28 ga the most underrated and fun shotgun you will ever shoot

[BB416]

I also love the 28. I found a

 

[ChooChoo404]

Oh I don’t know, 24ga is huge fun, in good part owing to eccentricity. And it’s factory loaded!

 

[BB416]

I also love the 28. I have a little Westley Richards SxS that is my go to quail/dove gun. Reloading 28s is very cost effective. The only other shotshell I reload is 2.5 inch 12 bore. Hard to break even on the rest.

 

[BonUm16]

Estate – Dickinson Arms

dickinsonarms.com

Ive been looking at the Dickinson Estate gun for a bit.. Im thinking that might be the direction I go..

Theyre reasonably affordable (about $1500 if you search for a bit.. you can easily find them for $1600).. turkish built, but from a factory known for turning out quality work for other well established companies (Webley and Scott and others)... and theyve gotten some really good reviews online...

Cabelas/Bass Pro are supposedly carrying them.. but Ive never seen one in my local Cabelas before... Ive thought about asking them about the Dickinson and seeing if they might consider getting one in that I could look at...

I was thinking the same thoughts.. I'd really like a 28 SxS for dove and quail.. but I dont want to spend a bloody fortune on a gun that I might take to the field twice a year..

The dickenson seems to have a good bit of the appeal of a much nicer (and much more expensive) traditional british SxS.. as long as its reliable, decently balanced, and shoots straight.. it might be an affordable option..

Have you considered F.A.I.R.’s Iside line of doubleguns? Italian-made, scaled to gauge and a much better value than the Turkish-made Dickinsons. IFG in Amarillo handles them in TX.

*I don’t think I’d want a 28ga Iside as a dove gun, though. Being scaled frame guns, they are simply too light for what I like in a dove gun. A quail gun, certainly, but with the caveat of longer barrels to help with swing. My 30” 20ga weighs 5lb 10oz. A friend has a 28” 28ga and it weighs 5lb 3oz. Poke and hope grouse it’s great but it’s a miserable slattern for anything requiring a proper swing.

 

[Rubberhead]

I don’t think I’d want a 28ga as a dove gun, though. Being scaled frame guns, they are simply too light for what I like in a dove gun. A quail gun, certainly, but with the caveat of longer barrels to help with swing. My 30” 20ga weighs 5lb 10oz. A friend has a 28” 28ga and it weighs 5lb 3oz. Poke and hope grouse it’s great but it’s a miserable slattern for anything requiring a proper swing.

Hear, here. I think a lot of guys don't fully appreciate that a light gun and a small gauge gun are two different solutions to two different problems. Ie, a good dove gun is never a good quail/grouse gun. A 6¾ lb 28 gauge in a gun cabinet next to a 5¾ lb 20 gauge makes complete sense to me.

 

[mitch4570]

I have a AYA 4/52 28 GA. I shoot preserve pheasants over my griffon with it . It hammers pheasants as long as I do my part and shoot within it's limitations, Inside 30 yards. I named her Bonita. It's kind of like shooting with a fly rod. I love her.

 

[jnotzon]

Love my 28! It's a lot of fun on dove and quail hunts here in South Texas!

I received it after my Grandfather passed several years ago. The shotgun itself is nothing special, a sub $800 Kassnar Windsor SXS he bought at a gun show, but I enjoy getting out in the field with it and remembering him.

 

[jbirdwell]

Hear, here. I think a lot of guys don't fully appreciate that a light gun and a small gauge gun are two different solutions to two different problems. Ie, a good dove gun is never a good quail/grouse gun. A 6¾ lb 28 gauge in a gun cabinet next to a 5¾ lb 20 gauge makes complete sense to me.

So instead of needing a SXS to go with my Benelli, I need 2 more 28 gauge shotguns. One for quail and another for dove. Sounds reasonable. lol

 

[ACM]

Estate – Dickinson Arms

dickinsonarms.com

Ive been looking at the Dickinson Estate gun for a bit.. Im thinking that might be the direction I go..

Theyre reasonably affordable (about $1500 if you search for a bit.. you can easily find them for $1600).. turkish built, but from a factory known for turning out quality work for other well established companies (Webley and Scott and others)... and theyve gotten some really good reviews online...

Cabelas/Bass Pro are supposedly carrying them.. but Ive never seen one in my local Cabelas before... Ive thought about asking them about the Dickinson and seeing if they might consider getting one in that I could look at...

I was thinking the same thoughts.. I'd really like a 28 SxS for dove and quail.. but I dont want to spend a bloody fortune on a gun that I might take to the field twice a year..

The dickenson seems to have a good bit of the appeal of a much nicer (and much more expensive) traditional british SxS.. as long as its reliable, decently balanced, and shoots straight.. it might be an affordable option..

I too have been eyeing the Dickinson Estate. Really would love to handle one in person.

 

[Field28]

I shot an 1100 in 28 a good bit in my youth, I got pretty damned good with it in the dove field.

 

[mitch4570]

I have a AYA 4/52 28 GA. I shoot preserve pheasants over my griffon with it . It hammers pheasants as long as I do my part and shoot within it's limitations, Inside 30 yards. I named her Bonita. It's kind of like shooting with a fly rod. I love her.

 

[ACM]

My first shotgun was a single shot hammer 28ga with a stock made by my grandfather’s friend out of mesquite.

 

[Rubberhead]

So instead of needing a SXS to go with my Benelli, I need 2 more 28 gauge shotguns. One for quail and another for dove. Sounds reasonable. lol

Thanks for supporting my point. BTW - my light bird gun is a barely 6 lb 20 gauge side-by-side. It's great for walking up game but not heavy enough to smooth the swing and tame the recoil on a good dove hunt.

 

[WyoBull]

Love my Benelli Legacy 28! I cannot tell you the last time I had my 12 ga shotguns out of the safe. I use my 28 for everything.

 

[leslie hetrick]

i had 28 ga shotguns, semi auto,s, pump,s and doublebarrel,s. good ones and junk. but due to the amount of shooting i do, i went to the 20 ga guns, for a little extra weight the cost of ammo went way down. my 20 ga shotguns are a win model 12, a remington pump 870, two semi auto remingtons, 1100-1187 and two brownings, a bss double and a upland special o/u along with my lastest double, a merkel 47E. i did keep a remington 870 express in 28 ga, tho it does not get much use.

 

[ftrovato]

I have a Ceasar Guerini in 28 ga and another in 12 ga.

They are made to the same dimensions but the 28 is on a smaller frame and much lighter. Both are fast in your hands and I can get it done on pheasant with the 28 if the birds are holding reasonably well and I shoot 5 shot.

 

[dgr416]

I grew up on sxs 20 ga and never even saw a 28 ga for a long time .I was handed a 12 ga at 8 so i made money and got my dad to get me a sxs 20 ga .My dad loved it too so he found a 20 ga rem 1100 for each of us .I hunted with older guys who hunted with .410 single shots for rabbits because they were light to tote .I used 20 ga all in alaska for grouse ptarmigan and snowshoe hares.I still wanted a lighter gun to tote for miles as I got older .I wish i would have found a 28 ga earlier but had to wait and 4 popped up almost at once .I am most likely going to get rid of all my 12 ga shotguns and probally my heavy 10 ga .I never did buy a 410 didnt see a reason to .Ammoseek is the place to get 28 ga way better selection and way lower price but its best to get at least 10 boxes .I saw a model 21 win 28 ga at the DSC safari show in Atlanta but too expensive to use on my hunts .I hope to find a bunch of grouse and ptarmigan again and showshoe hares all fun to hunt .Good hunting and shooting to all of yall .

 

[uplander01]

There are numerous good factory shells for the 28ga nowadays, that has helped its resurgence. Me, I'm partial to 20's and 16's..........no particular scientific reason. I have a browning featherlight 16 gauge that I'll have until I'm dead. Some say the shot column from the narrower tube of a 28 is what gives it it's killing power, hence the development of the 3" 28ga. I don't know,...there are only so many things you can convince yourself of when it comes to a shotgun....seems to me the choke quality and the pattern on paper at about 20 yards would be the most important, and fit more so than a rifle.

 

[jruby]

Not to knock others choices and the fact others often know more than I.. I dont understand the love for the 28 guage or even the 410. I have hunted everything from white tailed deer to quail and squirrels with a 12 guage and a couple of 20s. I personally dont see the need or understand the desire for these small ghage shotguns.i have been shooting shotguns for over fifty years now.

 

[leslie hetrick]

here 28 ga shells at walmart are 14.00 a box, 20 ga and 12 ga shells are 34.00 for four boxes. if you reload cost for the 28,s go way down and so do the 410,s. i loaded 28,s on a mec 9000 and the 410,s on a mec 650. any one who reloads rifle or shotguns now can tell you about how high supplies have climbed over the last few years. i still have 14 bags of shot that i paid under 10.00 a bag and primers i paid 24.00 a thousand for, i think i paid 7-8 dollars for 500 wads. today shot 45-50 dollars a bag, primers 75-80 dollars a thousand. i did the math and buy my 12-20 ga loaded today