Thoughts on over under Shotguns?

Ashcroft said:
3macs1, I'm sure you love your 870 and 1100 and shoot them well. In their day they were competitive in North America, never became the go-to gun in the Olympics or internationally. They were superceded by the superior although more expensive over under at all levels of competition many years ago and are no longer competitive in top level competition. Even former wizards with these guns like the Etchens and others no longer use these guns in competition because they shoot the newer over/ unders better. The Remington 32's and later the Remington 3200's were very scarce anywhere I shot in this country, I probably saw my first about 1985 and never saw more than a few. Citoris, Win 101's, various Beretta over/unders and singles, Ljutics, then Perazzis, the K guns and others took over in the west, an occasional Mod 12 or 870 would show up and a few 1100's but these guns were never in the money or trophy circle. Not knocking the older guns, they were state of the art champions in their day but they have been superceded long ago in the winners circle, maybe not in their owner's heart. Field guns? Fun shooting? Shoot what pleases you of any type. if it's reasonably well made it will serve you well.
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Honestly never gave a hoot or followed what was going on outside of a few states in the the US and eastern canada canada or even the Qlympics
Did however make the full circle when it comes to shooting these guns from 870's to finishing with the K's
One thing I know for sure the stick doesn't make the scores or make you a better shooter
In fact now right back where I started with 870's and having more fun than ever when I get the rare free time to shoot
The days of being a robot shooting looking back were not really fun just stress. Still know of two original 32's being shot here both with tube sets
I do regret selling the win 101 barrel set I had at one time. That and my 28ga ruger :(
Take care
Cheers
 
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saskbooknut said:
Trunnions, locking blocks, and hinge pins are not home hobbiest replacement items in over under shotguns, due to requirement for fitting. Building up and refitting the barrel lugs is often a solution for Brownings.
Firing pins and springs, release lever springs and ejector parts are within the skills of a capable hobbiest.
Some people should never have their fingers inside the mechanism of a shotgun.
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I agree completely but having said that, replacing trunions, locking blocks and hinge pins is not exactly rocket science.
 
Replacing locking blocks and trunions is not rocket science perhaps, but easily botched. They are not just drop in parts.
 
I remembered this comparison video on YouTube. Posting it on the basis that there is no one who seems wiser than a person you basically agree with but can talk about it for 10 minutes or so.


 
Whether or not you should own an O/U shotgun depends on what, where and how you hunt, and what your firearm budget is... personally, I think if you can't afford one of the better guns, you would be better served with a run of the mill semi or pump gun. If you are an upland gunner and hunt over dogs, whether your own or friends or a hosts or guides, you would be well served shooting a break gun, either O/U or SXS... and many places highly recommend them and in some instances even require them. I concur with 1963beretta's points in post #18.

Personally, I do the majority of my waterfowling and turkey hunting with various semi shotguns, but occasionally tote a SXS or O/U, but I do all of my upland gunning over our springers with O/U's or SXS's... the handling, feel and balance are just right for wingshooting, IMO.
 
Just some quick math... 2 million rounds on a shotgun.
That's only 274 rounds a day
Every day
For 20 years straight...

As for the rest of it, always buy the most you can afford for the intended purpose, and enjoy what you have.
Tiger Woods doesn't play golf with junk clubs, and Ovie doesn't use garbage sticks. That's those two...
The answer is always between the above two points.


R.
 
I absolutely love the simplicity of an O/U. I prefer O/U to SxS because it offers a better sight profile imo. It’s shame they are usually pretty expensive. You’d think they be cheaper than pumps and semis due to the simplicity but that’s rarely the case. Tighter tolerances I suppose.
 
clays said:
I absolutely love the simplicity of an O/U. I prefer O/U to SxS because it offers a better sight profile imo. It’s shame they are usually pretty expensive. You’d think they be cheaper than pumps and semis due to the simplicity but that’s rarely the case. Tighter tolerances I suppose.
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O/U more simpler then pumps and semi’s??? Thats the first time I’ve ever heard this.....but no chance of this being true. Barrel regulation alone on a double gun is much more complex in manufacture then a pump or semi......which nowadays, pretty much involves assembly of CNC machined components from different parts bins. Double guns require much more hand fitting for most components to ensure proper fit, finish and operation. The two are not even close to being comparable
 
Rman said:
Just some quick math... 2 million rounds on a shotgun.
That's only 274 rounds a day
Every day
For 20 years straight...

As for the rest of it, always buy the most you can afford for the intended purpose, and enjoy what you have.
Tiger Woods doesn't play golf with junk clubs, and Ovie doesn't use garbage sticks. That's those two...
The answer is always between the above two points.


R.
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It may seem hard to believe that guns can get used to that extent when a lot of us are lucky to get out once a week but Kim Rhode's says that she shoots 500 to 1000 rounds per day, seven days a week!
 
Both are great options.

I have never had an issue with a good SXS, even with double triggers. If set right, the movement for the 2nd shot tends to just follow on. Of course a few afternoons shooting clays can re-awaken the muscle memory.

In reading the comments I see a few good ones. One referenced that a SxS will partially obstruct the target at specific angles. To be fair, a properly fitted gun will not. I have always liked the nice wide optical plane while tracking clays or birds.

OUs are a definite favorite. I have shot many. Currently my go-to ( which will go against what some have posted) is a Mossberg Silver Reserve II, in 20 gauge. I find the build quality ( Turkey) to be quite good, far better than other more "value" offerings like the Stevens 555, Stoeger, and Biakals. The weight and balance are also quite nice. Now, it is no Beretta, Browning, nor is in a Benelli 828, but what it represents is a very good modern OU, without the issues that other manufacturers have had in the past.

Both OU and SxS, ( at least for me) seem to swing and point far nicer, usually due to them being a bit shorter compared to other actions, and the point of balance usually falling just behind the foregrip.

best advice to the OP, get out and try a few. Hit the skeet / trap field. There are other good willing sould who will let you try different types. You'll likely find something you love to shoot, either used or new.
 
Falconflyer said:
I didn't say that, or even imply it! Last I know, Kim Rhodes was shooting an Mx2000S.

The Mx8 with 2 mm rounds through it is in an Olympic shooting school in Asia and the one with 1 mm rounds is at a US Army shooting school.
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She went over to the dark side a few years back. She now shoots a Beretta DT11.
 
I see that she went with Beretta! Those guys throw a lot of money at Olympic shooting, they likely made her a deal that she couldn't refuse!

I understand that she shot an Mx12 for eighteen years before it was stolen and some fans threw some money together and got her the Mx2000, too bad that Perazzi couldn't have stepped forward and gave her a new gun since she was such an ambassador for their company. Maybe that was on her mind when she switched to Beretta.... or maybe Perazzi just never got the memo that she was without a gun.
At 500 to 1000 rounds per day, it would be interesting to hear her take on the DT-11 vs Perazzi.
 
I love my over under, it's an 80's Winchester 101. Been using it for trap, skeet and lots and lots of sporting clay. It's the best for that and me. Smooth as butter, fast fallow up shot. Like it better then all my other shotguns.
 
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