Pro tip: throw an extendo on your A400 to blend in better with the O/U guys.
Getting In To Clay Shooting - Gun Advice
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Last: 10 mo ago by Tormentos
BenderRodriguez said:
Pro tip: throw an extendo on your A400 to blend in better with the O/U guys.
You should show up to the next TexAgs shoot in full door kicker gear welding that thing. Helmet with ear pro, NV flipped up, chest rig with 100 shells on it, the whole 9yds. It does swing surprisingly well for a semi.
AggieGunslinger said:BenderRodriguez said:
Pro tip: throw an extendo on your A400 to blend in better with the O/U guys.
You should show up to the next TexAgs shoot in full door kicker gear welding that thing. Helmet with ear pro, NV flipped up, chest rig with 100 shells on it, the whole 9yds. It does swing surprisingly well for a semi.
Thats actually a great idea. I could set up a CCMU donation fund, and the more $ that gets donated the more ridiculous I'll dress.
Also well said and spot on.
I am seeing more and more folks competing with good semi autos.
When I started I felt like I had to have a O/U to "look the part" and fit in with the crowd. Then I was at the Nationals in SA and watched a guy win with a Browning Gold Clays.
He let me try his gun out and I was hooked.
I am seeing more and more folks competing with good semi autos.
When I started I felt like I had to have a O/U to "look the part" and fit in with the crowd. Then I was at the Nationals in SA and watched a guy win with a Browning Gold Clays.
He let me try his gun out and I was hooked.
I really got into sporting clays several years ago but then my fishing addiction started occupying most of my hobby time. I still shoot several fundraiser tournaments every year and shoot in the mid 80s most days without regular practice. I would highly suggest joining NSCA and just get out there and shoot. You will meet some great people and its a lot of fun. Get to where you can shoot well on a NSCA course and you will start to notice the difference between a good wing shooting gun and one that is set up specifically for the sport. Trap, skeet and sporting clays all have specific guns. Yeah, you can shoot well and be competitive with a more all purpose gun but you will hit a limit if you are serious about it and practice and compete regularly. I look at it like golf clubs - if you're naturally talented and practice a lot, you can probably do better than the vast majority of golfers with a cheap set of clubs. However, if you're competing with other people who play at a level above the average hacker, you're going to need good equipment that fits well to be competitive.
I started out with a Browing A5 fixed choke that was a hand-me-down from my grandfather. It was his meat stick and took no telling how many thousand quail and pheasant. First shoot I shot with it I took second place. I used that gun for about 15 years and kept improving to the point that my coach finally convinced me to buy an A400 Xcel. I love the gun and kept improving after getting that. My dad has an A300 and he loves it, but its definitely a more general purpose gun. I also invested in a set of Briley chokes and I think they make a big difference. I duck hunt with mine and deal with the comments of showing up with the smurf gun instead of mossy oak or whatever. I think when you get to the point that to improve you have to practice techniques (and break bad habits) that are beyond your natural ability, that's when the equipment becomes a bigger factor.
So, if you think this is a sport you want to stick with, you're a pretty decent shot already and want to keep improving, I think you will benefit from something at the A400 level. Most guys that shoot competitively will show up with more than one gun that they practice with regularly. I've seen guys use different guns on different stations - no rule against that - and stuff breaks so its good to have a back-up. So maybe start out with something a little cheaper and get something more expensive later? No such thing as too many guns, right?
I started out with a Browing A5 fixed choke that was a hand-me-down from my grandfather. It was his meat stick and took no telling how many thousand quail and pheasant. First shoot I shot with it I took second place. I used that gun for about 15 years and kept improving to the point that my coach finally convinced me to buy an A400 Xcel. I love the gun and kept improving after getting that. My dad has an A300 and he loves it, but its definitely a more general purpose gun. I also invested in a set of Briley chokes and I think they make a big difference. I duck hunt with mine and deal with the comments of showing up with the smurf gun instead of mossy oak or whatever. I think when you get to the point that to improve you have to practice techniques (and break bad habits) that are beyond your natural ability, that's when the equipment becomes a bigger factor.
So, if you think this is a sport you want to stick with, you're a pretty decent shot already and want to keep improving, I think you will benefit from something at the A400 level. Most guys that shoot competitively will show up with more than one gun that they practice with regularly. I've seen guys use different guns on different stations - no rule against that - and stuff breaks so its good to have a back-up. So maybe start out with something a little cheaper and get something more expensive later? No such thing as too many guns, right?
I am a shotgun snob and will shoot an OU until I am too old to lift one, but it shouldn't go unnoticed that current Aggie Joe Fanizzi won the 2021 National Championship and has podiumed at international shoots multiple with his Beretta semi.
An over/under has a couple of big advantages over a semi in clays shooting. Having 2 chokes can be really nice for some stations where you have an incoming and outgoing pair with significant differences in the break point. They are also easier to carry since you can break them open and throw it over your shoulder.
I've got an A400 with the Kick-Off system and will say that there is no softer shooting gun out there. I spent hundreds of dollars on top of the gun putting recoil reducers on my O/Us
I've got an A400 with the Kick-Off system and will say that there is no softer shooting gun out there. I spent hundreds of dollars on top of the gun putting recoil reducers on my O/Us
100% accurate. I am sometimes jealous of the O/U guys being able to use different chokes.FIDO*98* said:
An over/under has a couple of big advantages over a semi in clays shooting. Having 2 chokes can be really nice for some stations where you have an incoming and outgoing pair with significant differences in the break point. They are also easier to carry since you can break them open and throw it over your shoulder.
I've got an A400 with the Kick-Off system and will say that there is no softer shooting gun out there. I spent hundreds of dollars on top of the gun putting recoil reducers on my O/Us
Also have the kick-off add on my A400 and it's amazing how much of a difference that makes. That coupled with the blink action and its a very sweet shooting package.
Sporting clays and golf have a lot in common, in my opinion.
It's really easy to "look the part" if you have a lot of money to spend. Unfortunately, those $1800 Pings or $1800 Benelli isn't going to make up for your lack of practice.
The biggest difference is I hate golf and enjoy sporting clays…
It's really easy to "look the part" if you have a lot of money to spend. Unfortunately, those $1800 Pings or $1800 Benelli isn't going to make up for your lack of practice.
The biggest difference is I hate golf and enjoy sporting clays…
Gunny456
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Truth!
Sporting Clays folks don't think you "Look the Part" with an $1,800 Benelli. They feel bad for your entry-level gun
All joking aside, most clay shooters I have been around were not too judgemental about what you were using. In some cases the older or more sentimental the gun, the cooler it was. It's a great sport.
Absolutely agree. Never been around shooters that weren't encouraging and open to help when help was wanted. They give great real time advice and would coordinate to come shoot at same time again so they could keep helping you work on it.
Never heard anyone say you need a different gun....
One of the surprisingly good shooters I saw shoots a 23" barrel double barrel 12 with two triggers. It was his grandfather's. No choke....no ribs....no beads.... just giant pipes side by side. For the biggest sight picture ever. Probably the last choice gun for the clays game.
Never heard anyone say you need a different gun....
One of the surprisingly good shooters I saw shoots a 23" barrel double barrel 12 with two triggers. It was his grandfather's. No choke....no ribs....no beads.... just giant pipes side by side. For the biggest sight picture ever. Probably the last choice gun for the clays game.
I was on a team for a tournament at the National Sporting Clays place in San Antonio. We had a last minute drop out and I called a guy I thought could shoot pretty decent. We had three other good shooters, me and this guy. Dude shows up with a 870 with a 24" barrel. He shot like 85 and we won the tournament. Oh, and the low shooter on our team had like a $10K Krieghoff….
Unless you have a $10K Krieghoff and you suck!Burdizzo said:
All joking aside, most clay shooters I have been around were not too judgemental about what you were using. In some cases the older or more sentimental the gun, the cooler it was. It's a great sport.
This is true. Although I am always amazed at the number of folks I see at clay shoots (industry sponsored ones, not competition ones) with Beretta/Benelli vests, gloves, and other gear that proceed to shoot at about 40-60%.
D&C 2002 said:Unless you have a $10K Krieghoff and you suck!Burdizzo said:
All joking aside, most clay shooters I have been around were not too judgemental about what you were using. In some cases the older or more sentimental the gun, the cooler it was. It's a great sport.
In those cases I don't ridicule them as much as I pity them.
While we love this refrain around here, I've worked league shoots, shot league, and volunteered at 4H shotgun sports. Their reality is there's probably no better predictor of a shooter's skill than the gun they are shooting, especially when you get into competition level guns. People may go into a Beretta Gallery and spend big $ on a gun they can't shoot, but your typical P-Gun, K-Gun, Z-Sport, CG, and F3 shooter is serious about clay shooting.
I think there's probably a lot of imagining they guy missing targets with a Yildiz is shooting something higher up the food chain. Even from a judging stand it can be difficult to tell what kind of gun is being shot so these stories never really pass the common sense test in the first place. It's easy to see why someone with an 870 may see a guy with an O/U missing targets assumes it's a high-end gun from a distance. I've maybe seen one can't miss shooter with a pump shotgun in thousands and thousands of rounds although it seems to happen at every event an OB member is at. I've also never seen an 85 place much less win an event at the NSC
I think there's probably a lot of imagining they guy missing targets with a Yildiz is shooting something higher up the food chain. Even from a judging stand it can be difficult to tell what kind of gun is being shot so these stories never really pass the common sense test in the first place. It's easy to see why someone with an 870 may see a guy with an O/U missing targets assumes it's a high-end gun from a distance. I've maybe seen one can't miss shooter with a pump shotgun in thousands and thousands of rounds although it seems to happen at every event an OB member is at. I've also never seen an 85 place much less win an event at the NSC
Yeah I don't disagree with your example but I'm referring to scholarship industry fundraiser type shoots.
Yeah, its not the guy who looks like he's been sponsored by Benelli that you need to be worried about. Its the guy in cargo shorts and a dirty golf shirt that will kick your butt!
Duffy? Fowler?Gunny456 said:
Then I was at the Nationals in SA and watched a guy win with a Browning Gold Clays.
Other than those 2, I'm having a hard time thinking of any other possible Nats main winners that shot Browning at some point.
If so, we probably bumped into each other back when. Been a while.
I would expect a pretty big disparity between full blown competitive shooters and guys who just shoot every weekend at fundraising shoots.
I have a Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon and I LOVE it. I use semi autos for hunting but the double barrel for clays. I think it's easier to work, easier to clean and your only shooting two shells at a time anyway. If you can afford to have two shotguns, this is my recommendation.
LoneStarBQ
Fightin' Texas Aggie Band Class of 89
Midland, TX
Alright boys. Went into clay shooter supplies and they were great. Ended up with a 2021 A400 lite they had on consignment for $900. Guy they were selling it for claims he never shot it just sat in the closet and they said they inspected and don't see any dust In it.
Not sure if I buy all that but figured being all in on a A400 at $900 was pretty good for an entry level shooter.
Got eye protection and ear protection and ready to go have some fun
Thanks for all the help and suggestions. Feel like I could catch the bug and upgrade into a nice over under at some point but happy at where I am for the moment.
Not sure if I buy all that but figured being all in on a A400 at $900 was pretty good for an entry level shooter.
Got eye protection and ear protection and ready to go have some fun
Thanks for all the help and suggestions. Feel like I could catch the bug and upgrade into a nice over under at some point but happy at where I am for the moment.
Fantastic! Thats a great deal on a gun that will definitely get you going. Congrats!
You got a great deal! If you hate it you can probably sell it and even turn a profit. You'll love it, though.
Go to Gunbroker.com....absolutely suggest 30"barrel at minimum for clays...32" is the norm!!!! Don't know where you are located , but join a club, they will welcome you with open arms and you will be hooked,!!
Good Shooting
Good Shooting
Col. A 1976
K-Gun or go home!
Col. A 1976
I'm a lefty and never had the luxury of an anything fit for me. Birds have dropped just fine since my dad handed me a shotgun as a young lad and we never had a single conversation about stock offset. We can all pontificate on this forum about the minutia but I will guarantee for a large majority of posters here it doesn't make a difference.