Thinking of buying an O/A shotgun

[Don Fischer]

I've only hdtwo Q/U shotguns. A Citori 20ga I didnt care for and a Savage 330 20ga I loved! I don't have a clue where you'd find the Savage anymore.

 

[AlaskaHunter]

I've hunted with 26 inch Citoris for the past 35 years...a 20 gauge and a 12 gauge.

I bought both of them used at pawn shops back when I lived in Logan Utah.
I use the 12 gauge now primarily for ducks up here in AK, and used the
20 gauge on upland birds in Idaho/Montana/Washington.

 

[morgaj1]

The post about fit is spot on. I saved up and bought a Beretta Silver Pigeon many years ago. After shooting it for a couple of years, I couldn't hit the broadside of a barn with it. I was at a charity clay shoot and one of the old guys standing behind me told me that the gun didn't fit me. He handed me a Browning 525 to try. I shot lights out on the rest of the course and promptly sold the Beretta for a Browning 525. I don't like the looks of those older squared Citori's like I have, but I shoot them better than anything.

 

[Millsworks]

The Tri-star guns are not in the realm of a red label, but for $750 you could probably get two at Walmart.
I found the one I have in 28ga to be awful tight before it had a box of shells through it. But it handled and shoots great.
I plan on getting a 12ga ASAP to match it.
The 28 is great for grouse. I would love to use it on some chuckers in the future.
But I will have to have a 12 for doves, too get the high flyers I normally encounter.
The Tri-star guns are a good buy in my opinion, especially for a good hard used field use weapon.
It will make me happy enough for my money.

 

[OntarioHunter]

A couple of things I like for upland game:

Rear tang safety, faster shots than trigger guard safety

Lightweight, makes hiking miles easier

I shoot both (A5 humpback auto and Citori O/U) and don't find a tang safety any easier to operate in the field. Quite the opposite in fact. I can release my A5 safety with my trigger finger as I bring the gun to shoulder. For the Citori I have to reach for safety with my thumb and then move it to pistol grip when shooting. For me the heavier gun mounts and swings much more smoothly. Anyway most new autos and pumps hit the scales lighter than O/Us of same gauge. Fast shooting is extremely overrated in my opinion. I regularly shoot triples on geese and don't feel I'm particularly fast with follow up shots. Shooting well seldom means shooting fast.

 

[OntarioHunter]

The Tri-star guns are not in the realm of a red label, but for $750 you could probably get two at Walmart.
I found the one I have in 28ga to be awful tight before it had a box of shells through it. But it handled and shoots great.
I plan on getting a 12ga ASAP to match it.
The 28 is great for grouse. I would love to use it on some chuckers in the future.
But I will have to have a 12 for doves, too get the high flyers I normally encounter.
The Tri-star guns are a good buy in my opinion, especially for a good hard used field use weapon.
It will make me happy enough for my money.

Everyone at the trap club who picked up TriStar O/Us has had nothing but trouble. Broken firing pins on three that I can think of right now.

 

[SD_Prairie_Goat]

I shoot both (A5 humpback auto and Citori O/U) and don't find a tang safety any easier to operate in the field. Quite the opposite in fact. I can release my A5 safety with my trigger finger as I bring the gun to shoulder. For the Citori I have to reach for safety with my thumb and then move it to pistol grip when shooting. For me the heavier gun mounts and swings much more smoothly. Anyway most new autos and pumps hit the scales lighter than O/Us of same gauge. Fast shooting is extremely overrated in my opinion. I regularly shoot triples on geese and don't feel I'm particularly fast with follow up shots. Shooting well seldom means shooting fast.

Let's race in the peasant field to see who can shoot faster obviously practice is a huge part of it, but I'll argue till I die that tang safety is faster just because your thumb can release the safety while your pointer can start pulling the trigger in one motion. No need to find the inside of the trigger guard etc. In practice it means I get to shoot at more birds while hunting with other people.

I don't disagree a heavy gun is smoother at shooting, but a heavy gun is a drag when covering miles of ground. A light gun rocks when your burning ground looking for a pheasant or other upland game.

And lastly, op was asking about upland. Waterfowl is a completely different set of needs. I shot o/u for upland and pump for waterfowl. Speed is not important with waterfowl, nor is a light gun.

 

[cwitherow]

I love my Franchi Instinct SL. The light carry weight is worth the shoulder pain IMO. In your price range, the Stevens 555 or 555E would be a fantastic option.

 

[OntarioHunter]

Let's race in the peasant field to see who can shoot faster obviously practice is a huge part of it, but I'll argue till I die that tang safety is faster just because your thumb can release the safety while your pointer can start pulling the trigger in one motion. No need to find the inside of the trigger guard etc. In practice it means I get to shoot at more birds while hunting with other people.

I don't disagree a heavy gun is smoother at shooting, but a heavy gun is a drag when covering miles of ground. A light gun rocks when your burning ground looking for a pheasant or other upland game.

And lastly, op was asking about upland. Waterfowl is a completely different set of needs. I shot o/u for upland and pump for waterfowl. Speed is not important with waterfowl, nor is a light gun.

I see. Outshooting the other guys is your need for speed. I have hunted with guys like that ... but usually only once. And I usually still outshoot them ... if I want. Again, fast shooting is typically not good shooting. At skeet I shoot all stations but eight low gun. And often I'll drop off and remount the gun for the second target in a double. My average is a solid 23/25 ... shooting the old Magnum Twelve A5. A little less with Citori (it has a thicker stock and doesn't fit as well).

Baffles me how you consider an O/U a light gun. Two barrels as opposed to pump/auto's one? Sure, they can be sawed off to 26" but so can an 870 barrel. My 31" A5 is very heavy but I probably averaged seven miles per pheasant with it last fall in Montana. No problem ... in spite of my sixty-seven years. That's why there are gyms ... and why I belong to one. I didn't miss many birds. Shot five daily limits plus 21 others. And it was a VERY tough year for finding roosters.

Not sure what the complete "other set of needs" are. Birds are birds are flying targets. I have used the same shotgun for everything ... forever. Only picked up the Citori last year because it was a deal I couldn't turn down ($700). I'll probably sell it.

Glad I'm not your hunting dog if you're working your O/U's tang safety with finger on the trigger. Especially if you're rushing the shot. Yikes! We had a gal at the trap range this year who blew off the control wire to trap house on the ground in front of her doing exactly that same thing.

My thoughts on O/Us is it's all a status/cultural thing. Like drinking expensive bourbon and smoking Cuban cigars at the end of a day in the field. Before bed I MIGHT have one Coors Lite with my TV dinner and have never had any use for tobacco of any sort at any time. I am my own man and not interested in fitting some image, especially one manufactured by gun manuufacturers and/or gun writers. Oh, and carrying O/U broken open on the shoulder is highly overrated. Very uncomfortable and awkward (especially uncomfortable when the other guy turns away and whacks you in the face with his stock trailing behind him). I'll pull the detachable sling from my game bag at the end of the hunt. The long walk back to the vehicle with A5 hanging on my shoulder is much more comfortable. I don't carry my rifle by the barrel in Africa either. Very dumb.

 

[Ben Lamb]

In the price range you've listed, the CZ is likely your best bet for a new firearm.

However, do not look past the used rack. You can often find a good quality firearm for that price range if you hunt for it. A friend picked up a Beretta Silver Snipe for $600 w/upgraded wood & a fancy recoil absorber stock add on.

I've seen some german guns like Simson's go for that price range, and you can even find a well loved Browning Superposed for that price if you are patient & wait.

The Franchi Instincts are nice guns, and around $1400 retail (here in MT). If you are stepping up to that level of spending though, I'd suggest a Citori as well. Here again, if you bump up your price to $1K - $1.5K, your market for used guns becomes huge.

 

[rwc101]

Tang safeties for the win. Balance is way more important than overall weight. I wish my dad would jettison his Franchi Instinct into the sun.

 

[morley.tyler]

Fit is the most important aspect of any shotgun. I’ve shot a $1500 Browning and a Beretta SO5 ($10K) at the same time. The Browning was the better gun for me, purely based on fit. I have a couple of Brownings that are nearing 100k rounds each and no malfunctions.
The CZ’s are pretty nice guns, for the money, but if it doesn’t fit, you’ll hate it.

 

[OntarioHunter]

If for whatever reason you are sold on an O/U, consider whether you want one with automatic safety. Seems to be all the rage these days. They are a nuisance at the range, especially if not used to them. Frankly, I don't see the need. No other guns have them and shooters learn to deal with it as essential for safe gun handling. Personally I prefer all my guns' safety features to be as similar as possible for obvious reasons.

 

[Redside]

I have the CZ woodcock as well. Bought it as my first shotgun and haven't looked back. It's been a great gun for the past 10+ years.

 

[OntarioHunter]

A used Browning Superposed would almost certainly not have choke tubes. Sorry, but I definitely would never buy another shotgun, used or otherwise, that didn't have chokes. The choke you might need on any given day depends on the species, terrain, dogs, and even time of year.

 

[MTLabrador]

I’ve learned some stuff here. All this time I thought I enjoyed carrying my over/under because it was lightweight, carries easily, and fits me well, but it turns out it’s just a status symbol. I’m lacking the Cuban cigars and fancy bourbon, and my waterfowl gun is an old 870 Wingmaster, so I’m not sure where that leaves me....

 

[SD_Prairie_Goat]

I’ve learned some stuff here. All this time I thought I enjoyed carrying my over/under because it was lightweight, carries easily, and fits me well, but it turns out it’s just a status symbol. I’m lacking the Cuban cigars and fancy bourbon, and my waterfowl gun is an old 870 Wingmaster, so I’m not sure where that leaves me....

You and me both! Except my duck gun is a beat up 870 super mag

 

[Ben Lamb]

A used Browning Superposed would almost certainly not have choke tubes. Sorry, but I definitely would never buy another shotgun, used or otherwise, that didn't have chokes. The choke you might need on any given day depends on the species, terrain, dogs, and even time of year.

The biggest flaw in this logic is that you need to get several shotguns w/varying chokes when you buy fixed choked guns, versus the "I'm only a 1 gun" kind of deal.

More guns in the safe & in the field = more happiness in my heart.

BTW - my O/U weighs in at 6.5 lbs. It's fixed at Skeet1/IM. I'll take that all day long for a grouse & rooster gun. Over/Unders have a lot less metal in the action than the pump/semi's, and that's the weight savings. American guns tend to run heavy anyway, even the old doubles. You can find English doubles that tip the scales at 6 lbs, 4 OZ for 12 gauges. That's the quality of craftsmanship coming through. If I'm shooting from a stationary area, I don't mind a heavy gun at all, and especially for waterfowl where you're shooting heavy loads. For upland though, a light O/U with a pocket full of #5's & #6's is just heaven on the prairie to me.

 

[Guest member 25165]

I’ve learned some stuff here. All this time I thought I enjoyed carrying my over/under because it was lightweight, carries easily, and fits me well, but it turns out it’s just a status symbol. I’m lacking the Cuban cigars and fancy bourbon, and my waterfowl gun is an old 870 Wingmaster, so I’m not sure where that leaves me....

Sober and without bad breath?

 

[Guest member 25165]

Here are two of my favs...16 and 28.