If you’re new to skeet or sporting clays, you might have questions about what gun to buy or where to buy it, and whether you want an over/under or semi-auto. And you can pick up an abundance of free advice – or as the late Ed Hefty would ask me on the skeet field, “Gil, could I get about $10 worth of free advice?”
That old man was a genius with wood stocks. He always had a bounce in his step and was anxious to see what was over the next horizon. I could recognize him from far away wearing that pith helmet and the almost methodical gait of each step he took. I wasn’t smart enough to seek out his counsel and wisdom in stock-making until it was too late, but was privileged to know and shoot skeet with him.
There are about as many opinions on gun fit as there are presentations in sporting clays. And it’s as much art as a science. For the beginner, you must decide which clay game you’re going to pursue because each game will require a little different gun fit due to the unique target presentation in skeet or sporting clays. Things like cheek pressure, stance, posture, or simply if you start with the gun mounted or unmounted, can make a difference in your gun fit.
If you’re shooting targets that are going away from you and rising, like low 7 in skeet or a trap shot in sporting, if your gun shoots a little high, you won’t have to cover the bird with the barrel to hit the target.
Some shooters like a gun to be stocked so it patterns a little high. They do what’s called floating the bird – shooting under the bird to center the target in their pattern. While a gun that shoots high in sporting might be an advantage on trap shots or springing teal, it’s not so much an advantage on dropping shots, especially at distance. And if the target is curling, your problems are compounded!
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