Citori Feather Q

WoahBoy

New member
Longtime lurker, first time poster...looking for advice:

Finally in the market for a nice upland gun (for the first time in my life). I have shot a lot of Citoris in my time and definitely prefer the feel of them to many of the other O/Us out there (Beretta's, the new Benellis, 101s, etc). They fit me and I shoot them well.

I have never handled a Citori Feather 12 gauge and never even seen one, but I have read good reviews and like the idea of them. I definitely carry my gun more than I shoot it, and less weight does appeal to me. However, where I hunt the pheasants are few and the pressure is high, I shoot a lot of 3'' shells. Apart from opening weekend, I run 3'' basically the whole time. I have some concerns about recoil with these magnum loads and the lighter weight of the Feather.

Does anybody have experience shooting magnum loads out of a 12g Feather? How bad is the "ouch". I don't do high volume shooting, but also don't want to buy a gun that makes me avoid magnum loads.

Just looking for thoughts/opinions...
 
No thoughts? Just looking for as much info as I can. First time I have ever invested in a high end gun.
 
I have a lightning feather 16 ga that I love. Not the same but my experience has been that when hunting not sure I’ve ever felt the recoil because of the excitement. I used to hunt with 3” slugs that st the time were the heaviest weight slug on the market and also the fastest which meant they were brutal kicking. While shooting deer never once felt the recoil. So my point is I don’t think you’d have issues shooting a few 3” shells pheasant hunting. Could also shoot 2 3/4 for first shot and then 3” if you thought that would help.
 
Thanks Matt, I appreciate the thoughts and hearing your experiences.

The weight of the Feather does not seem to significantly differ from the standard Beretta 686s, and I never hear people stress to much about recoil from 3" in those. So maybe I am concerned over nothing.

Like I said, 4-5 shots a day is a good day where i hunt. Mostly 35-55 yards going away.
 
I'm in agreement with Matt D: I never feel much recoil when shooting at game. At the patterning board....well, yes, I can tell the difference between fast/heavy loads and trap loads. ;)

One other thing though. Stock fit can definitely affect felt recoil. A stock that doesn't fit can slap you around some, even when not using the fast/heavy loads.
 
Mostly 35-55 yards going away.

Yikes, easy to tickle 'em, but awfully hard to put a rooster on the ground hard with shots like that. If there's absolutely no way to change your tactics & get closer/better shots, then I see your want for 3"ers. May be telling you things you already know, but straight-away roosters past 35 yds are hard to penetrate. If those are the lion's share of your shots, I recommend #4 lead (1250 fps minimum) & #3 or #2 steel (1450 fps min). I hope every hunter has a good dog, but if you're shooting straight-aways past 35-40 yards, I REALLY hope you have a good dog. Legs tend to not get broken on those shots. When a rooster "drops a leg" & continues flying, it's not necessarily broken. Not to sound too critical here, but rather than worry about felt recoil of a handful of shells per hunt, see what you can do about getting closer shots. If your average shot is 40-45 yds, that's pretty long. Taking even 10 yds off would make a huge difference.
 
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Agree completely A5. The brutal truth is where I hunt it's either long shots or nothing. I shoot #4 lead at 1200+. I run modified for the opener and full after that. Used to even shoot #2s when I could find them. Back when numbers were decent years ago, I never considered magnum loads and ran 2.75'' #6s. Times had changed.

On a good day, I get a few shots. In a good year, I get 10-15 birds (and that's with a fair bit of hunting). Solid quail numbers around here, but few pheasants. I chase pheasants most of the time because (a many of you know), its an obsession.
 
Please be aware that 3" shells don't have an effective range any further than 2 3/4". Just more pellets that may or may not put more pellets in the kill zone at those ranges. When patterning various loads I've often found that a 2 3/4" may put more pellets in a 30" circle at 40 yds. than a 3". A lot depends on the shell and the individual gun. Unless you pattern your gun you will not know. Actually the 2 3/4" shells are generally faster than the 3" and thus have more penetrating power at extended ranges. Looking at Federal Premiums the 3 inchers are 1,350 fps and the 2 3/4" are 1,500 fps. Everything I'm referring to above is with lead shot. Steel in another story. I personally do not see any reason to use 3" lead shells for pheasants under any circumstances, even the ones you have described.
 
Zeb brings up a great point about patterning. Each barrel/choke/load combination patterns differently; even from one gun to the next of the same make/model. Pattern your gear. I don't need 3" shells for pheasants either, or even a 12 gauge for that matter. But I don't make my living on 45-yard straight-aways. I guess if WhoaBoy can only get loooong, straight-away shots (& can recover the birds), I totally see why he'd want 3" shells. A jump of 150 or 200 fps at the muzzle does NOT give a lead #5 significantly more penetrating energy at 45 yards. Going a size or 2 bigger DOES (even if muzzle velocity decreases a little). The obvious way to offset the larger shot size is to increase the payload via 3" shells. 3/8 oz (or so) is significant. As long as he can keep his pattern together & put enough shot in the kill zone (which is easier if the load isn't screaming fast), I think the approach is totally valid & probably even a good idea in his case. At least until he figures out how to get better shots.
 
A jump of 150 or 200 fps at the muzzle does NOT give a lead #5 significantly more penetrating energy at 45 yards.

And this is because the faster something starts out the faster it slows down due to air resistance. A 200 fps advantage at the muzzle is reduced significantly at 45 yards. You may have lost 80% of your speed advantage at 45 yards. Better to go to larger shot size pushing a moderate speed for long shots.

IMO If 35 yards will be your closest shot #4 lead will be your best bet. If you can find #4 in a load size of 1-3/8 or 1-1/2 oz in a 2-3/4" shell that would be ideal. Unfortunately, unless you center your shot and not just fringe hit the bird, it likely won't make much difference what you use. Those are risky shots at that distance as the birds vitals are not exposed.
 
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