over/under turkey guns?? Looking for advice/ideas??

[AU Beardbuster]

I have been looking into getting an over/under Tristar Hunter Magnum 12 ga. 3 1/2"  chamber for next year.  I shoot an  SBEII now with HV13 3 1/2" 2 oz #6 and have tried 3 different chokes and restrictions  and have had some issues getting good patterns and also patterns 12-18 inches high from where i am aiming which has cost me some really nice birds the past couple of years. I have also tried different brands of ammo etc.  I like the idea of being able to choose which barrel you want to shoot and have different chokes/ammo for close and long range shots. Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated, Thanks!!

[drenalinld]

I want to set up an over/under as well for a turkey gun. I want a Browning Cynergy, but they are high. The camo versions are only available in 12 gauge, but wouldn't a 20 gauge with TSS and a tight choke in one barrel and H-13 7's with a more open choke in the other barrel be fun???



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[SumToy]

They work fine. Now keep in mind that most of them shoot high. Now bottom barrel shoot more poi/poa.  I shoot them all the time. It one of them things you love them or hate them.  Always shoot bottom barrel 1st you will not get as much muzzle rise.  Also you have long rang set and short rang with just a flip of safety.

[AU Beardbuster]

Check out the Tristar, appears to be a great gun for the money and comes dipped with swivel sling studs. It also shoots Benelli chokes which will make it easy to find a good combo. Brownings are nice but I dont think i can justify spending that kind of money on a turkey gun I am going to beat around.

[R AJ]

Be aware that there are potential issues with top bbl/bottom bbl POA/POI and some of the cheaper guns can be way off.
I will not be shooting 3.5" loads in a single or double barrel. Of course you don't have to to enjoy that gun.

Good luck.

[SumToy]

Check out the Tristar, appears to be a great gun for the money and comes dipped with swivel sling studs. It also shoots Benelli chokes which will make it easy to find a good combo. Brownings are nice but I dont think i can justify spending that kind of money on a turkey gun I am going to beat around.

Keep in mind that a O/U in not a normal set up.  The low end guns will not last as long.  Now I think this will show even more with the 31/2 loads.  I see alot of the guns because of the sporting clay.  Now true we will put more rounds out of one in one weekend then most shoot in 4 or 5 years.   I would look at one a steel action.   Some of the cheaper guns have more recoil also not as much money put in the RD department.

[BrowningGuy88]

I don't have an O/U, but I would eventually like to have a Cynergy or a Ruger Red Label. I would opt for wood though, as it would also be used for quail and dove on occasion. I had rather tote a good looking gun in the dove field so when I miss, I at least look good doing it!

That said I have a dedicated turkey gun and another on the way, so it would only be used sparingly for turkeys.

Daman

[drenalinld]

I love the wood also daman, and in that's the only Cynergy option in 20 ga. I don't think I could bring myself to camo dip a $2K gun. The down side of that for me is I abuse anything that goes to the turkey woods with me and the camo might hold up better.

[grousec]

While I love O/U's and use them most of the time.  I grouse, woodcock hunt and shoot sporting clays with o/u's but have no desire to use them for turkey because the barrels do not have the same POI and I don't know that they are meant to.

[deadbuck]

I shoot a Browning Citori Satin Hunter 12 ga 3 1/2. It has 28 inch barrels but is overall shorter in length than most autos with 26 inch barrels. I shoot a briley .675 in one barrel and a briley .720 modified in the other barrel for close shots. Thought about getting it dipped but just put some camo tape on it for turkey and duck season and remove it after the season to have a beautiful gun back. You can get a Browning for about a grand, and even get a $150 off promotion most of the time. If you decide to resell later a Citori will get most of your money back,whereas, the cheaper o/u guns aren't worth much. It will kick a little with 3 1/2 inch shells duck hunting.

[Turkey Trot]

Three of the worst words ever stamped on a gun:  "Made In Turkey."  It's a good
reason to think it over.

One can consider some known O/U's bought used and modified.  SKB's and Ithaca/SKB's can be bought for reasonable money and are reliable.  There are some lesser grade Beretta's out there that can be bought reasonably as well, but they don't all have the modern safety/selector switch.

FABARMS is an Italian maker and has done much better abroad than it has in the US market.  H&K imported its guns for a while and it apparently did not work.  Those guns are well regarded for reliability internationally, and I've not heard of problems here.  You could get your hands on one

[squid]

I had "HAD" a Fausti (Italian Made) O/U Turkey shotgun imported by Traditions.   Really nice gun, looked great but POA/POI was over 2 foot different in both barrels. 

I spent several hundred bucks trying to get better patterns, converged patterns and optimal sites to no avail.    I shot hundreds of rounds out of that gun "trying" to make it the ultimate turkey gun.   Finally I cut my losses, sold the gun and went back to a Remington 870.

For those of you that think you will have an open choke and a tight choke, I'd venture to say you haven't patterned the gun enough to see there is little advantage at distances inside 20 yards.   I had a Carlson .665 in one barrel and a Open bore in the other barrel.   Inside 20 yards, there was no difference in the pattern.   I had 12 different chokes for this gun and also sent it to Rob Roberts to have it worked on...

I still love an O/U and may go back to one someday, but with a different mentality.  Barrel one, the killing barrel, Barrel two, the "oh $h1t" barrel to spray and pray on a follow up shot.

[cugolf14]

I have got a Citori that I use and love the turkey setup I have in it. The POA and POI were perfect with both barrels and I love having the two different chokes for different range shots. I have a PureGold in the top and a modified choke in the bottom and they both put out very different patterns. The PureGold is a killer to 50 yards+ and the modified has a very open pattern at less than 25 yards.

The POA and POI problems as well as the difference in 20 yard patters might be different with different guns, I don't know. All I can vouch for is my setup and after seeing how well it works I highly recommend the over/under!

[AU Beardbuster]

Thanks for the all the advice and ideas. Definately dont want a gun that has a poi/poa issue.. thats the issue I am having now with my Benelli SBEII. I also have an 870 which isnt the prettiest thing in the world but it has proven to be a great gun and has killed birds up to 60 yds. Thanks again for the help!!

[grousec]

Beardduster, have you tried another choke?  Also have you talked to benelli?  I have a friend who had the same issue with a nova.  He shot it the day he bought it and went in a called benelli explaining to them turkey season came in that weekend and they sent him back to the dealer and he got a new gun which shot straight.  I also hate a gun that doesn't have a proper POI.