first time shooting clays - good starter shotgun?

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anothernewb

anothernewb

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Friend convinced me to go along with him and shoot clays last night.

The only shotgun I have is a rem 870 that started out as a police gun with the shorty barrel, and now has a bunch of black plastic tacticool on it.

but dang that was fun. I probably only whacked 1 of every 3 clays, but I seriously had fun.

now I'm thinking on doing it more - but I know I need something better than the remmy. will probably trade it in - but what to get? I know nothing about good/vs bad shotguns. I bought the 870 because I read that everyone should have at least one....
 
You could put a vent rib barrel on it and a plain stock and it will be fine for any skeet/trap/sporting clays shooting for a long time. My scoutmaster who taught me skeet shooting used an 870 all the way up until he reached AA status. He could shuck that gun on doubles faster than an autoloader.

870's are so cheap you could even buy another "less tacticool" 870 for less than the parts you want to replace on your current gun. Once you start shooting regularly, you'll get used to the recoil and shooting 100 clays in a session will make you less sore than shooting 25 now.

I get a real kick out of shooting a moving target and the gratification of seeing that target fly into pieces or leave nothing more than a cloud of smoke. For me, the good hits more than make up for the misses.
 
Take a look at used Remington 1100s. You should be able to get one at a decent price (I even picked up the Trap-T model) and the semi-auto reduces the recoil and lets you shoot more without feeling it in your shoulder. I just started trap this year and its great fun. Good luck!
 
A used Remington 1100 or Beretta 3xx with a 28" vent rib barrel will kill targets as good as anything. If you get a decent deal on an older 1100 with a fixed choke Mike Orlen can install screw in chokes under $100. I will vouch for his work. If you get really into it and decide down the road you want to get another gun you should be able to sell it for everything you have in it. Or you might be like me and still be shooting it 53 years later.
 
the used shotgun market is a good place to pick up a good shotgun for the clays games,win,rem,brett,benli, brown ect. pump,auto,o/u, single ect. if you are going to get into it you can get a higher grade shotgun later if you get hooked. this 12ga winchester model 12 made in 1955 started life as a field grade 30" full choke barreled shotgun and later in life some one had a money maker rib installed, trap wood put on it and had it reblued. one of the later owners remodeled the rear stock to their likeing with a pocket knife(ruined it). i found it at a public auction and bought it for 250.00, taking it home and giving it a good cleaning and putting a extra stock rear on it that i had and refinished the wood with a oil finish. i have shot straight 25,s with it, it loves 1-1/8 #8 shot at 1250 fps. i don,t use it much any more,but use it as a loaner to new shooters or if a shooter has a problem with their shotgun at a shoot. i think i will shoot a round of trap tonight with the model 12. eastbank.
 

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I started out using a 12ga Wingmaster. It had a no-vent-rib 28" barrel on it. I did ok with it. Bought a 30" fixed full vent rib for it and it helped a lot. I say, build what you have.
 
I love my Rem 1100. You can rock a pump gun all day long at a clays course. It has the advantage of controlled ejection (like the over-unders), some clubs prefer that you police our shells and that is easy to do with a pump vs. an autoloader.

I'd slap a new barrel on the 870, or go look for a used gun that fits you. The fit of the gun for a shotgun makes all the difference in your ability to shoot it. (I like wooden stocks for that reason as I can get them cut right to my size or have the cast bent to my specifications).
 
You can get a nice starter shotgun like the over/under Tristar for around 350 bucks. A bit of an investment but not too bad really and definitely good enough to get you started.
We have several students on the trap team I help coach and they hold up well to the repeated use.
It not as smooth as my Browning Citori,, but then again neither is the price.

Start with a Tristar or Bakail and trade up if you desire to continue with the sport. Or if you have the $$ just go buy a good shotgun that fits you well.

Keep your "Remmy" for self defense!
 
the most important think is that it fit you right try mounting a few with your eyes shut then open your eye and see where the gun is pointing. I used to shoot sporting clays on a league, I liked a 11-87 and a Beretta over under. Most guys use over unders or semi auto field guns. pumps sometimes don't give you time on tough doubles or if you have groups of targets requiring reloads. They work on an easy course.
 
Sorry, but a $350 O/U is crap.
Your 870 will be fine with all the tacticool stuff off and add a 28" VR barrel and you'll be gtg. Which game you shoot can make a difference. Trap, skeet, and sporting clays are different games, and while they can be shot for fun with one gun, they are typically shot better with different guns, so which game are you shooting?
 
Just went and shot sporting clays last night. what a riot! other than that - my shooting will be good old buddy bubba throwing clays in the field and busting them. Budget wise, I can;t afford to jump on a trap or skeet league. So I'll probably be looking for a shotgun that will be good at sporting clays and taking potshots at a pheasant from time to time.

Got to borrow a Baikal O/U last night. With nothing to base it against, I thought it worked fine for me. I was generally either over or behind the clays that I missed.
 
i never though about it much untill some one posted here that if you get into the clays games the shotgun-shotguns you buy will be the minor cost and that is very true. ammo-fee,s- transportation and lunch will add up over the long haul. eastbank.
 
eastbank said:
if you get into the clays games the shotgun-shotguns you buy will be the minor cost
Click to expand...

That's likely true of nearly all shooting sports. ;)
 
In serious shotgun competitive shooting, folks shoot basic target high end guns that usually start about 9K and go to about 15K - this is without engraving or fancy stuff - but these guns are built to go a LOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGG time, which is what those folks want. Even at those high costs, in their world, the gun is still the cheapest component.

I have an older Browning O/U that cost $1K when discontinued 30 years ago. It has 300,000 rounds through it. At an average cost over 30 years of .40/target + ammo (which includes practice targets, reloads, factory ammo, and registered targets), that is $120,000. I bring this up because many folks want to go cheap on the gun, get hooked and start shooting a lot and then their cheap gun breaks; they either spend more than it is worth getting it fixed, or they sell it at a big loss.
Buy a quality gun at whatever your budget will allow - better to get a good used semi over a new crappy O/U
 
I just finished my first season of trap. Another rookie on my team used a Mossberg 500. It was around $300 at Cabelas and has a bead and mid-bead to help get your head in the right position. Seems like a good starter option. My Rem 870 express worked ok, but the 26" barrel not ideal for trap. If all I was going to do was trap, I would have purchased a used BT99 for $999. Although at least a O/U can be used for skeet, doubles, 5 stand, etc. i do not have the $2500 for a sporting O/U.
 
I have a Mossberg 500 with an 18.5 inch house barrel and a 28 inch modified choke for skeet. In the house set-up it has a Miami Vice Pistol grip and sling. In the Skeet set-up it has the interchangeable 28 inch barrel and the rear shoulder stock. No fancy sights or F/O things, just a sweet shooting 12GA gun that works really well and fills two issues very well. O/U costs more and gas operated semi-auto's have more maintenance issues to boot.
Good Luck with your choices.
 
By clays, do you mean trap, sporting clays or skeet? I was assuming sporting clays which requires a faster handling repeater.
 
Yes. I was referring to the new A5.

It is amazing what you can spend on a sporting O/U.

Why doesn't Browning offer an version of the Citori or Citori 725 with a composite stock, dura touch finish, no engraving, same quality action and barrel and choke system for $1700.

Same for Beretta and the Silver Pigeon 686 line.

I do not need all the fancy finish. I prefer a plain working gun. I am on a budget.
 
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Browning and Beretta's finishes are not hand done; they are inexpensive - either rolled or lasered, same for the checkering. Browning does offer a model with synthetic stock as a field gun.
 
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