Favorite grouse gun

Browning Sweet Sixteen. Took two last weekend with it.

 

My favorite grouse gun is always a single shot. I only get one shot so I know I have to make it good. Always did better with the old single shot 20 Ga H&R
Use number 6 shot in case I'm lookin for wabbits along the way.

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I've spent many a day in search of the ruffed grouse. I've hunted the hillsides and hollows through thickets that offered briars and vines to make every single step a difficult one.

I've carried lots of different guns in this pursuit, but my favorite one has to be the 20 gauge Franchi 48AL Hunter. This lightweight semi-auto is a pleasure to carry at only 5 1/8 pounds. Its long-recoil action (ala the Browning A-5) is very reliable as long as the friction ring is set in accordance with the power level of the shells.

I've also used this gun with success on close range pheasants and hundreds of rabbits. It would not be my choice for a duck gun, but for small game hunting that involves lots of walking, I'll take this lightweight Franchi any day.

 

winchester 101, 20 gauge skeet/skeet

 

Sounds like quail hunting 'round here, trade "jumping cactus" for vines. We're a bit short on grouse, though.

The gun I groused most about in this environment was my 8 lb. vintage 1100 12 Gauge. Got an old Ithaca SKB 500 in 20, choked IC/M, and like it for the same reasons Pete409 likes the Franchi. It's a tad heavier, but a good deal shorter than the Franchi.

We have a 3-shot limit for all game with a shotgun here, so an auto offers little advantage over the simpler, shorter, quicker-reloading over-under. In fact, the auto has a distinct disadvantage: I've stuffed a shell in backwards while chasing some quail I kicked up. Jammed up the gun well enough to put me out of commission for a crucial 5 minutes, enough time for the only covey of the hour to be long-gone.

But that Franchi is a neat little thing. I've often contemplated getting one.

 

I either use a Winchester 59 in 12ga or a Charles Daly O/U in 20ga. Just depends on what I feeling like carrying that day.

 

ive only taken one grouse and that was with my G26 at about 15-17 yards. Scored a clean headshot. best chicken I ever ate :] its deffly something i could get into.

 

An older Italian made Charles Daly 20ga O/U , although I just picked up a 20ga Montefeltro I will be taking out in the woods soon.

 

CZ Bobwhite in 28 gauge. Fairly light, double triggers, and inexpensive enough ( < $700.00) that I don't overly concern myself with the finish while busting brush.

 

My ERA 20 gauge.

 

Stevens 311, 20 gauge with 28 inch barrels choked "none" and "a little"

 

I love my Beretta 686 20 gauge and my faithful GS Pointer. What a grouse and woodcock team they are.

 

well well... I love that this thread popped back up because I can confirm my love affair with my sweet sixteen.... over a year ago I posted about a weekend with my sweet sixteen grouse hunting and this past bird season reaffirmed my love. I used a 16 Win M12 a few times this season... but it did not feel right... i kept pulling out my A5. 10 pheasant...5 quail and 1 grouse this year. All killed with my A5 and my 12yo setter. I love bird season.

 

mine used to be a 16 gauge Fulton,but like the grouse it's gone.

 

A MacNaughton 12b s/s 28 inch barrels,light,very thin in the hand...lovely.

 

Heh, it's been a while since I started this thread.

Since then I've settled on a field grade Franchi 48AL 20gauge 24". Perfect for the up and down through briars around here.

Tried an 1100 20ga Special Field. Too heavy to be a 20, didn't like straight stock or 21" bbl.
Tried a 686, too afraid to scratch it.

 

Moss 500

I've spent long years hunting Ruffed Grouse in the deep woods of northern Minnesota. Back a million years ago we used to have these long barreled shotguns that were more appropriate for duck hunting but back then that's what a "hunting shotgun" was supposed to look like.

In the past 15 or 20 years we've learned a thing or two. (1) Short barrels are better than long barrels. I personally prefer an 20 inch barrel with screw-in chokes. (2) Light is better than heavy. (3) Something that you don't mind getting dented, scratched, rained-on and muddy. After all, it goes on an ATV ride. (4) You will never need a full choke for Ruffed Grouse.

Mossberg 500 with 20 inch barrel, screw-in choke and black poly stocks. This short, black shotgun scares all the Jim Zumbo's (I take no glee in getting funny looks from fellow hunters, btw) but it does the job better than anything I've found for the realities of how my family hunts. This is a highly specialized configuration that does not translate well to Turkey Hunting, duck hunting, or quail hunting. It is a grouse set-up.

A nod of the hat to all those "coach guns" - nuthin' wrong with break-action just as long as it's not a collector's piece best left in the safe. A friend has a side-by-side, short barreled deal that he got for less than $ 200.00 - perfect for grouse. 16 or 20 or 12 doesn't matter ... barrel length and ruggedness are more important.

I love Ruger Red Label's over/under - great grouse guns - but they cost so much and are so beautiful that they are only for taking serene October walks. Same deal with Weatherby Athena and top end luxury guns ... doesn't belong anywhere near the woods but is better suited for shooting clays in a sport coat down at the club.

 

I use an old Ithaca Model 37 in 20. Absolutely flawless shotgun.

 

I use either a Mossy 500 20 ga. with 24" barrel or
Beretta S56E in 12 ga. with my 24" barrels.

 

I am a big fan of short, fast pointing barrels while in the woods. My A5 is a 24 which is almost too long for me. My M12 came with a 28" and I picked up a 19 inch cut down barrel for cheap. I am a point and snap hunter, that is why I suck at skeet, can do well at trap and hunting situations. I have no swing and little follow through.. I know it is wrong and everyone says I should work on it, but I have found that when I do my meat shooting falls to the wayside. I prefer to fill the pot then make clay particles.

Kentucky... you found the SF 1100 to heavy for a 20? hmmmm ... that was one thing I never thought about that gun... I just got rid of mine because I dont like 20g. I have no idea what it is but i dont shoot as well with a 20 as I do a 12 or even close to a 16g. I really liked that gun's handling. I bet you have a nice level even tempo swing as opposed to my point and click swing. I bet that is the difference between you and me.

 

What's your favorite gun for grouse and other birds?

What's your favorite gun for grouse and other birds?

My Ruger. 12ga. O/U. Stainless. 5 choke tubes.

Grouse, pheasant, quail, duck, turkey.