What shotgun for trap shooting?

I’d recommend a BT99, but what might happen is you’ll enjoy trap and get the itch for skeet or sporting clays. The BT won’t work for that. That said, I like the 870’s or Citori’s.
 
entropy said:
Report pairs are possible if you're quick, true pairs....not so much. ;)
Click to expand...
Last day of clays leauge this past season I used my 870 with a skeet barrel and shot my best round of the season, really pulled that out of my butt. Next is to try the 870 for a round of skeet.
 
Gun fit.
POA=POI
Patterning

Short barrels can be moved to target faster.
Longer barrel sluggish felling.
Barrel length is dependent on your personal preference.
I like shorter barrels 18, 21"
24" barrel starts to feel sluggish to me and got rid of the super sluggish 32" barreled gun.
 
There are other clays shooting game such as skeet, 5-stand, and sporting clays. Most people tend to shoot a little of all of them. If you plan to ONLY shoot trap, then a dedicated trap gun is what you want. But it would be a handicap at the other clays games.

A semi-auto with a 26 or 28" barrel is probably a good all around choice that would work well for any of the clays games. Some of the really serious sporting clays guys like 30" or longer barrels. but I tend to lean toward shorter barrels. 26" is as long as I like.

Gas operated semi's tend to be heavier but the extra weight along with the gas recoil system result in less recoil and would probably be preferable for a range shotgun where you go through a LOT of shells. The inertia guns are lighter, more lively and quicker on target plus they tend to keep working when dirty. They are preferred by a lot of hunters but not very often for the clays games. If someone is shooting clays with one they are probably a hunter getting in some practice.

A pump would be fine for trap, but you need to be able to work the action pretty fast to be successful at any of the other clays games.
 
at first a shotgun is a shot gun. alas like any endeavor the more you jump in, the more you lean to more specific tools. what the heck, might as well. just saying.
 
Not until High School Trap became a thing did people start out with a dedicated Trap gun, and even still, it's often a poor choice such as a Stoeger Grand or Stevens 555 Trap. Maybe Baron Trump might have started with a Perazzi or Beretta DT-11, but us mere hunyuks mostly started out with very pedestrian hunting guns, usually a Remington 870 or Mossberg 500. And those of us that stuck with it, or came back to it later in life, went with guns more specific to the clays games we shoot.
 
I started with a semiauto Remington 1100 years ago. I went with the O/U type after deciding I liked the sport and wanted to dedicate some time and money to it. The O/U is much easier to clean. I use a Beretta 686 Onyx Sporting w/30 inch barrels. After a few years my favorite now is the 28 gauge version. Part of the joy is using a nice firearm you enjoy showing and shooting.
classictrap.jpg
IMG_0204.JPG IMG_4154.JPG
 
When I first started Trap shooting picked up a cheap Mossberg Silver Reserve O/U. They were known for firing pin problems so I put in a couple titanium firing pins and started shooting. Got my first 25/25 with it.

After shooting it for a while I wanted an upgrade so I bought a Browning Citori O/U. It’s a fine firearm and is smooth in every way. Problem being is I don’t shoot it as well as that Mossberg.

You don’t need to spend a ton of money to get started into the game.
 
If you don't expect to go big ATA and not shoot doubles you can't beat a BT99. They can be had in good used condition for under a grand. ($650 for my last one, A 1974 34" full choke). A decent used over/under can be found for $1500 or so (stick with Browning or Beretta and avoid the lure of the ridiculously low priced Turks. You get what you pay for).
 
Why could you not go big with a BT99? Purpose built for singles and handicap. If you get hooked, buy an OU for doubles.

And one of our members, rather a rustic chap, said his 34" would take a squirrel out of a tall, tall tree, too.

Me? I shot everything I could buy or borrow but never found anything that would break more for me than that Remington 1100 TA. (The clank, clank was distracting, so I kept an OU for doubles.)
 
I always wanted a nice older BT-99, but never really saw the point when I already have more than one Citori Trap model. I still admire an older one with the earlier engraving, though.
 
Oh, OK, my idea of "going big" is to attend state, zone, and nationals. Not everybody is at the Grand to shoot doubles.

Anecdote alert:
I read an old article by a gunziner who determined to go a full year shooting a single shot for all purposes. He had several, but focused on one he had fitted with a recoil pad and the choke reduced to Modified.
He said he had a good time, the gun was light to carry and there were not all that many opportunities for doubles on game even if he had a repeater.
He and like minded friends shot "Single Barrel Skeet" with enough of a delay between "doubles" for a hasty reload.
 
Doubles is fun. I have shot it with 1100s, 870s, and my SKB 600 Trap.
You can (and should, if you want to do it at Sparta) shoot doubles at State, Zone, and Sattelite Grands.
 
Oh, I loved doubles. Can't say it cost twice as much, we didn't shoot as many rounds. 50 pairs was a race.
When I was shooting a lot in the 1970s and 1980s, my club put on some of the state and big club matches.
The State was typically 100 singles, 100 handicap, 50 pairs of doubles in the Friday Preliminaries, then 200 singles on Saturday and 100 handicap, 50 pairs of doubles on Sunday. 700 targets in three days. I was amused by hunters who bragged "I shot a case of shells last season."
 
Jim Watson said:
Oh, I loved doubles. Can't say it cost twice as much, we didn't shoot as many rounds. 50 pairs was a race.
When I was shooting a lot in the 1970s and 1980s, my club put on some of the state and big club matches.
The State was typically 100 singles, 100 handicap, 50 pairs of doubles in the Friday Preliminaries, then 200 singles on Saturday and 100 handicap, 50 pairs of doubles on Sunday. 700 targets in three days. I was amused by hunters who bragged "I shot a case of shells last season."
Click to expand...

Doubles are fund but if you get good with it ultimately it leads to heading over to skeet. Which opens up a whole new can of worms.
 
I think you can get started in trap with whatever shotgun fits you, feels good, and points naturally for you. I have a number of shotguns, one of which is a dedicated trap gun - made just for shooting trap. In 25 years, I've shot precisely 2 rounds of trap with it. I don't compete - I shoot for fun. I almost always take my box-stock Citori Gran Lightning 12 ga. It's definitely not a trap-dedicated shotgun, but it fits me perfectly and I have the most fun with it. I've often shot a perfect round with it. My advice is to get a shotgun that feels right to you and to begin with, don't over-think it too much. I'm retired also, and it's just great to go have fun.
 
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