to a decent sized shop and get ALL of the guns out that are in his price range. Then get him to mount each one and see if it fits. A decent shop will do this for you and even alter to suit as required.
MS

I know, that's why I we were going for a shop to try before you buy so he can pick a shortlist in the shop then shoot to make his choice.
 
It's a first gun and in all honesty how many stay with their first gun????

I'm still using my Brno side-by-side after 20 years. Admittedly it now has a couple of friends in the cabinet, but I'll never sell it. It's mine that I bought with my savings against all the odds for a London kid from a non-shooting background. It's also quite lucky that I must have the morphology of a standard Czech farmer circa 1954.
 
Not pine marten slim then :)
I feel the same as a Glasgow kid from a non shooting background and a not good area.
Was pleased and surprised when SGC came through.
As above, fit and form above all.
 
But are you PM? All these gourment adventures you have I think you might be bourgoisie grade rotund by now...

Are you calling me a bourgeois capitalist swine? I am perhaps not as slender as I was when I bought the gun, admittedly, but all I need to do is go on the "only stuff that I've killed or grown" diet, and I'll be right back there.
 
Scrumbag - well done for helping another into the sport. I would say your advice is spot on and as above it's all about getting the right fit. I did the same for one of my brothers-in-law last year and really enjoyed the whole experience. He ended up going for a Beretta and its been perfect for him at this stage. His shooting has improved dramatically since simply using the same gun that fits him and its done his confidence and enthusiasm wonders. Hopefully at the gamefair you'll get to see pretty much everything and, even if your friend hasn't got his ticket by then, he can get some numbers of people you've met face to face who know what he's looking for. Perhaps someone else will be able to tell us whether dealers at the CLA let you take the gun away for a go at the clays - I don't know? Once you've got one I would also suggest going for a lesson with him. It's quite spenny but I think worth it at the beginning and actually a good fun day out. We also did that together at Bisely (in Long Siberia in the game settings) and whenever he starts missing and getting frustrated we can talk back about the lesson he had, whether it be the footwork, mount or lead or whatever. Last piece of advice without sounding too old is best thing to do now is invest in a pair of decent ear defenders and get him to wear them.
 
+1 on advice above and again no need for three inch chambers ,23/4 s will do everything from clays to peacocks,atb doug,ps i started with a lincoln and beat everyone with berrettas,but my shotties now are berrettas,:tiphat:
 
It's funny as when I first got involved in shooting clays there used to always be hold ups in the line for the stand and 9 times out of 10 the hold up was due to some new shooter with a damned Beretta that would not fire, extract or even open. Put me off Beretta for life. Then when I got involved in pistol shooting there was the debacle of the Beretta 92's splitting slides and barrels which just reinforced my dislike and mistrust of their products.

Yes I have shot Beretta shotguns and was really interested once on a Beretta 302 S/A but the chap wanted far too much for it. years later I eventually bought a Browning Auto Five. A friend who was really into shotguns had both Beretta and Browning O/U guns and the Brownings felt better to me. His first was a Citori grade 3 he then got a grade five and ended up with a nice small collection of 325's and some nice English SxS's.

I made do with an old Cogswell Colonial Model Box lock SxS and a Baikal Model 27 O/U alongside the browning Auto Five. I did have a nice A.J Russell SxS for a while but was not using it so traded it for another rifle for the collection. For a bit of rough shooting also picked up a Baikal Model 18 single barrel. A good walking up gun for the odd shot for the pot.

Have not shot clays for over half a decade now.
 
Real Browning fan myself (as you well know) But fit is really important. A good reliable make doesn't do any harm either.

David.
 
If he is mainly shooting clays, and shooting passing birds from a blind, then his clays gun will do nicely. Get something which hits clays and doesn't frustrate him, like a used Beretta 682. Keep the barrels field length, though.

Then, if he decides to shoot mostly live birds at some point, he can change out the buttstock to a lighter one with a more open grip, for walking behind dogs. I did that with my Browning Citori 28 gauge skeet gun; put on a field buttstock. Murder on quail and doves at tree top.

Tell him to not pass over the nicer autoloaders and pumps. Some fit and point nicely, and the prices are right for a first gun.
 
If he is mainly shooting clays, and shooting passing birds from a blind, then his clays gun will do nicely. Get something which hits clays and doesn't frustrate him, like a used Beretta 682. Keep the barrels field length, though.

Then, if he decides to shoot mostly live birds at some point, he can change out the buttstock to a lighter one with a more open grip, for walking behind dogs. I did that with my Browning Citori 28 gauge skeet gun; put on a field buttstock. Murder on quail and doves at tree top.

Tell him to not pass over the nicer autoloaders and pumps. Some fit and point nicely, and the prices are right for a first gun.

these just won't do on a driven shoot , bad form you know !
 
Quite right, he needs a nice over under and an auto! I am sure that I can find someone who will give me a cut!:D

David.
 
But it is so much fun to stand next to, and outshoot, some fellow with a DT-10 or Fabri, and you using a Remington 870 20 gauge.

This obsession with the new is a good thing for me... let's me sniff around for dusty old Cosgwell & Harrison SxS guns in leg o' mutton cases, Parkers, Lefevers, and other things which someone's grandpa appreciated and took care of for me.
 
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