28 Gauge For Trap?
- Thread starter Bobhwry
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Greybeard
Member
Methinks you best be good - and reload.
atblis
Member
I am not going to say you can't do it
For trap, a 28 gauge is perhaps a little less than ideal. I think it would be fun and challenging, but if you are trying to be competitive the 28 gauge will cost you targets. This is trap I am talking about.
Sporting clays, I think a 28 gauge would be delightful.
You might want to check out tubes. There are some very nice tube setups on the market.
Stick to longish barrels (at least 28").
Lotsa good shotguns. How much do you want to spend? None are truly superior.
Beretta
Browing
SKB (my personal favorite)
Perazzi
Krieghoff (other personal favorite)
Kemen
Winchester
etc.
If you're on a budget, look for a used Browning or SKB. Caeser Guerini makes a nice gun. Berettas are quite decent.
My favorite 28 gauge was actually a 12 gauge Krieghoff with 34" barrels and permanent tubes. Awesome gun.
For trap, a 28 gauge is perhaps a little less than ideal. I think it would be fun and challenging, but if you are trying to be competitive the 28 gauge will cost you targets. This is trap I am talking about.
Sporting clays, I think a 28 gauge would be delightful.
You might want to check out tubes. There are some very nice tube setups on the market.
Stick to longish barrels (at least 28").
Lotsa good shotguns. How much do you want to spend? None are truly superior.
Beretta
Browing
SKB (my personal favorite)
Perazzi
Krieghoff (other personal favorite)
Kemen
Winchester
etc.
If you're on a budget, look for a used Browning or SKB. Caeser Guerini makes a nice gun. Berettas are quite decent.
My favorite 28 gauge was actually a 12 gauge Krieghoff with 34" barrels and permanent tubes. Awesome gun.
sm
member
Quite a few folks shoot trap, with a 28 gauge as they do 5 stand, and Sporting clays.
Quite a few places have "short courses" set up for .410 and 28gauge.
Set up Leagues for this too.
I would go try a bunch of different guns and see which one fits you best and you shoot best.
For those that do not know, many of these Short Courses and Special Leagues were set up by Seasoned Shotgunners.
This all came about when these folks that have fired HUNDREDS of Thousands of shotshells and detached Retinas, neck, shoulder, injuries from shooting so much took its toll on the body.
Then folks that injuries from car wrecks, or whatever, surgeries and physically limited folks were invited into to these games for the smaller gauges.
28 gauge is not expensive to reload, really hard to put a value on being able to shoot again, when the Doc's said you might not ever walk again, or be able to shoot any kind of firearm again, or any number of experiences I am familar with.
Then again one of my old shooting pards ran a straight with Beretta 303 in 20 from back a few yards at trap
He also shot 98/100 using a 28 ga 870 from the 16 yard.
"Not the 28ga's fault, I just did not do my part".
Find a gun that fits, and have fun!
Quite a few places have "short courses" set up for .410 and 28gauge.
Set up Leagues for this too.
I would go try a bunch of different guns and see which one fits you best and you shoot best.
For those that do not know, many of these Short Courses and Special Leagues were set up by Seasoned Shotgunners.
This all came about when these folks that have fired HUNDREDS of Thousands of shotshells and detached Retinas, neck, shoulder, injuries from shooting so much took its toll on the body.
Then folks that injuries from car wrecks, or whatever, surgeries and physically limited folks were invited into to these games for the smaller gauges.
28 gauge is not expensive to reload, really hard to put a value on being able to shoot again, when the Doc's said you might not ever walk again, or be able to shoot any kind of firearm again, or any number of experiences I am familar with.
Then again one of my old shooting pards ran a straight with Beretta 303 in 20 from back a few yards at trap
He also shot 98/100 using a 28 ga 870 from the 16 yard.
"Not the 28ga's fault, I just did not do my part".
Find a gun that fits, and have fun!
I never thought the 28 gauge was good for trap until I tried it. Ran the first round and shot 23 and 22 on the second and third.
The two guns to be considered in 28 gauge for targets are the Beretta 687 and the Browning 525.
Those of us who like autoloaders will continue to wait until Beretta gets it's head out of its hindquarters and makes the 391 in 28 gauge.
The two guns to be considered in 28 gauge for targets are the Beretta 687 and the Browning 525.
Those of us who like autoloaders will continue to wait until Beretta gets it's head out of its hindquarters and makes the 391 in 28 gauge.
TrapperReady
Member
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- Jan 29, 2003
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- 2,732
Same here... although I've not used it past the 16-yard line. I only did it once (using an 870 Express -- fixed MOD choke and 26" barrel). I didn't run them, but got a couple of 24's. One miss was on a straightaway #3 (my personal nemesis) and the other was an "epileptic monkey" swing on a hard-right #5.
The breaks weren't as decisive as when I shoot a 12ga (1 oz w/ FULL choke), but they were far from chippy.
sm
member
Twenty-Eight gauge is our choice
Some say it can't , but we try to tell
Onlookers gasp and lose their voice
As we churn 'em and burn 'em and watch them fell.
Okay, were are the cheerleaders?!
There was supposed to be cheerleaders in cute outfits with pom poms standing over there doing this chant, hopping up and down and all...
Oh Dave! You got some 'splainin' to do...
Some say it can't , but we try to tell
Onlookers gasp and lose their voice
As we churn 'em and burn 'em and watch them fell.
Okay, were are the cheerleaders?!
There was supposed to be cheerleaders in cute outfits with pom poms standing over there doing this chant, hopping up and down and all...
Oh Dave! You got some 'splainin' to do...
atblis
Member
Absolutely
Most people aren't good enough for it to matter, so yes a 28 gauge will work fine for the vast majority of people. In fact, they might even pick up a few targets because they aren't flinching as bad (I am talking about trap).
Most people aren't good enough for it to matter, so yes a 28 gauge will work fine for the vast majority of people. In fact, they might even pick up a few targets because they aren't flinching as bad (I am talking about trap).
Last edited:
Dave McCracken
Moderator In Memoriam
No 'splainin', Steve. WW says no cheerleaders.
A couple things about the 28....
There will be more of these used in the coming decades.
We Baby Boomers are going gray. A shotgun that does what the 28 does will make sense to many of us.
It works with less shot and powder, and has less kick.Less expense if one reloads.
A proper 28 gauge weighs less, thus is carried better by those of us who find the hills steeper than in days of yore.
And, they're fun.....
A couple things about the 28....
There will be more of these used in the coming decades.
We Baby Boomers are going gray. A shotgun that does what the 28 does will make sense to many of us.
It works with less shot and powder, and has less kick.Less expense if one reloads.
A proper 28 gauge weighs less, thus is carried better by those of us who find the hills steeper than in days of yore.
And, they're fun.....
A .410 will "work" for trap.
Depends on what you are looking for.
From the 16, I've seen people break birds with just about anything that throws shot downrange.
But if you want to hit all the hard lefts or rights, and you want to shoot well from the 27, a long, heavy 12 Gauge that's set up for trap is a real asset.
3/4 oz. of 8's will work fine at the 16; therefore a 28 will. Many reloaders use 7/8 in a 12 Gauge, especially when lead's high. Low-power loads in heavy 12 Gauges will also alleviate the detached-retina problem. I've used 7/8 oz. 7.5 shot loads in a 12 Gauge, and they worked okay. AFAIK there are more #8 pellets in 3/4 oz. So there's no reason a 28 won't work break birds.
What you lose on the trap range with a 28 is a gun set up for trap (okay, maybe you can build one or have it done), and a natural swing that matches the targets you're shooting at. One of the most common trap shotguns is the BT-99 in 34". It weighs almost 9 lb. It works very well for trap, for a lot of people.
A light, quick 28 won't naturally swing through the target. You really have to learn to do it. I don't know of a 28 that has trap stock dimensions.
The flipsides, of course, are that learning not to stop the gun when you're shooting a little 28 will help you in the field; and lots of people shoot trap with "field" or "sporting" models, with no trouble.
I guess the real answer is not simple. It's neither an unqualified "YES!", nor is it a "NO WAY!", either.
Depends on what you are looking for.
From the 16, I've seen people break birds with just about anything that throws shot downrange.
But if you want to hit all the hard lefts or rights, and you want to shoot well from the 27, a long, heavy 12 Gauge that's set up for trap is a real asset.
3/4 oz. of 8's will work fine at the 16; therefore a 28 will. Many reloaders use 7/8 in a 12 Gauge, especially when lead's high. Low-power loads in heavy 12 Gauges will also alleviate the detached-retina problem. I've used 7/8 oz. 7.5 shot loads in a 12 Gauge, and they worked okay. AFAIK there are more #8 pellets in 3/4 oz. So there's no reason a 28 won't work break birds.
What you lose on the trap range with a 28 is a gun set up for trap (okay, maybe you can build one or have it done), and a natural swing that matches the targets you're shooting at. One of the most common trap shotguns is the BT-99 in 34". It weighs almost 9 lb. It works very well for trap, for a lot of people.
A light, quick 28 won't naturally swing through the target. You really have to learn to do it. I don't know of a 28 that has trap stock dimensions.
The flipsides, of course, are that learning not to stop the gun when you're shooting a little 28 will help you in the field; and lots of people shoot trap with "field" or "sporting" models, with no trouble.
I guess the real answer is not simple. It's neither an unqualified "YES!", nor is it a "NO WAY!", either.
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