Starter 12 gauge Shotgun

[davidpingu]

Thanks Red. I've been looking again on Gun Trader tonight and there are a couple of Baikal for around £200 that match your thoughts.

I just feel much more comfortable parting with that sort of money so i may just start with something cheap and cheerful like that and see where it takes me.

 

[British Red]

Thats a pretty standard game gun David - and since your wish is to shoot game, you may as well learn on a game gun

I only have one expensive shotgun - and they don't allow it on clay grounds

 

[Demonwolf444]

you can get plenty enough gun for that money. People snub the single barrel, but i have a couple of "nice guns" when really i want something i can drag backwards through a hedge; single barrel could be had for 20 - 30 quid, and then you can be as brutal as you like. I go out daily for ferret food and often only have one shot.

Double your money 40 - 50 quid and you can look at every side by side Spanish or Belgium made gun under the sun. Bolt action 410's are also available for this sort of money.

Take it towards 100 and you can get anything from a beat up english side by side thats ugly but functional to your basic Over Under guns.

Next time i am in the gun shop i think i will pick up one of those £30 single barrels.. take up less cabinet room too.

 

[davidpingu]

Calibre is an interesting topic on its own. It's like your not seen as a man if you don't go 12 gauge but I'm quite interested in trying a few calibres. 410 looks fun to me but you get scoffed at. The ugly side of the hobby I'd say. They even look at you funny with a side by side now!

I'm really interested in the ballistics side of it so when I get one I very much hope to find someone willing enough to let me set up some fixed targets on their land or permission so I can look at spread patterns at various distances and play around with chokes etc. I think it's an important part of shooting but overlooked by my mates who have their licences. They just take what the local shop says as gospel and that's that. I'm sure they know what they are talking about but I have to see things for myself and understand how it all works.

I'd like to think it will make me a better shooter if I do that and try out different calibres to better understand their individual characteristics

 

[rg598]

I ignore all of the designations such as trap gun, upland gun, etc. For me what matters is the weight of the gun (a lighter gun is easier to carry but has more recoil-balance it out as you see fit. I like lighter guns around 6lb), the gauge (20 or 12 gauge for me), the shell size it can shoot (up to 3 inch for me. Because I like lighter guns, the 3 1/2 shells are too much for me), and it has to have interchangeable chokes. Other than that, the feel of the gun is what matters. I've shot some excellent guns that just didn't feel right for me. The designations just mean that the gun favors certain characteristics, but most of them can be used as an all around gun. For example, a turkey gun can usually chambers a larger 3 1/2 shell. That doesn't mean you can't put 2 3/4 shells in it and go shoot some rabbit. Trap guns tend to be heavier, so they have less recoil when you are shooting targets all day. I use an O/U for everything. When I'm out hunting turkey, people look at me like I'm weird, but I don't care. It works just as well as any other gun.

I don't know how it is in the UK, but here a lot of trap ranges have a patterning range where you can get a huge target and pattern your shotgun. 410 has very little stopping power at longer ranges. If you are looking for an all around gun, I would go with 20 or 12 gauge.

 

[santaman2000]

How common (or uncommon) are 16 gauge guns over there?

 

[swotty]

Calibre is an interesting topic on its own. It's like your not seen as a man if you don't go 12 gauge but I'm quite interested in trying a few calibres. 410 looks fun to me but you get scoffed at. The ugly side of the hobby I'd say. They even look at you funny with a side by side now!

I'm really interested in the ballistics side of it so when I get one I very much hope to find someone willing enough to let me set up some fixed targets on their land or permission so I can look at spread patterns at various distances and play around with chokes etc. I think it's an important part of shooting but overlooked by my mates who have their licences. They just take what the local shop says as gospel and that's that. I'm sure they know what they are talking about but I have to see things for myself and understand how it all works.

I'd like to think it will make me a better shooter if I do that and try out different calibres to better understand their individual characteristics

I tend to stick with 12 bore because the guns themselves tend to be cheaper, I don't have to worry about putting the wrong cartridge in the wrong gun and, if I recall from the one .410 I owned (Lee Enfield .303 smooth bored to .410, wish I'd never sold it!) the cartridges were a lot more expensive than 12bore due to them not being as popular.

 

[davidpingu]

Spot on. You'd think a 410 would be a nice little "plinking" caliber to make it that bit more affordable but I was amazed at how expensive it is! 12 gauge is what I'll be sticking with.

I'm rather tempted by a single barrel having looked at a few I have to say. Not serious like an O/U I know but they look like they could be good fun and for the price I'm finding it difficult not to just go buy one just to say I have a shotgun that's cost me next to nothing!

 

[bullterrier]

Has anyone mentioned length of pull and stock shape? For me English style beaver tails kick harder...

 

[davidpingu]

Nothing other than the fact they can vary really. That's why I'm kind of now thinking along the lines of buying a few cheaper single barrels of varying design just so I get to learn what suits me and what doesn't instead of forking out loads on something I may not get on with!

 

[Hibrion]

Spend as much money on a second had shotgun as you can, it will hold its value very well. There are really great deals to be found in side by sides at the moment as they aren't in vogue.
Whatever you decide to get, try before you buy. Make sure it fits and is comfortable. It doesn't have to be a big name shotty to do a good job.
I use a 26 inch Zabala side by side with multi chokes for everything. It didn't cost much, I don't care if it gets scratched, but it still feeds me when I need it to

 

[British Red]

Calibre is an interesting topic on its own. It's like your not seen as a man if you don't go 12 gauge but I'm quite interested in trying a few calibres. 410 looks fun to me but you get scoffed at.

Any proper countryman respects a 410. We use a suppressed 410 around stock. Because its so quiet the bunnies don't spook (think quieter than an air rifle). If anyone doubts the efficacy of a 410 show them this picture of a pest controllers bag for the night (not me!) - over 500 rabbits

Lets see them better that with a 12 bore (fortunately he had help paunching them for the game dealer)

Its no clay breaker - but it has its place.

Patterning your gun is a great idea. I do it with mine.

6 1/2 shot Modified Choke 10m by British Red, on Flickr

 

[rg598]

.410 bore has its place, but as an all around, all purpose gun, it wouldn't be my choice. It will bring in plenty of rabbit and squirrel, but taking it duck or turkey hunting is going to leave you short. You can wing shoot with it if you are going after smaller birds like grouse and maybe pheasant, but you better be a very good shot. For me it's 20 or 12 gauge.

As far as type of stock, it is a very personal thing. I've passed up on many high quality guns just because they didn't feel right to me.

Single shot guns are a great option for hunting. Most game is taken with the first shot. I wouldn't look down on a single shot gun at all, especially if we are talking about a working gun.

I'm not sure how the designations work in the UK, but in case you are buying from a US supplier, keep in mind that here there is a difference between bore and gauge. They are not interchangeable terms. .410 is a bore; 20 and 12 are gauges. 12 bore means something very different than 12 gauge. Gauge is the inverse fraction of the weight of a lead sphere that will fit in the diameter of the barrel. Bore on the other hand refers to parts of an inch. So, .410 bore is about 68 gauge. Anyway, it doesn't matter, but if you are dealing with a US distributor, they will look at you strange if you start talking about a 12 bore shotgun.

 

[British Red]

I'm not sure how the designations work in the UK, but in case you are buying from a US supplier, keep in mind that here there is a difference between bore and gauge. They are not interchangeable terms. .410 is a bore; 20 and 12 are gauges. 12 bore means something very different than 12 gauge. Gauge is the inverse fraction of the weight of a lead sphere that will fit in the diameter of the barrel. Bore on the other hand refers to parts of an inch. So, .410 bore is about 68 gauge. Anyway, it doesn't matter, but if you are dealing with a US distributor, they will look at you strange if you start talking about a 12 bore shotgun.

Actually "Gauge" is a corruption of "Bore" which was the original term for the number of lead balls that could be cast from a pound of lead and fit the barrel. .410 is a measurement - and also a calibre (i.e. a bore diameter such .303). UK gunsmiths know that some people use the "Americanism" of 12 gauge and only the quality gun makers would cavil at the term, but, on this side of the pond, 12 bore is the correct term.