My first trap shoot was with a Mossberg 500 18” with a red dot! We shot around a bunch of self proclaimed “pros” and out shot them on everything. To say we were wildly unpopular is an understatement. Hey, we were having a blast hooping it up, but all the guys with their $20k+ O/U aren’t going to be the least bit amused. We were shunned pretty bad, but the whole experience was so addicting, we all (5 of us) went on a hunt for “real” shut guns.
We shot tons of different ones at a facility where we could rent several models. We all learned a pretty valuable lesson on that day. 1) the rifle makes a huge difference. 2) 20 gauge and 410 can pound the snot out of you. They are lighter and have less recoil control. 3) My bad shoulder in particular didn’t do well and any better with most non-semiautos than my pump gun. 4) a nice O/U is freakishly expensive...AND 5) It’s really easy to get humiliated with a nice (correct) shotgun when not being helped by the wider spread of a short barrel! Kinda explains the being shunned by the big boys thing.
I ended up with a Benelli Super Sport. Nicer than I deserve, but doesn’t pound the snot out of my bad shoulder. I’ve shot 400 rounds without bruising or issues, where my buddies with no shoulder issues with “lesser” semiautos have bruises after 75 rounds.
The Super Sport also is not so specific that I can’t use it for other activities like a dedicated skeet gun. What I’m really trying to say is go out and shoot as many as you can. The difference between one and another can be huge for feel, etc. I haven’t had a professional fitting, but I watched several videos on what constitutes a decent fit and had enough options with my rifle to get close. Two of my buddies didn’t have the option to adjust fit out of the box. Not advocating for the Benelli here, just saying there are differences to watch for. The best part of shooting clays/skeet...it doesn’t get any more fun than that! Enjoy the search and subsequent blastings!