Gun Dog Forum

I've got the hankering for a new upland gun that will replace my heavy 870 and BPS.

It will mainly be a chukar gun but will be used on grouse and pheasants as well. It will also be in 12 guage because that is what I'm set up to reload for.

Addict

How much does your 870 weigh? With the 26" light-contour barrel, my 12 gauge weighs less than 7 pounds. You are probably going to have to spend quite a bit of money to find a quality shotgun that weighs less.

BTW, I shoot O/U's.

Addict check out the Stoeger its a good buy for what you get

http://www.stoegerindustries.com/firearms/index.tpl

You will like a auto for chukar for those 3 or 4 extra bullets. Cant hit'em all

You won't find an auto that weighs less than the 870 in a 12 gauge. My 870 Wingmaster that I hunted with for years with a 26" light contour barrel is right aroudn 7 lbs.
If there is an autoloading 12 gauge lighter than that I sure as heck wouldn't want to shoot heavy loads through it.

But if you'd be in the market for a 20 gauge I have a Beretta 391 Urika that I can give one heck of a review on!

My remington 1100 is pretty light but I am going with an O/U go through less shells and imporves ur shot IMO

Browning Gold Superlight FLD Hunter - 6 lbs 15 oz. 1 ounce shy of seven pounds.

My only advice is to look and look and look. Eventually you'll find a gun that just fits, and that you'll have the right gut feeling about. As long as you can hit with it, you're good to go.

Casper wrote:You will like a auto for chukar for those 3 or 4 extra bullets. Cant hit'em all

I like your way of thinkin!

"Course that little CZ of 12 Volts is one sexy gun! If i was to get a new shot gun that'd be the one.

I am not sure how much the BENELLI SUPER BLACK EAGLE II weighs but its the lightest shot gun I have used and with the new comfort tech stock there is very little recoil. I was amazed at how little it kicks with the heavy 3" duck loads. I would have to agree with Ayres though take your time and you will find a great shot gun that fits you.

My two main hunting guns are a 870 Express soon to be replaced with a Citori Superlight Feather and a American Arms 10ga turkey special O/U. I love O/U's but you can't go wrong with the good ole 870. I am not afraid of letting it slide across a barbed wire fence.

I like the nostalgia of the SxS, and they just come up and point so nice.

Kelly

A buddy of mine shoots a Benelli Montefeltro and that is one nice, LIGHT shotgun. If I were going to spend upwards of $1000 on a shotgun though, it would have to have 2 barrels. I LOVE the SXS's personally.
Steve

I like CZ and Yildiz o/u for the money. I have a rem 1100 upland special that is pretty light and very affordable.

My favorite upland pheasant gun is a Model 12 mat rib 16 gauge, full choke. It's good early and late season with ounce and an eighth loads of No. 4 or 5 shot. The Model 12 is just ergonomically correct. My favorite all around upland gun is a 20 gauge Beretta auto with 3" ounce and a quarters of plated shot in No. 4 or 5 shot on pheasants and modified choke. I like seven eighths oz of No. 7 1/2 or 8's on quail. I really prefer a 26" barrel on a 20 gauge and something longer on all other gauges. I prefer to put too much shot into a bird than too little. I give nothing up to a 12 gauge standard field load with the 16 gauge and only 5 to 7 yards with the 20 gauge and am packing what seems like a lot less weight at the end of the day when you start missing or crippling because you are tired. The 20 auto doesn't seem to kick as much and { Boom! Boom! Boom!} can really get your blood boiling though it's less often than not the solution to marksmanship.

I'll take my Rem 1187 premier Light contour any day, I personally like the feel of a little heavier gun it swings better with me. Even though the light contour barrel is 1/2 pound lighter.

JMO,
Chip

I am sure I have mentioned it before but I like the SKB's. I have a 200E in 20 gauge that is light and has 25"bbls. With it being so light and short it tends to be whippy. I have shot it so long I don't notice it but someone changing over from a long pump or auto would probably have a change over period to adjust to the problem.

The older guns are just made better than the newer ones IMO. I like the older pre-screw-in-choke SKB's and they can be had for reasonable prices. The model 600 o/u's and the model 100 and 200 sxs's are good solid guns that can still be had for around $1,000.

Addict wrote:I've got the hankering for a new upland gun that will replace my heavy 870 and BPS.

It will mainly be a chukar gun but will be used on grouse and pheasants as well. It will also be in 12 guage because that is what I'm set up to reload for.

Addict

You should put up your price range.

I bought the Benelli Ultra Light last yr in 12 G and love it!! I own the Bennelli 20 G legacy, but wanted a little more gun and when I picked the New 12 up I had to have it. I don't think you can tell the difference in weight from the 20 to the 12...

Brenda makes a good point, as I too have a couple Benelli's. However, the best to me is simple: Ruger Red Label 20 guage w/ chokes. You can do whatever you want/hunt whatever you want and looking good doing it with a RRL.

I shoot a Browning Gold Hunter 12, but there is a SxS in the near future.

I shoot a bernadelli sxs in 20 gauge great for pheasant and chukar

I find the 12 gauge to heavy for most upland birds it destroyed the meat when i did use one

Destroying the meat says you shot too quickly before the bird got far enough away. The size of the gun makes little difference in range. The 12 guage just has more pellets that may carry a killing patern out a little further than a smaller guage.

Ezzy

Huntin' with a single shot I would think has to be the most challenging. My father always said, "until you learn to hit it in one shot, I don't want you using two". However, I once knew a man that could shoot two shots with a single shot faster than a man with a pump. He was just ridiculous with that litlte H+R.

I can't really comment on hunting covey birds, but I do find I like to hunt with a double. I have both O/U and SxS's, and can't say I prefer one over the other as far an shooting goes. All of my SxS guns are older with fixed chokes, so they are less flexible in that regard.

What I like most about doubles is that they are so easy to load and unload, and an open gun won't fire. plus they give you the option to load two different rounds, and replace one or the other one at a time.

I've got a thing for doubles, I have a bunch of 'em...

Then again, one of my favorite birds guns is a Remington Sportsman 48 auto in 16 gauge. If you can find one of those, I highly recommend it.

Just love the 3rd shot and the new 20ga benelli is wonderful.

Pepper

Interesting. 70% are using double guns.

Pep, I think you are cheating, I was told you were only suppossed to put 2 shells in

My favorite upland gun is my circa 1930's 16 gauge Stevens side by side. It was given to me by my grandfather; he bought it way back when he was a kid, and that gun is still working beautifully (well there's a bit of dicoloration on the barrel, but i figure thats not too bad for a gun almost 3 times my age). The balance is great, and the gun is suprisingly light for a side by side. I've tried various pumps and O/A's over the years, and i've found nothing I like better for upland birds out in the old patchy farm country of western Massachusetts.

I have been using my Bretta 390 for the last 14 years and I love it, but I just bought a Benelli Super Nova and we will see how that goes.

Terry

I shoot a Browning Citori O/U, 20 GA, love it for woodcock & grousin'.

Birdhunter1-The Benelli Ultralight is lighter than an 870 by quite a bit. I have an 870 and don't consider it a lightweight gun.

.

Bernadelli sxs 20g weight maybe 5 pounds and points perfectly

Im no pro shot or anything but I use a Browning Silver Hunter auto 12 guage. Light and well balanced, I can shoulder it and swing, and be more accurate than with any other shotgun I have ever picked up. Im really impressed with it and didnt cost me all that much to buy

Thats a tough question. I use both, I voted auto though. Because I mainly use a Franchi 12ga auto. Its light and with the short barrel I can point it pretty quickly. But I also love to use my Berretta 686 20ga O/U. I love to use both. NE-Viz

I started with a Remington 1100 semi-auto and love shooting it, but I now bought my first o/u and love the gun. The o/u is my first choice