If you are a wing shooter, this is your time of year! At the time of this writing, all reports I’ve received from South Texas on quail are outstanding – as good as or better than last year, and last year was great! Duck season is beginning earlier this year, and I’m looking forward to spending some time in the field with Vicki and Brian.
Those of us who live in Texas are fortunate in that we have a great variety of opportunities to go wingshooting in our own state. From the coastal bays and marshes to the inland lakes, large and small, we have an opportunity to not only sample a wide variety of waterfowl and upland hunting, but also enjoy some fall fishing after the hunt is over.
The rains this year have come at the right time and the vegetation that would normally be burned up by the sun in August is still green in October. This gives all wildlife plenty of ground cover for protection as well as an abundant supply of food. All of this adds up to what could be a hunting season to remember – especially in South Texas where I spend so much of my time!
As shooting instructors and writers, Vicki and I get the opportunity to shoot many different shotguns. “I want to buy one gun to hunt everything with,” people often tell us. “What should it be?”
Unfortunately, there is no good answer to this often asked question. We compare this question to a similar one about ladies’ shoes. What is the most perfect pair of ladies shoes? Even with an unlimited budget, there is no good answer to this question either.
Shotguns, like shoes, are made for different applications. There are three basic shotguns that are popular among hunters today. Although you do see a side by side (SBS) in the field every now and then, the over/under (O/U) semi-automatic (semi-auto) and pump shotguns are the overwhelming favorites of today’s wing shooters. Each of these has certain advantages and disadvantages comparatively when used for different birds or sporting clays.
While all shotguns can be used for sporting clays, a target gun would be best. The reason is that a target gun is heavy (7 ½ to 9 pounds) and made to be carried a little and shot a lot. The added weight helps with recoil reduction. A heavier gun will kick less and a lighter gun will kick more. You cannot change that fact. Field guns are typically lighter and are made to be carried a lot and shot a little.
A good way to compare shotguns is to look at their price, weight and reliability. The O/U will typically be the most expensive of the three followed by the semi-auto and then the pump. Although you will find a few O/Us priced below what a good semi-auto will cost, it is our experience that the fit, finish, and function is not as smooth as the mid range O/Us.
Although there are exceptions, O/Us start at around $1,400 and can get very expensive depending on wood quality and engraving. Semi-autos begin at around $700 and pumps begin at around $250. As you can see, there is a wide price range of shotguns on the market.
Now, let’s talk about weight and recoil. As we mentioned before, there is no trade-off for weight and recoil. The heavier the gun, the less it will kick. If you do a lot of walking when you hunt, a lighter gun will suit your needs better than a heavy one. For instance, a quail gun should be in the 5-6 pound range because you walk a lot hunting quail. I like a 20 or 28-gauge. The cartridges are smaller and lighter, and at the end of a long day of quail hunting, every extra ounce you have carried seems like a pound!
On the other hand, a dove gun could be a little heavier because you are usually standing or sitting and the birds are coming to you. A gun in the 6-7 pound range would be great!
A duck or goose gun should be much heavier because the waterfowl loads have much more recoil than upland bird loads. Some of the waterfowl guns are upwards of 9 or 10 pounds when you get into the 10 gauge semi-autos. The added weight sure helps with recoil and you rarely are holding the gun while in a duck or goose blind.
My choice for a duck or goose gun would be a semi-auto in the 7-8 pound range – same for turkey. The gas operated semi-auto will kick less than the O/U and pump because the action absorbs some of the recoil.
How about reliability? The O/U and the pump win this category hands down, with the O/U coming in ahead of the pump.
Why? When you fire a semi-auto, 40-50 parts move to fire the first shot, eject the spent round, chamber the next one, and re-cock the trigger. With all these parts moving and doing their job in less than a second, a lot can go wrong. The semi-auto must be kept clean in order to function.
When you fire a pump, 20-30 parts move to fire the first shot, eject the spent round, and chamber the next one. Unlike the semi-auto, the shooter works the action, ejects the spent cartridge, and chambers the next round. When the pump gets a little dirty or wet, it can still keep going because it relies on the shooter to work the action.
When you fire an O/U, 10-15 parts move to fire the first shot and then fire the second shot. The O/U has fewer moving parts and the parts are enclosed inside of the action and the stock. Almost all of the dirt and grime associated with firing a shot shell stays in the barrel away from the moving parts.
I’m not saying that any of these gun types are unreliable. Some are more reliable than others. Some have advantages over others in different hunting situations.
When shooting flushing birds, the double-barreled guns (SBS and O/U), allow you to have two different chokes in the barrels. Before screw-in chokes became the norm, almost all upland bird guns were choked improved cylinder and modified. That combination is hard to beat on flushing birds. A more open choke for the first shot and a tighter one for the second shot are ideal for shooting quail or flushing doves.
This situation is where the double trigger SBS has an advantage. When a bird flushes a little farther out, you simply move to the back trigger and fire the barrel with the tighter choke. You can switch triggers easier and more quickly than you can change the barrel selector on a single trigger double barrel.
When shooting incoming doves, you can choose to shoot the tighter choked barrel first and the more open barrel second when the birds are closer. The O/U field guns are lighter than the pump or semi-auto.
Although the O/U has the advantages of two chokes because of their weight, they have more recoil. The semi-auto kicks less, but must be kept clean to function reliably in the field. The pump is in the middle with respect to weight, but is very reliable because of its action and is the least expensive.
As you can see, it’s darn near impossible to find one gun to suit all situations. Like women’s shoes, different guns are made for different situations. Even if you had an unlimited budget and could afford any gun you wanted, if you can’t shoot proficiently, the gun is worthless.
My advice is to buy a gun that you like and can afford, and spend some time and money learning to shoot it. If you can afford it, buy a special gun for a special purpose.
But don’t ever complain about the number of shoes your wife has if you hope to have more than one shotgun!
