Starting in trap

1899

1899

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My wife is interesting in trying trap. I know fit is very important, but we don't have many options for test. She is 5' 6", so she is not big. Now I'd love to get her a sweet little Ugartechea or a Grulla...but that ain't gonna happen!

Max budget would be around $1500. I am not looking for a competition style shotgun, but more so a nice quality built all-rounder (not worried too much about steel shot compatibility) with a very good trigger. Ejectors or extractors, I don't think it really mattes, but maybe single trigger - although I am not sure about that either. I considered 20g but will likely just stick with a 12g.

What do you suggest?
 
Find her a used semiauto 12ga or 20ga Remington 1100, 11-87, Winchester SX1, SX2, SX3, Browning Gold, Silver, Maxus, B80, B2000, Beretta A300, A301, A302, A303, A390. Get a model with a wood stock. Have it cut to a length that will fit her and get an adjustable comb installed so you can adjust the drop to fit her as well. Any of the guns listed will last a lifetime, not pound the snot out of her and will retain their re-sale value if she ever decides to "upgrade". Also all the guns listed with the mods mentioned will come under your budget...some by close to half!
 
VLT79 said:
Find her a used semiauto 12ga or 20ga Remington 1100, 11-87, Winchester SX1, SX2, SX3, Browning Gold, Silver, Maxus, B80, B2000, Beretta A300, A301, A302, A303, A390. Get a model with a wood stock. Have it cut to a length that will fit her and get an adjustable comb installed so you can adjust the drop to fit her as well. Any of the guns listed will last a lifetime, not pound the snot out of her and will retain their re-sale value if she ever decides to "upgrade". Also all the guns listed with the mods mentioned will come under your budget...some by close to half!
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:agree: Very good advice.
 
I was hoping to stay away from a semi-auto. Plus, and this is no joke, I was going to give it to her as an anniversary present, so hopefully it will be hers for a very long time. I've been slowly building up her kit - she just got her hunting license last year - and this would also be part of that kit.
 
the spank said:
Sounds like you are thinking of the possibility of it doubling as a hunting gun too? Might as well look for a used Citori if you're ruling out a semi.
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Yes, this is why I mentioned an "all-rounder". I just emailed Will Bilozir about an Ugartechea Model 40 he had listed at a very good price, but it was sold. I see that P&D have a Citori Micro Midas for only a little more than my upper price limit. And this is how the upwards creep starts. :)
 
1899 said:
Yes, this is why I mentioned an "all-rounder". I just emailed Will Bilozir about an Ugartechea Model 40 he had listed at a very good price, but it was sold. I see that P&D have a Citori Micro Midas for only a little more than my upper price limit. And this is how the upwards creep starts. :)
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Save yourself a potential headache, and avoid dealing with Bilozir.
 
Are you looking for new or used? Not many options for new in that price range, but some decent used would definately fit the budget. Citori, 101, Weatherby/Ithaca/SKB, Beretta 686 if you're lucky. You'll probably need to have some fitting done either way, unless you go with the micro midas. BUT if you go with the smaller gun, some of the trap guys will tell you the 26" barrels aren't long enough. It is also on the lighter side for a 12 gauge O/U IMO. The gun dealer, Gagnon Sports, and Epps all have a decent selection of used guns you may want to check out.
 
1899 said:
Yes, this is why I mentioned an "all-rounder"...
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That's why I didn't recommend O/Us...the smaller sized gun that she will be able to handle properly will pound the snot out of her when using field loads and even more so when using waterfowl loads. If you are set on an O/U then you should really invest the money into getting it properly fit to her or she'll quickly lose interest after a couple sessions of getting her cheek and shoulder bruised.
 
New or used. It doesn't really matter as long the used one is in excellent condition.

stubblejumper - PM me about Bilozir, if you don't mind.

Good point VLT79. We don't do any duck or goose hunting. It would only be grouse and the odd hare.
 
1899 said:
Yes, this is why I mentioned an "all-rounder". I just emailed Will Bilozir about an Ugartechea Model 40 he had listed at a very good price, but it was sold. I see that P&D have a Citori Micro Midas for only a little more than my upper price limit. And this is how the upwards creep starts. :)
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A Uggie 40 is a SXS gun, and not thew best to be shooting trap with , especially for a beginner.
IIRC even the model 40 does not have a recoil pad.
Personally speaking with a budget like yours, you can buy an affordable semi or pump for that, there are lots on the market.
The Midas would be easier for here to get the hang of.
Cat
 
Well - A consideration is recoil and weight. A small frame shooter would likely appreciate a lightweight gun. Unfortunately, a lightweight 12 gauge O/U, even with target loads can be a bear. Drop down to a 20 or 28 gauge, and you get a better balance of weight vs recoil. Between 20 and 28 g, 20 gauge is much cheaper wrt ammo cost, unless one reloads.
 
I bought a Remington 1100 Competition Synthetic. After taxes it was well within your budget.
It has complete adjustability (well not the trigger), a recoil reducing butt stock and a bunch of chokes.
I've played with budget O/U's and somewhat aged quality O/U's and the same issues kept cropping up- they didn't fit.
Unless you know someone who does this it is an expensive PITA to get it done.
To buy a new Over Under with adjustability your talking some serious money- even a BT-99 Golden Clays is about 4 grand all in...
 
So how is a 20g compared to a 12g when both are using target loads, and especially when the 12g is using a light target load? Something like 7/8oz @ 1200 fps vs 1oz @ 1100 fps - for both recoil and on target performance? I understand fit is critical, but all things considered - and of course accounting for the fact that many 20g shotguns seem to weigh about 1/2lb less than the matching 12g.

I've looked at a couple of semi-autos - Franchi Infinity, Winchester Super X3 and Browning Silver; and the Browning 725 and Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon.

The Beretta felt very slim, trim and nice all around. Much more so than the Browning. But I was surprised at how proud the wood was - is this normal or did I see a bad one? The Franchi felt quite nose heavy and none of the semis did too much for me.
 
I use 7/8 target loads in my 20 gauge 725 sporting , and usually 1 ounce target loads in my 12 gauge 725 sporting, and recoil feels very similar. The 20 gauge just swings much quicker. I shot my best scores at sporting clays with the 20 gauge. I rarely shoot trap, so I won't comment on how effective the 20 gauge is at trap.
 
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1899 said:
So how is a 20g compared to a 12g when both are using target loads, and especially when the 12g is using a light target load? Something like 7/8oz @ 1200 fps vs 1oz @ 1100 fps - for both recoil and on target performance? I understand fit is critical, but all things considered - and of course accounting for the fact that many 20g shotguns seem to weigh about 1/2lb less than the matching 12g.
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Recoil is affected by shot weight and velocity. So ... 1 oz of shot at 1200 fps is 1 oz of shot at 1200 fps and it doesn't matter if you are shooting it out of a 12 or 20. The secret to recoil reduction is gun weight and gun fit, gun fit being the most important of the two.
 
Without actually seeing her any advice you get here on which gun to buy falls into the category of a blind guess.

So the solution is not to buy her a gun but take her gun shopping instead. Let her pick up the gun, swing it in the store and determine how she feels about. She'll know which one she likes best better than anything you might be able to pick out. You could also take her to the club. Other shooters are usually pretty good about letting people try their guns.
 
Claybuster - I get it, but I don't have that many choices up here - I mean to look at before I buy. For the most part it will be a buy sight unseen, unless I go with one of the aforementioned models. I did some research on buying used too, but I read one write up from a fellow who appeared to know what he was talking about and it didn't give me confidence in buying used sight unseen.

At this stage I'm mainly looking for stuff like 20 vs 12, the 725 has xyz improvement over the Citori; the 687 is a better choice than the 686 because....etc. I've raised my max price limit because I don't want to buy something for the sake of buying something.

I also found an interesting write up suggesting the Beretta 686 stock design is designed for "heads up" shooting style, hence the fairly vertical grip and sloping stock. Apparently many people find this uncomfortable. The same write up said the 425 is stronger than the 686, but that the 682 may be even better.

I don't know. I'm just trying to wade through a tremendous amount of info before dropping a couple of grand on a gift.

It seems that you can get a fairly basic Citori for about $500 less than a 686 Silver Pigeon. Unfortunately I have only been able to find 12g Citoris in town so I don't know how much trimmer a 20 would be.

She is 5' 6" and the distance from the inside of her bent arm to the middle of her trigger finger is 13"
 
Browning vs Beretta really comes down to fit. Generally speaking, one or the other fits you better, but both are stocked different. If the gun doesn't fit her properly, she won't be able to shoot well with it, the recoil may hurt her more, etc which means you will be upgrading in short order. You should have her shoulder several models to find out what works best for her.
 
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