- Location
- Somewhere on the Hudson Bay Coast
Some features of the tactical shotgun can aid the hunter while others simply add weight to the gun and offer no benefit to the hunter in the field. For the most part though, the tactical shotgun is best used when the hunter needs a short range powerful rifle.
Ghost ring sights are the best choice of iron sights for shooting slugs. While they are not quite as handy when firing shot, they do not present a huge problem for the rabbit hunter or grouse hunter, but are detrimental for shooting at birds in flight. A reflex sight is useful to the same hunter who benefits from the ghost ring, and the reflex sight is better in low light conditions, or against a target that does not contrast against the front sight.
Equipment rails look cool, and having a laser might benefit the very close cover big game hunter, but an Australian would have more use for mounting a flashlight on a hunting shotgun. For the most part, shooting in the dark is frowned upon.
A magazine that holds more than 5 rounds simply makes the gun heavier. I can't think of a single problem in the field that could be better handled with a 9 shot repeating shotgun than a 5 shot. I have come to this conclusion after carrying a 590 for many miles.
The sling on a shot gun offers the same benefits as a sling on a rifle, and if slug shooting, slinging up the shotgun makes hitting easier. I'll take the opportunity to once again put in a plug for the Safari Ching Sling from Galco. This sling can be used very effectively as a carry strap, but you can sling up much faster with it than any other system I have seen.
The individual hunter can decide if a sidesaddle is a benefit to him. For the big game hunter armed with a shotgun, a few rounds of birdshot for upland game in a sidesaddle might be handy. Conversely the upland hunter who wants a few slugs in case of bear trouble might also like one.
If hunting in difficult country, a heat shield offers some protection to the barrel if the hunter takes a bad fall.
Short barrels do not have a huge detrimental effect on a shotgun performance. I would be hesitant to choose a gun with a barrel so short that I might grab the muzzle with my support hand. If a 5 shot magazine is optimal, a 2 shot magazine is lacking, and when barrel length is reduced to less than a foot, thats about all you have. Thread in chokes would make the tacti-gun a little more versatile.
Pistol grip stocks are a love em or hate affair. For the most part I don't like them on shotguns, but they are fine on an AR or an FN. Its whatever you find appealing.
The plain pistol grip with no shoulder stock is the worst idea to appear in a long time. People keep buying them though, and before they could buy them, they would saw the butt off the gun. Even a shotgun with a very short barrel can be shot more accurately and controlled more easily with a butt stock than without one. Hitting a big game animal with a shotgun slug requires the same marksmanship ability as shooting it with a rifle. This is simply not possible without a butt stock on the shotgun. If you think it is the same as shooting a handgun, it is not. The recoil is fiercer, and the gun is unbalanced, resulting in poor performance on the target and more time required to get off subsequent shots. On close range targets you want the gun to be quick to bring on the target, and you want to be able to deliver a second shot as soon as you have recovered from the recoil of the first shot. The butt provides the shooter with 3 points of contact with the gun. It provides an index to align his eye with the sights, and it allows the recoil to be obsorbed by his body rather than his hands and arms.
Ghost ring sights are the best choice of iron sights for shooting slugs. While they are not quite as handy when firing shot, they do not present a huge problem for the rabbit hunter or grouse hunter, but are detrimental for shooting at birds in flight. A reflex sight is useful to the same hunter who benefits from the ghost ring, and the reflex sight is better in low light conditions, or against a target that does not contrast against the front sight.
Equipment rails look cool, and having a laser might benefit the very close cover big game hunter, but an Australian would have more use for mounting a flashlight on a hunting shotgun. For the most part, shooting in the dark is frowned upon.
A magazine that holds more than 5 rounds simply makes the gun heavier. I can't think of a single problem in the field that could be better handled with a 9 shot repeating shotgun than a 5 shot. I have come to this conclusion after carrying a 590 for many miles.
The sling on a shot gun offers the same benefits as a sling on a rifle, and if slug shooting, slinging up the shotgun makes hitting easier. I'll take the opportunity to once again put in a plug for the Safari Ching Sling from Galco. This sling can be used very effectively as a carry strap, but you can sling up much faster with it than any other system I have seen.
The individual hunter can decide if a sidesaddle is a benefit to him. For the big game hunter armed with a shotgun, a few rounds of birdshot for upland game in a sidesaddle might be handy. Conversely the upland hunter who wants a few slugs in case of bear trouble might also like one.
If hunting in difficult country, a heat shield offers some protection to the barrel if the hunter takes a bad fall.
Short barrels do not have a huge detrimental effect on a shotgun performance. I would be hesitant to choose a gun with a barrel so short that I might grab the muzzle with my support hand. If a 5 shot magazine is optimal, a 2 shot magazine is lacking, and when barrel length is reduced to less than a foot, thats about all you have. Thread in chokes would make the tacti-gun a little more versatile.
Pistol grip stocks are a love em or hate affair. For the most part I don't like them on shotguns, but they are fine on an AR or an FN. Its whatever you find appealing.
The plain pistol grip with no shoulder stock is the worst idea to appear in a long time. People keep buying them though, and before they could buy them, they would saw the butt off the gun. Even a shotgun with a very short barrel can be shot more accurately and controlled more easily with a butt stock than without one. Hitting a big game animal with a shotgun slug requires the same marksmanship ability as shooting it with a rifle. This is simply not possible without a butt stock on the shotgun. If you think it is the same as shooting a handgun, it is not. The recoil is fiercer, and the gun is unbalanced, resulting in poor performance on the target and more time required to get off subsequent shots. On close range targets you want the gun to be quick to bring on the target, and you want to be able to deliver a second shot as soon as you have recovered from the recoil of the first shot. The butt provides the shooter with 3 points of contact with the gun. It provides an index to align his eye with the sights, and it allows the recoil to be obsorbed by his body rather than his hands and arms.
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