Length of Pull

Thanks BigJimP. It seems I have to nearly go back to the beginning and check out the guns I am interested in all over, now that I know what to look for, which seems to be what I call my snap sight picture. Of couse I don't mind that to much. Before, I only noticed that with some I had to force my head into position to get a good targer picture but with others it was more natural.

Interesting that you mentioned the Bennelli with the comfort tech system because I was considering the super nova pump.
 
If you're looking at things from a new perspective, then going to your local gun club and borrowing/renting various types and actually shooting them will give you the best insight as to which ones will work for you - much better than just shouldering them in the store

Good luck, the hunt for the perfect gun never ends!
 
I don't know if the Super Nova and the SuperSport share the same carbon fibre stock configuration or not ?? / but I do think they use the same snap in recoil pads.

But even the longest pad for the Super Sport --- is only 14 3/8" ( which is how it comes standard ) --- and they sell optional pads at 14" and 13 1/2" ( to reduce the LOP ) ... and left handed vs right handed - but nothing longer than 14 3/8" although the marketing rep in my area for Benelli - told me something was coming out ( I still haven't seen it ??) But since you mentioned it - in one of your notes ...was why I mentioned it...

My Benelli is a backup ( or a rain or travel gun ) .....not a primary gun ....so I just live with it at 14 3/8" ( but the contour of the recoil pad - is why it feels a little short to me ). The recoil pads are expensive ( about $ 85 ) but I'm going to buy an extra one ... cut it on a bandsaw / and put an extra 1/2" into it ( as a wafer ) and see if it holds up ...
 
I know BigJim really likes his Benelli Super Sport. When he showed me how it works and how quickly and easily it dismounts, it made me think my old R-1100 belongs in a museum. Since I like to tease him, I tell him his SS looks like it would be more at home on Mars than a gun club or game field.

I concur with Jim on the snap-on butt pad system seeming pretty Matty Mattel. I suspect Benelli considers the Super Sport an "in progress" gun -- they do offer the Sport II with a walnut stock.
 
There are lots of different perspectives on "Fit" ....on this forum...

But "Fit", in my mind, is best characterized - as the gun hits where you look. You put a full choke in it / shoot at a 3" spot - at 21 yards ( is the Point of Impact - POI ) right on the spot, or left or low, or high ....etc...

To correct the gun, so it hits where you look - is to adjust the "Fit". Maybe you need a little higher comb, maybe lower, etc ...or maybe a parallel adjustable comb. Some of the guns may have shims / you insert between the receiver and the stock - to raise or lower / or to move left or right .... some guns don't have the shims. Some guns have adjustable combs / you can raise or lower - or move left or right ....but they aren't common on synthetic stocks. Some you can add in after-market / some you're just stuck with what you have - because it isn't economically adviseable to do much to a relatively inexpensive gun.

To me - picking another gun - is about the adjustability. That's part of why, in my "target guns" - I shoot parallel, adjustable comb guns - like the Browning Citori XS Skeet models / or the Benelli super sport - because it has shims and drop in inserts in comb and in recoil pad. The Benelli system is incremental ...but its not bad. Some of my older guns are fixed - like my older Browning BPS pump gun Hunter models. On those I have to use a
"stick on comb pad" and/or alter the LOP with a different recoil pad....

"Fit" - so the gun hits where you look / is almost impossible to tell in a shop unless you have many thousands of shells under your belt ...and really know how the gun is supposed to feel / and what you see down the rib when you open your eyes. You can come close .....but you really need to shoot a gun at a pattern board / to get your Point of Impact ...and then dial in the "Fit".

When I was a kid / we didn't know anything about "Fit" ....we shot guns in the family, guns were passed down, etc ..... At some point, we figured out what made the gun fit / so it hit where we looked ( a vest, sweater, or coat combination ) or whatever ..... so when we put our face on the comb / it was hitting where we looked. On any "angled" comb gun ....like the Super Nova or the Browning BPS .... if you move up or back on the comb as little as 1/2" the muzzle moves up or down accordingly ... so your point of impact really changes. Its just the way it is / with angled comb guns ...

I know you started by asking about LOP ....but its all rolled up in this issue of "Fit" like OneOunce and Zippy advised as well .../ just be patient ...and shoot as many guns as you can before you decide.

As an example, Browning Citori 625 with adj comb / does not have a parallel comb. Its a beautiful gun .....but it has too much drop at the comb for me / so that gun, with that stock configuration, is a very poor gun for me... Most all of the Beretta O/U's have too much drop at the comb / and I don't like the slimmer area around the grip of their guns ...so most all of the Beretta's will not fit me either ...( all of which I've learned over many years .... )...

So you kind of have to develop your learning curve ...
 
There are people ont the thread who have long pulls compared to me. I've had to modify every "standard" length shotgun I've ever owned. I'm 5' 11" and have average length arms (I think).

Remember that hunting shotguns are sometimes used when you're bundled up with clothing. My hunting guns are about 13 1/4 to 13 1/2", and my Scattergun Tech Combat 870's are just fine with 12.5" LOP's--no matter what I'm wearing.

A little shorter still works. Too long causes problems.:cool:
 
Guys. I like onoounceload's suggestion to get my self down to a local gun cluup and start shooting. I had been wondering if there was a program where I could pay X to try some weapons and get some advice and would think some gun shops would promote something like that. There is a place in Newport Beach that has been there since I was a kid and I am headed out the door to go there now - Turners Gun shop. They should give me an idea of what is around here in Orange County, CA. (As a boy I shot clay off the side of the road a few miles from the old Tustin buffalo ranch, but the place is a bit populated for that now.)

Why I am there I am going to see if what they think of whether or not my old H&R model 1900 is safe to shoot with certain reduced loads. (It has been discussed. including the proper ammo, on another thread and safety wise it is questionable.)

Zippy13 and BigJimP. All I can say is the Bennelli Nova is awfully pretty.

DaveC. A good used 870P, if had for a decent price, would likely be better than an an new but inexpesinve clone.

Nnobby45. What you say about short stocks may be true for me. The old model 1900 I have but have never shot feels pretty good and it has a 13 1/2" pull. It is hard to gauge using it as nothing about the stock is similar to a modern gun.

Off to Turners. (I just bought my wife a necklace for Xmas. As she was almost ready to give me a gift certificate to a gun shop as a present, I think she will let me get anything in reason. She is also getting a new car. Me. I have to be careful about spending a few hundred on a shooter.) Thanks again everyone for your well reasoned input.

I really listen to it.
 
Picked up my Remington 870 Express and went to Prado shooting park today. One of their regulars who showed me around and explained skeet and trap thought that I not only didn't need to shorten my stock but I may need to lengthen it by about 1/2 an inch to get the proper LOP for skeet. He didn't know about hunting.

For those interested in conditions at Prado in Chino, California, they had hoped to open today but as of 1 p.m. were still having problems so I took off. The pistol range was open.
 
Happy to hear you finally have your new gun in hand. The Calif. waiting period is a real bother. I haven't bought a new gun in some time. At my age, if I buy a gun, I'm likely to forget about it before the waiting period is over. ;)

What was up with Prado not being open? It's located in a large flood control reservoir (as is Triple-B), so it's understandable if it gets flooded when the rains are unseasonably intense.
 
Zippy. That is what happened. The water was backed up by the dam over the roofs of some of the trailers/buildings. It was a major feat just to walk around and not fall down in some of the mud. The owner was cleaning a lot of surface rust off of some range guns.

Remember what you said about borrowing other shooter's guns. A guy I met was tickled to explain skeet and trap and let me look at his Wetherby OU. When I mentioned that a guy on the internet (guess who) told me to come out there and rent a gun, he said I could probably try some of the other shooters. Nice place.

The guy that was showing me the ropes was concerned that they wouldn't let me shoot an 18 inch barrel, but I asked and a person in the trailer said it was fine as long as I had a full stock.
 
I'm happy to hear the Prado people were hospitable even if they weren't able to toss any targets. With all the rain they've had, it should be lovely there this spring.
 
Went back to Prado today at about 1:30 and the shotgun range was in operation if not very busy. (They are having trouble with their telephones. I don't know if they normall take credit cards, and if they know you it may be different, but it was cash and carry because of the phones being out.)

I shot two rounds of "Trap". Shot with a little old guy who was great, even if he had to move slowly with the use of a walker and had difficulty with speech. Appeared to be recovering from a stroke. He was a good shooter and very nice guy.

The other guy I shot a round with was obviously peed that he had to shoot with some newby with a black riot gun. F him.

There were also a guy in his very eraly twenties with what looked to be a Mossberg (690) with ghost ring sights and a sidesaddle. I noticed he had several misfires and his rear sights came off while shooting skeet.

The young RO was great. The first round he scored me 7/25 (and that was when half way through the old guy who could barely speak explained that I should shoot more quickly before the pattern speads. He scored me 17/25 the second round. I know that you guys would freak if you shot so poorly but I was tickled (and I think he was genrerous with the score keeping.)

As for the 870's performance, I was only top loading one round at any time but nothing misfired and everyting ejected.

No cheek slap. Very little trouble with recoil in the shoulder. A couple of times there was a little too much recoil, which I subscribe to not holding the gun well. Leter my right thumb feels sore.

But it was a blast to blast.
 
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...it was a blast to blast.
Click to expand...
Sounds like you're hooked. How long do you figure it's safe to wait before mention to your wife that a target shotgun would be a lot of fun to have in addition to the new HD gun? :rolleyes:
 
Sounds like you're hooked. How long do you figure it's safe to wait before mention to your wife that a target shotgun would be a lot of fun to have in addition to the new HD gun?

I don't think a target gun is in the cards for some time, but I may shop around for a good deal on a longer barrel for the 870.

First I have to get her and the kids interested in this. I am thinking of taking them to a less regimented venue such as Burro Canyon of a place that was suggested out above Fontana where perhaps we can be left alone with a box of clays and a portable thrower.
 
Me2

Kinda late to this thread and no where near the experience of many of the other fellas who have offered their know how.
When I started in this silly shotgun business (addiction?) I spent some time up at the Orvis shotgun facility at Sandanonna. One of the things that they did for me was to give me a shotgun fitting using a Try Gun. I won't go through the process but what I ended up with were these measurements.
I am right handed. Right eye dominant. I am 6'2" and weigh 200lbs.
In shirt sleeves, my LOP is 15 1/4"
Drop at comb = 1 1/2". At heel = 2 1/2".
Cast off 3/8"
Pitch = +4 degrees.
When I pick up a gun set for these measurements, it comes right to my eye and shoots exactly where I am looking.

I don't have a custom gun, though, and I rarely shoot in shirtsleeves. I have learned that, practically, I am best off with a SG that has an LOP of 14 1/2" or so. The guns that I use the most have been adapted to this length or longer by spacers or/and removable recoil pads (using one adds about 1/2").
To the gun that I use for Trap (a used Mossberg Country Squire with a ribbed 30" FC barrel), I have lengthened the stock as just noted and raised the comb with an add on. It has helped a lot.
Pete
 
Thanks Darkgail. You went the best way and I have seen video of being fit with a try gun. The truth is I couldn't wait to buy something and the rains we were having in So Calif made it impossible to rent/borrow and try things put. I am just under 5'8" and 200 pounds. What I picked up, an 870 with a synthetic, has a 14" LOP and one gent at the range thought I needed to lenghten it to 14.5" if I am shooting in a polo shirt. I am going to put some more rounds through it before I do anything but I imagine I could duct tape a pad over the stock one to see how it fits with a longer LOP. (Or spend $40 for a slip on Limbsaver).
 
parden me but,

my 870 has a snag factor on my shirt/jacket from the pointy nature of the recoil pad. has anyone rounded over the tip of their pad on a recent release of their 870 express. An exacto maybe. I was afraid it might be sponge-like, or hollow? :eek:
images
 
Foghorn,

I lookws at my original pad, which is hollow with a waffle pattern rigid suppport system, but I do not think that the hollowed out part extends into the pointy art on the bottom of the recoil pad. I think you can roound it off some but don't go crazy and rem,ove no more than 1/8". Before taking anything off, wait to see if someone else chimes in.

What I eventually did with mine, and I was very pleased with the result, was I got a Remington SuperCell recoil pad. They are sold in most LGS or can be ordered from Remington for about $20. It is much softer than the standard pad and is no where near as pointy. It sucks up a lot of felt recoil.

Should you get one for your 870, they are different for a wood or a synthetic stock.
 
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