cheap/value shotgun to get into the shotgun sports

[Click Boom]

All my experience is with pumps and a couple double barrels, what would be a good, cheap shotgun to get into the scatter gun sports? Not looking for a $1500 Italian madterpiece at the moment, unfortunately. Do people run pumps for skeet/clays/etc? Probably not? Would I be good to go with one of the cheap chinese/Turkish semis, or a jm930, or what? I am ignorant when it comes to these things

Thanks in advance!

[RedFord150]

Semi-Auto is preferable to a pump.
For the SG sports, fit is most important factor. Personally, I like Beretta the most.
If you are near Azusa, the place to visit is Pacific Sporting Arms. John is the owner. He is a master at finding guns that fit. His specialty is higher end guns, but he sometimes has some lower priced used guns. You just might get lucky.
Good luck.

[Thefeeder]

All my experience is with pumps and a couple double barrels, what would be a good, cheap shotgun to get into the scatter gun sports? Not looking for a $1500 Italian madterpiece at the moment, unfortunately. Do people run pumps for skeet/clays/etc? Probably not? Would I be good to go with one of the cheap chinese/Turkish semis, or a jm930, or what? I am ignorant when it comes to these things

Thanks in advance!

Yes people can and do run pumps for skeet/clays/ect. If a person can not, then they need more practice running a pump. One of the best places to practice running a pump is shooting Clay doubles

[hattles]

All my experience is with pumps and a couple double barrels, what would be a good, cheap shotgun to get into the scatter gun sports? Not looking for a $1500 Italian madterpiece at the moment, unfortunately. Do people run pumps for skeet/clays/etc? Probably not? Would I be good to go with one of the cheap chinese/Turkish semis, or a jm930, or what? I am ignorant when it comes to these things

Thanks in advance!

you're not ignorant! An ignorant person wouldn't ask for some help or info.

1-What is your spending threshold? Would you prefer a semi-auto over an O/U?

2-Just because a well known or famous shooter has a gun named after them doesn't make that gun the best available.

3-You can find a good quality new or used semi-auto($500-$800) or a good used O/U($600-$1000) fairly easily if you search a couple of the online gun aucion sites.

[CSACANNONEER]

Starting out with a used 870 or 500 isn't a bad idea. It will get you going and allow you to see what others are using. Most shooters will let you hold and/or shoot their guns too. After a while, you can get another shotgun and either keep the pump or sell it for what you have into it.

[DaveFJ80]

I'm assuming you're looking for a cheap value but reliable semi-auto shotgun. Here's a good place to spend some time reading: http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showforum=49 - of course this is more competition-oriented discussions, but there's still a good amount of info there.

There's a 67 page thread there talking about the Turkish Stoeger M3000 shotgun (made by Benelli.... similar to the Maverick and Mossberg relationship), and how it's being/been proven to be a true contender in 3 Gun Nation and other professional matches by the 'pros' posting their results with it. It runs on the same inertia driven system as the Benelli M2.

The nice thing is that you can buy one brand new for $450 - $500, and there's currently a $50 main in rebate going on right now through the end of the year for any Stoeger shotgun. I bought the 24" M3000 and I'm DROSing it now. I maybe spent another $100 on parts for it like a NC mag extension tube, new charging handle, larger bolt release, bigger safety, softer buttstock pad, and bigger front sight. In the end, I'm still a good $100-$150 cheaper than if I bought the JM Pro. I plan on using it for fun range use, some sporting clays, and maybe getting into 3 gun.

I'm not saying that should get this, but that's just one 'up & comer' to look at as I've been researching this for awhile now before ultimately buying the M3000. Also, you can still look at others like the Mossberg JM Pro (which are either hit or miss these days with reliability), the Remington Versamax, FN SLP, Benelli M1/M2, Browning A5, Beretta 1301, etc. Of course all of the ones mentioned there except the JM Pro are all $1100+ so that may be more than you're looking to spend.

[ceh383]

For a starter gun, I'd stick with the pump you may already have. A 28" barrel with screw in chokes will work just fine.
Start saving your money, so when you are ready, you can get what you want.
Before you buy, shoot as many different guns as you can, both O/U's and SA's. Both are good for clay sports, but they do have different a feel. If you are able to figure out what you want before hand, and perhaps spend a little more than what, you will end up with the gun you want and save some money in the long run...

[Click Boom]

Thanks for all the advice fellas. I am really trying to spend as little as possible, because Im guessing I will want nice things later, and don't even know what they are yet. I haven't been to a shotgun oriented rrange in a loooooooong time.

What about some of those 250ish turk /Chinese/tristar/iac/etc semi-autos? I hear decent stuff about them, there's that other thread in this forum talking about one... if I bought one of those for 250-300, would I be instantly kicking myself that I didn't spring for a 930/1100/etc for a couple hundred bucks more?

O/u are really cool, but probably out of my price range this go around.

I guess I'm probably looking for something with a bit more capacity anyways, for more versatility across more disciplines. The high end o/u are beautiful tho. I used to have a 500 but sold it off many years ago in college so I am totally starting from scratch here.

[ceh383]

In that case, I've heard good things about the Tri Star Viper G2...
Viper G2
And the CZ 912...
912

OR

For a bit more, the Beretta A300
A300

I have no personal expreience with any of them, but there are plenty of good reviews on all of them...

[anti]

Stay away from Turkish-made shotguns if you plan on shooting it often. I shoot at least 200 shells a week and at that rate your average Turkish-made shotgun would probably be toast within a year or two. And generally, when you send your gun in for repairs with those companies, they're gone for months at a time. American, European, and Japanese-built is generally what you want if you can afford it. The motto is "buy once - cry once". Get the best shotgun YOU can afford and if that means a Turkish shotgun then so be it, but don't be surprised if it starts breaking down sooner than expected. "...but Tom Knapp endorsed CZ (Huglu) shotguns before he died!" Yeah, and they also paid him a pretty penny to do so. I'd endorse Nazis even though I'm part Jewish if those cocksuckers paid me enough. Hah.

[ceh383]

Stay away from Turkish-made shotguns if you plan on shooting it often. I shoot at least 200 shells a week and at that rate your average Turkish-made shotgun would probably be toast within a year or two. And generally, when you send your gun in for repairs with those companies, they're gone for months at a time. American, European, and Japanese-built is generally what you want if you can afford it. The motto is "buy once - cry once". Get the best shotgun YOU can afford and if that means a Turkish shotgun then so be it, but don't be surprised if it starts breaking down sooner than expected. "...but Tom Knapp endorsed CZ (Huglu) shotguns before he died!" Yeah, and they also paid him a pretty penny to do so. I'd endorse Nazis even though I'm part Jewish if those cocksuckers paid me enough. Hah.

True and false at the same time. Of the Turkish shotguns out there, CZ is the best, and their customer service is among the best there is.
I have no idea how durable the TriStar will be, but, there are several threads about the durability of CZ shotguns, I've seen up to 30,000 trouble free rounds... Not bad for a $500 gun!

I own a CZ O/U, so far over 2500 rounds, and it's operated flawlessly. When I bought it I had a minor issue, small burrs where the chokes seat. I emailed CZ, the next day their gunsmith called me to talk about the issue. I was able to take care of it myself knowing I would not void the warranty. He also offered me free return shipping and guaranteed me I would have it back in less than 30 days, if I wanted to go that way.

I call that very good customer service, and so far, a very good gun for the money...

Not all Turkish guns are junk...But some certainly are...

[anti]

I'm glad that CZ took care of your issue but 2,500 rounds is just barely breaking it in as far as sporting guns go; I shoot that in 3 months or less in ATA trap and practice. For every 1 Turkish shotgun that goes 30k trouble-free rounds, how many don't? You generally get what you pay for and that's just the way it is in the long run. There's a reason why Turkish shotguns don't hold their value like the more durable makes of shotguns do. Even high-end guns break down from time to time but it's far less likely to happen. And many high-end gun makers will give you a whole new gun if the issue is deemed not worth fixing or unfixable/unsafe. I'd take a used Browning or Beretta over a new Turkish gun any day. In fact, my '85 BT-99 has countless handicap loads through it and it's still kicking good as new; just recently had the firing pin and mainspring replaced for preventative maintenance and the parts cost me a whopping $15.