RE: 12 or 20 gauge

[DavidB2]

I have decided to get another shotgun. I currently a Winchester semi-auto 12 gauge model 1400. It is a great gun for skeet, dove, rabbits. However, I have always wanted a pump shotgun. I am probably going to let my son use the automatic since he loves shooting it.

Mossberg has some great deals on their 500 pump guns; which also come with a combo package rifled barrel for shooting slugs. I have always wanted a slug barrel so that I could add the option of dear hunting with a shotgun.

My question is this; will there be noticably extra recoil with a pump 12 gauge vs. 12 gauge semi-auto? I figured that the semi-automatic action takes away a lot of the felt recoil. I considered getting a 20 gauge to avoid extra recoil; especially shooting skeet. I have heard that a 12 gauge is so much better with skeet shooting than a 20 gauge. I appreciate any suggestions as to which might be the better choice for a second shotgun.

 

[Snarlingiron]

I don't find a huge difference between the recoil of a gas operated 12 ga.and a pump 20 ga. I have fitted my 12 ga pumps and my O/U 12 ga with limbsaver recoil pads and find that does a pretty good job of soaking up the perceived recoil.

I feel the recoil of the pump guns to be a little more than the recoil of a gas operated gun of the same gage but nothing unmanageable.

Just my subjective observations. Others may see it differently.

 

[Gordon]

For all Upland game for me is hard to beat a good 20 ga. , it is a severe handicap in clay sports if you care about that. A 20 has about 75% of the recoil of a 12ga load for load.It's because = a standard 20 gauge load is 1 oz where a 12 ga is 1 1/4 oz + heavier wadding and gass weight of charge. Also MOST 20 gauge loads are about 75 FPS slower than equivalent 12 gauge loads.
Sure Gas operated shotguns attentuate quite a bit of the recoil, a fired a 20 ga 391 Beretta recently and it has about 70% of the recoil of my old Browning 20 Mag with the same load.
So bottom line is IF shooting skeet is important and IF recoil is a big factor get a good gas operated 12 ga.

 

[Hungry Seagull]

I fired a Federal trueball slug through my 12ga Remington 870 one day. I fired the 20 gauge Federal trueball ammuntion through the Mossberg 500 bantam.

Both gauges had the ammuntion rated at 1600 fps in speed and availible energy pretty close. Both guns did not exhibit different feel during the recoil and resettle for the next shot.

If you are firing a rifled barrel forget using buckshot of small kind. It wont pattern well. If you are using slug use a smoothbore with a IMP Cyl choke. If you are rifled you can use a SABOT which is damn accurate and some Brenneke ammuntion slug that will go either rifled or smoothbore.

I tend to stick to ammuntion for 1400 fps down to 1200, even a bit of triple aught at 1350 fps and a pattern to drop bad guy at 20 feet. It wont hit *&^%$% at the clay or skeet range though LOL.

Enjoy

 

[oneounceload]

If you are talking standard TARGET loads, the 20 is 7/8 oz, while the 12 can be either 1 oz or 1-1/8 oz. Field loads can be heavier.

A standard 20 target load, though lighter, is generally shot in a lighter gun, therefore, the recoil might actually be greater. A pump gun is usually the lightest, and the recoil will be more intense.

The heavier the gun plus shooting the lightest loads equal the least recoil. A gas gun will then help reduce the perceived recoil a little more as well.

As to skeet shooting, you should be using standard to light loads in the gauge of your choice (12, 20, 28, or 410). Pump guns are a little harder to do well with on the skeet field when there is a second shot due to the arm movement cycling the action.

YMMV

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

The felt recoil is much more a function of recoil pad & shot load weight & powder charge, than it is a function of gauge and semi-auto or not.

Get the gauge you want - you will be able to manage the recoil with the appropriate recoil pad, even if a pump, for all but magnum loads, and probably even magnum loads.

Having said that, I really like the 20 gauge.

 

[rcmodel]

Felt recoil is also a function of gun weight.

And most 20's are lighter then 12's by a pound or more.

Gas operated semi-autos spread the recoil impulse over a longer time frame.

They appear to shoot "softer" then a pump or other fixed breech gun of equal weight.

rc

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

Yes, they do, and that's why, all other things being equal, I like a semi-auto for a "magnum" 12 ga shotgun such as a turkey gun. More so for patterning sessions than hunting though. Ditto for a 12 ga that will be shot a lot, like a waterfowl gun.

But still, I think weight (as you mentioned), and recoil pad, and stock construction, and above all, loads used, are more significant factors in recoil than either gauge (12 vs. 20), or action (semi-auto vs. not).

The OP mentions doves, skeet, rabbits. No mention of ducks, geese, or turkeys. So you can go light loads, in which case I'd stick with 12 ga regardless of whether semi-auto or not. And a pump with light/medium loads and a good recoil pad will also not beat you up too bad, even if shot a lot. So I say go for a 12 ga pump. Wanna shot 2 oz, 3" magnums at turkeys? Different story.

So, yes, semi-auto is softer shooting and that IS a factor, but it's a smaller factor than I think most people imagine it is, especially relative to the other factors like quality of recoil pad.