Shotguns

Competition at the 2008 International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup Final for shotgun is set to kick off in Minsk, Belarus on Saturday with the men’s double trap match and finals. Only the best athletes are invited to take part in the closing event of the 2008 ISSF World Cup Series and 12 U.S. athletes are in Minsk to compete for World Cup Final titles, including seven members of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team.

The over/under shotgun stacks one barrel above the other and is loaded by hinging the breechface away from the barrel for direct access to the chambers. They are favored for their simplicity, accuracy, and reliability. In most cases, a hefty price tag reflects superior materials and precision fit.In a category that can demand a five-figure entry fee, we wanted to see if we could get into the over/under club for substantially less. Toward that goal, we tested three new 12 gauges with walnut furniture: the $770 Remington SPR310S, originating from Russia; the $756 Mossberg Onyx Reserve Sporting, imported from Turkey, and the Spanish-made $1099 Lanber 2097 Sporting Lux.We sought to judge each shotgun on looks, fit, finish, and performance. To test the latter, we patterned each shotgun from the standard distance of 40 yards with an eye on shot density and how true our pattern stayed to point of aim. We patterned the shotguns with their Improved Cylinder chokes, which were common to all three. To check pattern density with the IC choke, we shot one target load and one field load. We chose Remingtons R12HD8 ShurShot Heavy Dove load, a 2.75-inch round with 1 1/8 ounces of No. 8 shot rated at a velocity of 1255 fps. For the skeet and trap range, we picked our favorite round, Rios TLT32. This was also a 2.75-inch round loaded with 1 1/8-ounce of No. 8s, but with one-half dram equivalent less powder. Velocity of the TLT32 was rated at about 1155 fps.To evaluate where the guns put their charges, we shot three rounds into the center of a patterning target with a 30-inch-diameter circle. We then divided the circle into four equal quadrants and read the pattern and calculated the pattern density. Here is what we learned.

There are six variants of the Coach Gun, all of which have walnut stocks and double triggers. Ours was the lowest-priced version. Our test gun came with no recoil pad and without the questionable hassle of screw-in chokes. It had fixed Improved Cylinder and Modified chokes. Other variants of the gun (www.stoegerindustries.com) have interchangeable choke tubes, matte or polished nickel finishes on the metal, different stock finishes, and several have recoil pads. One version that caught our eye had a straight-hand, English-type stock. None have ejectors. All versions but ours cost $469.

The Stoeger Coach Gun comes in several variations, so finding one for the right price can be a challenge, since it’s not always clear exactly which model is which when you’re shopping.

Shawn Dulohery and Haley Dunn won the men’s and women’s skeet finals, respectively, at the 2008 USA Shooting Fall Selection Match, held at Ft. Carson’s International Shooting Park in Colorado Springs, Colo.

While we had a lot of fun with this gun, we believe that for sporting sub-gauge purposes, women and teen shooters will like it better than tall adult males. The gun did excel on the skeet field, and thanks to its 3-inch chambers, this gun will hunt, too.

Getting a good buy on midrange-priced products, such as over-under shotguns, can be difficult because of scarcity, and it’s always a challenge to convert MSRP into a reasonable selling price. Such is the case with the Beretta Silver Pigeon II, which Gun Tests magazine tested in its September 2007 issue.

Gun Tests said of the Silver Pigeon, _ìthe Beretta 687 Silver Pigeon II Sporting is a traditionally styled and typically proportioned sub-gauge. Trim in stock, wrist, receiver, and fore-end, the gun is a symmetrically shrunken version of the 12 gauge. ìPerhaps the greatest testament to this gun_s speed was that all our test shooters came off the sporting clays course liking the gun for that sport, but wanting to head directly for the skeet field. And, indeed, this gun excelled beyond the others at the more regimented sport._

In the test, the SPII listed for $2950. But prices for similar guns on GunBroker.com show wide variations off MSRP.

The gun in Auction # 110246420, listed by Tucker Gun in Atlanta, had a “buy now” price of $2950, or MSRP. The opening bid was $400 less, or $2599. The auction had two days to run on Tuesday.

Another GunBroker.com listing, # 109384437, had a similar gun to the one Gun Tests evaluated, but in 28 gauge. On sale by Gander Mountain in Green Bay, Wisconsin, it is a new Beretta 687 Silver Pigeon V 28 gauge with color case-hardened receiver. With 3 days left on the auction, the high bid was $2001, which didn_t meet the reserve. The Buy Now price was $2799.

The Browning BPS Special Steel Field Model Pump 20 Gauge was tested as a used gun in the April 2008 issue of Gun Tests magazine. Counter Price at Dury’s Gun Shop in San Antonio: $370. Was that a good price for the gun? A price check on GunBroker.com suggests it was.

FAIRFAX, Va. – The National Rifle Association announced Sept. 3 that the Beretta Group of companies, led by Beretta U.S.A., Benelli U.S.A., and Burris in the United States have pledged to give the NRA $1 million over the next five years. This gift will benefit the NRA Institute for Legislative Action and the NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund’s litigation activities to further expand the scope of Second Amendment protections in the wake of the recent United States Supreme Court ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller.

Lawyers who won the historic Second Amendment gun rights case in the Supreme Court — District of Columbia v. Heller (07-290) — on Monday asked a federal judge to award them more than $3.5 million for attorneys' fees, plus $13,215.30 for expenses and court costs. In a motion and memorandum filed with U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, the attorneys said that they had achieved 'one of the most profound and important victories available under…

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