Dove season's not far off, September 1st, so naturally the mind veers towards shotguns. A friend asked his cousin, Captain Charles Henry Canon IV, what his recommendations were for a inexpensive "all purpose bird gun". I thought the reply was pretty wise; here it is:
"all-purpose bird gun to me means two guns: one for quail and dove, the other for duck. There is simply not enough oomph in a 20 GA to knock down a duck cruising at 70 mph.
If you are looking for a good duck gun that is cheap with a good reputation, get a remington 870. You can have it "dipped" in camo and it will not chip the paint and it'll be water proof. I started using one this past season after I put to many knocks on my dad's Browning Gold 12 GA.
For the quail / dove, get a Remington model 1100. Classic shotgun that is not too expensive and is a very good skeet/trap gun as well.
You could probably find both of these guns on-line and spend less than $1000 for both of them...."
If you are looking for a good duck gun that is cheap with a good reputation, get a remington 870. You can have it "dipped" in camo and it will not chip the paint and it'll be water proof. I started using one this past season after I put to many knocks on my dad's Browning Gold 12 GA.
For the quail / dove, get a Remington model 1100. Classic shotgun that is not too expensive and is a very good skeet/trap gun as well.
You could probably find both of these guns on-line and spend less than $1000 for both of them...."
I'm inclined to take Cpt. Canon's advice and scout about for a 1100, which can be found pretty cheap. Already have a 12 GA (Mossberg 835 gun show special) that's bashed about but seems to work. For a good review of the 870, check out Field & Stream, where its rated as one of the 50 best shotguns ever.
Good shooting,
LSP
PS. The aptly named Canon is a serving member of the U.S. military, hopefully we'll hear more from him.
