First shotgun for Waterfowl and deer

wrivers

wrivers

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Hi All,
I am looking to pick up my first shotgun but i have heard some debate on what gauge is best to buy. Where I hunt you can only use a shotgun, and there are deer as well as good duck and geese hunting.

What gauge should I buy ?
 
Take a good look at a 12 gauge Remington 870. It's a proven design that's been around for a long time, and for good reason. Barrels are easily changed, so you can have one for waterfowling and one for shooting slugs for deer.
 
I think that the Mossberg Maverick also comes in a 2 barrel set, be a little less expensive than the 500. P&D had some in inventory. FS
 
Wrivers,

The best reliability and versatility is probably to be found in a used Remington 870, perhaps at least three years old. A 3 in chamber is nice to have for goose hunting. The interchangeable specialized barrels are nice, but interchangeable chokes are what really gives versatility. A 26 inch smooth bore is a great all around choice and will be great to get you started for hunting everything.

If you want a little extra range and accuracy with slugs, you can consider going to a fancy rifled barrel for sabot slugs down the road. A friend of mine has one and it a pretty cool toy. But ordinary slugs should shoot pretty well out of the plain barrel - otherwise for a great a great aid you can think about a saddle mounted scope.

RG

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From the "deer, duck, goose" standpoint def. a 12 Ga. 870 depending on your budget, some of the higher priced semis like Beretta or Bennelli may offer reduced recoil, the lower priced Baikal MP-153 semi may turn your crank. Smaller gauges would be a better choice if you were hunting upland birds or rabbits where a light, fast handling gun may be more important then payload.IMHO
 
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wrivers said:
Thanks for all your help guys, I will be looking to get the rem. 870
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The best buy is to get the 2 barrel combo, in either the Mossberg 500 or the Remington 870. You end up getting the rifled barrel for less than $100, compared to over $200 if you bought it separate...And for shotgunning deer, the rifled barrel can't be beat...
 
Mossberg 500/535 barrel combos are great they come with the best fully rifled barrel avail in a pump on the market at 24'' and they also make the fully rifled barrels used by Remington in the 870's.

I picked up my 535 2 barrel combo 28" vent rib with interchangeable chokes and the 24" fully rifled barrel with firesights for $300 at a gun show BNIB

My buddy just picked up the 3 barrel combo in CAMO for $549 comes with 28" vent rib, 24" Turkey and 24" fully rifled at that price.
 
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Turkeyslayer 1300 said:
BPS is out of the 870's league, just do as search on here and see how many people have had problems with their brownings, then compare that to problems with Remingtons.
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Oh I gotta call BS on that one. I've shot numerous BPS' and haven't had any problems.

The action on the BPS comparable to a Wingmaster, but you can't compare an Express to the Browning...it's a step above.

If you want the quality of a Wingmaster, with a better price tag...buy a BPS. If you want cheap and new, buy an Express.
 
I call BS too...

As the owner of 4 Browning BPS shotguns in different gauges and configurations, and 3 Remington 870's, I can tell you that the only problem I have had was with the 870... Broke a firing pin on a duck hunt. This was after about 15,000 rounds though so for a $300 gun I'm not complaining. The BPS has all been flawless and I love the speed of the tang safety for upland hunting.

You can't go wrong with either. In my mind, the BPS is a nicer gun, but more money. Barrels are not cheap either.

For a new hunter the 870 combo would be a good choice.

Remember, gun fit is everything.
 
I have a Benelli Nova and am thankful for its butt-ugliness while I'm slipping down the bank of my wood duck hole.
 
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