Thanks Brad. Here is a good one...... I had told my wife I was going to sell my 325 to put towards the purchase of my 725. She says "you should keep your 325 since you shoot it so well". Guess what that is great advice from a non shooter and I am going to hang on to it till I decide if I made the right decision. That woman is a keeper (after all she has put up with me for 35 years).
Barrel length advice?
- Thread starter lpel
- Start date
Well I was out yesterday and shot 4 rounds of skeet with my 725. I decided on the 30" barrels. I am very pleased so far with the fit and finish of the gun. Fits me like a glove (very much like my 325). I believe I made the right decision for me. I shoot gun down and had no problem shouldering the 725 at all!!
First round was the best at 22 others were 20, 21 and 21. The nice thing is I can clearly say it is not the gun. Operator error was the cause. Very happy that I stuck to Browning and updated my 325. Too bad they come in a cheap cardboard box. Now I have to find a case worthy of this new toy.
First round was the best at 22 others were 20, 21 and 21. The nice thing is I can clearly say it is not the gun. Operator error was the cause. Very happy that I stuck to Browning and updated my 325. Too bad they come in a cheap cardboard box. Now I have to find a case worthy of this new toy.
Rod B
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
This whole discussion was interesting and helpful for me. I started skeet with an old Citori trap (no misspelling here). It had 30 inch barrels and weighed about a ton. It also shot a bit high (used it for trap too). I didn't start shooting in the 20's until I concentrated on getting a smooth swing. My average jumped to 22 with some decimal points. I learned to keep my cheek on the gun with doubles and this made the average a bit higher. (probably had my cheek on the gun most of the time, but raised it sometimes on the second shot on #7 double...arrrrgh!) All this is in practice rather than tournament, or course. Then I ran into a Beretta Silver Pigeon for a good price. It fit and shot bang on for me after I put some elevation under my cheek. But it has 28 inch barrels (I liked the faster swing, most of the time.). My average is nearly the same, but every once in awhile I see the promised land of 25/25. I guess we all live in hope. Why do I say all this? (Besides just wanting to say something after a long absence, of course.
). The Beretta and the Citori are entirely different guns, but it is possible to shoot both well. Swing matters in skeet and so does keeping your cheek on the stock. As for championship caliber shooting, I admire the guys that are there and maybe there are some lessons to be learned there too. But, hope aside, we all have our personal limitations. Best wishes to all. Fred
). The Beretta and the Citori are entirely different guns, but it is possible to shoot both well. Swing matters in skeet and so does keeping your cheek on the stock. As for championship caliber shooting, I admire the guys that are there and maybe there are some lessons to be learned there too. But, hope aside, we all have our personal limitations. Best wishes to all. FredHave been following this thread with some interest as I know some of the fellas that have posted here and respect there opinions. I haven't shot with any regularity for a number of years but there was a ten year period where I averaged 10K rounds per year, and one year close to 14K. I shot on a competitive level for a while but work constraints stopped that for the most part. So I think I am qualified to make comment.
Longer barreled OU's were just starting to come into vogue as I was fading out of the sport. My shooting partner at the time loved Citori's and changed them like his under wear regularly, so I got to try the latest and greatest that Browning had to offer. I could just never get that warm fuzzy feeling over a 30"++ barrel. Why because it threw off my timing and hold points as it swung different.
The point of the whole game besides having a lot of fun is to grind up targets on a consistent basis. At the time 25 on a skeet field for me was common, and I could hold my head up well on any sporting clay field. So from my perspective at the time why would I deviate from my 26" & 28" barrels which I shot well with. I always shot a Winchester 101 with 26" barrels, and my 410 had 28". I later bought a Classic Double's skeet version with 27.5". Which is basically a Win. 101 with all the bells and whistles on it. My issues with taking my shooting to next level did not lie with gun mechanic's and barrel length, but were purely psychological. The mental game in this sport is huge, far greater than most fellas realize. My mentor and advisor on these matters in my early years was chap from the USA that was well known, and world champion in 28ga for several years. For some reason he took a liking to me and gave me a lot very good tutoring and advice.
Having a gun that "fits" you and your comfortable with is of the upmost importance. If your just learning the game pick a barrel length your comfortable with, doesn't matter if it's 18" or 36", if it's attached to a gun that fits you and your grinding up targets consistently at all stations with then that's "your" gun. Don't be swapping guns every 6 months, once you find the one stick with it and, practice, and lots of it will give you the technical aspects, sight pictures etc. your body will eventually develop the muscle memory, all the while tackling the mental aspect and do not ignore this part of it. Then there's raw talent. As most hockey players will never play in the NHL most shooters are never going to be in the big leagues either. The main thing is to have fun.
Longer barreled OU's were just starting to come into vogue as I was fading out of the sport. My shooting partner at the time loved Citori's and changed them like his under wear regularly, so I got to try the latest and greatest that Browning had to offer. I could just never get that warm fuzzy feeling over a 30"++ barrel. Why because it threw off my timing and hold points as it swung different.
The point of the whole game besides having a lot of fun is to grind up targets on a consistent basis. At the time 25 on a skeet field for me was common, and I could hold my head up well on any sporting clay field. So from my perspective at the time why would I deviate from my 26" & 28" barrels which I shot well with. I always shot a Winchester 101 with 26" barrels, and my 410 had 28". I later bought a Classic Double's skeet version with 27.5". Which is basically a Win. 101 with all the bells and whistles on it. My issues with taking my shooting to next level did not lie with gun mechanic's and barrel length, but were purely psychological. The mental game in this sport is huge, far greater than most fellas realize. My mentor and advisor on these matters in my early years was chap from the USA that was well known, and world champion in 28ga for several years. For some reason he took a liking to me and gave me a lot very good tutoring and advice.
Having a gun that "fits" you and your comfortable with is of the upmost importance. If your just learning the game pick a barrel length your comfortable with, doesn't matter if it's 18" or 36", if it's attached to a gun that fits you and your grinding up targets consistently at all stations with then that's "your" gun. Don't be swapping guns every 6 months, once you find the one stick with it and, practice, and lots of it will give you the technical aspects, sight pictures etc. your body will eventually develop the muscle memory, all the while tackling the mental aspect and do not ignore this part of it. Then there's raw talent. As most hockey players will never play in the NHL most shooters are never going to be in the big leagues either. The main thing is to have fun.
Last edited:
Very interesting posts. Thank you all for your insight. Now for the long wait for spring to get back at er again. Looking forward to doing some shooting with my new gun. Again I think for me I made the correct decision on barrel length and sticking with Browning. Time and ammo will tell. Luke
