Or is your Turkey Gun a specialized Turkey-Only setup?
If you use it for Multiple types of Game:
How many different Chokes do you utilize, and what are they?
I've started wondering just how many chokes are really needed for an all-game setup? Maybe 4?
Wide Open (Cylinder, Skeet, or Improved Cylinder)
Moderate (Light Modified, Modified, or Improved Modified)
Tight (Light Full, Full, or XFull)
Super Tight (Turkey)
If i use one for other game , which some i have , they always seem to have a improved cylinder in them when not sporting the turkey choke. Mostly my all around guns get a day in the turkey woods every so often. Not the other way around.
My 835 is a dedicated turkey gun. I have it topped with a Bushnell Red Dot and a .670 Pure Gold choke. I do have several choke tubes in reserve for it but the Pure Gold gets the job done every time with #7 Hevi's, I don't feel the need to waste time and money experimenting with the rest.
I use my gun for lots of different hunting. It's a Rem 870 20ga. My pops gave it to me for Christmas when I was 12. I have been hunting with it for 20 years now. The beauty of a shotgun is the versatility, too me. I use Improved choke for small game and clay. Full choke for coyote and fox. X full for turkey. I have a rifled slug barrel for deer. Though I have never been, I'm sure I could set it up for waterfowl too. Shot is species specific. I have partnered each setup with lots of different ammo. Seems to prefer Remington ammo most often.
Used my Encore to kill some tree rats last year. It worked well but doubt i do it again.
My SBE 2 has killed turkeys, deer, pheasants, geese, grouse, yotes, fox, quail, crows,.... But with the addition of the new Vinci the SBE 2 will be only turkey
I watched a couple of episodes of Noir http://www.nrafreestyle.tv/noir the other day and the host said "...the shotgun is the thinking man's gun."
I'd never really thought of it that way but probably should have since with just a little thought, we can use our shotgun(s) for so many different purposes.
A little tweak here and there and it's really a whole different gun.
Thanks,
Clark
Mine's used for turkey hunting only with the red dot sight on it. When I used my Beretta with bead only I used it for doves, turkey & everything else. But the 870 with the red dot could certainly be used for other uses as well.
Most of my turkey guns are dedicated and see no other use.
My BPS 10 sees some coyote and goose duty on occasion.
I use my 870 20 gauge with the RSF choke tube for turkeys in the spring and for squirrels in the fall. The Mueller sight is perfect for the limb rats. The only change I make is switching over to #6 lead field loads. :z-dizzy:
I just bought a sbe2 for this purpose and it will see action from dove to turkey and everything in between
I used to use my SBE for both Turkeys and Waterfowl as well as my Winchester SX2. I would swap out chokes and roll with it...then I got an 835 Ulti-Mag and dedicated it to my Turkey hunting and haven't looked back. :funnyturkey:
The two guns I shoot for multiple game are Beretta Urika 2 and Rem 870sm. They both have double beads and the POA/POI stays on with these two guns from imp cyl to turkey chokes. My other turkey guns shoot off with turkey loads and have to use adjustable iron sights or red dots to reel them in and they become basically a one shell gun. For this reason I use them for turkey only.
Beretta Urika 2 / Pure Gold .670 /Hevi 13 3" 6's and 7's
Rem 870sm/ Ventilator .655/ Win XX 3" 6's.
These guns I hunt with imp cyl, mod chokes for rabbit, squirrel, duck, dove etc
Turkey gun for turkeys, o/u's for upland and semi auto for crows. Gonna try my hand at waterfowl hunting this fall and will likely use a semi for that as well.
If you scope your turkey gun it is a dedicated turkey gun, except for putting in a modified choke and going squirrel hunting. I use to use my 870's like that. Now I have an SX3, with a Fastfire 3 on it. Using 2 3/4 inch shells, If I slip in a modified choke it will see squirrel, quail, rabbit, etc., some people use the Fastfire 3 to shoot Clays. I am sure a choke for duck hunting would work also. Mostly I have reloaded my own 12 ga 2 3/4" shells with #5 shot and stiff powder loads. Always patterned like my turkey choke, never had to change anything, except to put in a modified choke.
Its a dedicated turkey shotgun. :OGturkeyhead:
I have several dedicated turkey only guns. My all around shotgun for other game (pheasants, rabbits, etc) is a 1959 vintage Winchester Model 12 12 ga. with a 28" modified fixed choke. This shotgun is completely original and uncut. Even the stock finish is original. Needless to say I hunt with it but take care not to abuse it.
I use mine for waterfowl and occasionally small game, but I have a barrel dedicated to turkey only. It's shorter with open sights and a turkey choke versus a bead sight with a modified choke.
No, I have several dedicated turkey rigs. I also have a dove gun, a waterfowl gun, and several other shotguns. Not saying you can not use the same gun for multiple species but I like having the benifits of a dedicated turkey rig.
Ridge Rooster
My turkey guns are dedicated right now since I only hunt turkey and deer. If I were to hunt some other game, I'd probably swap chokes and shells in one of my turkey guns.
My turkey rig is my turkey rig. I have another shotgun for everything else.
My turkey rig is an all around killer. It is scoped, but there is no reason to remove it. I have even dove hunted with it. Actually shot them better that way.
Dedicated turkey/predator gun for my sbe2, bps 20. For small game a side by side 20 or an 870. For clay sports various Beretta o/u.'s.
I use mine for both turkey and predators.
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I have a couple of 3" guns for other purposes. A semi-auto and a pump.
With the red dot and ported 24" barrel, I wouldn't want to shoot my 835 as a wingshooter, certainly not a lot either.
I have 3 20ga and 3 12ga,they all get used for everything from deer to doves
I have a more than 1 shotguns but really only use 1 for everything clays, upland, waterfowl, turkeys, and predator calling.
No optics, just use a different choke, and if hunting after dark (coons or coyotes) I add a light.
Right now it's an a400 xtreme.
No
I considered using it on coyotes. But.. Why not just build a dedicated coyote gun? I can't have too many guns.
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I have all of my guns set up to take whatever animal I hunt except the NEF 10 gauge. The two choked guns (870 12ga and 870 20ga) have Improved Cylinder for slugs, Modified and Full for buckshot and small game, and turkey chokes. The two fixed choke guns (Wingmaster 870 12ga and Stevens single 20ga) have full barrels. That being said, they have proved many times over to kill anything (dove, quail, rabbit, squirrel, deer, turkey, coyote, etc...) from ranges out to 55 yards. They are by far my favorites. I take them all to the turkey woods at least once a season as well with my 10 and 12 870 being my main go to turkey guns.
I have purposely limited my budget to include one shotgun. Mossberg 535. 4 different interchangeable barrels allows me every kind of hunting/protection at a very modest price. For me, trying to do what others can't or won't do is where I pride myself. Yes, there is a lot of sourcing, checking and double checking. It's not for everybody, but it is for me. I like the challenge. If you dig deep enough, there is a fix for everything!
Both of my Berettas are dedicated turkey guns. They are scoped and used for turkeys only.
Got a VersaMax and that is all I need. Love it!
My bps 10 is pretty much my only "dedicated" turkey gun now. The Vinci is my swiss army knife gun, i use it for everything. A quick twist and I can put on the steady grip, pop on the red-dot and choke swap and it's a turkey hunting machine. I really hope to pick up another one down the road when finances allow to leave set up as a dedicated turkey/deer gun, so I can use one for waterfowl/wingshooting which was the intended purpose for it when I bought it. My guns suffer from "mission creep" lol!
the shotguns I use for turkey also see action for calling coyotes, one also goes crow hunting too , and wear rifled slug barrels if I deer hunt in a shotgun only area.
Maybe I shouldn't bump my own thread, but this has been a really good thread. Interesting posts thus far.
Yes. I have used the same gun for turkeys, doves, and quail before several times. If a person wants to use a shotgun for turkeys only, that's fine. I just like being used to a certain shotgun so I can be more accurate with it. To each his own.
My sbe2 is used for waterfow turkey, and coyote, just change the choke...shoots straight so I simply use the beads no additional sights, I primarily kill turkeys with a bow now
I have 4 turkey guns, 3 of which can serve as waterfowl (goose) guns in the winter when needed.
I use the Mossberg 935, Stoeger 3500 and BPS 10 ga. occasionally for waterfowl...the 3500 I have to remove the scope base and Red Dot so I didn't use it on geese this year. The other two have Tru Glo Magnum Gobble Stopper Pro Series adjustable sights and they don't bother me at all for waterfowling....I leave them on.
I have used mine for duck, geese, deer but once I got to turkey's I found no need to go back and hunt other game :)
Reality I have my gun set to turkeys now and leave it. I found it easier to buy a new one for the other game species, my wife bought the idea :z-guntootsmiley: