Buying a shotgun
Discussion
Morning all,
A combination of factors has come together in such a way that it looks like we will soon be looking for a shotgun: We live in the countryside sticks, dad has wanted one for ages, a clay pigeon site has opened up not 10 minutes from home, and now I have joined the university clay pigeon shooting society (AKA the Rah society....) and been bitten by the bug too
Dad and I both agree that an over and under is best, 12 bore of course, and it has to have a modern trigger mechanism (ie single trigger, pull once, release, pull again). Budget will be about 5-600 quid which I gather is good for a nice used one or basic new one.
Other than this we don't really have any idea of what to get. I have been looking at 12 bore over and unders all morning on guntrader.co.uk but the choice is literally bewildering. Can anyone recommend any good makes and models, and any makes and models to avoid?
Thanks!
A combination of factors has come together in such a way that it looks like we will soon be looking for a shotgun: We live in the countryside sticks, dad has wanted one for ages, a clay pigeon site has opened up not 10 minutes from home, and now I have joined the university clay pigeon shooting society (AKA the Rah society....) and been bitten by the bug too
Dad and I both agree that an over and under is best, 12 bore of course, and it has to have a modern trigger mechanism (ie single trigger, pull once, release, pull again). Budget will be about 5-600 quid which I gather is good for a nice used one or basic new one.
Other than this we don't really have any idea of what to get. I have been looking at 12 bore over and unders all morning on guntrader.co.uk but the choice is literally bewildering. Can anyone recommend any good makes and models, and any makes and models to avoid?
Thanks!
Hello
Lots to choose from.. You should be able to pick up a used Browning or Miroku in your price range without too much bother.. Probably a Beretta too. Any of them are a good first shotgun that are pretty bomb proof.
There are other budget brands that will do the job just fine such as Lanber but in my opinion you would be better with one of the 3 brands above.
I personally prefer the Browing/Miroku actions over the Beretta.
But as the poster above says get your licence sorted first!
Lots to choose from.. You should be able to pick up a used Browning or Miroku in your price range without too much bother.. Probably a Beretta too. Any of them are a good first shotgun that are pretty bomb proof.
There are other budget brands that will do the job just fine such as Lanber but in my opinion you would be better with one of the 3 brands above.
I personally prefer the Browing/Miroku actions over the Beretta.
But as the poster above says get your licence sorted first!
Definitely go and get a proper fitting, absolutely no point learning to shoot with a gun that doesn't vaguely fit, you will just compensate in your mount and end up being inconsistent. They will ascertain your eye dominance, pull length and get a good idea whether you need a high or low comb or a cheek raiser.
Its a really difficult thing to get precise for a beginner as you won't yet have a consistent mount, but you can at least make sure that the dominant eye is centred over the sight at about the right hight and the pull length is correct.
Familiarise yourself with this : http://www.positiveshooting.com/GunFittingP1Main.h...
Getting a SGC isn't particularly complicated, but can take a month or two, you'll also need a Gun Cabinet or Gun Safe.
Most of all enjoy it, I started in February this year and after adjusting my mount in a lesson yesterday shot my first 25 at English Skeet - so many 24s before that it was driving me nuts! Also shoot Sporting with my wife at a local club. Its addictive, and not the cheapest hobby, but a great sport with plenty of great friendly people.
Its a really difficult thing to get precise for a beginner as you won't yet have a consistent mount, but you can at least make sure that the dominant eye is centred over the sight at about the right hight and the pull length is correct.
Familiarise yourself with this : http://www.positiveshooting.com/GunFittingP1Main.h...
Getting a SGC isn't particularly complicated, but can take a month or two, you'll also need a Gun Cabinet or Gun Safe.
Most of all enjoy it, I started in February this year and after adjusting my mount in a lesson yesterday shot my first 25 at English Skeet - so many 24s before that it was driving me nuts! Also shoot Sporting with my wife at a local club. Its addictive, and not the cheapest hobby, but a great sport with plenty of great friendly people.
For that sort of budget a Miroku which is basically a Browning or a Lanber, or if you can stretch your budget you can get a brand new Browning B525 for about £1200.
However I asked the guy who has been coaching us the same question recently, and his advice was to not buy one for about 18 months and to try lots of other peoples and decide which one is best for you, the last thing you want to do is go and spend a load of money on a gun that you can't hit anything with!
However I asked the guy who has been coaching us the same question recently, and his advice was to not buy one for about 18 months and to try lots of other peoples and decide which one is best for you, the last thing you want to do is go and spend a load of money on a gun that you can't hit anything with!
mat777 said:
Morning all,
A combination of factors has come together in such a way that it looks like we will soon be looking for a shotgun: We live in the countryside sticks, dad has wanted one for ages, a clay pigeon site has opened up not 10 minutes from home, and now I have joined the university clay pigeon shooting society (AKA the Rah society....) and been bitten by the bug too
Dad and I both agree that an over and under is best, 12 bore of course, and it has to have a modern trigger mechanism (ie single trigger, pull once, release, pull again). Budget will be about 5-600 quid which I gather is good for a nice used one or basic new one.
Other than this we don't really have any idea of what to get. I have been looking at 12 bore over and unders all morning on guntrader.co.uk but the choice is literally bewildering. Can anyone recommend any good makes and models, and any makes and models to avoid?
Thanks!
It's a great sport. Brilliant.A combination of factors has come together in such a way that it looks like we will soon be looking for a shotgun: We live in the countryside sticks, dad has wanted one for ages, a clay pigeon site has opened up not 10 minutes from home, and now I have joined the university clay pigeon shooting society (AKA the Rah society....) and been bitten by the bug too
Dad and I both agree that an over and under is best, 12 bore of course, and it has to have a modern trigger mechanism (ie single trigger, pull once, release, pull again). Budget will be about 5-600 quid which I gather is good for a nice used one or basic new one.
Other than this we don't really have any idea of what to get. I have been looking at 12 bore over and unders all morning on guntrader.co.uk but the choice is literally bewildering. Can anyone recommend any good makes and models, and any makes and models to avoid?
Thanks!
Get your application to the local Firearm unit in asap - it can take time to process. You'll get a visit from one of the local firearms officers (who will probably turn up twenty minutes early to catch you out LOL). They'll obviously check you out but it's easier than you'd think. I live in bl00dy Tower Hamlets and they gave me one!!
Get the safe fitted professionally before he comes round. He'll basically swing on it to see if he can pull it off the wall! There is lots of information about where to put it etc but essentially it needs to be out of sight from the casual observer - mines in the wardrobe in the bedroom behind my suits.
As for gear, I got a brasnd new Beretta Silver Pigeon I as a starter gun for aboput £1200. If you can find a second hand one from a reputable dealer then that will be perfect but if you can stretch the budget and go for new then definitely do it. Second hand they're about £750 I think.
I've owned a lot of guns since, some of them many multiples in price, but the Silver Pigeon I was and still is sensational in every way, and even picking up my "holy grail" Perazzi never really recaptured the excitement of getting the Silver Pigeon I home for the first time some years before.
Brand new lower end guns such as Lanbers are generally very good these days - they really are - but I'd go for a lightly used pre-owned Beretta every time - even the most basic Pigeon I has basically the same mechanicals as a £5k deluxe model and it really shows when you use it. They're bulletproof.
I don't know where you're based but I can highly recommend Essex Gun if you're in the South East.
Enjoy.
Edited by Soovy on Thursday 18th October 11:39
I had a similar situation with my son when he was at uni.
We both applied and were granted our licences ( in my case it was a reapplication as I'd previously had a shotgun and FAC)
What we did was put each of our guns, we had to get one each because my sons left handed, on each of our licences.
This allowed me to keep his gun with me but also allowed him to take it away if and when required.
I bought him a cheaper gun to start with, just to make sure it wasn't a fad and he's stuck with it and the cheaper gun.
We both applied and were granted our licences ( in my case it was a reapplication as I'd previously had a shotgun and FAC)
What we did was put each of our guns, we had to get one each because my sons left handed, on each of our licences.
This allowed me to keep his gun with me but also allowed him to take it away if and when required.
I bought him a cheaper gun to start with, just to make sure it wasn't a fad and he's stuck with it and the cheaper gun.
With regards to mounting the safe - when you say out of sight of the casual observer, does this mean it has to be bidden? We were planning on mounting it to the utility room wall (exterior wall not a partition wall).
As far as trying other guns goes - The uni society has a selection of berettas (a gift from a rather well to do society member) that I have been using, and the clay pigeon ground gave the first-timers amongst us tuition on 2 different guns, the makes of which I didnt catch. They all felt roughly the same to me as far as holding them was concerned and I managed to hit exactly 50% of my targets, which were a mixture of flying pigeons and rolling rabbits, once I had been told how to stand, which eye to use and how to line the beads up. I am left handed and everyone else in the group was right handed.. was the gun ambidextrous or was I just lucky?
The gun we end up buying will be mainly for Dad so I'll have to adapt no doubt to whatever he gets anyway. I'll tell him to go and get fitted though, and to start applying for a licence immediately.
I fancy applying for a licence myself, as it also helps the uni society when transporting their guns to and fro to have as many licence holders as possible. Can I get one as an extension of Dads? How does it work? You mention needing the particular guns on a licence but people here at uni use their home licence to transport the society's guns - is it just for keeping the gun at home that it needs to be registered to you?
As far as trying other guns goes - The uni society has a selection of berettas (a gift from a rather well to do society member) that I have been using, and the clay pigeon ground gave the first-timers amongst us tuition on 2 different guns, the makes of which I didnt catch. They all felt roughly the same to me as far as holding them was concerned and I managed to hit exactly 50% of my targets, which were a mixture of flying pigeons and rolling rabbits, once I had been told how to stand, which eye to use and how to line the beads up. I am left handed and everyone else in the group was right handed.. was the gun ambidextrous or was I just lucky?
The gun we end up buying will be mainly for Dad so I'll have to adapt no doubt to whatever he gets anyway. I'll tell him to go and get fitted though, and to start applying for a licence immediately.
I fancy applying for a licence myself, as it also helps the uni society when transporting their guns to and fro to have as many licence holders as possible. Can I get one as an extension of Dads? How does it work? You mention needing the particular guns on a licence but people here at uni use their home licence to transport the society's guns - is it just for keeping the gun at home that it needs to be registered to you?
Soovy said:
It's a great sport. Brilliant.
Get your application to the local Firearm unit in asap - it can take time to process. You'll get a visit from one of the local firearms officers (who will probably turn up twenty minutes early to catch you out LOL). They'll obviously check you out but it's easier than you'd think. I live in bl00dy Tower Hamlets and they gave me one!!
Get the safe fitted professionally before he comes round. He'll basically swing on it to see if he can pull it off the wall! There is lots of information about where to put it etc but essentially it needs to be out of sight from the casual observer - mines in the wardrobe in the bedroom behind my suits.
As for gear, I got a brasnd new Beretta Silver Pigeon I as a starter gun for aboput £1200. If you can find a second hand one from a reputable dealer then that will be perfect but if you can stretch the budget and go for new then definitely do it. Second hand they're about £750 I think.
I've owned a lot of guns since, some of them many multiples in price, but the Silver Pigeon I was and still is sensational in every way, and even picking up my "holy grail" Perazzi never really recaptured the excitement of getting the Silver Pigeon I home for the first time some years before.
Brand new lower end guns such as Lanbers are generally very good these days - they really are - but I'd go for a lightly used pre-owned Beretta every time - even the most basic Pigeon I has basically the same mechanicals as a £5k deluxe model and it really shows when you use it. They're bulletproof.
I don't know where you're based but I can highly recommend Essex Gun if you're in the South East.
Enjoy.
I'd agree with most of this. The only difference I would say is that I asked my Firearms office (Surrey Police FWIW) whether they preferred to have the cabinet fitted before they got there or after. They said deffo after. They come back and check it on their second visit. Might be worth asking your local FEO what he/she prefers...Get your application to the local Firearm unit in asap - it can take time to process. You'll get a visit from one of the local firearms officers (who will probably turn up twenty minutes early to catch you out LOL). They'll obviously check you out but it's easier than you'd think. I live in bl00dy Tower Hamlets and they gave me one!!
Get the safe fitted professionally before he comes round. He'll basically swing on it to see if he can pull it off the wall! There is lots of information about where to put it etc but essentially it needs to be out of sight from the casual observer - mines in the wardrobe in the bedroom behind my suits.
As for gear, I got a brasnd new Beretta Silver Pigeon I as a starter gun for aboput £1200. If you can find a second hand one from a reputable dealer then that will be perfect but if you can stretch the budget and go for new then definitely do it. Second hand they're about £750 I think.
I've owned a lot of guns since, some of them many multiples in price, but the Silver Pigeon I was and still is sensational in every way, and even picking up my "holy grail" Perazzi never really recaptured the excitement of getting the Silver Pigeon I home for the first time some years before.
Brand new lower end guns such as Lanbers are generally very good these days - they really are - but I'd go for a lightly used pre-owned Beretta every time - even the most basic Pigeon I has basically the same mechanicals as a £5k deluxe model and it really shows when you use it. They're bulletproof.
I don't know where you're based but I can highly recommend Essex Gun if you're in the South East.
Enjoy.
Edited by Soovy on Thursday 18th October 11:39
GAjon said:
I had a similar situation with my son when he was at uni.
We both applied and were granted our licences ( in my case it was a reapplication as I'd previously had a shotgun and FAC)
What we did was put each of our guns, we had to get one each because my sons left handed, on each of our licences.
This allowed me to keep his gun with me but also allowed him to take it away if and when required.
I bought him a cheaper gun to start with, just to make sure it wasn't a fad and he's stuck with it and the cheaper gun.
Why did you need to put both guns on both certificates? Is it not legal to transport ANY shot gun so long as you're a license holder? (Or can you only transport the ones on your certificate?)We both applied and were granted our licences ( in my case it was a reapplication as I'd previously had a shotgun and FAC)
What we did was put each of our guns, we had to get one each because my sons left handed, on each of our licences.
This allowed me to keep his gun with me but also allowed him to take it away if and when required.
I bought him a cheaper gun to start with, just to make sure it wasn't a fad and he's stuck with it and the cheaper gun.
mrmr96 said:
Why did you need to put both guns on both certificates? Is it not legal to transport ANY shot gun so long as you're a license holder? (Or can you only transport the ones on your certificate?)
Copied from fire arms licensing website. In our case we wanted the flexibility.Any shotgun certificate holder may transport your shotgun without entering it onto their certificate, providing they are in possession of the gun for less than 72 hours. If they will be holding it for longer than 72 hours the gun must be entered onto their certificate and the relevant licensing office informed.
GAjon said:
mrmr96 said:
Why did you need to put both guns on both certificates? Is it not legal to transport ANY shot gun so long as you're a license holder? (Or can you only transport the ones on your certificate?)
Copied from fire arms licensing website. In our case we wanted the flexibility.Any shotgun certificate holder may transport your shotgun without entering it onto their certificate, providing they are in possession of the gun for less than 72 hours. If they will be holding it for longer than 72 hours the gun must be entered onto their certificate and the relevant licensing office informed.
mat777 said:
Well obviously Dad will be applying for one first before any buying goes on.
As for fit - I used 2 different guns at the university shoot yesterday and just naturally adjusted. I presume however there is an optimum length of barrel or something?
Sounds like you know about as much as me when I got my first gun.. (not that I'm much more knowledgeable now)As for fit - I used 2 different guns at the university shoot yesterday and just naturally adjusted. I presume however there is an optimum length of barrel or something?
There's about a million bewildering aspects to the way a gun "fits" (ok not that many)
Get yourself to a decent gunsmiths with a good selection of second hand stuff and they will sort you out.
This would make a lot of sense as you'll get something half decent for your budget second hand, probably with a set of chokes, slip, cleaning kit thrown in, you're looking at something fairly "budget" for that money new.
hairy said:
For that sort of budget a Miroku which is basically a Browning or a Lanber, or if you can stretch your budget you can get a brand new Browning B525 for about £1200.
However I asked the guy who has been coaching us the same question recently, and his advice was to not buy one for about 18 months and to try lots of other peoples and decide which one is best for you, the last thing you want to do is go and spend a load of money on a gun that you can't hit anything with!
Good adviceHowever I asked the guy who has been coaching us the same question recently, and his advice was to not buy one for about 18 months and to try lots of other peoples and decide which one is best for you, the last thing you want to do is go and spend a load of money on a gun that you can't hit anything with!
I purchased a second hand cheap gun to start with and after a few months understood what I needed, fit wise, then found a gun that worked for me and have still got it after 18 years wouldn’t change it for the world.
I part ex the cheap gun for what I paid for it.
Gassing Station | Sports | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff