Picking out a basic skeet gun.

H

Hoss Delgado

New member
I took a class recently on skeet shooting, and it was pretty fun. I'm thinking about doing it casually, and maybe seriously at some time in the future, but at the moment I don't have an appropriate gun. They provided guns at the class, and I tried a Remington 11-87, a Ruger Red Label, and a Browning Gold Hunter.

Of the three, I definitely like the Browning the best. I saw a used one at a gun show recently for about $475 and I'm wondering if I shouldn't have picked it up. It has the word "Hunter" in it though, so I'm not sure if it's made for skeet, but maybe that doesn't matter. The other one I'm looking at is the Stoeger M2000. I haven't shot it, but I checked it out at the local gun store. It fits well, but whatever coating is on it feels weird to my hands.

However, I'm open to other ideas. I'm hoping for something in the $400-$600 range. I know the argument that the gun is the cheapest part of shooting, but honestly, I'm not sure how serious I am about skeet yet. I'd hate to spend $1000 and find out I don't actually like it that much. Semi-auto strongly preferred, I've just never held a double barrel that felt natural to me.
 
You might check out the Mossberg 930. I had one for a year or two and it never gave me any problems. You can get one NIB + a few bulk packs of skeet loads and not top out your price range.

I would definately recommend the Browning Gold Hunter over the Mossberg, but you're looking at around double the $$$.

I've heard mixed reviews on the Stoeger, can't really comment as I've never owned one. However, the Browning and Mossberg are gas-operated, while the Stoeger is inertia-operated, much like the Benelli Super Black Eagle. I am not a fan of the SBE's as I think the recoil is much worse than you should have to deal with on a $1.5K shotgun...

You might consider a good pump-action. I prefer the Browning BPS & Benelli Nova models personally. But the Mossberg 500 and Remington 870 models both have strong followings.
 
With your budget, a used semi or pump like the Browning you mentioned would be a good bet - if it turns out skeet isn't for you, those guns will hold resale better than a cheap O/U. If you can swing a used Beretta whether an older 303 or the newer 39X series, I would go with that.

As to whether you can shoot skeet with a "hunter" model. Field guns tend to be a little lighter than their target model cousin (Brownings excepted, they're ALL heavy). If the gun has choke tubes, a skeet choke (.005 constriction) can always be obtained from a variety of places. If the barrel is on an older gun where the choke is "fixed" (that is, an integral part of the barrel and not a removable tube), it can be threaded by Briley or others for tubes.

Main thing is fit - a gun that doesn't fit will beat you to death quickly. Just adding a recoil pad does not solve bad fit issues. If you're at a club where there are some AA-level shooters, ask them about their guns, why they chose one brand over another, and look at the action types. If you tend to see one type more than another, there might be a good reason for it; and NO, you don't need a $15,000 Kolar to break targets, but well-made guns with fitted stocks do help capture one more bird - and for those guys, that is the difference between being in a shoot-off for first and finishing way down the list.

Enjoy it, ask questions, give it a decent amount of time, maybe take a lesson or two
 
The Browning Gold was a good semi-auto and its been replaced by the Silver series now in 12ga models. At $ 475 - the Gold was a good buy...

The fact this it says "Hunter" on it -- for the most part -- is just marketing speak. A lot of guns say "sporting", "hunter", etc and it means very little in my opinion. In some configurations - there will be different specs on the stocks - drop at comb, drop at heel, length of pull, etc ...but you can shoot Skeet with virtually any gun you like - if it fits you properly.

I use the same guns - for bird hunting, Skeet and Sporting Clays. I prefer O/U's - but a Browning Gold or a Browning Silver Hunter selling new for around $ 900 is a pretty good buy / and a vesatile gun - in my opinion.

Most serious competitive shooters - for sheer durability - will go to O/U's for their competition guns - but you'll see a variety of O/U's on the skeet fields as well.

Personally, I would stay away from the Stoeger and Mossberg options. There is a thread below on SKS having some big time issues with his Stoeger ....and unfortunately it happens too often on their guns.
 
jgcoastie said:
the Mossberg 500 and Remington 870 models both have strong followings.
Click to expand...
May I suggest the good guardsman misspoke: The OP asked about a basic Skeet gun. R-870s and M-500s do not have a strong following in Skeet shooting, they have zero following. If Hoss shows up at a Skeet field, seriously wanting to give it try, with any pump (and especially a bottom dollar model) the AA-level shooters may do him a favor by telling him that his gun is inappropriate. Just as it's kind to tell a pool hall newbie that the stick he just selected from the house rack is severely bent and has a bad tip.

Yes, R-870s and M-500s and other pumps are seen on Skeet fields; but, I've never seen one used in competition. Pump action guns, and all other manner of shotguns are typically seen at the trap, Skeet and clays fields prior to bird season -- folks want to practice with their field guns.

The vast majority of serious Skeet shooters (comp shooters and future comp shooters) shoot O/Us. There are some who shoot auto loaders -- mainly for the reduced recoil. Several years ago the new Beretta auto-loader dethroned the R-1100 as the favorite Skeet stick gun.

If on budget and looking for an entry level Skeet gun, then check out a used R-1100 or Beretta Skeet or similar sporting model. If you get hooked by the game, you'll soon be trading up to a tubed O/U.
 
Bottom Dumper

....And the other beautiful thing about the Browning Gold is its a bottom dumper. Your buddies at the range will be happy about that.

And, yes, I am agreement with Big Jimmy. You missed an opprotunity on a good deal.
 
From what I've read about the Mossberg 930, I don't think it's the gun for me. If I ever get the chance to handle one I will, but it's not a high priority for me.

I've heard about the inertia action, but I'm not exactly sure about the implications of it. I know it's supposed to be higher recoil, but most of the shotguns I've shot in the past have been pumps, so I can't imagine it's worse than that. But I'll definitely do some more research on the Stoeger before I settle on it.

I regret not checking out the Browning further. I don't know if it had the chokes with it, but I wish I had at least asked. I didn't realize at the time what a good deal that was, if I had I probably would've jumped on it.

I'm going to leave double barrels on the back burner for the moment. Maybe I'll get one in the future, who knows? But at the moment, it's not what I'm looking for.

I'll start looking out for Berettas and 1100s. One other thing I forgot to mention, I would prefer synthetic rather than wood, but it's not a must-have.
 
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