Citori
- Thread starter eduardocby
- Start date
As with everything else, the question needs to be first and foremost, what do you plan to do with it? If you are a relatively new shooter, what is your proficiency of firearms? Why do you want a Citori in particular? What barrel length?
If it's just to have something expensive, I guess you can do whatever your pocketbook allows, but if you are looking to learn to shoot trap or clays or use it in the field, it would probably be a good idea in going to your local gun store to shoulder several guns and see what fits you? For instance, for me being a smaller person, things like length of pull (LOP) is extremely important for both the fit and comfort of any gun. Even if you read a great review on a gun online, that's one person's opinion and many factors play into that review - the level of skill and experience with the shooter, their body type, their comfort level with the gun, the ammo used, the application, etc. Some guns are designed with very specific purposes and would be better utilized for that purpose (ie. competition).
No one can ultimately tell you what works for you and your needs. People can give suggestions, but this is kind of like when I started golfing years ago. My company invited us to a swanky golf club and I had no clubs so I went into Golf Town and bought a set of Ping clubs for $4000, without even trying them. That was one of the many stupid mistakes I have made. Not only were they not the right fit, when I tried my colleagues' much cheaper Taylormade set, I shot better with those $1000 clubs - he offered to trade mine for his and I said no.
In general, it seems to me that a decision on buying something expensive just for the mere sake of being expensive, is a poor decision right from the outset.
If it's just to have something expensive, I guess you can do whatever your pocketbook allows, but if you are looking to learn to shoot trap or clays or use it in the field, it would probably be a good idea in going to your local gun store to shoulder several guns and see what fits you? For instance, for me being a smaller person, things like length of pull (LOP) is extremely important for both the fit and comfort of any gun. Even if you read a great review on a gun online, that's one person's opinion and many factors play into that review - the level of skill and experience with the shooter, their body type, their comfort level with the gun, the ammo used, the application, etc. Some guns are designed with very specific purposes and would be better utilized for that purpose (ie. competition).
No one can ultimately tell you what works for you and your needs. People can give suggestions, but this is kind of like when I started golfing years ago. My company invited us to a swanky golf club and I had no clubs so I went into Golf Town and bought a set of Ping clubs for $4000, without even trying them. That was one of the many stupid mistakes I have made. Not only were they not the right fit, when I tried my colleagues' much cheaper Taylormade set, I shot better with those $1000 clubs - he offered to trade mine for his and I said no.
In general, it seems to me that a decision on buying something expensive just for the mere sake of being expensive, is a poor decision right from the outset.
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Falconflyer
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
thegazelle is giving good advice.
I can't recommend that any new shooter go out and purchase a new gun without first figuring out what exactly what it is they want to do with it.
With shotguns you have field guns and target guns, in target guns you have trap, skeet and sporting clays guns. A sporting clays gun can be used for skeet and trap but a trap gun probably won't work for skeet or sporting especially if it's a single barrel break action trap gun. You could use most field guns for target shooting but a lot of them are light in weight for carrying and not comfortable to shoot many rounds per day through.
I would advise you to try out a bunch of different guns and figure out what you want to do with it before purchasing. Also, if your heart is set on a Citori then consider a used one as they do hold their value quite well and you could likely get most of your money back out of it if you decide to get rid of it.
I can't recommend that any new shooter go out and purchase a new gun without first figuring out what exactly what it is they want to do with it.
With shotguns you have field guns and target guns, in target guns you have trap, skeet and sporting clays guns. A sporting clays gun can be used for skeet and trap but a trap gun probably won't work for skeet or sporting especially if it's a single barrel break action trap gun. You could use most field guns for target shooting but a lot of them are light in weight for carrying and not comfortable to shoot many rounds per day through.
I would advise you to try out a bunch of different guns and figure out what you want to do with it before purchasing. Also, if your heart is set on a Citori then consider a used one as they do hold their value quite well and you could likely get most of your money back out of it if you decide to get rid of it.
Just for some additional colour...many years ago I had my eye set on the H&K SL8. I knew we couldn't own G36s so I fawned and oogled as I saw the ads day after day. Why did I want one? I had no idea - some people thought it was because of looks, but others said no way, that gun is ugly as heck. I saved up and picked one up, and took it to my club a couple of times. Guess where it is now? I have no idea, as I sold it (and it's banned anyways now as of Dec 5). Similar experience was the Kriss Vector that I had (I sold that too and it later got banned). Novelty wears off very fast if we are just looking at things like price tag or just by looks.
Conversely...back in 2011 or so, a colleague told me about an SKS sale at LeBaron. I laughed and reeled in horror when I saw that for $175 you were getting a gun that was almost as old as my Dad, and what...no warranty? What a rip off! Ugly as can be. Or so I thought. It was years later that I got one and it was well used, but man was it fun to shoot. I since purchased seven of them (regretfully not at $175). No one will confuse an SKS for a Citori...
One final personal illustration. For many years I had a BMW 5-Series. As a corporate guy, I loved the car - it was sporty, handled well and despite my protests otherwise, I enjoyed having something that was a bit on the pricy side, as superficial as that was. Well, years later, countless headaches with stupid sensors breaking here and modules malfunctioning here and the money pit that is German "upscale" cars, I decided that it was absolutely not worth it. I didn't need it, didn't need the stupid premium gas costs, didn't need the expensive maintenance costs...it is now sitting on a driveway waiting for the snow to melt so I can sell it. I bought a 7-8 year old Camry instead - just waiting for winter to be over before taking possession..
There are still people driving BMWs and Mercedes and Audis out there and if that's your thing, great. And I have had people tell me I should just buy a newer one. I am like, no. It does not suit my needs, my driving habits, my lifestyle and more importantly my pocket book.
I realize a Citori is not as much of a spend as a car, but same principle applies. No different than telling new shooters to get a bolt action and learn to shoot on 22s instead of deciding their first gun purchase is a B&T or Bren 2 (now banned) or something. Learning to drive in a reliable Civic may be boring, but reliability and affordability trumps image projection, in my view.
I had an old Citori I sold at one point. I now have a Silver Pigeon, and some are surprised because SPs generally have longer stocks, which are not conducive to my smaller frame, but lo and behold, I have a women's version of the SP with a shorter LOP, which fits me PERFECTLY. But I had to try several out before coming to this conclusion. I could have just dismissed all the SPs as not fitting me. Same with some other guns - I have youth versions of some shotguns since they just fit me better. I couldn't care less about the name - it's not like Dora the Explorer or Paw Patrol are engraved on the receiver...
Conversely...back in 2011 or so, a colleague told me about an SKS sale at LeBaron. I laughed and reeled in horror when I saw that for $175 you were getting a gun that was almost as old as my Dad, and what...no warranty? What a rip off! Ugly as can be. Or so I thought. It was years later that I got one and it was well used, but man was it fun to shoot. I since purchased seven of them (regretfully not at $175). No one will confuse an SKS for a Citori...
One final personal illustration. For many years I had a BMW 5-Series. As a corporate guy, I loved the car - it was sporty, handled well and despite my protests otherwise, I enjoyed having something that was a bit on the pricy side, as superficial as that was. Well, years later, countless headaches with stupid sensors breaking here and modules malfunctioning here and the money pit that is German "upscale" cars, I decided that it was absolutely not worth it. I didn't need it, didn't need the stupid premium gas costs, didn't need the expensive maintenance costs...it is now sitting on a driveway waiting for the snow to melt so I can sell it. I bought a 7-8 year old Camry instead - just waiting for winter to be over before taking possession..
There are still people driving BMWs and Mercedes and Audis out there and if that's your thing, great. And I have had people tell me I should just buy a newer one. I am like, no. It does not suit my needs, my driving habits, my lifestyle and more importantly my pocket book.
I realize a Citori is not as much of a spend as a car, but same principle applies. No different than telling new shooters to get a bolt action and learn to shoot on 22s instead of deciding their first gun purchase is a B&T or Bren 2 (now banned) or something. Learning to drive in a reliable Civic may be boring, but reliability and affordability trumps image projection, in my view.
I had an old Citori I sold at one point. I now have a Silver Pigeon, and some are surprised because SPs generally have longer stocks, which are not conducive to my smaller frame, but lo and behold, I have a women's version of the SP with a shorter LOP, which fits me PERFECTLY. But I had to try several out before coming to this conclusion. I could have just dismissed all the SPs as not fitting me. Same with some other guns - I have youth versions of some shotguns since they just fit me better. I couldn't care less about the name - it's not like Dora the Explorer or Paw Patrol are engraved on the receiver...
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Bubba Yugga
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Midwestern Ontario
Any sport or hobby has lots of people eager to offer their knowledge.
Join a local club and ask a lot of stupid questions.
They're not really stupid, and you'll learn a lot.
Oh, and there's nothing wrong with Paw Patrol stickers either!
Join a local club and ask a lot of stupid questions.
They're not really stupid, and you'll learn a lot.
Oh, and there's nothing wrong with Paw Patrol stickers either!
Their basic Citori CX line I think is great value. I have a CXT as my backup/doubles gun for trap. The CX has a 60:40 poi so may be more suitable for other sports. They're well built and should last awhile and easy to get parts for in case you need to do a repair. But as others have said, you need to try it to see if it fits you well.
If you visit a trap/skeet club, you will likely find several members willing to let you shoulder their shotguns, and some will even let you shoot them. That is how I got into skeet, I was able to shoot a few shotguns before deciding to purchase a Citori skeet gun. The Citori CX is actually one of the most popular new shotguns at the club that I shoot at, since the 725 prices climbed so much.
