Youth Shotgun Selection

Eric,

FWIW. My daughter has been shooting on a youth trap team this year. The guy that heads up the program is a gunsmith. I've talked to him about getting a gun for her someday. He has suggested either the 1100 or 391. He recommends the 1100 because he has a couple of drawers full of parts and several stocks of differing dimensions the kids can use. But, he said if he were buying the gun he would get the 391. Almost all the younger kids on her team are shooting the 391. None complain about recoil. Some are fairly young girls.

Tom
 
Thanks everyone for the input. I'm getting food for thought and am not so sure the Franchi is the best choice, although still up there. One thing that occurred to me after my post is that Andrew is left handed (not sure which eye is dominant, need to check). Thomas is right handed and right eye dominant. I want this gun to be used by both. That being the case I started thinking about what gun shoots equal left or right. The Browning micro 20 does but it has a much longer length of pull, 13 1/4", and I suspect Thomas would take a year or two longer to grow into it. It's quite a bit heavier too, by well over a pound. Now with this late piece of info do any of your recommendations change? Are the aforementioned semi's ruled out for a lefty? I'm going to hit some of the local gun stores and take the boys with me, again, and see if we can't get a better feel for what is needed in terms of fit. The problem though is these youth guns are not routinely kept on the shelf. If Andrew turns out to be right eye dominant then it makes it a bit easier since I'll have him shoot right handed. If he is truly a lefty we might have to cut down the Browning stock and hope the weight isn't too much for Thomas. Of course I may not be able to satisfy both with one single gun and the monetary investment will have to go up (I hope not).

Thanks again for the advice.

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Eric,

I'm a lefty that shot a standard, right-handed, 870 wingmaster for a number of years. It was my first gun. I can't say I've seen a hull fly by my face. While "shopping" for a gun for my daughter I looked at the Brwoning BPS, bottom ejector. The trap models looked and felt nice. If I were in the market for a pump gun I would look at this. If you get a double barrel that won't be a problem!

The $200 I spent on that Wingmaster 20+ years ago doesn't look too bad now. I shot a lot of birds with it and my daughter is using it for trap now.

Have fun with the hunt for the right gun,

Tom
 
Eric, I had a BPS Upland with the short barrel. It was a definate lightweight for me but didn't fit....of course your boys have a long way to go before they are 6'2 , 230??? some pounds and have knuckles that drag on the floor. It was a VERY nice gun and my buddy bought it for his son who was about your boys size back then.The nice thing is, they have a 3" chamber. Mine was really tight and needed a lot of "break in" so if you get one, have the boys shooting clays with it for a while to loosen it up and learn to not "short shuck".
 
Eric,

Based on your 'new' information, my opinion wouldn't change. IMHO fit is so important to success that I couldn't ever sacrifice it. I have for years coveted an O/U, but after having experienced the instant improvement in shooting that my personal AL390 gave me, I'll forego a 20ga O/U upland gun for a 20ga 391 shimmed to fit.

Recoil is an issue even with we 'experienced' shooters. If I shoulder a gun wrong during dove season, I sometimes find myself flinching a bit until I get control over myself. A gas operated SA might make all the difference. And, if you boys can handle a 12, you might save in the long run by trying the blemished stock deal and getting them each a gun that will last their lifetimes.

Good luck,

Bob
 
Naw, lousy gun....Can't stand them :^)
Al-48-20-0.jpg
You remember this one Eric. This 20 ga. AL-48 engraved "Hunter" modek weighs 5 pounds 2 ounces. Best little quail gun (and wood duck) I have ever owned.
AL-48-20ga-1.jpg


Only trouble is......I can never get it away from Judy to shoot it anymore.

AL-48-20-2.jpg

I go with the Franchi. The AL-48 has proven to be a great gun for years.

Dave
 
Remember this AL-48 "Hunter" egraved model?
AL-48-20ga-1.jpg

I don't get to shoot it much anymore....Judy loves it's 5.2 pound weight.

AL-48-20-2.jpg

This little 20 is my favorite quail & wood duck gun. I don't think you can go wrong with that AL-48 you are looking at. They have a long and good reputation for having no problems.

Dave
 
When I refreashed the page I did not see my post nor that teh posts had gone to a scond page, so I reposted and when I did'nt see it again I found out what happened......Double Duh?

Dave
 
Eric,
Lefty Righty may give you some trouble.
I have considered the Ithica pump for this reason. Shells go out the bottom and do not give the shooter or blind mates a flying hull to deal with. Again, they are out there used. But they are light and I don't think I would start without reloading a 3/4 oz load. Will not effect the pump action.
Best factory load I have found is 7/8 at 1100fps. Remington and Fiocchi
I plan on shooting the single shot with them myself to get a comparison to the lighter reloads. Winchester is advertising a very light 20 load for cowboy action shooting but I could not find a supplier with any in stock.
Any gun you get can be cut to fit and as stated above should be. Second stocks for just about any model are avail. and thick recoil pads are cheap and easy to sand to shape.
Both the 1100 and 391 are felt to be the best at slowing the recoil pulse by the folks who shoot trap and sporting. They shoot thousands of rounds thru their guns. The 391 is more money up front but has a slimmer profile forend. The 1100 is widely avail. and all parts are easily found at places like Brownells, inc. second stocks that can be cut to fit as the boys grow.
We are now trying to get to the range for wed night to see how the shooting goes.
Good luck.
 
Eric, have the boys ever shot a real gun? I STILL say a 410 is the best starter shotgun..maybe not the best HUNTING gun...but the best to start kids getting used to the noise and a little bit of "kick". They get excited when they hit a can at 30 yards and make it roll around. I'd pick up a used single shot 410 and let them blast away..then they know what to expect when they pull the trigger. Last year, my grandson wanted to shoot the REAL gun..all I had with me was my 20ga SKB O/U and 3" Bismuth cause we were hunting off the shore..he shot two shots( I had to help him hold it up)...he wanted to keep shooting but it was Bismuth dammit! He was just 8 then and is a twig..a tall twig..but a twig none the less. I've watched the Furia boys all work up from an 870 youth and those boys are some real competition on the clays fields...now their little sisters are using it.
 
The search continues.....

Andrew, Thomas, and myself went to several gunshops today looking for that youth shotgun. We were able to dry fit nearly all the guns you guys mentioned. However, most of them are just a bit too big for Thomas. Actually firing them isn't possible unless I can find someone that owns one and will let me borrow it. So we just have to play a bit of a guessing game. Andrew is older so the outstretched arms while trying to shoulder the gun isn't much of an issue. For Thomas's benefit we keep coming back to the Franchi. It just fits better than the rest. My concern is the recoil though based on some of the comments I've read and heard. So the Franchi being the final selection is still a bit up in the air but in the lead.

While looking we did run across a double barell that has me thinking. Stoeger makes a line called Coach Guns that could be made to fit very nicely by cutting down the stock. They have a 20" side-by-side barells with screw-out chokes, two triggers. Right or left handed is not an issue and I suspect the 6.5 pound weight will dampen recoil. Any thoughts on turning one of these into a custom fit youth gun? One other note, they also make a Condor youth in O/U config. It weight a pound less and would probably need some stock work too.

stoegercoach.jpg

 
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I've owned a stoeger with 26" barrels and have shot a friends coach gun several times over the years. On both, the barrels were poorly regulated. Lots of drop in stock, I never shot mine well. In the 100 shells I shot through it, it misfired twice. I could have given you a good deal. I sold it ASAP.

They do have a big following in the cowboy action.

T
 
Hey Eric,
I have an 870 youth that I bought for Kelly to use a couple of years ago. I think between the skeet range and hunting he probably only ran 3-4 cases af shells through it. It has an aftermarket stock from cabelas on it and looks like it was never used. If you want to pay the FFL for shipping I'll send it to you and the boys can beat the crap out of it for a couple years until they outgrow it and then you can send it back. Its just sitting here taking up space....someone ought to put it to good use.

Gregg
 
Gregg

Thanks for the offer. As it turns out my brother has three youth shotguns so it looks like my boys will get one of those, an 870. Since Thomas is still too small for an 870 I think Andrew will use the 870 while Thomas gets his own. We are leaning towards a youth Stoeger O/U with the stock cut just for him. That way when he outgrows it he can use the 870 and Andrew will move up to a 12 gauge.

Thanks again for the generous offer. I appreciate it.

Eric
 
Eric,
I highly recommend a light 20 ga load. Either look up the 3\4 oz on the hodgden website or buy factory loads from Polly wad right in your state.. They have a 3\4 oz 2 1\2 inch 20 ga load in regular or spreader wad. You could get away with the regular if you have screw chokes.
I don't know what the price is on the stoger but you could do a fine job on the stock yourself with your tools and skill with wood. I think the recoil pad and cheek eeze pad for the comb are a big help too. Just trim till the dimensions are where you want minus the thickness of the pads.
 
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