Recoil on smaller gauges for my nephew

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My brother and I were talking about what gauge of shotgun he should buy for his son, who turns 12 in January. We shoot 12's and 16's and like most kids we started on .410's.

My nephew has been shooting a .410 for the last couple years and now it's time to move up. However, a 12 gauge is going to still be fairly heavy for him.

Having never shot a 28 gauge and a 20 so few times we can hardly remember what they felt like, does any body have any advice relating to recoil and overall weight and handling of 20's and 28's.
 
A single shot 20 ga., or even a 20 ga. pump should be manageable for a 12-yr old boy. Find nice light target loads, 7/8 oz, and the recoil won't be an issue.
 
My twelve year old daughter finds the recoil of a shortened single shot 20 gauge too much (1 oz loads), the gun is too light to soak up enough recoil. My 870 or 1897 with 20" bbls are much more reasonable for her when loaded with 7/8 or 1 oz trap loads.
 
my wife at 4 foot thirteen inches can't handle the recoil of my 20 ga red label, or a 20 ga youth h&r topper. However she loves her 28. Unfortunately your son may want to shoot alot more than she does and it is hard to beat the price of the walmart value box of 20 ga shells. As Lee suggested a used 1100 would be a great choice. The 28 is a fine choice for grouse but the shells are a little more pricey.
 
I'd go with the 20 because you can buy annything for them and you can't get that mutch for a 28 now. Not that their not a good gun their great if you only wan't too shoot birdshot but with a 20 you have the shocking power to take a deer with a slug and get what ever shell he want's too try out. Mossberg Bantam is nice
 
Canvasback,
I got my boy a Remington 20 gauge 870 Express "Youth" model. He was 11, and had no trouble shooting 4 or 5 boxes boxes of trap loads his first time out. Since recoil isn't turning out to be much of an issue, I'll get an adult sized 12 gauge Express for next year, and just change the buttstocks. When he grows a bit I'll change them back and dump the 20, unless the girls want to shoot it.
These budget pumps don't cost that much more than a single shot, weigh a little more and go "bang" more than once. Trap loads don't sting much, and 3" 20 gauge rival the 12 gauge for field use, so there is a little room to move up in the same shotgun.
 
The 870 - 20 ga. "Youth" or Browning BPS "Micro" in 20.

Stick with 7/8 oz. 2-3/4" target loads for the "introductory" period, targets,. grouse, sharpies, huns ... all are good with 7-1/2's . The 1 oz and heavier field loads and 3" loads, lead or steel (for waterfowl) can be pretty snappy.

Most 12 year-olds, full or pride with their new gun, hardly ever feel recoil however, especially if the gun fits !
 
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