Sidearms & Scatterguns New shotgun for highschool aged boy

[hlee]

My son joined the ffa sporting clays team at his highschool and we are now in need of a new gun. He has been shooting my Ruger All weather 12ga O/U since August and has really improved. I built up the stock with foam and vet wrap to get his eye where it is supposed to be. It looks a bit post-apocalyptic, but he shoots it well.

Anyway, I told him that if he broke it due to volume of fire, I'd get him a new gun. Last night he showed me where the barrels separated from each other at the muzzle. The gun has been out of production for about 10 years and Ruger service is unsure if they can repair it w/o an evaluation, I'm headed to a gun smith in town in a couple of hours to see what they can do, but I'm left without a 12ga in the interim. My wife told me to go buy him a new gun, but don't re-fi the house to do it. I told my son that a bit of duck tape would have it fixed right up, and would be in keeping with the astetic of the gun. He was less impressed.

So, I've got a ceiling of $2000 and am looking at the Beretta 686 sporting, Browning Cittori cxs, and Browning Cynergy. I realize that 400 clays per week is not a terribly abusive schedule for a sporting gun, but I'm looking for shootability and durability. Opinions? Im leaning to the 686. Anything that would push towards the Browning offerings? Thanks.

 

[cattleman99]

Browning Citori XT or 725. Find a used one for your price. Great shotguns. I shoot with an unsingle but the over unders are great too.

The Browning BT-99 is a solid option for a lesser price. Just remember, the gun won't make him shoot better, but the right fit will definitely help. Go to a shop and have him try some pieces and see what fits him best.

 

[missed]

Find a used Blazer F16. There was one here locally for just over your budget. I have a F16 and a F3 high rib.

My buddies Browning Citori XT is a tempermental bitch in cold weather. Mis fires, hang fires, not cocking the second hammer.... I do not trust it, especially with a kid.

 

[RTH1800]

If it will be used exclusively for trap consider an older Browning BT99. I doubt they bring much now. 600-1000 I would guess would get one. They shoot forever and are very good trap guns.

 

[Spdy]

A used Beretta 682 sporting would be a solid choice and might get in under your ceiling. The 682 super sports had adjustable length of pull and comb height spacers. Its been a while but I believe they were a heavier frame than the 686.

 

[hlee]

Has anyone shot a Benelli 828U?

828 U Shotguns | Benelli Shotguns and Rifles

www.benelliusa.com

They do shoot trap, but this is primarily a sporting clays team...

 

[Snuby642]

Proper fit is everything.

New , used, plain looks, matters not for function.

Nobody will care if you fill in dings and paint it red white and blue.
Maybe schools colors?
Spend the money on fitting.
Leftover money on AA hulls and maybe a lesson or two from a pro.

 

[hermosabeach]

A friend recently got into clays and I was surprised how much guns have lost in value...

He was looking at a nice beretta O/U for around $1600
nice wood, case, chokes... classy set up

Given the fact that he will be shooting a lot... average gun is not fired annually, I would consider something with a transferable warranty if buying used

 

[308pirate]

There's not much to separate Beretta and Browning entry level over unders when it comes to quality. They're equally good.

They do fit differently, with Berettas being better suited to people with fuller faces and shorter necks and Brownings the opposite. Makes a difference in how much alteration would be needed to get a perfect fit. And you do need a perfect fit if you expect to maximize your son's ability and minimize his frustration.

My suggestion (A class NSCA shooter) is to make the effort to find a competent shotgun fitter to evaluate your son, ask him for a recommendation in your price range, and then pay him or her to clean up the fit to perfection.

 

[sirhrmechanic]

Your can’t go wrong with a Citori or a superposed Lightning.

it will last his grandchildrens lifetimes!!!

Cheers, Sirhr

 

[hlee]

I went with the Citori CX with an adjustable comb, 32" barrels.

 

[Snuby642]

32 inch barrels for sporting clays?

Seems long?

Edit: that comment was made late nite, tainted by bourbon and shooting clays long ago
In England that set up thier courses short and quick. Please disregard.

 

[myronman3]

let me make sure i didnt read that wrong..... the kid wore out a ruger red label? that’s an accomplishment.

 

[isofahunter]

Did same with my son, bought a
CZ All American. Has adjustment built into it, he has shot 5000+ rounds trouble free.

 

[hlee]

let me make sure i didnt read that wrong..... the kid wore out a ruger red label? that’s an accomplishment.

Wore out may be a overstatement, but the top barrel broke loose from that piece at the muzzle that keeps it bound to the bottom barrel. If Ruger can repair it, I'm sure the gun will still shoot. It's supposed to be there on Tuesday.

 

[308pirate]

I went with the Citori CX with an adjustable comb, 32" barrels.

Perfect choice.

 

[308pirate]

32 inch barrels for sporting clays?

Seems long?

It's not. It's the standard.

How many people here (besides me) are current, active NSCA sporting clays competitors?

 

[308pirate]

let me make sure i didnt read that wrong..... the kid wore out a ruger red label? that’s an accomplishment.

Ruger Red Labels are most certainly not high volume guns. What casual clay shooters think is high volume shooting isn't even close what a serious amateur who competes in registered skeet, trap, or sporting clays will do in a year.

2017 was my busiest year shooting NSCA sporting clays, where I punched up to A class, and shot just under 13,000 rounds in practice and competition. And that's light. Guys that are really serious will double that rate.

I have never, ever seen a Ruger Red Label in the hands of anyone other than some casual shooter or a hunter shooting a few clays to "practice" for hunting.

Beretta, Browning, Zoli, Blaser, and Ceasar Guerini dominate in sheer numbers.

 

[MtnCreek]

IMO, good choice on the O/U. Most of the kids on my son's team are shooting A400's. Good guns, but I've seen several malfunctions and they're stuck with one choke.

If his team is like ours, they'll shoot 100 rds a week for practice. IMHO, that's nowhere near enough. We got some good practice in yesterday. Shot a 100 bird course. Anything that he had issues with we shot that bird or pair over and over till it was squared away. We had two stations that needed more work, so we hit those again after shooting the course. He shot a couple boxes at one bird trying to figure it out. When we left he still couldn't get it at peak, but could consistently nail it dropping like a rock, which is odd.

I know you said sporting clays, but you may want to take him to a skeet range some. Very good practice IMHO.

 

[hlee]

They shoot 1 or 2 rounds of trap to warm up, then shoot as many stations on the clays course as they can, generally 4 or 5 pair per station. We are supposed to have at least 2 rounds of trap and 150 sporting clays on his range card for every practice. Practice is 2x per week, unless it is raining. Practice is in the afternoons, so they get a bit less time when the days get short.

Unfortunately, he’s shooting his first organized event this weekend, and hasn’t shot the new gun yet- practice was cancelled on Thursday due to the front bringing in a bunch of rain. He’s got tomorrow and Thursday to get accustomed to it befor the shoot. But, he’s shooting the match for the experience, not to win, so it should be a good time anyway. And, it’s in his grandpa’s home town, so he’ll get to see the shoot too.

 

[MtnCreek]

@308pirate About how often do you clean inside the action on your O/U? Thanks.

 

[bug_eyedmonster]

Beretta, Browning, Zoli, Blaser, and Ceasar Guerini dominate in sheer numbers.

My wife and I are trap shooters and just recently got into sporting clays. I agree with this comment, you cannot go wrong with any of these brands. My wife's first sporting gun is actually a semi auto, but she's beginning to regret that idea every time she shoots it. I have my eye on the 692, she has been looking at the 686 sporting due to weight.

OP, best of luck to your son on his first match. The Citori CX is a great gun, my wife shot a XT combo for trap for many years. We had it looked over before a friend's wife bought it, and he said aside from some minor wear on the bluing, it was in like-new condition. She probably had about 25,000 rounds through it.

Jerry

 

[tlsmith22]

Beretta 686 and absolutely no question get the 32 inch barrels. If sporting clays is the game, not trap, get the 686. It will hold its value as well. If you could stretch your budget some, the 692 is a nice step up.

 

[tlsmith22]

Ruger Red Labels are most certainly not high volume guns. What casual clay shooters think is high volume shooting isn't even close what a serious amateur who competes in registered skeet, trap, or sporting clays will do in a year.

2017 was my busiest year shooting NSCA sporting clays, where I punched up to A class, and shot just under 13,000 rounds in practice and competition. And that's light. Guys that are really serious will double that rate.

I have never, ever seen a Ruger Red Label in the hands of anyone other than some casual shooter or a hunter shooting a few clays to "practice" for hunting.

Beretta, Browning, Zoli, Blaser, and Ceasar Guerini dominate in sheer numbers.

No love for the Krieghoff guys? LOL

You are correct sir, we buy flats of shells by the pallet for sporting clays.

 

[sirhrmechanic]

They shoot 1 or 2 rounds of trap to warm up, then shoot as many stations on the clays course as they can, generally 4 or 5 pair per station. We are supposed to have at least 2 rounds of trap and 150 sporting clays on his range card for every practice. Practice is 2x per week, unless it is raining. Practice is in the afternoons, so they get a bit less time when the days get short.

Unfortunately, he’s shooting his first organized event this weekend, and hasn’t shot the new gun yet- practice was cancelled on Thursday due to the front bringing in a bunch of rain. He’s got tomorrow and Thursday to get accustomed to it befor the shoot. But, he’s shooting the match for the experience, not to win, so it should be a good time anyway. And, it’s in his grandpa’s home town, so he’ll get to see the shoot too.

USAMU in his future??? Cheers, Sirhr

 

[308pirate]

No love for the Krieghoff guys? LOL

You are correct sir, we buy flats of shells by the pallet for sporting clays.

I knew someome would pick up on that.

I should edit it to say "at the entry and mid price points ($2000 - $10,000)"

Above $10,000 there's only three viable choices: Kolar, Krieghoff, and Perazzi.

 

[tlsmith22]

To the Op again, there is a HUGE difference in Ruger, CZ, and WInchester O/U and the 686 and Citori type shotguns. They are more designed for teh high volume shooting the sporting clays will require shooting like your son does.

 

[308pirate]

To the Op again, there is a HUGE difference in Ruger, CZ, and WInchester O/U and the 686 and Citori type shotguns. They are more designed for teh high volume shooting the sporting clays will require shooting like your son does.

He bought a Citori CX.

Great choice.

 

[hlee]

So, despite our best efforts to get to the range before the shoot, nature conspired to rain out practice for a week and a half- and kept us away from the range on our own time as well. The first shots he took with the shotgun were at station 8 at the tournament (our first). We did, at least, get the cheek piece adjusted for his face beforehand, and he did a bit of practice to make getting the gun shouldered something approaching natural.

Anyway, he lost the first pair because he didn't disengage the safety, but hit 7 of 8 for the rest of the station. All true pairs for the whole shoot, he hit 61 of 100 and placed solidly middle of the pack, both in the junior division and overall. He only had one "struggle bus" stage and that was as much a result of the sun position (both birds flew through the sun, and the natural break point for the second was in the sun) as it was anything else. Imagine shooting a true pair from station 8 on a skeet field, where both houses are low houses- that was the approximate set up. For having shot somewhat seriously only since September (and having picked up a shotgun for the first time in July-other than the occasional turkey hunt) we're both happy with his performance. I was hoping he would hit 50% on report pairs, but he went 60% (+) on true pairs. After the last station, as he was cradling the gun, he turned and said "I, love, the shotgun."

If there is a downside from going from a stainless and polymer gun to a blued steel and walnut gun is that the latter looks pretty much like all the others while on the rack. He's got to look at them a bit closer to grab his own.

 

[MtnCreek]

@hlee what did ruger have to say?

 

[hlee]

They said they received it and it has been transferred to a technician for inspection. I need to call them, but it hasn't been a priority. If I get a call made tomorrow I'll update the thread.

 

[hlee]

@hlee what did ruger have to say?

I called CS and the lady on the phone said, and I quote- “Hmm, we’ve had it for a while, but there aren’t any tech notes. I’ll need to call them and get back to you in a couple of days.”

2 days later I got a shipping notification. They repaired the barrel spacer, replaced the lock bar, and test fired the gun.

 

[Dewey7271]

Good call on the Citori
I’ve tried to wear one out but haven’t accomplished that yet.
You using any aftermarket tubes or using Browning’s?

 

[Geno C.]

I didn’t catch if you said how big he is. I went with a franchi instinct for my 12 year old to start trap this spring

 

[hlee]

I didn’t catch if you said how big he is. I went with a franchi instinct for my 12 year old to start trap this spring

He just turned 15 a few days ago. 5'5", 110ish lbs. Very rangy physique. The citori fits him very well.

 

[Geno C.]

He’s the same size as mine then?