Who also shoots smaller gauges?

[Firebird]

For some of us that easily blows the budget

 

[Firebird]

My 20 gauge has become HER 20 gauge but she is older now (than when this pic was taken) and likes a youth model Winchester 12 gauge when we hunt waterfowl. She still carries the 20 for everything else. Even little Girls like some silver and fold on their guns !

 

[camperx]

Of the 5 shotguns I've bought in the last few years, all are subgauge - 16, 20, two 28 ga. Only one is 12 ga - a side by side with 30" bbls. The only reason I bought that was because I shoot flyers at retriever field trials and I'm a traditionalist.* Historically, double guns were used. Other than that, I rarely shoot 12 ga anymore, even duck hunting. I'm going to be shooting a round of sporting clays this coming Saturday and I'm shooting my Browning XS Ultra .410 O/U with 30" tubes. I did that for the first time about 6 weeks ago and shot a 31/50.

*Most ducks/pheasants in retriever field trials are pre-killed, but there are always "flyers"; birds that are live, thrown upon being signaled by the judges and allowed to fly, then shot by two gunners. The other shotgun I use for flyers is my 12 ga Beretta 686 Onyx Sporting Clays model with 30" tubes.

 

[RedTag]

16 gauge is vastly under rated. There are two shotguns that I actually regret trading away over the years: a 20 gauge Ruger Red Label and a 16 gauge Remington 870…

 

[Altitude sickness]

There you have it. A consensus.

Buy a triple barreled O/U 28,20,12 gauge with a semi auto selector switch.

 

[Mr. 16 gauge]

For "smaller" gauges, I prefer........what else? A 16 gauge (on a 16 gauge frame}

Having said that, I would not recommend that anyone get a 16 gauge nowadays; Nobody that I know of makes "inexpensive" 16 gauges on a 16 gauge frame, and shells are ridiculously expensive (over a$1/rd in my neck of the woods)!

I recently (in the past 6 years) have acquired 3 20 gauges: A CZ bobwhite side by side, a Weatherby Element semi auto, and a Legacy Pointer O/U that I won at a DU raffle this spring.
I like all three guns: I've hunted with the CZ and Weatherby, and hope to take the Legacy afield this fall some time. I have great fun hitting clays with them, and think they would make great starter guns for a youngster. They all come with choke tubes. My only "gripe" with the Legacy is that the choke tubes extend beyond the end of the barrel, making it butt ugly........but I have NO problem hitting clay pigeons with it. The Weatherby has a synthetic stock, making it lighter, so carrying it around all day is not a problem.
Good luck in your quest..............

 

[264]

Used a 20 gauge AYA box lock last week on pheasants. Fit well and handled beautifully. Borrowed for the shoot. Currently looking for a 20 sxs ATM.
Walk up shooting over springers.

 

[Shotgun Coach]

My wife and I shoot the sub gauges quite a lot at NSSA Skeet & NSCA Sporting Clays 20,28 & 410.
When teaching young shooters for the first time we both use our 28 ga. teaching shotgun a Browning / Beretta O/U. We have found over the years when teaching the youth, it is imperative to get the recoil out the way first. The 28 ga. does that the best. Way too many kids have been turned off the shooting sports by recoil. Shooting Dad's 12 ga. duck gun with 11/8 3 dr. loads is defeating too many would be shooters. In our experience start them off without the recoil issue is the best way for success.

P.S. Especially little 8th grade girls that weigh less than 90 lbs.