suggestions for trap gun

[robin]

Looking to buy a shot gun for trap shooting don't want to spend a lot of money just your thoughts, semi auto,over under,length of barrel?

[Gavin_Sons]

Looking to buy a shot gun for trap shooting don't want to spend a lot of money just your thoughts, semi auto,over under,length of barrel?

I always shot a Browning BT100. Single shot with adjustable cheek pad and extra high vent rib. Busted tons of clays with that gun. 34" barrel

[Detn8er]

Looking to buy a shot gun for trap shooting don't want to spend a lot of money just your thoughts, semi auto,over under,length of barrel?

Careful......   

[Patrick]

What shotguns do you have ? And what do you normally prefer ?

I was brought up with Winchester Model 12s and shot them for years. I ended up using Remington 1100s for decades now. They can still be found, they're impossible to wear out and reliable as heck as well as soft shooting. I've used many different ones over the years and there are many good quality guns out there, it comes down to what you like.

A trap stock is a bit longer than a field or skeet stock as well as straighter. Trap stocks can be had in generally 2 styles, a straight higher comb or a raised Monte Carlo style depending on how high or straight a stock you need.  A trap target is rising when shot at so the gun should usually impact high.

There are many numbers of trap guns out there for sale and it just depends on what you like and are able to hit/break what you are looking at.  If you have friends that hang around the local gun club most will let you try their gun to see what you like.

Barrels length tends to get longer over the years. Trap guns use longer barrels. Generally in the 30-34" length. The choke tends to be tighter and most barrels today are tubed. But a regular modified to improved modified choke is just fine for 16yd targets.

[MP]

Looking to buy a shot gun for trap shooting don't want to spend a lot of money just your thoughts, semi auto,over under,length of barrel?

I always shot a Browning BT100. Single shot with adjustable cheek pad and extra high vent rib. Busted tons of clays with that gun. 34" barrel

I guess I am older!  BT99. Tens of thousands of rounds thru it.  Back bored, lengthened forcing cone,  ported, interchangeable tubes, release trigger.  Good guns.  Hard to go wrong with the basic model.  Fix it up as you go, if you want.

[Psychotic Bovine]

Stoeger over and under.  It's a bargain.  Not fancy, no auto ejectors, but it does work well.

[Hooter]

Patrick is telling his age..Model 12 Winchester, great gun! I use an over and under called a Silver. Choke tubes are nice and I use improved cylinder  and modified.  Depends on how quick you are coming out of the house? Some shoot modified. .full. to each his own. One thing I do suggest is a vent ribbed barrel.  FWIW.

[Serk]

I'm not a competitive trap shooter but being an obnoxious poster who has an opinion on everything, wanted to chime in with an obvious comment - If you're gonna be shooting a lot, that recoil can start being rather punishing pretty quick with shotgun loads... I'd put a lot of emphasis on a semi-auto for the recoil reduction if nothing else...

Just me though...

Love playing with my Remington 1100 just informally busting clays, and can do it all day long in comfort with the reduced recoil it provides.

[MP]

I'm not a competitive trap shooter but being an obnoxious poster who has an opinion on everything, wanted to chime in with an obvious comment - If you're gonna be shooting a lot, that recoil can start being rather punishing pretty quick with shotgun loads... I'd put a lot of emphasis on a semi-auto for the recoil reduction if nothing else...

Just me though...

Love playing with my Remington 1100 just informally busting clays, and can do it all day long in comfort with the reduced recoil it provides.

Trap loads are light, compared to field. Recoil pad, trap guns are relatively heavy, recoil reducer in stock.  Recoil is ok. I cannot think of any competitive shooters that use an auto for singles shooting.  Doubles, yes.

[RDAbull]

I still use my Winchester '97.  32" modified barrel.
You can quit laughing now.

[Gavin_Sons]

I still use my Winchester '97.  32" modified barrel.
You can quit laughing now.

No worse than the 870 I used when first getting into it. Still love that gun

[scoobydoo]

Robin,
Find a gun in your budget that feels right to you and then learn to shoot it.
My group of hunting buddies shoot 6 rounds every Wed. Night rain or shine. Most use what they hunt with as our main purpose is to stay sharp for hunting season. Shoot a gun enough & it just becomes part of you.
Every once in a while someone will come and want to show us how it's done with a high dollar custom, most just have a lot of money & can't hit carp.
I shoot a Remington 1187 I bought back in the late 70s or very early 80s scratched, worn and looser than some women.
Good hobby, have fun & try some of the other games too, I like sheet & 5 stand. Just don't bet against a Wing shooter.

[Jess from VA]

I'm not a competitive trap shooter but being an obnoxious poster who has an opinion on everything, wanted to chime in with an obvious comment - If you're gonna be shooting a lot, that recoil can start being rather punishing pretty quick with shotgun loads... I'd put a lot of emphasis on a semi-auto for the recoil reduction if nothing else...

Just me though...

Love playing with my Remington 1100 just informally busting clays, and can do it all day long in comfort with the reduced recoil it provides.

I am not a trap shooter.  I have shotguns.

Serk refers you to semiautos for reduced recoil, but there are two types; gas and recoil (inertia) operated.

It is gas operated semiauto shotguns that are the softest shooting of all shotguns, and it's pretty significant.  

The little I know, most trap (skeet, sporting clays) shooters shoot over unders, or even more specialized longer barreled shotguns.

The question I'd have is if I wanted to get into trap seriously/exclusively and buy a gun for that sole purpose, or whether I wanted to shoot trap occasionally and buy a gun that was not bad for trap, but would also serve other purposes well (like maybe a longer bbl, gas operated semiauto) (the drawback with them is they have to be kept cleaner than single bbl or O/U shotguns, if high volume shooting).  

http://www.luckygunner.com/lounge/gas-vs-inertia-shotguns/

[MP]

The vast majority of serious trap shooters shoot a single shot break open gun for singles and handicap.  95% plus, maybe 99%+.

For doubles, I would hazard 60-75% shoot over unders, and the balance shoot autos.

These are what dedicated shooters use, with dedicated guns.

Although, I use my over/under trap gun to hunt pheasants with.  Pheasants are a lot like trap targets.  They rise fast, and trap guns are set to shoot high, so one can hit a rising target, without having to cover it with the barrel while aiming.

On a side note, I have shot tens of thousands of trap targets.  Last winter, I went thru a live pistol training exercise.  Went thru several magazines of cartridges, shooting paper bad guys in various "live" situations.

When we got done, I had managed to hit all of my shots in the "kill zone" on the targets.  This was the first time I had done something like this. Ever.

Discussing it afterwards with the other shooters, I realized, as they were talking about their aim points, etc., that I had shot the pistol, like I shoot trap.  I had no idea where the sights were as I shot!  Like a shotgun, I had simply pointed the gun at the target, and shot. Interesting.  And yet, every shot hit, for the best score.

[Marinakorp]

Stoeger over and under.  It's a bargain.  Not fancy, no auto ejectors, but it does work well.

ill second the Stoeger over under.

I have one that came with 2 sets of Barrels, and has auto ejectors, adjustable cheek weld... it is pretty nice for a cheap gun... a lot of bang for the buck.

There are other ones that are cheaper...without the second barrel....can be had for relatively cheap.

If I had the $$... Id get a browning cittori from an auction...

[Fazer]

Interesting to read about trap guns--always been enamored with quality fire arms.  I've shot a little trap with my 51 year old 870--30" barrel.  Never shot competitively though. 

When I worked in Dayton and involved with the Chamber of Commerce, we used to host the annual trap shooting competition near the Dayton International Airport but the local politicians managed to lose the tournament to someplace down south (I think).

Now I have an 18" barrel on my 870 for home defense.  Haven't fired it in 20 years or so.

[Misfit]

I always liked a gun that I could shoot trap and hunt with. The two that I favored for both were the Remington 1187 and the Ruger Red Label. I owned and shot a lot of different shotguns but always came back to those two like a comfortable pair of jeans.