Favourite Cheap, Beater Shotgun?

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aesopinblack

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I've got a handful of decent shotguns that I'm quite fond of, but I'm looking for advice on something cheap, ugly, and rugged to abuse and do terrible things to. Nothing crazy or dangerous; just want to let new shooters use it, test out home made loads, sub-cal inserts, etc and not worry too much about breaking it or scratching things up. Only hard criteria I have in mind is that it must be 12 gauge (for ease of ammo); and I figure it should be cylinder/improved choke so that it can handle slugs.

Suggested brands to aim for or avoid?

Break action single vs bolt action?

Anything else I should keep in mind?


Thanks in advance for your replies!
 
Anything Dominion Arms or Norinco will be a common answer, Chinese made 870 clones or break actions with old school exterior hammers. Maybe an old Cooey 84 if you don't mind beating up an old Canadian made gun.
 
Any of the Turkish shotguns that corwin has brought in over the years are what I have for the same use. The only downside I could see is that they tend to be on the lighter side, which is nice for carrying, not so nice for putting a lot of rounds through, I normally use 20ga rather than 12ga, so it's less of an issue.

Other than that a Mossberg/maverick/870 would work well for a pump, lots of guys had done well with hatsan, or Baikal are supposed to be pretty rugged.
 
Was in the same boat so I did the exact thing OP is speaking of. Bought a Cooey 84 for $50, a Ithaca 37 for $140 and a Mossberg 172 12 gauge bolt for $20 all from my local gun store. The Cooey ended up being too nice to do anything with. Blueing was good for its age and the heat treated reciever is just beautiful so it remains stock. The Ithaca had a bulge at the tip of the barrel so I chopped to 18 and reduced the LOP to 12 so I could plant it on my chest plate with my stubby arms when I do tactical stuff. Slam fire is way fun on the 37. Did the same to the mossberg but the LOP is 11. Had to chop the barrel because the c-lect a choke was missing a piece and the stock was cracked. Wanted to do a pistol grip for one of them but really they are more fun shouldered even if the stock is not the ideal length.
 
I think that one of the toughest shotguns ever made was the Brazilian made single shot marketed buy CIL and Remington. I have three,,, 410, 20 and 12 gauge. I cut the barrel on the 12 ga and threaded the muzzle for screw-in chokes. It has been handed around like a $2.00 hooker and abused in every way possible yet the action is as tight as it was when new. It rides in my truck and gets strapped to the front quad when every I'm out in the bush. Never fails.

And I have tested out many hot slug loads with it :evil:
 
Those dime a dozen CIL Brazilian single shot break action 12ga's are a hoot!
Especially the ones with the auto ejector and the huge pull-back action release button forward of the trigger guard.
You can fire it and break the action with one finger and a flick of the wrist, auto eject the shell and reload right quick with them.
I used to have one with a a 16" barrel that was just a quarter inch or so over legal limit. Think I got it for under $100. Too much fun! :rockOn:
 
I bought a Stevens 320 pump combo on sale at Cabelas for $279 about two months ago. It has the 18" and the 28" barrels, I am honestly blown away by how good this shotgun is for the money. I believe it is a copy of the old Win 1200, built like a tank, and has eaten everything I've thrown down it, slugs, buck, target loads, cycles everything.
I was also looking for something cheap to abuse when I bought it, it goes to the range every trip, and about 5-6 new shooters have used it so far, everyone has enjoyed it. Seriously worth looking at, I enjoy it more than my BPS, fits me better and I don't worry about marking it up
 
dand883 said:
Any of the Turkish shotguns that corwin has brought in over the years are what I have for the same use. The only downside I could see is that they tend to be on the lighter side, which is nice for carrying, not so nice for putting a lot of rounds through, I normally use 20ga rather than 12ga, so it's less of an issue.

Other than that a Mossberg/maverick/870 would work well for a pump, lots of guys had done well with hatsan, or Baikal are supposed to be pretty rugged.
Click to expand...

This. He's a little low on inventory at the moment, but he gets shipments of the single shots on a fairly regular basis. For "Rough Use" purposes, I'd go with the "WARRIOR" line (extractors) over the "SINSINATI" line (ejectors), largely because it's just one less thing to go wrong. I've grabbed a few of the Warriors in different barrel lengths in .410 and 12 gauge, and have not treated them nicely. They don't seem to mind.

For under $200 (usually in the $170ish dollar range - even less when he puts them on sale), it's hard to beat for a NIB gun. And Martin is good about standing behind his stuff is something goes wrong.

https://www.corwin-arms.com/catalogue/firearms
 
grelmar said:
This. He's a little low on inventory at the moment, but he gets shipments of the single shots on a fairly regular basis. For "Rough Use" purposes, I'd go with the "WARRIOR" line (extractors) over the "SINSINATI" line (ejectors), largely because it's just one less thing to go wrong. I've grabbed a few of the Warriors in different barrel lengths in .410 and 12 gauge, and have not treated them nicely. They don't seem to mind.

For under $200 (usually in the $170ish dollar range - even less when he puts them on sale), it's hard to beat for a NIB gun. And Martin is good about standing behind his stuff is something goes wrong.

https://www.corwin-arms.com/catalogue/firearms
Click to expand...

I wanted to buy one of the 20 gauge folders but they haven't been in stock when I looked. I figured they might make for a nice compact bush gun or a single shot turkey rig.

Aniest said:
Baikal Over and Unders... I have two for the exact same reasons you mention. Solid like mother Russia! A scratch becomes a mark of honor with them.
Click to expand...

Also, if you loose your paddle, you can still get home ion the canoe.
 
Garaldtao said:
Was in the same boat so I did the exact thing OP is speaking of. Bought a Cooey 84 for $50, a Ithaca 37 for $140 and a Mossberg 172 12 gauge bolt for $20 all from my local gun store. The Cooey ended up being too nice to do anything with. Blueing was good for its age and the heat treated reciever is just beautiful so it remains stock. The Ithaca had a bulge at the tip of the barrel so I chopped to 18 and reduced the LOP to 12 so I could plant it on my chest plate with my stubby arms when I do tactical stuff. Slam fire is way fun on the 37. Did the same to the mossberg but the LOP is 11. Had to chop the barrel because the c-lect a choke was missing a piece and the stock was cracked. Wanted to do a pistol grip for one of them but really they are more fun shouldered even if the stock is not the ideal length.
Click to expand...

You do mean 18.5" right
 
The single shot Turks are unbeatable in this regard.... I have a 20 gauge with 20" barrel I bought off Prophet River for $190 all in on one of their no tax free ship sales....

It fits happily on my quads bungeed to the front rack and has helped me take its fair share of incidental grouse..... 4 chokes included as well....
 
I got a Norinco Backpacker with 13" barrel in the farm truck. Shes taken a beating and taken many gophers in the pastureland. If you can find one with no handguard/front bead issues snap it up. It's the cheapest shotty I own, yet I fire it the most. Cheers
 
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