Looking for a shotgun

390kid

How a yas? Looking to buy a shotgun preferably a semi automatic or under and over and just not sure where or who to go to to look at a few or anything else I’d need? I’m in cavan Leitrim area

cookimonster

What do you want the shotgun for?, its intended use can determine the style of gun you want.
The guns should be 12 Gauge for the best range of cartridges that may be purchased and idealy multi choked to allow greater versatility.

Semi Auto Shotgun
General vermin control: the semi will do you, ideal for foxing, birds and rabbiting. Can be used very effectively for clay pigeon shooting and used for walked up or rough shooting.
Pros-
generally well made guns are robust, versatile with cartridge selection and have a three shot capacity (can be upped with a restricted licence). Recoil is reduced, perfect for pigeon decoying were a few hundred cartridges may be fired in a day. Can be used for multidisciplinary shoting- clays, walked up, driven (:p) etc. Can be purchased cheaply or you may spend a bit!
Cons:
cheaper or poor quailty guns may not function well, some guns may not cycle light weight loads. Generally autos are the heavier of the shotguns, not the best for carrying all day over distances. Can be considered awkward when dealing with obstacle crossings via unloading loading procedure. They can be looked upon by some as the least safer of the two main designs fixed verus break action guns. Tradtionaly the broken action of a double action gun is a visual and practical indication the gun is 'safe'. Are more finicky in comparison to double barrels to clean, but not a deal breaker. Although there is no hard and fast rules, semi autos may not be deemed suitable for certain disaplines do to form and function and are not tradtionaly seen on driven shoots or accepted or liked on clay pigeon shooting layouts (spitting cartridges all over). Can be expensive for light weight guns.

Over and Under Shotguns.
These come in several forms but I will stick to field and sporting guns. Both guns can be used in cross over disaplines : Field -Game / Vermin shooting or Sporting -Clay Pigeon Shooting. Both guns idealy should have multi choke to increase thier versatility.

Field Guns: tend to be light weight, shorter barrels, ideal for carrying over distance when rough shooting, when traditionally relatively few shots are taken. Long days in a hide with shots counted in the hundreds may be hard on the shoulder as can be heavier loads associated with vermin, duck/goose shooting. Even the humble 28gr 7.5 clay cartridges may be uncomfortable if the gun is used on long clay shooting sessions. Lighter guns (wheather expensive or not) may not, over time, stand up to high volume shooting, resulting in loosened fixings etc.

(A word about Side by Side Guns: the lightest of them all, beautiful to carry and wield, but because of thier weight or lack of, the negatives of a field gun is multiplied by the SxS. Again it is not unheard of that a SxS is used in a multi disapline role and each to thier own. Over the decades they have fallen out of fashion with the O/U taking centre stage. They still have a good following but many newbies to the sport are pushed towards O/U as thier first purchase.)

Sporting Guns: tend to be heavier in weight, longer barrels, ideal for long shooting sessions were carrying them over distance is not the norm, as seen on clay pigeon shooting grounds. Although long days in a hide with shots counted in the hundreds technically would be easier on the shoulder but the weight that reduces recoil may be a strain on the shooters arms, shoulders and back, as can be the prospect of carrying one in the field for long days of rough shooting.

So in summary all guns may be multidisciplinary, but some are more suitable (or accepted in certain circles) then the others. Figure out your main use of the gun and focus on that or do like many of use do - buy two, a light SxS for those long days afoot after game and a sporter, if trap takes your fancy or a nice semi for pigeon hides, vermin and trap.......

Ref the procedures and prerequisites have a look at the Stickys on the home pages here.

390kid

cookimonster wrote: »

What do you want the shotgun for?, its intended use can determine the style of gun you want.
The guns should be 12 Gauge for the best range of cartridges that may be purchased and idealy multi choked to allow greater versatility.

Semi Auto Shotgun
General vermin control: the semi will do you, ideal for foxing, birds and rabbiting. Can be used very effectively for clay pigeon shooting and used for walked up or rough shooting.
Pros-
generally well made guns are robust, versatile with cartridge selection and have a three shot capacity (can be upped with a restricted licence). Recoil is reduced, perfect for pigeon decoying were a few hundred cartridges may be fired in a day. Can be used for multidisciplinary shoting- clays, walked up, driven (:p) etc. Can be purchased cheaply or you may spend a bit!
Cons:
cheaper or poor quailty guns may not function well, some guns may not cycle light weight loads. Generally autos are the heavier of the shotguns, not the best for carrying all day over distances. Can be considered awkward when dealing with obstacle crossings via unloading loading procedure. They can be looked upon by some as the least safer of the two main designs fixed verus break action guns. Tradtionaly the broken action of a double action gun is a visual and practical indication the gun is 'safe'. Are more finicky in comparison to double barrels to clean, but not a deal breaker. Although there is no hard and fast rules, semi autos may not be deemed suitable for certain disaplines do to form and function and are not tradtionaly seen on driven shoots or accepted or liked on clay pigeon shooting layouts (spitting cartridges all over). Can be expensive for light weight guns.

Over and Under Shotguns.
These come in several forms but I will stick to field and sporting guns. Both guns can be used in cross over disaplines : Field -Game / Vermin shooting or Sporting -Clay Pigeon Shooting. Both guns idealy should have multi choke to increase thier versatility.

Field Guns: tend to be light weight, shorter barrels, ideal for carrying over distance when rough shooting, when traditionally relatively few shots are taken. Long days in a hide with shots counted in the hundreds may be hard on the shoulder as can be heavier loads associated with vermin, duck/goose shooting. Even the humble 28gr 7.5 clay cartridges may be uncomfortable if the gun is used on long clay shooting sessions. Lighter guns (wheather expensive or not) may not, over time, stand up to high volume shooting, resulting in loosened fixings etc.

(A word about Side by Side Guns: the lightest of them all, beautiful to carry and wield, but because of thier weight or lack of, the negatives of a field gun is multiplied by the SxS. Again it is not unheard of that a SxS is used in a multi disapline role and each to thier own. Over the decades they have fallen out of fashion with the O/U taking centre stage. They still have a good following but many newbies to the sport are pushed towards O/U as thier first purchase.)

Sporting Guns: tend to be heavier in weight, longer barrels, ideal for long shooting sessions were carrying them over distance is not the norm, as seen on clay pigeon shooting grounds. Although long days in a hide with shots counted in the hundreds technically would be easier on the shoulder but the weight that reduces recoil may be a strain on the shooters arms, shoulders and back, as can be the prospect of carrying one in the field for long days of rough shooting.

So in summary all guns may be multidisciplinary, but some are more suitable (or accepted in certain circles) then the others. Figure out your main use of the gun and focus on that or do like many of use do - buy two, a light SxS for those long days afoot after game and a sporter, if trap takes your fancy or a nice semi for pigeon hides, vermin and trap.......

Ref the procedures and prerequisites have a look at the Stickys on the home pages here.

Cheers for that. It would be mainly for vermin control maybe the odd days hunting game but mainly for vermin. Think I’d be swaying towards the semi going by your views on it

meathstevie

390kid wrote: »

Cheers for that. It would be mainly for vermin control maybe the odd days hunting game but mainly for vermin. Think I’d be swaying towards the semi going by your views on it

My advice would be not to be tempted by the new cheap and cheerful ones.

Go for a good secondhand one in good nick by one of the reputable makers; Beretta, Browning, Benelli and the likes are your friend.

Also the Baikal MP 153, although classed as a budget gun, is supposed to be a rock solid gun.

cookimonster

meathstevie wrote: »

.....
Also the Baikal MP 153, although classed as a budget gun, is supposed to be a rock solid gun.

Yep, I have one with a synthetic stock and have used it for everything in the past (except driven, my pockets are too shallow). Cycles every thing from 28g 7.5 up to 36g 2 and BB's etc. With the exception of a bit of wild foweling and foxing I use it exculsively for pigeon and corvid shooting.

At present I'm using my O/U fixed choke (1/2 & Full) 28 inch gun for rough shooting.

390kid

meathstevie wrote: »

My advice would be not to be tempted by the new cheap and cheerful ones.

Go for a good secondhand one in good nick by one of the reputable makers; Beretta, Browning, Benelli and the likes are your friend.

Also the Baikal MP 153, although classed as a budget gun, is supposed to be a rock solid gun.

That’s dead on is there any difference regarding the license with a second hand gun compared to a new one? And is there anyone dealing in second hand ones in the north west that you know of

SeaFields

390kid wrote: »

That’s dead on is there any difference regarding the license with a second hand gun compared to a new one? And is there anyone dealing in second hand ones in the north west that you know of

No difference with the licence at all. That poster is bang on. I have heard some bad stories about brand new budget guns so a well known brand second hand is the way to go and the way most of us started out too.

390kid

SeaFields wrote: »

No difference with the licence at all. That poster is bang on. I have heard some bad stories about brand new budget guns so a well known brand second hand is the way to go and the way most of us started out too.

Cheers for that ðŸ‘ðŸ»

minktrapper

meathstevie wrote: »

My advice would be not to be tempted by the new cheap and cheerful ones.

Go for a good secondhand one in good nick by one of the reputable makers; Beretta, Browning, Benelli and the likes are your friend.

Also the Baikal MP 153, although classed as a budget gun, is supposed to be a rock solid gun.

Bought a Browning semi auto a few years back. Gun is definitely 20 yrs plus. Surely have a few thousand cartridges put through it. Works flawlessly bar with the low power ammo. Won't cycle them all the time. The older guns are better made than the newer ones. Better steel in them.

meathstevie

390kid wrote: »

That’s dead on is there any difference regarding the license with a second hand gun compared to a new one? And is there anyone dealing in second hand ones in the north west that you know of

Difference license wise ? None whatsoever, form FCA1 from www.Garda.ie for either one and there’s a list of dealers up on this forum. Most will have new as well as secondhand.

Cass

390kid wrote: »

How a yas? Looking to buy a shotgun preferably a semi automatic or under and over and just not sure where or who to go to to look at a few or anything else I’d need? I’m in cavan Leitrim area

A semi auto is fairly different to an Over/Under (O/U). The O/U has three main parts. The fore end, the barrels, and the action/butstock.

A semi auto is essentially the same in that it has a fore end, barrel, and action/buttstock. However it's internal mechanism is a little more complicated and there are other smaller parts that attach to/between the fore end and barrel, the feeding mechanism, etc.

It's not that hard to learn and frankly it'll take an hour of stripping and reassembling until you have it down.

Both types of gun have their own benefits and drawbacks.

O/U. Two barrels, Mulitchoke with choice of choke in each barrel, viewed more favorably because when it's broken open it is seen to be clear (or not), selector switch for barrels so you can fire whichever barrel you want first (say you have a tighter choke or heavier round in one of the barrels). The drawback being it has only two shots. Cleaning is easy enough as it breaks down into its parts in a minute.

Semi auto. One barrel so only one choice of choke however this can be overcome with a different round selection. Takes three shots (or more if you have a restricted license) so you have that extra one. Little less recoil due to it's operation. They are looked down on clay ranges (maybe not an issue for you), as they are not as easily seen as cleared due to the mechanism/action. Cleaning is easy enough but takes a little more time than an O/U to get into all the moving parts.

The more you spend the better the quality. However there is no limit as guns can and do exceed thousands. Your budget will dictate what you should be looking at. Go for as much as you can scrap together. Don't rush into anything either. IOW if you see the gun you want for say €500 and you only have €400 then assuming it fits and you're happy with it, pay a deposit, apply for the license, then save up the extra €100 you need while waiting as the license can take up to 3 months. Even if the license comes through before you have the cash don't panic. Keep saving and get the gun that suits you.

There is no best gun as such because everyone has a different preference/taste when it comes to guns. This leaves no definitive answer unfortunately, but i'm sure lads will be along shortly to give you their opinion on what make/model to go for and why.

In my opinion, you definitely want a 12 gauge, imo. That is number one. After that it's a case of narrowing down what features you like, what you don't, what budget you have, then and this is the most important factor, what fits you.

Every gun, even those from the same manufacturer, will have various/different designs that will make some guns fit you well and others not so much. A good fitting gun is vital. It it doesn't you can find you have trouble shooting it, hitting with it, and very soon get pissed off with it.

Personally i love Beretta. The range of guns fit me perfectly. The quality, performance, reliability is second to none. However they can and generally do have a price tag to match. Your entry level shotgun starts around €1,100. They can go up to €6500, and then into the tens of thousands, but that is not relevant to this chat.

Other brands that would be well known and well respected for reliability, perofrmance (in no particular order) etc would include:

• Browning
• Miroku
• Perazzi
• Winchester
• Benelli
• Remington
• Bettinsoli

There are far more makes, too many to list, but many of these are easily affordable second hand as the lads have said above.

When it comes to a gun that do not carry a huge, NEW, price tag you have the following:

• Baikal
• Lanber
• ATA
• Mossberg
• Yildiz
• Kral
• Silma

Most of these (some may be higher) can be gotten for €750 or less, new. Second hand you can look at €500 or less.

Quality would not be up to the higher priced/end guns, but that is to be expected. It does not mean the guns are crap or should not be considered. They will work, and frankly i've used/shot some including the Silma, Baikal and ATA and find them quite a nice gun.


I'd suggest you find a few days here and there and hit a few guns shops. Take someone with you, so you don't get rose coloured glassed and buy the first thing you like/see, but also to help you out. This generally means someone that knows a bit (no offence) more than you.

Another option is clay ranges. Most will welcome visitors and be happy to show you around and give you the basics.

You'll get the "naysayers" that will say such and such a gun is crap and to stay away. Well that is fine if you have thousand(s) for your budget, and i'm not saying they are wrong, but again its down to your limitations and advise on the best gun for your needs as well as budget and not what you would buy if money were not object. I mean you don't need to see a DT11 Trap gun for shooting bunnies.

390kid wrote: »

That’s dead on is there any difference regarding the license with a second hand gun compared to a new one?

If buying privately the process is basically the same with one or two changes, but only on paperwork, not anything that will cause you problems.

Cass

And is there anyone dealing in second hand ones in the north west that you know of

In Donegal you have :

Eugene McCusker
The Roughan,
Lifford,
Co. Donegal
(074) 9141816
(087) 2301361

Mulroy Clay Pigeon Club
Milford,
Co. Donegal
(074) 9153230
(086) 8864721

In Roscommon you have:

Abbey Marine & Field Sports
Carrick road,
Boyle,
Co. Roscommon
(071) 9663532

Trapper John's
Castlerea Road,
Tulsk,
Co. Roscommon
(086) 2433389

If you don't mind a little drive in Galway you have:

Edmund O'Hara
Neale,
Kilimer,
Ballinasloe,
Co. Galway
(086) 8235336

Corrib Tackle
2 Kilkerrin Park,
Tuam Road,
Co. Galway
(091) 769974
(087) 9878195

Duffy's Fishing and Shooting
5 Mainguard St,
Co. Galway
(091) 562367
http://www.shoot.ie/

Duffy's Fishing and Shooting
Unit 9,
Doughiska Rd,
Merlin Park,
Co. Galway
(091) 735044
www.shoot.ie

Outdoor Ranger LTD
Unit 50,
N17 Business Park
Galway Road,
Tuam,
Co. Galway
(087) 1220178

Wildhunter
Liosban Business Park,
Unit 3,
Liosban House,
Tuam Rd,
Galway
(091) 735 735
Wildhunter.eu


In Longford you have:

David Mulvihill
Lisaniskey,
Ballymahon,
Co. Longford
(086) 8229827
Outdoor Sports

In Mayo you have:

Tom Kelly
Lahardane,
Ballina,
Co. Mayo
(096) 51978
0872730339
0872767009

Pat Delaney
Abbey Street,
Ballyhanus,
Co. Mayo
(087) 6016568

Peter McGee
The Quays,
Newport,
Co. Mayo
(098) 41247
(086) 2521974

Lock, Stock and Barrel
Sporting Goods Suppliers
NewportRoad,
Westport,
Co. Mayo
(086) 8124809
(098) 26372
(098) 56911
E-mail:lockstockandbarrel@live.ie


Have you anything in mind, any preferences or something you'd like to see?

Adi G

Where abouts in Cavan/Leitrim are you?
Bawnboy Firearms has a good selection and Kevin is easy to deal with. Lots more in stock than on the website. Also has a Clay Pigeon Range at the shop.
www.bawnboyfirearms.ie

Nekarsulm

Sports Shop on Town Hall street in Cavan usually has a nice selection of guns.
Theres a guy in Boyle as well, and as mentioned,Kevin Ball in Bawnboy.
You only get him at weekends.