The semi auto shotgun is everywhere, and why shouldn’t it be? Every time the trigger is pulled, the gun ejects a spent shell and then chambers a new one. You don’t cycle it by hand like a pump gun, and it offers more firepower than an over-under. ...
Will the 20 Gauge Shotgun Ever Replace the 12 Gauge?
You hear it all the time these days from waterfowlers and turkey hunters: “I don’t need a 12-gauge anymore.” “I’ve switched to a 20. It’s all anyone needs,” they’ll tell you. They are almost right. With the introduction of TSS turkey loads, improved ...
The 12 Gauge Shotgun: Do You Really Need Anything Else?
There isn't much one can be sure of in this world, but you can be certain that, at close range, there is no better gun than a 12 gauge shotgun for wolverines (see below). Also, for wombats, wigeons, wapiti, wobble trap, or woodcock — and that goes ...
28 Gauge: Why a Few Still Believe in Its ‘Magic’
Within the limitations of its light payload, the 28 gauge shotshell drops small game birds and crushes clay targets with authority and a soft kick. You can shoot the 28 gauge out of lightweight, scaled-down guns that are easy to carry anywhere. ...
The Break Action Shotgun: Why It Will Never Die
Compared to a modern semi-auto shotgun, with all its firepower, a break action gun looks archaic — obsolete, even. And it’s true; break actions have changed very little in the past 100 years. But 100 years from now, they will still be here. Break ...
The Life and Death of the 4 Gauge Shotgun
People think of the 12-gauge shotgun as large enough to be intimidating on sight. That roughly half-inch muzzle isn’t something you want to see pointed your way, and people who don’t know guns think a 12 is terrifyingly large. But there have been ...
8 Gauge Shotgun: Why It Went Extinct
In its day, the 8 gauge shotgun was the equivalent of the modern 10-gauge. It was a specialized, big bore hunting gun, popular at a time when the skies of North America teemed with waterfowl, and there were no bag limits. It was also — and ...
The Over Under Shotgun Is Not As Old As You Think
The over under shotgun dominates the break-action category today. The majority of hunters and all but a very few target shooters prefer the narrow-sight picture of an O/U to the wider view down the barrels of a side-by-side. Over unders are ...
10 Gauge Shotgun: Is There a Reason for it to Still Exist?
There are definitely a few reasons to get a 10 gauge shotgun before they're all gone, and yes, they truly are vanishing from the shotgun landscape like an endangered species. That's not to say every hunter should get one. Let's break that down a ...
The 410 Shotgun: Incredibly, Improbably Popular
The .410 remains incredibly, improbably popular. A lot of people use a 410 shotgun for a lot of things, most of which the little shell is completely unsuited for. The skinny .410 hull doesn’t hold much shot to begin with, and it often shoots terrible ...
16 Gauge: What The Cool Kids Are Shooting
After decades of decline and neglect, the 16-gauge is getting a lot of attention right now; it’s the in gauge. I recently told a friend who is a double-gun expert that I was trying to talk myself into a 16, but I couldn’t find a reason. Stuck in a ...
Shotgun Shells: The Most Important Changes in the Past 10 Years
You would immediately recognize shotgun shells from the 1860s as shotgun shells. They would have brass cases, but you could put one in your modern shotgun and fire it, as long as you didn’t mind cleaning the corrosive black powder and primer residue ...
Cold Weather Duck Hunting Gear That Will Keep You Warm and Shooting
After a long, cold boat ride, we broke ice in the hole. Then, my host dropped me, outfitted in waders, by an oak tree in waist-deep water. “Don’t fall in,” he said as I was halfway out of the boat. “It’s 45 minutes to the ramp. You’ll be dead ...
A Thanksgiving Duck Hunt Miracle
The Thanksgiving hunt, a red-letter event for so many hunters who look forward to the field before a day of food and family bonding, is a touchy subject at my house. I don’t hunt on Thanksgiving, nor on the day or two before. My wife, raised in ...
Where Have All the Side-By-Side Shotguns Gone?
Side-by-side shotguns, whether cut-down coach guns behind a bar or bespoke doubles on a driven shoot, once dominated break-action/double gun designs. Why did side-by-sides come first before over/unders? My guess is that it was easier to make ...
Waterfowl Starter Kit: Everything You Need to Slay Ducks and Geese
If you’ve been meaning to try waterfowling and you’ve done your preliminary YouTube research on hunting ducks and geese, you can be forgiven for thinking the endeavor requires a trailer of gear, a hiding place for 12 or 13 of your closest friends, ...
Upland Hunting Starter Kit: Gun, Boots, Vest, and Skills
Upland hunting requires learning two skills: walking and shooting. You should already know how to walk. Then you give yourself over to the nose of a dog. That’s all there is to it. Get the gun and boots right, add a blaze orange vest to carry ammo ...
Learn the Shotgun Sports Like Olympic Trap, Skeet, and Sporting Clays
So you bought a shotgun and took it hunting. Hunting turns out to be a lot of fun, but it would be even more fun if you didn’t suck at shooting. Or maybe you’re streaming Olympic trap or skeet, can’t get enough, want to learn how to shoot, and don’t ...
Turkey Hunting the Pandemic, This Year and Last
“This corona deal sucks. Every parking lot is full and I heard four shots this a.m.” For once in my life as a turkey hunter, I could feel smug. The text came from a friend hunting the public area where I have chased spring gobblers for 30 years. ...
How To Start a Gun Dog
Once you hunt over a gun dog of your own, hunting birds without a dog, or hunting over anyone else’s dog, doesn’t feel like hunting anymore. It’s just walking around trying to shoot stuff. A bird dog connects you to the unseen world of scents in ...