Scott65 wrote:So my daughter is in FFA and she comes home from school telling me about a shooting group that will be shooting sporting clays. I have no firsthand knowledge in this area. But it seems a good excuse to buy her a shotgun that she can learn with, and decide if she likes the sport. I have a friend who has a Remington 870, and an 1100 of some variety that he "may be willing to part with". I'm not looking to invest in an expensive gun at this time, so I'm leaning towards a pump, but open to the 1100 if the deal is right. I have numerous friends who are familiar with shotguns and say that Remingtons are not the same as years ago when they were very well regarded. My questions are two fold: How far back in time do you have to go (what years of manufacture) to get to a point where you feel the Remingtons are a top choice? And second, if you were to buy a brand new one today, what brands are good in the budget shotgun category? Budget to me being in the $400 or less price range. Any help would be appreciated as I want to help her, but I'm just not knowledgeable in this area.
I have among others a Remington VersaMax, a Browning 725, a Beretta xcel 400 and a Mossberg Maverick, all in 12 gauge and all are great. I think the Remington shotguns of new vintage are fine.
The issue is really what size is your daughter and what can she handle? My 11 year old grandson can't really handle a shotgun yet. For sporting clays for a beginner I think a pump is pretty hard to handle although I see many that outshoot me with a pump. An auto like the 1100 is going to have less recoil than a pump of similar weight and you need the speed of an auto or an overunder when shooting two clays with sporting clays. Finally, 12 g or 20 g? Again, how big is your daughter and what can she handle? I wouldn't consider .410 unless one is a pro.
One of the hardest things that I have found is getting shotguns for smaller women and kids.
Best if your daughter gets to try a few guns before buying. If it doesn't fit her though it will be very hard for her to shoot it.