New to trap and skeet...

We had a new person show up at skeet yesterday, with a brand new Stevens pump action. The gun only came with a mod choke, so that is what he used. The action was extremely rough, but he shot only singles, so it wasn't an issue. The fellow actually did better than many new shooters, and he really enjoyed himself, so I expect that we will see him again in the future. If he does become a regular, I expect that he will likely upgrade to a better quality shotgun, because the rough action will definitely be a handicap for the pairs, but he did come out, he did enjoy himself, and that is really all that is important for now.
 
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JIMMY 808 said:
Just how high is a high shooting gun with a skeet choke at 20 yards?
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Probably less than 1/8 of the pattern size. The problem arises when shooting a high comb, tightly choked gun at longer distances with a flat bird trajectory, where you are working with a much smaller segment of the pattern size. In order to hit birds, the lead error window is much less than with a pattern that is on center.
So the school of thought is that its more difficult to use a high comb trap gun for skeet and sporting clays than it is to use a regular combed gun for trap.
 
cosmic said:
Probably less than 1/8 of the pattern size. The problem arises when shooting a high comb, tightly choked gun at longer distances with a flat bird trajectory, where you are working with a much smaller segment of the pattern size. In order to hit birds, the lead error window is much less than with a pattern that is on center.
So the school of thought is that its more difficult to use a high comb trap gun for skeet and sporting clays than it is to use a regular combed gun for trap.
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The simple fact, is that in regulation trap ,every target is going away from the shooter, at the same vertical angle, all that changes is some left or right angle. So that high point on impact can be an advantage for trap. With skeet you add broadside and incoming targets, and the high house target is not rising like a trap target, so a flatter point of impact is an advantage. With sporting clays, targets can be dropping, or even well below you, making the high point of impact a handicap. And there is no target that you may encounter in trap or skeet, that you won't encounter in sporting clays, so a gun set up for sporting clays is the best compromise, for use in all three disciplines.
 
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Quick and dirty gun fit is to throw the gun up with your eyes closed, open them and see if you're sighted along the barrel or not.

However - you're not shooting low gun, so I bet you'll find that most field guns you'll be able to get on the bead fine with your eyes open. I can shoot just about any old field gun.

Buy a pump - look for a used Wingmaster, or get a Mossberg, or even a Winchester SXP.

Don't worry about needing a "trap" gun or whatever.

Our club rents out Weatherby ...is it the SA8? Semi autos to guests or day shooters. I don't necessarily agree with that.

Issue with semi autos is that, and I guarantee that if your club is fussy over barrel length it will be about this too - many chuck their empties at the next shooters legs, or across their field of view. This is frowned upon to various degrees.

Another issue is that cheap semi autos are not worth it. If you're buying a self loader, I'm firmly in the "B" gun camp...unless you find a nice 11-87. I don't trust the turk ones. Friend had a brand new canuck and it broke an action bar his first or second time out. Beretta, Benelli, Browning/Winchester or Bust.
 
Mark-II said:
Quick and dirty gun fit is to throw the gun up with your eyes closed, open them and see if you're sighted along the barrel or not.

However - you're not shooting low gun, so I bet you'll find that most field guns you'll be able to get on the bead fine with your eyes open. I can shoot just about any old field gun.

Buy a pump - look for a used Wingmaster, or get a Mossberg, or even a Winchester SXP.

Don't worry about needing a "trap" gun or whatever.

Our club rents out Weatherby ...is it the SA8? Semi autos to guests or day shooters. I don't necessarily agree with that.

Issue with semi autos is that, and I guarantee that if your club is fussy over barrel length it will be about this too - many chuck their empties at the next shooters legs, or across their field of view. This is frowned upon to various degrees.

Another issue is that cheap semi autos are not worth it. If you're buying a self loader, I'm firmly in the "B" gun camp...unless you find a nice 11-87. I don't trust the turk ones. Friend had a brand new canuck and it broke an action bar his first or second time out. Beretta, Benelli, Browning/Winchester or Bust.
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If you have to look at the beads and rib to align them for each shot, it takes away from you concentrating on the target. With a properly fitting gun. the gun aligns without you having to use your eyes to do it, so you can concentrate on the target.
 
stubblejumper said:
If you have to look at the beads and rib to align them for each shot, it takes away from you concentrating on the target. With a properly fitting gun. the gun aligns without you having to use your eyes to do it, so you can concentrate on the target.
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I'm not going to dispute that truth, but I'm talking about a gun that is more than 90% there, not something you're smashing your face into, or taking your face off the stock to get proper alignment. Something that you can mount, eye's open, and be on your bead within a second or two. That's why I was pointing towards a general purpose field gun. Unless one is a real physiological outlier - short n stumpy or tall, long necked and gangly, they should be a close fit for *most* of the population
 
ssyhitomike said:
Thank you all for the great info. I'm leaning towards an A300, a buddy of mine is saying that it may be better to buy a higher-end used gun, instead of an entry level gun.
What are some of your thoughts?
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Nothing wrong with a used quality gun. So long as it looks to be in good condition, those are made to go many tens of thousands of rounds.

It's not a semi auto, but for example I have my friends old Beretta 682 Trap. It was made in the 80's. He was a competitive shooter and told me that the gun had at least 100k rounds through it. 2 years before he passed he had sent it out to get a single barrel fitted to it, and had it rebuilt at the same time. It's now good for many tens of thousands more rounds than I will EVER put through it.
 
Mark-II said:
I'm not going to dispute that truth, but I'm talking about a gun that is more than 90% there, not something you're smashing your face into, or taking your face off the stock to get proper alignment. Something that you can mount, eye's open, and be on your bead within a second or two. That's why I was pointing towards a general purpose field gun. Unless one is a real physiological outlier - short n stumpy or tall, long necked and gangly, they should be a close fit for *most* of the population
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If there isn't enough drop at comb, it is very difficult to be comfortable with a shotgun. And drop at comb depends a lot on the shape of your face. A shooter typically either fits Browning or Beretta, because they seem to be the opposite, where drop at comb is concerned.
 
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Agree with SJ ,does not fit, makes no difference how good or quality the gun is. Just sold my A400 Berretta 28g never could get it to work for me. Gun was perfect cycled like magic but I could not hit anything with it ,including clays which I have some exp. with.so off it goes to someone who will enjoy hopefully much more than I .
 
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reddog said:
Agree with SJ ,does not fit makes no difference how good or quality the gun is. Just sold my A400 Berretta 28g never could get it to work for me. Gun was perfect cycled like magic but I could not hit anything with it ,including clays which I have some exp. with.so off it goes to someone who will enjoy hopefully much more than I .
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I was using an SX-3 for waterfowl, but I came across an amazing deal on some A400 dealer demos, and actually bought two of them. I took my SX-3, an A400, and a SBE2 to the range, and shot skeet alternating the three guns between rounds. I shot 96 with the SX-3, 94 with the SBE2, and only 91 wirh the A400, so I kept the SX-3, and sold both A400s. I did change shims on rhe A400 before shooting it, the SX-3, and SBE2 didn't require any shim changes out of the box.
reddog said:
Agree with SJ ,does not fit makes no difference how good or quality the gun is. Just sold my A400 Berretta 28g never could get it to work for me. Gun was perfect cycled like magic but I could not hit anything with it ,including clays which I have some exp. with.so off it goes to someone who will enjoy hopefully much more than I .
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Unfortunately, many people still purchase a shotgun based on appearance, reputation, or price, with no consideration to fit. Then again, many people have no idea what drop at comb is.
 
Well ,if it fits and you are a poor shot I'm afraid there is more to the story. I have watched guys chase the elusive one or two birds buying numerous guns and spending many thousands. But I also think it is an excuse to pursue their dreams of having many new toys. Neighbour does it with new cars ,think he has owned every Mercedes ever built lol.
 
Gun fit is definitely what to consider, I have a Ithica model 37 can't hit the broad side of a barn with it (not going to sell it though šŸ˜)

And if you find one that fits well and can find a used one all the better.

I will make one point about used Remington 1100's yes there awesome (I have 3, Trap, skeet and a Mod barreled one.) BUT parts are very scarce. And the gas seals are a weak point and I've been looking for months for a set. But again my main 12 gauge skeet is a well used 1100 and no issues.

Just something to be aware of.
 
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