[Nomad101bc]

I was thinking about a shotgun for my third firearm. I already own a CX4 Berretta storm and a .22 rimfire bolt action. I was looking for a gauge of shotgun that can effectively hunt rabbit and leave some meat left. I also intend for it to be effective at clay pigeon shooting. I am not concerned about the cost of the gun so long as its not some 4,000 dollar custom engraved winchester lol. All suggestions are welcome.

[ugaarguy]

The beauty of the pump shotgun is the ability to cycle light loads without malfunction. The beauty of the shotgun is being able to choose shot size for the game or target you intend to shoot. A 20 guage pump is a nice all around weapon with less recoil than a 12ga. A new Remington 870 Express or Mossberg 500 will easily fit your budget with prices under $300 new. The Browning BPS will run a bit more in base form, and a little chunk more for fancy wood and shiny bluing. The Remington 870 Wingmaster is a top end pump for sure with beautiful wood and bluing, and it still easily fits your budget in the $600 price ballpark. Any will do fine for what you want.

[Titan6]

I shoot rabbits with my 12Ga and there is still meat left. Don't rec'd buck shot or slugs for rabbit though. Some #2 bird works for my full choke to about 70 yards. YMMV most people like .410 or 20 Ga for rabbits but I have no issues with 12 Ga.

But why not shoot rabbits with the .22? I can't think of any reason not to. Cheaper for certain.

[Nomad101bc]

So you are suggesting a 20 gauge? Will this still be effective at hunting rabbit and giving me a large enough shot raduis to easily perform well with clay pigeons?

The .22 is a rimfire thus not lethal enough to hurt rabbits and not typicaly allowed for hunting. Besides if you have seen rabbits move you know rifles not a great chioce you get one shot and have to maximize damage.

[ugaarguy]

So you are suggesting a 20 gauge? Will this still be effective at hunting rabbit and giving me a large enough shot raduis to easily perform well with clay pigeons?
Yes, yes, and yes. Modern shotguns use screw in choke tubes. These little tubes screw into the end of the bbl and vary the choke - constriction. Skeet shooters use a more open choke, trap shooters generally go a bit tighter for the longer ranges encountered on the trap fields. Pattern the shotgun at the average range you'll be shooting the rabbits to determine what choke works best for the load. See the thread "Patterning 101" stickied at the top of this subforum for a more detailed explanation.

I think a 20 gauge will be plenty for your intended uses, but I'd not pass up a 12 gauge either if you find one like at a good price. Again, change the choke and shot load to suit the task.

[Mannix]

22's are fine for rabbits and squirrels. The trick is to wait for the little critters to stop moving for a second and then take the shot. Unless of course you're talking about those new kevlar wearing robo-rabbits, best to go with a 12 ga with OOO buck in that case :p. If you just want a basic shotgun go with a Mossberg 500 or Remington 870, it's pretty hard to go wrong with either.

[jrfoxx]

a 12 or 20 gauge, with the right ammo and choke for the application, wil be fine for both.ugaarguy's advice about screw-in choke tubes, or a poly-choke will also make the gun plenty versitile for whatever you want to use it for.I've hunted lots of rabbits and squirrels, and shot LOTS of skeet and trap with both my Ruger Red Label 12 and 20 gauge with screw in chokes.which to get, 12 or 20 gauge, is totally up to you.USUALLY, a 20 gauge will be lighter and have less recoil, so if thoe are a concern, get a 20ga.It will still be plenty of gun for hunting and skeet/trap, just switch the choke to suit your needs.Te hardest part for you will probably deciding whether to get a semi-auto, a pump, a side-by-side, or an over-under.I've never tried skeet with a pump, but it seems like it would take a fair bit of practice to be able to chamber a second shell for the double, but I'm sure it can be done with practice.Personally,I like a semi-auto or trap, and an over/under for skeet.YMMV though.For hunting any type would work fine.I used to hunt rabbits with a bolt action .410. Getting off a second or third shot was prety hard, but it can be done.I once got a rabbit running at top speed with the 3rd shot.I liked my 20ga over/under the most.Lighter and less recoil than the 12ga, so I wouldn't tire as easily after a full day, and I just like the balance and setup of an O/U compared to other styles.If yu can find one for sale, the Ruger Red lable is a really good, solid reliable, well-balancd and good looking gun in my opinion. The ones I've seen were in like NIB or NIB condition for about $900.I'm sure others will have plenty of other options/favorites to suggest too.

[DWARREN123]

12 ga is the basic choice but I like the smaller gauges such as 20 and 28.

[Nomad101bc]

okay thanks for all your tips I think I will get a 20 gauge. I can effectively hunt birds with it too should the interest arise. I was thinking pump action because semi auto cost 4 times as much. 20 gauge would also be great because the ammo is very cheap and easily reloaded. Can i fire a slug with a choke on? If I were using a 20 gauge would i use something a little more potent than just birdshot when rabbit hunting?

[Titan6]

You can use something more potent if you want but you said wanted meat on it when you were done. I don't know how big the rabbits in CT run but #2 bird is about the same size as an air rifle pellet and I have dropped plenty with the air rifle and a couple with the #2. If you like or are using a smaller Ga like 20 you might want to use a #4 buck.

I have not seen a rabbit yet that can take a hit from a .22 and keep going. Even the big jack rabbits of West Texas. You should use hollow points though. Some of the bigger ones can shrug off an air rifle pellet and hop away but a .22? Unlikely. Some may disagree but hunting rabbits with an accuarate .22 is preferable to the shotgun.

You should be able to find a used 20Ga semi-auto for under $300 if you want to use a semi. Yes, you can shoot slugs with a choke in but before you start shooting slugs at all you should read slugs 101 in this forum.

[tantrix]

I have not seen a rabbit yet that can take a hit from a .22 and keep going. Even the big jack rabbits of West Texas. You should use hollow points though. Some of the bigger ones can shrug off an air rifle pellet and hop away but a .22? Unlikely. Some may disagree but hunting rabbits with an accuarate .22 is preferable to the shotgun.

I agree. The .22lr cartridge was made for small game hunting, and it is plenty lethal enough. I hunt rabbits all night long with a 6.5" Ruger Super Single Six using the .22lr cylinder and that has less velocity than your rifle does. Shotguns are versatile, but I don't know anybody who would use one over a good .22lr for rabbits.

[Nomad101bc]

my .22 is rimfire its not lethal enough. I have seen .22 rimfire take 10 minutes on a neck shot to even kill a chipmunk. My primary intention is clay pigeon shooting rabbit huntings just an added benefit. Do semi auto shotguns tend to jam easier than a pump action?

[220_Swift]

my .22 is rimfire its not lethal enough. I have seen .22 rimfire take 10 minutes on a neck shot to even kill a chipmunk.


I guess the 32 rabbits I baggged last year with my 22lr were not aware of this bit of information. And BTW, they were all DRT. None of them lived longer than a few seconds, let alone 9 minutes. All were shot in the head, or in the chest from ranges of 10-110 yards.

[Nomad101bc]

.22 rimfire or center fire? Theres a huge difference. Also my gun cant take extra pressure rounds such as hornets therefore hunting with hollow point ammunition is out of the the question. You need to realize my gun is nearly 50 years old i bought it more as a collections item because its a mossberg with a unique feature an extended stock that prevents shot deviation.

Also I wanted to keep this on the topic of shotgun preferance not best way to kill rabbits. If it were up to me I'd hunt rabbit with a .22 pistol with hollow points.

[Titan6]

Are you sure the chipmunk was not a commando and part of the Big Squirrel Independent Saviors And Yard Mammal Front (BSISAYMF)?

They are known to quite tough and require multiple hits from high caliber rifles or shotgun slugs at close range to go down. In fact the Police in some areas have switched from .223 to .308 to penetrate their armor. If so you are lucky to have escaped alive.

Edit: The age of the rifle has nothing to do with anything. A pistol would be much less effective for a number of reasons.

[Nomad101bc]

Looks like the squirrels I saw in Missouri. I shot at one little red squirrell and some how it ducked beneath the shot lol.

[220_Swift]

22 rimfire or center fire? Theres a huge difference. Also my gun cant take extra pressure rounds such as hornets therefore hunting with hollow point ammunition is out of the the question. You need to realize my gun is nearly 50 years old i bought it more as a collections item because its a mossberg with a unique feature an extended stock that prevents shot deviation.

A 22lr is a rimfire round. I used the CCI Min-Mag which has a hollow point slug. It is 36gr with a muzzle velocity of 1260fps. And is is absolutley devestating on rabbits, and squirells.



But, as to your question, I would go with a 12ga for now. Rabbits would be easy enough with a 20ga, but you might have difficulties with clays. Once you learn proper lead, then you can move to a smaller gauge which has less shot.

[Nomad101bc]

Okay so I should get a 12 gauge pump action most likely but when rabbit hunting use only #4 bird shot? Can i hunt birds with this too and have anything left other than feathers?

[Dave McCracken]

For rabbits I use 6s, which also work for squirrels, pheasants, grouse etc. 7 1/2s or 8s work for quail and dove.

4s for long shots at pheasants, jackrabbits and Nutes.

[Nomad101bc]

You can hunt nutes? Well then hmm maybe ill go looking at some of those fun black colored mossbergs. This will probably spark a huge debate but what brand of 12 gauge?

[Dave McCracken]

Nomad, the 101 threads have lots of input on pumpguns.

Nute in MD are a pest, no closed season, no limit. While I mentioned 4s, I have offed a couple with 2s,old pre ban lead goose swatters.

Nutes cook up like Groundhogs. Fry the young ones, stew the older ones or simmer in tomato sauce.

[Nomad101bc]

Lol looks like i learned something new. For some reason it never occured to me to eat reptiles. How exactly do you stalk nutes?

[Dave McCracken]

Nutrias, known as Nutes in common MD parlance, are rodents.

Newts are amphibians, I believe....

[Nomad101bc]

lol you had me thinking you were eat and hunting the little tiny salamander things. I was under the impression nutes was just a mispelling of Newt.

[Dave McCracken]

Glad that's straight.

Whew, did we just miss having a "What Gauge and Load For Salamanders" Thread?.....

[Nomad101bc]

LMAO. I was more interested in how you would cook them lol.

[toivo]

my .22 is rimfire its not lethal enough. I have seen .22 rimfire take 10 minutes on a neck shot to even kill a chipmunk. [...]
Also my gun cant take extra pressure rounds such as hornets therefore hunting with hollow point ammunition is out of the the question. You need to realize my gun is nearly 50 years old i bought it more as a collections item because its a mossberg with a unique feature an extended stock that prevents shot deviation.

Hmm... You'd better get that gun checked out. That chipmunk should have been dead on impact. Also, just to clarify, .22 Hornet is a centerfire round. Also, hollowpoints aren't necessarily high-velocity cartridges. They are available in regular velocity or even subsonic (low velocity).

What's the extended stock on your Mossberg? Do you mean a full (Mannlicher) stock, where the forearm wood extends the full length of the barrel? Do you happen to know the model number? Just curious...

Back to topic, I think a 12 or 20-gauge pump gun would be an excellent choice for you.