Gun Weight

[Bob Peters]

I realize there'll be some wide variance on this subject, but for you personally how heavy or light of a gun do you prefer to take pheasant hunting? I just looked and per Brownings webpage the sweet 16 weighs 5lbs. 12oz. w/26" barrel. At a certain point on the lightness scale guns can become "too whippy," as the old saying goes.

 

[Wind River]

Weight and balance, just quicker on the draw. Whippy to me is about balance, love my 20ga for upland, 12ga for waterfowl. My $.02
One flush, one shot, one retrieve, repeat.

 

[birddude]

As far as pure weight goes, all my favorites are between 5.5- 6.25 lbs. The whippieness you refer to is to me a balance issue. I shoot a 5.5 lb. sxs or o/u much better than an auto or pump of the same wt. because I think the forward wt. keeps you from stopping the swing. Having said that I cut my teeth on a 16 ga. 37 Ithaca. It was a very good game gun. When I started to shoot clay I realized a 7 lb. gun swung a lot better and hurt a lot less. The next decade or so I shot an A5, Win.1400, several different Rimingtons. All 12s. Then when I started grouse hunting It didn't take long to wear down trying to hold the 7 lb. 12s up with one hand while trying to clear brush or port arms all day! At the end of the day Its what ever you like. I think your size makes a difference. If your 6'3, you probably won't shoot a little whippy 20 very well.

 

[gimruis]

I've been using a Benelli Montrefeltro 12 gauge with 26 inch barrel for 16 years now. Its an extremely balanced, reliable shotgun. The specs say that it weighs 6.9 pounds. It seems pretty light to me. I do not put more than 2 shells into the magazine (plus 1 in the chamber) because I don't like the added forward weight there.

What this shotgun is not good for is a magnum shell. I tried shooting a 3 inch load once and it really started barking. The recoil was awful since it was such a light shotgun. I stick with 2 3/4 inch shells in that gun now.

 

[Matt D]

I’ve found I love carrying the 6 LB gun but I shoot the 7-7.25 LB gun much better.

 

[benelli-banger]

I shot a montefeltro for over 20 years, then got a BUL about 6 years ago and the shooting got much better…a full LB lighter…it’s my go-to gun if I need to stack ‘em up!

 

[benelli-banger]

I shoot many different double guns, different weights, do well with several that are pretty svelte and light…5 3/4 lbs-6 1/4 lbs

 

[lubers]

I shoot the Browning Sweet 16 for upland now if I know I'm going to be in the field for an extended time, otherwise I grab my Browning Citori Hunter in 12 or my Citori CXS in 20 gauge.

 

[gimruis]

I shot a montefeltro for over 20 years, then got a BUL about 6 years ago and the shooting got much better

If I ever decide to "upgrade" from my Monty, the Ultra Light is the shotgun I'll be moving to.

 

[Pheasants & a Lab]

I shoot a Benelli Montefeltro that fits me. I had a little Fab Arm 12, that was super light and short barrel for grouse. I would stop my swing when shooting that gun. I've found for me, that I can have the benefits of a light weight gun and shoot with better form more naturally if I have the longer barrel. The Montefeltro seems light to me compared to the Cordoba and Super Black Eagle that never come out of the gun safe anymore.

 

[870-Lefty]

I have 3 shotguns I use for pheasant hunting that are under 7lbs. A left hand Benelli Montefeltro 12ga. with 26" barrel, a Browning Citori 16ga. with 28" barrels, and a Ithaca model 37 in 16ga. with a 28" barrel. I usually use the Montefeltro and occasionally use the other 2. This year I am taking the Citori & Ithaca to S.D.

 

[Rogue Hunter]

The longer I'm in the field, the lighter I would like my gun to be. LOL I've even read where a guy brought two guns with him, the heavier gun was used in the morning, and as his arms tied, he switched to the lighter gun.

 

[A5 Sweet 16]

Browning Sweet 16 weight. Old style, 1991. Do I wish it was lighter? Yes, as there's nothing particularly sweet about its weight. But I shoot it a little better than the new one. Probably just the confidence factor.

 

[Rogue Hunter]

I did read an interesting thread on another forum discussing weight vs. balance. The thread gravitated to the concept of Moment of Inertia (MOI)...and, suggested reading Gough Thomas or Don Amos on the subject. Basically, how weight, balance, and perhaps, the length of the gun, affect how quickly one gets the gun to the shoulder, and smoothness of the swing.

 

[5 stand]

Gun weight doesn't seem to affect me that much. My sporting Clay gun is right at 10 lb. Waterfowl gun is 8 lb. Upland gun 6.5 lb. I shoot a shotgun weekly, have for 20+ years so I wouldn't consider myself the average Hunter. And my input is probably useless....

 

[gimruis]

Gun weight doesn't seem to affect me that much

I used to carry a Remington 870 prior to my Benelli. I bought it when I was 18 because it was the only shotgun I could afford. One of the primary reasons I got rid of it was the weight. I hated carrying that damn fence post around. As soon as I could afford it, I upgraded.

 

[5 stand]

I guess I should have worded that different. Gun weight doesn't affect me that much with accuracy. I don't like carrying a heavy gun either hence the 6.5 lb upland gun. Bob used the term "to whippy", I've heard some say that their shotgun sure does feel "lively" in their hands.