I shoot upland with side by sides only these days but have used over/unders and autoloaders in the past. My side by sides have had barrels of 25", 26", 27", 28" and 30" and all will work fine for me if the balance is right. For grouse 25-28" works fine for me, neutral balance on a twelve ga, progressively more weight forward as the gauge gets smaller, gun lighter and barrels shorter. For more open country for sharptails, chukars and pheasant longer 28-30" barrels work best for me. My current favourite all round upland gun is a Westley Richards 12 ga hammergun from 1873 with 30" barrels. Fits like it was made for me and truly one of the finest handling guns I have ever used. Barrel length never even noticed.
Upland gun barrel lengths
- Thread starter SuperCub
- Start date
freddyfour
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Brant County, Ontario
Browning superposed lightning 20ga with 28" i/c over i/c. I think i would prefer 26" barrels though.
Would love to get my hands on a BSS 20ga with 26" barrels!
Would love to get my hands on a BSS 20ga with 26" barrels!
Well, the Remington 1100 in 20 gauge sports a 28'' factory modified vent rib barrel and it does wonders as truck gun for chickens.
the 870 Wingmaster in 28 gauge sports iirc a 25.5 inch vent rib barrel with Briley chokes ...and I haven't shot it yet.
So, the verdict is I prefer the 28inch myself.
Roib
the 870 Wingmaster in 28 gauge sports iirc a 25.5 inch vent rib barrel with Briley chokes ...and I haven't shot it yet.
So, the verdict is I prefer the 28inch myself.
Roib
I always thought a 20ga SxS with 26" bbl and a straight stock was the epitome of a grouse gun but over the years found an open pistol grip and 28s worked better ..... for me anyways.
Check out an SKB M100 or M200 before you buy a BSS. They are a very well made shotgun on par with any Browning and usually priced a bit less as they don't have the "name" value.. I prefer the M100s as they have a splinter forend as opposed to a beavertail on the m200 and have extractors. I don't like ejectors (M200) because I always have to cover the chambers to prevent flying empties that I would just have yo pick up.
Depending on gun fit, up to 28" is max for me. My go to gun for grouse is my mod 100 SKB - 20ga with 28' bls, a SKB 280E - 20ga with straight stock, a Browning (New) Sweet Sixteen, a straight stocked 28ga Churchill SxS,. For pheasants I use a 16ga SxS straight stocked pre was Simson, a straight stocked Ruger Gold Label SxS, a Browning 725 Feather with 28 bls.
You can see that I prefer straight English stocks -- they are just so much faster to the shoulder than other configuration's.
hers, John
You can see that I prefer straight English stocks -- they are just so much faster to the shoulder than other configuration's.
hers, John
IC/IM for both guns. The IC works great for close shots, and IM works great on longer shots. Having two triggers makes either available instantly. The 28gauge is under 6lbs, the 16 gauge just over 6lbs. I have used both in heavy cover on occasion, and I have had no issues with barrel length. If I was buying new, I would go 28", but I purchased the guns used for a great deal, so I wasn't being too fussy. The 28 gauge is a Grulla Consort, the 16 gauge is a Grulla 216RB.
I have an instinctive bias towards longer barrels. In fact I'm angling towards a 31" German 16 gauge right now. Can't resist.
I have one O/U with 26" barrels and all my SxS, which are what I typically use, are 28" or longer. But I try to base my choices on gun handling and choke set up, rather than a set barrel length. An example of why to focus on handling and performance, not length, was made clear to me recently when I got to handle and shoot a Purdey over the course of a month or so. It has 25" barrels, a length that I would typically abhor. However when I shot skeet with it, I shot it as well or better than ANY of my own guns. A good lesson.
I have one O/U with 26" barrels and all my SxS, which are what I typically use, are 28" or longer. But I try to base my choices on gun handling and choke set up, rather than a set barrel length. An example of why to focus on handling and performance, not length, was made clear to me recently when I got to handle and shoot a Purdey over the course of a month or so. It has 25" barrels, a length that I would typically abhor. However when I shot skeet with it, I shot it as well or better than ANY of my own guns. A good lesson.
Falconflyer
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
As far as handling goes, it's hard to nail down a definitive barrel length for all guns because not all barrels are the same weight, not all receivers are the same length, not all stocks are the same weight, etc. I found out a long time ago that for a sporting clay's gun, 28 inch barrels on my o/u gave me the ability to shoot fast on close targets but they suffered on long range crosser's. 32 inch barrels gave me great success on long range crosser's but the handling suffered on close in quick moving targets so I eventually settled on 30 inches for the best compromise. Skeet shooters have traditionally used shorter barrels, 25 to 28 inches, because in skeet there are no shots beyond 21 yards (if I recall the correct number) and they have to be able to move the gun quickly on the close crosser's.
For upland game bird hunting, I've found that 28 inches on my o/u and sxs's work about the best as most of the birds are not crossing but angling away and the shorter barrels are just easier to carry. Again though, this length can vary depending on the gun.
For upland game bird hunting, I've found that 28 inches on my o/u and sxs's work about the best as most of the birds are not crossing but angling away and the shorter barrels are just easier to carry. Again though, this length can vary depending on the gun.
Actually skeet targets can be much farther than the distance to the stake, depending on where you choose to shoot the target. As well, barrel lengths have increased to the 30-32" range for most skeet shooters. For me, it comes down to balance, and my F-3 with 32" barrels balances like my K-20 with 30" barrels, so those are my chosen barrel lengths for clays. However, my SxS upland guns are built on lighter receivers, with English stocks, and I prefer the balance with barrels of around 28".
Falconflyer
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Actually, you can use what ever barrel length you want to at any shotgun sports but the distance from station 4 to the target on a skeet field is supposed to be 20 yards so that is your longest crossing target. Station 1 and 7 pose the longest shots but most good skeet shooters don't let the target get much beyond the center post which is 12.5 yards from the station. You can choose to shoot it further if you like but it's roughly 25 yards between houses and not many shooters shoot the target past the opposite house while most shoot it much sooner than that. Your closest shots in skeet are around 2 yards and while it's not impossible to hit these with long barrels, they're certainly not ideal for the presentation due to the rapid gun movement required.
I would venture to guess that the reason your seeing skeet shooters go to longer barrels is because they are using their sporting guns on the skeet field.
I would venture to guess that the reason your seeing skeet shooters go to longer barrels is because they are using their sporting guns on the skeet field.
If you think that the distance between the houses on a skeet field is only 25 yards, and the center post is only 12.5 yards from each station, you really should measure a skeet field. As for the 2 yard shots, even the station 8 targets do not pass that close to the shooter. As for shooters shooting the target after it passes the opposite house, you should read the skeet rules. lol
Falconflyer
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Your right, my dimensions are out to lunch, that's what happens when I go from memory! I'm thinking distance between station and center post instead of distance between stations. Still, the principals still stand, just the distance increases somewhat. Recreational shooters may be shooting targets way beyond the houses from station 1 and 7 but you'll never see the good competitors doing that, again they don't shoot past 25 yards most of the time on 1 and 7. Station 4 is around 30 yards instead of the 20 I mentioned before, again, that's your furthest crosser.
As for the 2 yards shots on 8, how far do you think the bird is off the muzzle of your gun? The commonly accepted distance if the course is set properly is 2 to 3 yards but remember, that's from the muzzle of your gun which is vastly different that what you see on a diagram.
As for the 2 yards shots on 8, how far do you think the bird is off the muzzle of your gun? The commonly accepted distance if the course is set properly is 2 to 3 yards but remember, that's from the muzzle of your gun which is vastly different that what you see on a diagram.
People don't shoot the going away target past the opposite house, because it is against the rules. As for station 8, the closest that the target gets to the station is 6 yards, so even a 2 yard long gun puts the muzzle 4 yards away. However, since a target is lost once it passes the stake, nobody tries to shoot them at the stake, with most shots being in the 5-10 yard range. We used to walk up closer to the house on station 8, and I had no issues breaking the target from 5 yards forward , using 32" barrels, with Muller extended stainless chokes that add another 1-1/2" or so to the barrels. By 10 yards forward, I was no longer consistently breaking the targets.
In the field , I don't find the 29" barrels on my 16 gauge SxS to be an issue, and that is the gun I use for shooting birds during our NAVHDA tests, where shooting can sometimes be very close when a bird flushes at me, instead of away from me.
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freddyfour
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Brant County, Ontario
I like the SKB as well, though I would take the nice fat beavertail forend.
