Shotgun selection

[Scott65]

So my daughter is in FFA and she comes home from school telling me about a shooting group that will be shooting sporting clays. I have no firsthand knowledge in this area. But it seems a good excuse to buy her a shotgun that she can learn with, and decide if she likes the sport. I have a friend who has a Remington 870, and an 1100 of some variety that he "may be willing to part with". I'm not looking to invest in an expensive gun at this time, so I'm leaning towards a pump, but open to the 1100 if the deal is right. I have numerous friends who are familiar with shotguns and say that Remingtons are not the same as years ago when they were very well regarded. My questions are two fold: How far back in time do you have to go (what years of manufacture) to get to a point where you feel the Remingtons are a top choice? And second, if you were to buy a brand new one today, what brands are good in the budget shotgun category? Budget to me being in the $400 or less price range. Any help would be appreciated as I want to help her, but I'm just not knowledgeable in this area.

[RPBrown]

I started my son out on a Remington 870. Pretty goog gun for the money. Mossberg makes some pretty good shotguns within your price range.

[swilkes]

Not sure if it would be a good clay gun but hard to beat my benelli nova. You can look at the super nova also for less recoil.

[bmwrdr]

I am not a shotgun expert but my buddies talk positive about the Remington 870 and Mosberg products.

[rotor]

So my daughter is in FFA and she comes home from school telling me about a shooting group that will be shooting sporting clays. I have no firsthand knowledge in this area. But it seems a good excuse to buy her a shotgun that she can learn with, and decide if she likes the sport. I have a friend who has a Remington 870, and an 1100 of some variety that he "may be willing to part with". I'm not looking to invest in an expensive gun at this time, so I'm leaning towards a pump, but open to the 1100 if the deal is right. I have numerous friends who are familiar with shotguns and say that Remingtons are not the same as years ago when they were very well regarded. My questions are two fold: How far back in time do you have to go (what years of manufacture) to get to a point where you feel the Remingtons are a top choice? And second, if you were to buy a brand new one today, what brands are good in the budget shotgun category? Budget to me being in the $400 or less price range. Any help would be appreciated as I want to help her, but I'm just not knowledgeable in this area.

I have among others a Remington VersaMax, a Browning 725, a Beretta xcel 400 and a Mossberg Maverick, all in 12 gauge and all are great. I think the Remington shotguns of new vintage are fine.
The issue is really what size is your daughter and what can she handle? My 11 year old grandson can't really handle a shotgun yet. For sporting clays for a beginner I think a pump is pretty hard to handle although I see many that outshoot me with a pump. An auto like the 1100 is going to have less recoil than a pump of similar weight and you need the speed of an auto or an overunder when shooting two clays with sporting clays. Finally, 12 g or 20 g? Again, how big is your daughter and what can she handle? I wouldn't consider .410 unless one is a pro.
One of the hardest things that I have found is getting shotguns for smaller women and kids.
Best if your daughter gets to try a few guns before buying. If it doesn't fit her though it will be very hard for her to shoot it.

[cyphertext]

I would hold off before buying anything and go to the first meeting with this group... if it is 4H, many times they will have shotguns for the kids to use. Go see what others are using at the club and try a few before committing to one.

[Scott65]

Thanks for all the advice. She's almost 6ft tall... No problem with a 12 gauge. Though she may appreciate one that was semi auto... I may wait and see what comes from the meeting that's supposed to be held. Her birthday is in a few weeks so I was hoping to figure it out in time for that.

[txglock21]

Just to add, whatever you get, I would suggest you make sure you can change out the chokes in case she wants to get into hunting. Most now days do, but some don't.

[Pawpaw]

I agree with the recommendation to check the group first.

If you do need to buy her a shotgun, an over - under will probably be the best bet. In sporting clays, the shots are two at a time, so more aren't needed. The extra weight of the double barrels helps smooth the swing and improve hit probability. A pump will make those second shots harder, especially for the inexperienced shooter.

O/U shotguns can be very expensive, but Academy sells some for as little as $400.

[rotor]

I agree with the recommendation to check the group first.

If you do need to buy her a shotgun, an over - under will probably be the best bet. In sporting clays, the shots are two at a time, so more aren't needed. The extra weight of the double barrels helps smooth the swing and improve hit probability. A pump will make those second shots harder, especially for the inexperienced shooter.

O/U shotguns can be very expensive, but Academy sells some for as little as $400.

I personally would not recommend the Yildiz Academy shotguns.

[Scott B.]

A mid-range semi-auto would fit the bill. Advantages are flexibility, recoil reduction, longer barrel, and ease of use. Downsides are more cleaning than a break open.

Another thought to consider. There are sporting clay college scholarships.... if I only had I known. Might have made that G.I. Bill option completely unnecessary

[The Marshal]

Not sure if it would be a good clay gun but hard to beat my benelli nova. You can look at the super nova also for less recoil.

I have used my Benelli Nova for years shooting clay. Fantastic, never-let-you-down pump shotgun. Everyone that shoots it, wants it.
Only thing is that they are Pump shotguns, and you have to learn to hit it fast. (no biggie, just a practice thing)

An Over Under would be preferred, but you can probably get a good Semi Auto cheaper.

[LeonCarr]

My favorite shotgun this week :) is the Benelli Nova, and I will still recommend the 1100 for clay games.

Not having to pump a shotgun is one less thing you have to worry about when shooting fast moving skeet, trap, or sporting clays.

I would also check with the group coaches first before buying.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

[SQLGeek]

I bought a Winchester SXP with a 28" barrel from Academy a few years back and have been pretty happy with it. I haven't shot it a ton but I have taken it out to bust clays several times and it's performed well. One thing I like about it is that it uses inertia to help pump the slide so it does half of the work for you. After taking a shot, I only have to bring it back a small distance before bringing it forward to put another shell in. This makes the process of shooting doubles to be a bit quicker.

The finish is a bit rough but for what it is, I got a pretty good shotgun for around $300 and that included three chokes and a wrench. I'd buy it again.

That said, I'm also a big Mossberg fan so allow me to also suggest a Maverick 88. Advertised at Academy for $189 right now:

https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/mossbe ... tid=130356

They also have a youth model for the same price:

https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/maveri ... tid=679904

[Sidro]

My wife and I have Beretta, Browning, Franchi, CZ and Benelli O/U and semi shotguns. She mostly shoots a Beretta A-400 which is above your price range. However Beretta has a very good semi for around $800. Recoil is not bad and it is a good choice for sporting clays. I don't think you can go wrong with this gun. It is the A-300 model and is made in the USA. Pump shotguns are tough to shoot for sporting clays so a semi works a lot better. O/U guns are great but will have more recoil than the semi.