Best "affordable" 16 0/U?

G

gak

New member
I'm talking <$1,OOO used or new. I'm assuming eastern European extract for this $ category?...which is fine if wood is at least "ok" (see comment below)...and am aware of the various Spartans, Stoegers etc., some of which have come and gone (also see wood comments). I'm not a stickler for fancy, and don't assume/expect in this price territory anyway, but hopefully no c*** wood. Prefer single trigger. Really like the Browning Lightnings/field model, but hardly ever see even used $1K or less. If decent wood and metal/machining quality and workings, would not have to be pristine by any means.
Thanks.
 
Difficult!

Very tough to catch an O/U in 16 that meets those parameters!
CZ SxS bobwhites and others can be had but O/U's are a tall order
:eek:
 
"Very tough to catch an O/U in 16 that meets those parameters!"

...Or so I've gathered! Admit it's a tall order--why I'm asking! Saw the ones posted. Not bad prices as Brownings go.
 
Try to find a Ithaca. They were made by SKB. Most were SXS but there are a few O/U's around.

The curious want to know. What is driving the desire for a 16 ga O/U?
 
To the query of "why?" - I don't mean to be flip, but because I want one and have for some time. A long time 16 afficianado for all the reasons all of us 16 nuts are. in short, the great tweener that does just about all in one gun. Lack of (ease of) availability of some loads aside, just a great gauge. Have owned 16 singles, sxs and pumps (mostly Ithaca 37s) for years. I've had and appreciated 12s and have (and enjoy) a 20 as well. I know you can load down a 12, but - don't load my own right now and love the fact that 16s are often made with their own discreet (smaller/lighter) chassis--or shared with the 20 (sort of like 9mm and 40 S&W vs .45 for pistoleros). The 16 is just a great uplander and all around (incl theoretical HD) shotgun. An O/U quite frankly, as it is for many of us, is a luxury and want, not need. I'll take a look for the Ithaca (SKB) mentioned. Failing something like that, I imagine I'll end up having to suck it up (for me) with the Citori. Thanks for the suggestions thus far.
 
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You MIGHT be able to find a 16 SxS easier. Bill Hanus, a big proponent of 16, 20, and 28, had a blurb on his site about The Brownings being discontinued a year or so ago, so finding one, especially in your budget, may get tougher. Ask the folks at the 16gauge society I linked to above - bet they can help
 
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I agree, affordable SxS abound. Just not interested right now--been there done that. I had not heard about Browning discontinuance--which is sad if true (don't want to start a demand/market argument here. I will say I don't understand it but admit I can't win!!), but finding NIB--as the one poster linked some examples--doesn't seem to be a problem, including at "not terrible" prices.
 
Rigby1962, I just re-read your post...just saw your SxS comment and thought that was a link to and not an O/U. That Fausti is a nice one and a real possibility. Thanks. I had thought about re-stocking a Rem (Spartan) but some have suggested the "...sow's ear" analogy...and, if done "right," ending up near these prices anyway. I also have an email - unrelated to this particular thread - from a Citori owner that MAY be willing to part with.
 
There is a dandy one on Gunbroker right now. Look for a "Ranger". Sears sold over/unders using the Ranger label. Those were really Marlin model 90's. Very decent guns for the money and they occasionally come available on Gunbroker.
 
If you really want a 16ga - then that's what you should buy. You have to fulfill your dreams once in a while ...and if that's what it takes - go for it ..

But just to think this issue thru a little:
In your reasoning you mentioned you didn't want to load a 12ga down because you don't reload - and that's fine / but you can buy a lot of 12 ga loads these days at 1 oz - so you don't need to reload. There are all kinds of shells at 7/8 oz, 1 oz, etc in 12ga available these days ( at way less than 16ga ammo prices ).

You said you like a smaller receiver than a typical 12ga O/U - that's ok - I agree that a 12ga will often be almost a full pound heavier than a smaller gague receiver for a 16ga or 20ga. But since you're looking for a deal /or a good used gun - there are a lot more guns available in 20ga than you'll find in a 16ga especially in the Citori lineup. And for a 20ga you can buy a lot more shells in loads from 7/8 oz, 1 oz, 1 1/4 oz in 4's, 5, 6, 7 1/2, 8's or 9's ...... at a savings of at least 25% over 16ga ammo. It will also mean you'll be able to buy a lot of "promo" shells on sale - and practice at your local Skeet, Trap or Sporting Clays ranges with less expensive ammo than anything you can get in 16ga.

I think the Browning Citori Lightning series - or any of the Browning Citori's are fine guns ( I have a bunch of them ) --- but if a 20ga Citori will give you everything you want in a gun ( light, swings easy, a variety of shells available retail ), respectfully, I think a 20ga Citori Lightning, 20ga Citori XS Skeet, 20ga Citori 625 series, etc. - is a better buy for you.

A 20ga Citori will also be a better resale gun down the road / there are a lot more guys looking for a good used 20ga than there are for a 16ga - and mostly because of the cost of the shells. Unless you reload - shooting a 16ga is a pretty expensive option.
 
16 Gauge

I believe the 16 gauge is "deadlier" than other gauges. Seems so to me. Every 16 gauge I've owned and shot birds with, was a real "killer". By that I mean the bird was "dead in the air". No bang and flopping on the ground for the dog to chase. I've shot well over a thousand birds on Preserves/Shooting Lodges using every gauge and a lot of shotguns. In my opinion nothing kills birds like a 16 gauge. I have a research paper some where around the house that "proves" that a 16 gauge is such a square load with such a short shot string. That a 12 gauge need 1/4 oz. more shot to equal the 16 gauge. I know you can "prove" anything. However, I believe it is so, from the birds I've killed. I feel that it is also vastly superior to the 20 gauge. Plus they also "look" right, and they also "carry" right. I honestly believe the 16 gauge is a better idea from my experience.
 
Both the 16 and 28 are considered to be the "square loads" preferred by upland hunters. I know several folks who only hunt birds - clays might be a few rounds as a warm up - and they swear by the 28 for small birds and the 16 for the larger ones.....both gents have been hunting longer than I've been alive - way over 50 years - so who am I to argue with that?
Personally, IF I could find a 12 that "carries like a 20, hits like a 12" like the 16 - i.e. a 6 to 6-1/2 pound 12, that would merit consideration....

But if you can find a 6# 16 instead of using a 6# 20, then I agree - go for it
 
The question of what gun to use in bird hunting is interesting - but personally, I use the same gun in the field that I use for Skeet and Sporting Clays.

I prefer all of these pastimes - with an O/U that is in the 8 1/2 lb range. A light gun in my hands - is way too whippy - and I have a tendancy to cut off my swing and follow-thru / so I weight my 20ga, 28ga and .410 to about 8 1/2 lbs vs the 7 1/2 lbs they come out of the factory ( all Browning O/U's, with 30" barrels ) in all 3 gagues....works the best for me. Note: I don't hunt with a .410 / but I do hunt with a 12ga, 20ga or the 28ga ... and on birds like Quail, especially over good dogs, a 28ga is a great option.

By the same token - when I travel by air / and only want to take one gun - I will always take a 12ga / and load it down to 7/8 oz or 1 oz depending on what I want to do with it. My favorite Travel Gun - is a Benelli Super Sport semi-auto 12ga - with a 30" barrel ....and at only 7.25 lbs its a great gun to carry in the woods as well ( and shoot a little Skeet or Trap - or waterfowl with it too ) ... So maybe I don't know what the best answer is - other than - do whatever makes you happy .
 
Jim - in my youth, aka about 30 years ago, chasing chukar uphill with a Browning Citori field gun that weighed 8 pounds didn't seem like much.......nowadays EVERY ounce counts - if I was to find my way back to NV for that season, I'd be toting something 6# or less - no matter the gauge; otherwise, I'd be DRT of a heart attack in the afternoon!....:D
 
I understand OneOunce .....at 6'5" and 290 lbs ...and a grey nose hair away from 60 yrs old myself .....(a few repaired parts..) even with the distant memory of once being an athlete ... I think I can do anything somedays ( and my word man, its only 8 1/2 lbs ... / then I remember - so I understand completely.

I wasn't speaking of chasing Chukar uphill all day ( that's plain old hard work ) .... / more like a "gentleman's hunt for quail" in the piny woods over some nice german shorthairs, maybe some Pheasants in South Dakota along the breaks of a wheat field with a big old lab busting them loose up close, maybe even some rough or blue Grouse in Northwestern Montana on a dusty logging road on nice fall morning or evening ..... ( makes me smile...)

Note to self: I think I pulled a hamstring when I got out of my comfy DUX bed this morning, might have twisted my back picking up the newspaper in the driveway and then I burnt myself filling the Expresso machine with water ......it was a heck of a morning ... ( one is reality / one just makes me smile ...). But I'm still going to shoot those 8 1/2 lb guns in the field as long as I can .....( but not chasing Chukar ) ...
 
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