Love affair with the 16 ga.

When I was a kid, my dad started me out on a Stevens 20 ga. single shot for ducks and pheasants. Two years later he passed the 20 to my younger brother and gave me a Sears & Roebuck 12 ga. About 5 or 6 years later I bought myself a H&R 10 ga. single shot with a 36" full choked barrel for ducks and geese and it killed quite a few of them.
Fast forward to my mid 50's (a bit more than 10 years ago), and on a whim I bought my first 16 ga. Browning Sweet Sixteen.
What a wonderful gun that was! Trim, balanced, lively and feeling like it was fitted to me personally! The old girl had seen some use but apparently was not abused. With its improved modified barrel, it was a rare bird that did not fall when I pointed that Sweet Sixteen in its direction and pulled the trigger. The only thing about that gun that struck a sour note was the safety. It was mounted on the front of the trigger guard and I found it counter intuitive and very difficult to manipulate smoothly.
Along comes a friend that fell in love with it and she followed him home. And here I was, stuck with nearly 1/2 case of 16 ga. shells and nothing to shoot them in. THIS cannot be!
I immediately went on the hunt for a replacement. The new A5 Sweet Sixteen was tempting and I did like the looks. The older A5 from Miroku were nice and true to the original. The Belgian Sweet Sixteen was the benchmark, of course. I looked at an Ithaca and one old Winchester 1300. I found an old mid 1960's Remington. None of them had the feel of my previous Sweet Sixteen.
Then I stumbled upon a new Browning Citori Grade II in a local gun shop. Pretty thing, of course.
Then I made the mistake of picking it up and bringing it to my shoulder... There was that sweet sixteen sensation again! But at $2,200 I left it behind.

But I keep thinking about just how sweet it felt in my hands!!!

Well, I guess this thread demonstrates just how unpopular the 16 ga. really is.
I've had my share of 12's - and still have a couple - and my share of 20's - don't miss 'em and even a couple of 10's. But it's the 16 that has a pull on me that I cannot get rid of. Much easier on the shoulder and a better shot string than the 12.
I was always told as a kid in the '60's that "the 16 ga. is a woman's gun!"
Phooey. Its just an under appreciated size and gauge that fits many of us better than the 12! JMHO, of course.

kennedy said:

$2200 is a fair price for a 16 ga citori, I paid 1900 a few years ago for my grade 3, had an adjustable stock and butt plate installed and shoot it for trap. View attachment 1077521

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Your post has been rattling around in my head the last couple days. So I went back and bought the Citori. Pretty thing, though the wood is not quite as figured as I would expect for a Grade II gun. Still, it should do well in the grouse and pheasant fields!