Did my best so far clay pigeon shooting.

Me and my buddy "Bobcatandy" went out and did some clay pigeon killing the other day, and I did the best i'd ever done. 50 straight. We were using a tire mounted thrower that throws them out straight, but they'll curve and we were throwing them in the cedars to make it more fun. I normally miss a couple out of 25.

I was using my worn out 870 early express 12 gauge modified choke, But I also gave andy's new 20 gauge express with IC ( i think) a few rounds.

Proud of that one, figured id share.

Anyone else like to kill the non eatable but fun clay birds?

~Bazoo

I used to shoot two rounds of skeet every weekend. Good way to tune up before dove season. After my second grandchild is born my daughter wants to get back to shooting skeet with me on the weekends.

Clays is a fun game that you don't have to get up early for or clean dead animals when you're done! You done good with the 50 straight:drinks: If you want to really have fun, find a sporting clays range and try that - 99% of those folks will welcome a newbie to the game.

Thanks buzz. It would be fun to go to a club and try a wider variation of angles and distances and speeds. It'd be double sweet if I was able to whoop those with 1000.00 shotguns with a beat up old 870 I got for 200 bucks.

Don't knock the "$1,000" shotgun crowd. Now a days that is on the low end. I shot my first 25 straight in skeet with an 870 - little older and slower now so a semi helps with those quick doubles in sporting clays. Bottom line is - it's the Indian, NOT the arrow! (or bow in this case) Keep at it!

I use to shoot trap with a guy that used a $150 pump Mossberg 12 gauge. He did everything "wrong", but still could shoot 23 - 25 every round. He stood straight up and shouldered that gun as if it were a rifle. (Just like obama) Shot the hell out of that gun and gave it away to a youth gun club each year. Bought himself another one for the next season.

I use a Remington 3200, paid $900 for it about 30 years ago. Those guns are built like a $&!# brick house. I bet I have 90,000+ rounds through it.

Before I settled on a 1969 Remington 1100 Pawn Shop rescue I used a $250 Yildiz over and under quite handily. Shot my first 24 in skeet with it, still working on the 25.

Friends and I shoot several rounds of skeet every week and a few more boxes at an informal range. 50 straight at any variation of clay targets is something to be proud of. Sporting clays is also a great game and usually has a great variety of target presentations, some can be a real challenge. Try it and post your score. My first score was 19 out of 50 but I had a ball!

Love clay birds. Nothing beats a fast moving target for fun.

Me and Andy were talking about doing some variation with the setup we have. We'd both love to go to a club and do it, if it wasnt too expensive to do. Im pretty confident, I magine I could handle it pretty good.

Around here, Kansas, about $35 will get you a 100 targets. IF you have an NSCA range near you see when they have a registered shoot. You can enter in "hunter" class without being a NSCA member and will get to see some 'tougher' tournament targets. Be careful, it is addicting!

We did some more the other day and out of 65, i missed 3. To my credit, we were throwing in the cedars and letting them curve around trees when they would. It was real neat hitting them between the trees.

Well, I got a copy of the gun digest book of shotgunning by marty fischer. I read it in a couple days and gave it to Andy as gift. I definitely think Andy and I will both get better.

Shot at Castlewood Rod and Gun today. 50 rounds of Sporting Clays was $12.00 for a member and cart rental was $4.00. My score was 37 of which I was pleased. Lots of fun and laughs!

$24 per 100 - that is a great price. As you said, lots of fun and you don't even have to clean the birds!

I see, so clay shooting is the most convenient way to get into the hobby, eh? Thanks for this, guys! :drinks:

It's addicting...

short of full on Sporting Clays you have

Trap
Skeet
5 stand
Helios

Then you can get into the variants...

For a challenge... F.I.T.A.S.C.

Range here has some throwers, I go when the wind is gusty to get better practice. It's pretty easy if you get them on the rise, dropping is tough. Want to try 5 stand for better dove hunts.

I do a combination of both getting them on the rise, at the apex, and on the drop. I like getting them on the drop the best.

Way back in the 50's a friend and I welded up a trap thrower that did a very servicible job..ugly and dangerous but it worked...Loved to shot clay birds with it and got fairly good with it. think I had a Model 12 field grade by that time (up grade from my old 97). used it for practice for ducks and pheasants.... Have not shot any shotgun for years and years...was cleaning out a relatives house after his death and there in the closet was an absolutely like new 11-48 Sportsman Remington semi automatic with a modified choke...Not a scratch or a spot of rust on it...shone like new...is pinned for 3 rounds of 12 ga. 2 3/4"
I'd been helping to clean out the mess and my wife was the executor...I asked if I might have the old shotgun as sort of payment for labor cleaning and of course she said sure.
I was warned not to shoot steel in it so got some #7 1/2 shot in a field load and loaded it up (cleaned and checked it all over first...perfect condition).....I'm rusty as heck but it does a beautiful job and I think I'm going to enjoy just doing some clay shooting..way too old to hunt but think I can shoot trap and possibly skeet with it.....we'll see

opos - The Remington 11-48 was a GREAT gun! It is a long recoil design like a Browning Auto-5 or Remington Model 11 but it was less expensive to manufacture. A friend of mine had one and for many years it was one of the best affordable semi-auto shotguns you could find. When you look at a Remington 870, you can see the influence of the 11-48.

It always amazes me the way some folks think an expensive pipe that launches shot can break targets better than a cheap pipe that launches shot. The difference isn't that smooth bore tube device but rather how long that device remains serviceable. If the gun fits you and works, you will do fine until the gun breaks and needs to be replaced. The man that shoots the same shotgun for 40 years will be always be better than the man that changes shotguns every 6 months.


You don't buy an expensive shotgun because it breaks clay targets better than a cheap shotgun (it doesn't); you buy an expensive shotgun because the gun itself DOESN'T break !

Beware of the man with one gun - He probably knows how to use it !

Well said, Petrol & Powder.

I've done a lot of clay shooting with various guns. I started with a combination of a 20 gauge NEF, a remington 870 express, and an old H&R 410 single when I was 18/19. 34 Now. The 410 was not really safe to shoot, so I sold it. The others I got pretty good with. Lost the NEF in the house fire 3 years ago, and traded the 870 off a long time back.

I've owned a couple mossbergs, and I didnt like the feel of them as good as the 870. I could hit with them though no problem. A friend I shoot with has one, and we always try each others a few times during our shooting. I have shot a zoli O/U marked sears that a friend has, and it shot wonderfully for me. Another friend has a remington 870 express 20 gauge, and it does good. I've also shot a few rounds with an auto 5 in 16 gauge, it was okay. The a.Zoli felt the best, and the 870 second best to me so thats the way I went. Awful hard to beat a 870 for versatility and durability.

The 870 is an amazing piece of American engineering. It has been in continuous production since 1950 with over 11 million made. Despite the fact that it is relatively inexpensive, it has proven to be both reliable and durable. While there's no such thing as a "universal" shotgun that fits everyone, the 870 seems to fit a large cross section of people.
Remington really hit a home run with the 870. They found that near perfect combination of durability, price point, ergonomics and reliability. While people complain about the fit and finish of the newer 870 models (and those criticism are valid) the 870 always manages to work. A 2015 870 Express doesn't look as good as a mid 1960's Wingmaster, but the 870 DNA is in there!

Remington came out with new designs after WWII and captured a huge segment of the market. The lower price point of Remington's post war products was a key part of that business strategy. The 11-48 (replacement for the model 11 designed in 1948, hence the name) was one of the first of those lower price point guns. You can see the influence of that design in the lines of the 870, 1100 and 11-87 shotguns that followed. In terms of ergonomics, Remington really hit the sweet spot with that receiver and stock profile.

I can do pretty good with my buddies mossberg, but the stock dont fit as good and the grip is too fat. Its more work to shoot well with, were as the 870 points and feels right to me. I can only imagine how well i'd shoot with one, if I had it professionally fitted to me.