Shotgun for my wife

[Blueranger]

So long story short, my wife has been around bird dogs most of her life but never hunted. She has gone through hunter safety/ed and is interested in upland hunting this year. We are in a position where a lady fit shotgun is in the budget. What women spec shotguns can you recommend. She seems to be leaning toward a 20 ga, o/u but is open to a semi. I love my Benelli and so I'm leaning toward a Franchi for her. We have 6 brittanys at home so shots should be fairly close. Thanks in advance.

 

[Nick87]

Franchi would be a great option. Depending on her frame/ lop maybe a montefeltro or benelli ultralight with 24" barrel.

 

[BrentD]

I will tell you what I did for my wife. That was an Ithaca/SKB 20 gauge, side by side. I had the stock cut down and fitted with a pad. It is lighter and better balanced than a tube fed single barrel, and therefore a lot more pleasant to carry. What is your budget?

 

[pabearhunter]

I have a remington 1100 semi auto in 410 vent rib. The barrel and stock was cut down by a gunsmith to fit a medium womens frame. Pm if interested.

 

[devon deer]

I agree, 20g is the way to go, as light as possible with all that walking.
But it's fit to her is key, get her to mount a few in the shop and see what comes up best.
Good times ahead!
Cheers
Richard

 

[teej89]

I got my wife the Mossberg SA-20 Bantom, it's damn light and I believe I got it for around mid 3s or low 4s?

 

[jt13]

It's only available in 12ga but Sportsman's Warehouse has Sauer Artemis womans O/U shotguns for half price.

Few others I stumbled into : Syren, Beretta Vittoria, CZ Sterling, Franchi Affinity Catalyst

 

[Salmonchaser]

Nothing wrong with Brits; so I’ve bought two of the Benelli ultra lights for two exes. Great shotguns. If I ever do it a third time I’ll make a weekend trip out of it, visit a shop with a great selection of shotguns, hopefully someone who understands fit better then I do, let her decide. An 870 or a Silver pigeon, something in between should work.

 

[NDGuy]

Benelli Montefeltro in 20ga. Great looking shotgun!

Otherwise, that Franchi Instinct SL is pretty nifty for the money.

Can't go wrong looking for a used Beretta or Browning though.

 

[88man]

I just got my girlfriend a Beretta A400 semi and she absolutely loves it. Very adjustable, really light, no recoil a really nice gun.

 

[Deleted member 38069]

Franchi Affinity 20 gauge is a great choice. 26" it was somewhat affordable. The wife killed about a dozen birds this year with it!

 

[Ajax2744]

I personally wouldnt recommend a super light 20. The average 3" 20 gauge hunting load generates 25-30lbs of felt recoil in a 6lbs gun. That's similar to a 8lbs 300 win mag. But if you add a pound to the 20 gauge it drops substantially.
We bought a franchi 20 for my other half and ended up adding weight to it to calm recoil and help her stay on target. The extra weight is negligible to her walking around and it led to more fun shooting.
But if I had to do it again I would go 7+lbs gas operated semi auto (instead of the inertia that we bought). But who knows maybe mine is just sensitive to recoil.

 

[PNWGator]

Let her shoot them all and let her pick out what fits her and what she likes and shoots well. That’s all that matters.

 

[88man]

I personally wouldnt recommend a super light 20. The average 3" 20 gauge hunting load generates 25-30lbs of felt recoil in a 6lbs gun. That's similar to a 8lbs 300 win mag. But if you add a pound to the 20 gauge it drops substantially.
We bought a franchi 20 for my other half and ended up adding weight to it to calm recoil and help her stay on target. The extra weight is negligible to her walking around and it led to more fun shooting.
But if I had to do it again I would go 7+lbs gas operated semi auto (instead of the inertia that we bought). But who knows maybe mine is just sensitive to recoil.

Yes & Yes But go shoot a 12ga beretta A400. My estimate is the recoil with 12ga 1 1/8 oz is less than a 7/8oz load 20Ga in other guns. My daughters beretta OU in 20ga felt recoil is way more than the gas operated A400. The gun is sweet to shoot.

 

[88man]

Let her shoot them all and let her pick out what fits her and what she likes and shoots well. That’s all that matters.

You can set/adjust the fit with the beretta

 

[Ajax2744]

Yes & Yes But go shoot a 12ga beretta A400. My estimate is the recoil with 12ga 1 1/8 oz is less than a 7/8oz load 20Ga in other guns. My daughters beretta OU in 20ga felt recoil is way more than the gas operated A400. The gun is sweet to shoot.

I agree completely. Beretta gas systems are fantastic. And you have to take action type into account. Its Just something to keep in mind is all I was saying. Most people go with the lightest gun they can find and dont take recoil into consideration. Guys wont put their wife behind a 30-06 but will throws 20 gauge on their shoulder because, well after all, it's just a little 20 gauge lol

 

[JohnCushman]

I got my ex a Mossberg 500 bantam sized 20 ga and it fit her well. It's sized between a youth and adult, so it generally fits women pretty well.

 

[Europe]

Fortunately for us ( females ) there are several options at this time. As mentioned fit is very important but women come in different sizes and shapes just like men. All shotgun's and rifles dont always fit all men the same and the same is true for women. Just because it is a shotgun made for a woman does not mean it fits every woman. And to have a continued desire to hunt, fit is important, which is why my daughter, granddaughter and I all had our stocks custom made., plus a very good recoil pad.

She needs to take her time and shoulder as many as possible so as to have a shotgun that fits "her"., if she can find one, if not you might consider the custom route.

I also have found most women find "felt" recoil less if using a gas inertia shotgun. If she enjoys upland it is not impossible for her to want to hunt waterfowl also and if that is true a 12 gauge would be a better option for her.

Weight seems to be more important ( both in rifles and shotguns ) now than it was in the past, so I will pass on that point, as I never purchased a firearm based on the weight when I was buying them, but fit was very important to me.

As to manufacturers , like husbands, one woman's dream is another womans nightmare. But all the aforementioned companies in this thread should work, if they fit properly

 

[Foxtrot1]

My friend Ann got a standard Franchi Instinct for Christmas a couple of years a go. She's about 5', so she's on the short side. A great investment was going to a shotgun fitter that modified her stock specifically for her. For about $75 he shortened her stock until the gun dialed in on his pattern board, and installed a recoil pad.

 

[Panda Bear]

I agree with Europe and Foxtrot1, have the stock reworked so it fits her. The gas inertia shotgun will disperse the recoil or help anyway plus a good recoil pad of course. I prefer a 12 gauge but to each their own. I dont know her or what kind of shape she is in, but dont assume a woman can not use a 12 gauge when upland shooting because it might weight a bit more. I have had men ask if we can stop and rest when on different hunts. Obviously a lot of this depends on how much she intends to it. Upland, waterfowl, maybe turkeys, slug hunting, competition --shotgunning is fun, however if she is only going quail hunting once a year then all of the aforementioned is less important