i hear alot of people saying that side by side shotguns arnt the best for clays becasue their two wide and distracting. i like the feel of them but never shot one and i was thinking of getting a cheaper one for skeet/waterfowl/and clays. anyone have some opions that the can share? thanx
sxs info
- Thread starter mjcurry
- Start date
There have been an awful lot of clays and birds shot with side by side shotguns. It's a personal preference thing. If you were looking to be competitive in a clays game you would be ahead with an over/under or semi. I tend to shoot better with an O/U but I like using a SxS evrey now and then. because it's your money that you will be spending you should get whatever makes you feel good, no matter what anyone else says. The only caveat is that you tend to get what you pay for in a shotgun. Most of the lower end SxS guns feel like a 2x4 in my hands (Baikal, Boito etc.) when compared to the lower cost O/U's. Just my $0.02
Side by Sides have a very high coolness factor IMHO. I am very much into competative target shooting, but when not in heavy duty practice mode I'd love to have a SxS to play with. There are a bunch of guys at the club who have them, and I admit I've got SxS envy. It's on my list of guns I'd like to pick up.
Brad.
Brad.
Your eyes are side-by-each and so should your barrels be! Actually, it does come down to personal preference on what feels better to you. Practice enough with one or both types and you won't be handicapped with either. You can get a good, clean used SxS for just a bit more than a new lower end one. The quality difference between a Baikal or similiar compared to a decent used Parker, LC Smith or a field grade English gun is huge and the better guns will not go down in value. Go with what feels better to you.
My sxs only gets out for clays to tune up for the hunting season. The rest of the time I use an o/u or a semi-auto. If I practiced with my sxs I might bring my scores up to the same level as the other guns but why put in the effort when I'm there already with my o/u.
Different games favour different guns. My clays gun has 32" barrels and weighs around 8lbs. my sxs has 28" barrels and is just over 6-1/2. I'm not gong to carry my o/u through the bush chasing grouse and I won't shoot a 6-1/2 gun as consistently as the heavier, longer stackbarrel.
Another problem with the sxs is the lack of comparable guns in similar price ranges as the o/u. The cheap sxs usually handle like logs with lousy trigger pulls and to get a decent one is usually more expensive than buying a comparable o/u.
Different games favour different guns. My clays gun has 32" barrels and weighs around 8lbs. my sxs has 28" barrels and is just over 6-1/2. I'm not gong to carry my o/u through the bush chasing grouse and I won't shoot a 6-1/2 gun as consistently as the heavier, longer stackbarrel.
Another problem with the sxs is the lack of comparable guns in similar price ranges as the o/u. The cheap sxs usually handle like logs with lousy trigger pulls and to get a decent one is usually more expensive than buying a comparable o/u.
There is an American gentleman by the name of Hal M. Hare who shoots competitive skeet with a SXS. The gun does not seem to impair his abilities.
That said, the classic SXS "game gun" with double triggers, straight grip and splinter fore end is usually a lightweight gun. Recoil in a fast paced round of skeet can become a factor. The comb on this type of gun is often narrow, and after many shots you will feel it on your cheek. A "game gun" is a highly refined instinctive shooting tool. It was not designed as an instrument for shooting clays, and will not excel at the sport.
SXS's are available as purpose built target guns, but are not for the faint of wallet. I have always thought that a SXS built for the pigeon ring would work well for wobble or international trap. No one has given me one to test my theory yet.
Sharptail
That said, the classic SXS "game gun" with double triggers, straight grip and splinter fore end is usually a lightweight gun. Recoil in a fast paced round of skeet can become a factor. The comb on this type of gun is often narrow, and after many shots you will feel it on your cheek. A "game gun" is a highly refined instinctive shooting tool. It was not designed as an instrument for shooting clays, and will not excel at the sport.
SXS's are available as purpose built target guns, but are not for the faint of wallet. I have always thought that a SXS built for the pigeon ring would work well for wobble or international trap. No one has given me one to test my theory yet.
Sharptail
Hare's story is an interesting one and his success may be the exception that proves the rule. Hare's an regular poster on the Shooting Sportsman bulletin board and here's a link to an interesting discussion on his use of the sxs for International skeet.
http://bbs.shootingsportsman.com/viewtopic.php?p=355934
Live pigeon sxs are around but not easy to find. I examined a couple in Spain back in the late 90's but the makers there said there wasn't much demand for them. According to them most of the pigeon shooters had gravitated to over/unders. Live pigeon shooting in Europe is a big money game and Fabbri is the maker of choice followed by Beretta SOs and Perazzi for those who don't have $100,000USD for a Fabbri.
http://bbs.shootingsportsman.com/viewtopic.php?p=355934
Live pigeon sxs are around but not easy to find. I examined a couple in Spain back in the late 90's but the makers there said there wasn't much demand for them. According to them most of the pigeon shooters had gravitated to over/unders. Live pigeon shooting in Europe is a big money game and Fabbri is the maker of choice followed by Beretta SOs and Perazzi for those who don't have $100,000USD for a Fabbri.
beretta boy
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Orillia, Ontario
Have a look at the Charles Daly - Spanish made SxS's, in 12 or 20, with 28" barrels, c/w interchangeable choke tubes and compatible for steel shot.
A lot of gun with all the bells and whistles for the money ( +/- $ 1300 ) and a lot easier to get hold of than that "perfect" Fox, Smith, Lefever or Parker, not to mention a London "best" or Italian work of art.
Handicap for recreational target shooting or waterfowl ... not in the least ! Perhaps not optimum for all-out competitive shooting, but very effective in the uplands & duck blinds.
A lot of gun with all the bells and whistles for the money ( +/- $ 1300 ) and a lot easier to get hold of than that "perfect" Fox, Smith, Lefever or Parker, not to mention a London "best" or Italian work of art.
Handicap for recreational target shooting or waterfowl ... not in the least ! Perhaps not optimum for all-out competitive shooting, but very effective in the uplands & duck blinds.
I shoot a sxs most of the time for clays and shoot as well with it as I did with my o/u. Took me a couple rounds to get used to a different gun and now I don't feel at all handicapped with a sxs. I've read some books written around 1900 concerning shotguns and at that time o/u's were just starting to come around and w.w.greener himself felt that they were not as good for aiming as a sxs. So basically I'd say it's what your used too. Not many people start out shooting sxs's anymore so it's a little unnatural at first but I'd say they are every bit the equal of any other shotgun. Like stated above though price can be an issue, a $300 sxs probably won't be as good of a gun as a $2000 o/u that both fit you. If it don't fit forget it, I've shot a 24 with my stevens 311 sxs I picked up at an auction then grabbed a several thousand dollar pigeon grade winchester sxs which didn't have enough drop in the stock for me and shot a 15.
I have a Poli SXS that Cole guns brings in on a semi custom basis. It has 30"bbls.,Briley chokes,palm swell and is the only SXS that I know of that is designed for sporting clays.
I have shot SXS for a number of years and finall decided to make the "investment" in a clays model. The gun fits and shoots like a dream but still does not produce the scores that I can get with my regular clays guns.
They are harder to keep moving on a target and "yes" the 2X bbls does make a difference in what you see out there. Recoil etc is not aproblem with any gun that fits and this is very true with SXS's as a lot of them are light and kick like hell.
That said if you have the need for something new I highly recomend the challenges of SXS guns.
I don't recommend cheap SXS's. as with all guns you get what you pay for. A good quality Fox,L.C.Smith,Bernadeli (Spl), resonably priced can go in the $1000.00 range and up.
Check Elwood Epps Ltd in Orillia Ontario. I think thay have a web site. Lot's of SXS go through their store.
I have shot SXS for a number of years and finall decided to make the "investment" in a clays model. The gun fits and shoots like a dream but still does not produce the scores that I can get with my regular clays guns.
They are harder to keep moving on a target and "yes" the 2X bbls does make a difference in what you see out there. Recoil etc is not aproblem with any gun that fits and this is very true with SXS's as a lot of them are light and kick like hell.
That said if you have the need for something new I highly recomend the challenges of SXS guns.
I don't recommend cheap SXS's. as with all guns you get what you pay for. A good quality Fox,L.C.Smith,Bernadeli (Spl), resonably priced can go in the $1000.00 range and up.
Check Elwood Epps Ltd in Orillia Ontario. I think thay have a web site. Lot's of SXS go through their store.
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I have 4 sxs guns and use them for clay target shooting, the only place where I see them as not being equal is in Trap shooting as the birds are all rising and the two barrels hide that bird more from your vision, which is not condusive to good shooting.
Clay target shooting is an activity and a sport unto itself and not just practice for field shooting. I shoot an o/u most of the time for clays but as the hunting season approaches I take sxs and semi-auto more often because those are the guns I use for upland shooting and waterfowling.Win/64 said:
Wrong Way
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Try it first if you can......I dropped a huge chunk of change on a sodia SXS because I LOVED how it looked/felt. Pistol grip, cheeck piece, engraving.....beautifull.
BUT:
It's on the EE (at a huge loss ) because I CAN'T SHOOT IT! I put two cases through the gun, and apart from the admirable looks/comments from the other guys at the club, there was nothing good about it. I just couldn't get used to the SXS barrels.
If you like the SXS's, and you can shoot them....by all means, buy one and shoot it for whatever sport/game you like.
Ryan
BUT:
It's on the EE (at a huge loss
) because I CAN'T SHOOT IT! I put two cases through the gun, and apart from the admirable looks/comments from the other guys at the club, there was nothing good about it. I just couldn't get used to the SXS barrels.If you like the SXS's, and you can shoot them....by all means, buy one and shoot it for whatever sport/game you like.
Ryan
Wrong Way said:Try it first if you can......I dropped a huge chunk of change on a sodia SXS because I LOVED how it looked/felt. Pistol grip, cheeck piece, engraving.....beautifull.
BUT:
It's on the EE (at a huge loss
If you like the SXS's, and you can shoot them....by all means, buy one and shoot it for whatever sport/game you like.
Ryan
Ryan, have you tried patterning this gun and seeing what, if anything, can be done to make it work for you? SXS are pretty particular as far as gun fit is concerned and it may be that there are fit issues that you could address for less than the loss you are going to take on the gun.
