I am looking for a shotgun for my husband for Christmas. It is a total surprise to him so I can't ask him what to get (he doesn't believe I would ever, in a million years, get him a gun) ! He has never really done any bird hunting before, so he just needs a basic shotgun that he can hunt a variety of birds with. I am on a somewhat limited budget, but don't want to get him a piece of junk. He will probably hunt mostly ducks, grouse, and pheasant. Basically, he owns plenty of rifles, but no shotguns and needs something to start with so he CAN go bird hunting if he wants to. I am totally clueless when it comes to shotguns, so I don't even know what to begin to look at. Any suggestions? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

 

Although I gave up hunting years ago, I was impressed with the Remington 870. It has interchangable barrels so you can get the length and choke you want. You'll have to get the details of what he is looking for from him. Or one of his buddies he will be hunting with. Good luck.

 

majakdragon you beat me!


Here is a shotgun imo that you can't go wrong on:

Click image:


It's a Remingtom 870 Express.
This model is a plain version of the slightly better finished model 870 Wingmaster.
I own a 20 and a 12 guage plain Wingmaster and a 12 guage Express.
The parts in the Express model appear identical and all these guns perform flawlessly. The 12 guage Wingmaster I've had since '72 without a hint of a problem.

I'm not sure what configurations are available in the Express model but I would consider the barrel that can shoot 3' shells and has replaceable choke tubes to be the best choice.

 

Greg,
Great choice. I had the 870 Wingmaster. Plain gun. No ribbed barrel, 28 inch modified choke barrel. Had the weirdest sight I have ever seen (unless it was just me) Put the bead on the bird and pull the trigger....GONE. No leading necessary. I shot more trap than hunting and loved this gun.

 

Hello ras78

I can't say anything bad about my 2nd favorite pump Shotgun the 870 however we change choke tubes today, not expensieve barrels. You have 2 great $ favorites in the bird fields & woods, a Pump & the semi-auto Shotgun.

I use Remingtons wonderful fast 2nd shot Model 1100 semi-auto for fast flying Grouse here in the Mountains. However you did say ( I am on a somewhat limited budget.) & we can all understand that.

A Mossberg 12ga pump Mod 500 with a 28" Barrel & interchangable choke tubes. This time of year the Companies put together kits with the Shotgun a barrel & many goodies to get a person started hunting many kinds of game. The Choke tubes are like what a shotgunner in the past had to wrap a small fortune up in barrels, to hunt many types of game. Today for less than the price of that 2nd barrel, you can buy screw in choke tubes that allow you to hunt Quail up to Deer sized game with the same shotgun & Barrel. www.mossberg.com may be the address if not try www.google.com for Mossberg Shotguns, & don't forget Wal-mart if you have one, best price yet & lot's of money saving kits.

I would get the 3" 12 gauge for the 2 choices he can use the std 2" 3/4", & the more powerful 3" shotgun Shells. Having both choices makes the Gun all the more useful for him.

Starting before the tubes my Wife a southpaw, & I now have 5 shotguns each, but remember that was the early 70s & guns were much less $$. We like the Remingtons 1100s & 870s also the Ithica model 37s, all are not in the economy range today.

Mossbergs are good enough for both Military & Police, so that speaks well of reliability & long lasting qualities. They are not pretty like the hand engraved recievers, walnut checkered stocks, deep shiny Blue metal parts & fine hand tuned triggers of the high $ Shotguns today.

Buying a used gun takes a Gunsmith or a person realy into studying how to check a used gun for safety problems. I would stay with a new one & not take any chances for his safety. Mossberg has a black synthetic tough as nails stocks, flat hunting black rust proof metal, a working gun made to hunt hard & dirty in the country.

I bought a Mossberg 500 M&P 12ga 3" magnum last spring from a friend who would not get the 2" 3/4" std loads, & decided he wanted a 20 gauge instead. After about 50 rounds, & I began to like this black light weight, not so pretty Shotgun, & feel like I can recomend it as a tough field & home defense Shotgun.

One last thing, Men are funny so make sure the gun can be returned if he does not like it. Happy Hunting

 

Thank you all so much for the advice! It has given me a good start and I had planned to talk to my husband's friend before buying anything also. I wouldn't dream of buying a rifle for my husband without knowing exactly what he wants, but I know that he doesn't even know what he wants in a shotgun, so if I do the research, he'll be happy. But, I will be sure I can return it just in case!
Thanks again and I will check back for more ideas!

Becky

 

Remington Model 1100. My dad has had his since he was 13, he's 54 now. There is no rust, no problems, no jams.. thousands upon thousands of shell through it.. He doesn't even use a slug barrel. Either do I. (shotgun only for deer in Iowa )

They don't make them anymore. The new ones are 1187's and I'm not sure about those yet. But go to gun show and you'll probably be able to find an 1100 semiauto. I use one, my dad, my grandpa, my cousin, my unlcle. No problems with any of them ever. I couldn't find one for a long time and I picked one up for about 300 about 8 years ago. It was 40 years old when I bought it and it great condition (not a scratch on the stock).

In my mind, the best.

Good luck!

 

The 1187 is a great gun, and for what it is it's a great value. And to add I will totally agree with the 870 as a wonderful pump. I had the wingmaster and it never gave me 1oz of trouble. Most everyone I know has had or still use an 870 and no complaints except 1. My good friend has an 870 Magnum/matte finish and was deer hunting in the rain. His poor gun surface rusted really bad.