16ga.com ~ View topic

Joined: 28 Mar 2008 Posts: 1460 Location: Eagle, Nebraska

I walked into one of my favorite old gunstores yesterday, dang if he didn't have couple guns I need. He must sense my impending prescence and then quickly slaps one up on the wall.
It is in 20ga, Browning Citori feather, identical to my 16ga (except engraving, my 16ga special run for scheels)
I want a 20ga for sporting clays games, and possibly skeet.
Don't have much practical purpose for it in the field, that I would take it over the 16ga, even for doves, as I like my 24 and 28 for that, maybe if I had some later season dove action, might take it.
haven't owned or shot a 20ga since I was 18.

20ga guns are wonderful!

I've never stopped scratching the 20ga itch!

Go for it!

Joined: 17 Oct 2019 Posts: 455 Location: New Jersey

I would not suggest a Feather for clay sports. You and the gun will take an unnecessary beating. They’re really not meant for it and your shoulder will agree with me. Even light loads will get annoying after 100 rounds.JMHO

Swampy presents a good point...

I'm remembering now that I really liked carrying the 20ga Citori I had and shooting in the field...it was a standard Lightning with 28" barrels. On the trap field it whacked my cheek like willow switch.

My 16ga Citori guns (Lightning 26", Featherlight 28", Grade 3 26") all shot very well on Clay's of all kinds...but I couldnt down a bird with them to save my life.

Could have been hunting clothes vs shooting clothes etc...but i felt the butt stocks between gauges were slightly different combs, thicknesses, etc...

Now...give me a 20ga auto loader or pump...oh man...I'm in heaven all the way around.

But I wouldn't necessarily abandon my Remington 31 16ga either...

Joined: 08 Feb 2009 Posts: 1308 Location: Western WA

Yes, don’t know what it is about those lightweight 20 ga doubles...the lovely little Beretta O/U feels like a 16 penny nail is being driven into my cheek after a couple rounds of trap. The amazing 20ga SKB 200 SxS is a bird slayer but on the range it leaves a purple splotch on my shoulder so distinct you can almost read the lettering on the buttplate. The 20 ga 870 has almost no felt recoil but it doesn’t drop birds either. They’re all a mystery.

B.

Joined: 17 Oct 2019 Posts: 455 Location: New Jersey

This may sound ridiculous but I’ve had that same issue over the years. I’ve recently started shooting all my sporting clays premount and it’s made a enormous difference in my score. Bird guns are light so shooting low gun at targets can be a challenge. Obviously you can’t do that grouse hunting but try it on the clays range if you haven’t already.

Joined: 07 Jun 2020 Posts: 224

20 ga gun’s can be good Guns. You need to ask yourself: why do I need this gun? How does it fit into what I am doing or want to do.

Not counting family gun’s. That said awhile back I reduced my arsenal getting rid of all 20 ga gun’s save one SLE for which I had a matching 16 & 12. I also got rid of my 28, 410’s, and most 12s save two, the SLE match to my 16 & 20, and a model 21 12ga (which is due to be replaced by a 16 M21 one day.

I did this to simplify Ammo and things overall. Tired of the too many guns I do not use. I wish I had not bothered with all the 20’s and 12’s along the way, or the way to many 16’s that I knew better than to buy.

I Think in the back of too many of our heads is the dream or desire that the prefect gun is out there and if I just find it through a long series of buys, I will be fulfilled. Reality is if I had known what actually fit me and saved my money more intelligently and focused my purchases I could have brought two or three guns that would have stayed with me and been my go to gun’s always.

I brought that first actually near prefect gun that fit me and I could have stopped at my Louis Christophe 16 ga SLE (Age 38 or so) but desire drove me to buy a near matching 12 ga project gun, a near matching 20 ga project, and a near mint restored 20 all to match the 16. The result, a great deal of money for three gun’s I rarely use. They all fit and are good guns, but they only seem to leave the gun safe to get cleaned.

Then there are the near matching in terms of barrel length, gauge, and fit, SXS 16’s from Alex Martin SLE pair (brought for the Celtic engraving), Manufrance Ideal, Jules Bury SLE, and the Purdey project gun. Sadly only two of those five get some use. And yes there were a lot, I mean a lot of others too many to list that are now gone.

It feels nice to look at a safe full of sweet gun’s, but once acquired it is very hard to let one go, and the nicer the harder. At the same time I intellectually know I would be better off with a third of them.

My point is gun buying always makes sense when we do it, that said less money at some points, more discipline, and actually sticking to what I very early on would have served me better.

If the draw of the featherweight 20 is creating a set, will you really use it that much? If it is to back up the 16 as a second string gun, staying in the same gauge makes more sense. If it is to have a lighter weight gun for the end of the day or when you just want a little less then maybe. However is the difference in weight from 16 to 20 that much? I have a 5lb 24 ga for that purpose, though I note it rarely gets used, the ultra super light gun is an idea that is better in one’s mind than the field.

Along the road I found a way to convince myself some fifty plus purchases made sense, in 20/20 hindsight maybe six actually still do

Ultimately you have to determine if a very similar gun to your 16 is really worth it.

Joined: 28 Mar 2008 Posts: 1460 Location: Eagle, Nebraska

I get the lot of shooting part, but doesn't concern me too much. I have one gun, a ruger red label 12ga that is one of the newer ones that came out, shoot it quite a bit at clays in competition, otherwise all my clay shooting is for bird practice mainly.
So I shoot the guns I will likely shoot in the field, sxs's 16ga O/u which is light weight, even one of my citori 12ga is an Upland model and not heavyweight either.
20ga is about only gauge I do not have other than 32ga and 410 bore. And will have a 410 at some point.
Several competitions around here have small bore events, I shoot the 28ga and that is all that qualifies, as you can imagine, there is no 24ga event (or 16 either)
So with the 20ga I can shoot another event, and brother shoots 20's so just one more event to shoot. Often they are 50 round events as well.
also plan to shoot some skeet with it.

If getting slapped in cheek hard, I would be looking at gun fit.

and likely get this gun fitted as well.

I like this gun as it is same as my 16ga citori except gauge, otherwise identical.
If I find it is too much for shooting high volume, then will give me an excuse to go buy another 20ga.

I might get to shoot this 20ga at some doves this weekend, depends on water and if teal are here. Otherwise be shooting teal this weekend.

Plus too late to back out, I handled the damn thing, now have to have it.

I really enjoy the talks around the club about gun fit ... it's late summer and still T-shirt weather . The Davis is short , 13'' with a slip on pad . That's what it had last trip to Moo . Started out OK . then the co;d/snow hit and the jackets were thick - couldn't get it up at 13'' !! However , slide the pad off and back in bizz at 12'' !! PT is , there are so many variables that perfect just isn't a happening very often !

I keep a stock of Fiocchi Trainer loads for the wife and her 5#2oz Franchi SL 20ga. She's fine for the 25-50 rounds she shoots occasionally. I have altered the stock for LOP and DAC to fit her. the 3/4oz moderate vel loads will take pen quail no problem and break clays just fine.

When I was looking for a light weight gun for her, I started looking at 28ga guns, but settled on a 20 since often the 20ga's were equal or lighter than the 28ga guns and the fiocchi loads were less per box than 28ga. If the fiocchi trainer is discontinued, I'm set up to load 20 ga now as well!

Guest

Hootch, just load up some 3/4 oz loads if the recoil is stiff. Claybuster has a perfect wad for the task.

Member Joined: 08 Nov 2005 Posts: 3438 Location: Illinois

Do you REALLY need an excuse/reason to buy ANY gun Razz

Old Colonel2 -- You make a lot of sense. I have long lived the "never met a gun I didn't want to shoot, or a shell I didn't want to reload" idea. Time changes perspectives, and I know my stable must eventually be reduced. To what and when are the questions. I'm think I can see the answer rising from the fog of a full gun cabinet.

Cheers!
Tony

What Old Colonel hinted at, is that there is no such thing as the perfect gun, but neither is there one gun that can do everything well, just like you wouldn't go on the golf course with only one or two clubs. Sometimes you need a 12ga boomer (3 wood), and sometimes you need a sand wedge (open choked 16). I've never had the need for anything lighter than a light 16, but I get the appeal.

Philly Fox A Grade and Utica Sterly. They don't get out as much as my 16's, but they are sweet little guns...