CZ Woodcock for a first shotgun?

[XD Dude]

Well, after many friends loaning me their shotguns (mostly pumps) for clay shooting, I am ready to bring one home. It will be my first. I went to my local place, and I really liked the CZ woodcock, and can get what looks like a pretty good deal. It felt right, and it seemed very well made (at least compared to others in my price range).

First off, as a shotgun newbie...is this a good choice? Sub $1K is about the limit.

I plan to do mostly clay shooting, with a little small bird hunting thrown in for good measure. Now, what guage? Im thinking 12 with 28" barrel, but am I right? I also held a 28 with a 26" barrel which was quite nice, but the cost of 28 scares me.

Any comments/suggestions/insults appreciated!

 

[BozemanMT]

I have a CZ ringneck. And i REALLY like it.
a guy at work bought a woodcock. Anyway, his actually was broken from the factory, wouldn't shoot under first, then over. Would shoot over first then under. He hasn't gotten around to sending it in, but they said they would take care of it.
still, for 600 bucks (approx), it's a sweet looking, sweet handling gun. Fits well, etc. Will it last 100,000 rounds like a top end Beretta/browning? probably not, but it should go much longer than say a Baikal.
I think it's a great first shotgun. And after you get hooked (because you will, just like everyone else ), then you get a real nice one, and the CZ becomes your backup/training, whatever.
so, yes, i'd say go for it.
The trend in shotguns is towards longer barrels (I suppose to keep you swinging, Dave Mc?). and depending on how big you are, 28 inch is on the small side. My wife is 5'4" and she shoots a 28inch O/U, and it looks right on her, but a 28 on anyone bigger might be a little short.
just a thought, try the 30".
Oh, both CZ SxS's I've had shoot tight patterns. I rarely go tighter than a IC choke.
HTH

 

[PJR]

A 28" over/under is the best all-round o/u shotgun IMHO. It will do just about everything.

The CZ guns are made in Turkey by Huglu. I have been impressed with the ones I've seen and shot. I'd take a CZ before the various Stoegers, TOZ, Baikal, and Spartan over/unders that I've seen.

As for the 28 gauge, it's a delight. I like mine but it's a good gun to buy after you have your 12 gauge.

 

[XD Dude]

Sweet! I am not sure if this paticular CZ comes any longer than 28", though. I am a big guy, but i sort of liked the way the 28" felt. The CZ seemed a bit lighter than some of the other (and more $$) OU's.

Anyone else have any experience with these?

Thanks!

 

[BozemanMT]

You are right, according to http://www.cz-usa.com/01.detail.php?id=57, it only comes in 28 inch.
You might try a 30" (something else) just to see how it swings for you.
but no, I don't think you can go wrong.

 

[XD Dude]

Well, I ended up buying a Fabarm STL Sport instead of the woodcock...

We will see what happenes there!

 

[BozemanMT]

What made your choice?
Why did you decide to buy one over the other?

 

[XD Dude]

well, the STL was on clearance from 2200.00 to 1600.00, so that drew some interest first of all. I am not sure exactly how good of a deal that is, as google brings up little regarding the STL, let alone price comparisons.

When I picked it up...it just felt quality through and through. It is well balanced, and very smooth. It was a little less than double the price of the woodcock, but there just felt a world of difference (and the woodcock seemed very good to me as well, i will mention, but the STL seemed to be in a different grade of gun). I approached it as more of a "I should be able to keep this one around for my kids to use when they get older" quality purchase rather than a informed decision...i know that is a bad idea, but the gun fits me well, and it is 30", which after feeling it, I see I do like that as opposed to 28". I guess time will tell if I made the right choice. My only concern is that I am not sure if the STL will be a decent hunting choice...as like I said before, there is little info out there to go by.

Now...I also see myself in the future grabbing one of the woodcock 20 or 28 guages....especially if I get more into small bird hunting like I want to. So From what I saw, the woodcock was very nice...nicer than some more expensive ones from what I could tell, but the STL seemed like a good investment.

Do you guys have any input on this? 1600.00 is now the most expensive gun I own...so I hope I got lucky in my uninformed decision process.

 

[12 Volt Man]

I picked up a CZ Woodcock in 20 guage a few days ago. Beautiful gun.

 

[XD Dude]

I picked up a CZ Woodcock in 20 guage a few days ago. Beautiful gun.

What is your main use for it? I am interested to hear how it works out...I still have an itch for one!

 

[12 Volt Man]

My main use for that gun will be working with my English Pointers. I run field trials with them, and I have to shoot quail. I figured for training dogs and shooting quail it will be perfect. I may even take it out for game farm pheasants. This is my first go with an over/under.