# Favorite waterfowl shotgun



## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

I was curious what is everyone's favorite shotgun. 
Mine is a tie between my Remington left hand 11-87 and my Benelli Super Nova. 
My grandson loves his Benelli SBE3.


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## 35whelen (Jul 3, 2012)

I like my sbe3 and my browning gold 10. 
I have two sbe3 but I’m thinking about selling both to get the Benelli performance shop waterfowl sbe3


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## Ray (May 10, 2018)

Mossberg 500 with a Carlson’s non-ported snow goose choke LR


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## JerryH (Jun 17, 2014)

Depends on the day of the week lol


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I have 3 that I will take with me depending on the conditions and what I am planning on shooting. 

If I am sitting I have a Ithica Mag 10 that is still my go to shotgun for most waterfowl. 

If I have to hike in quite a ways I'll take my old Winchester 1200

And if I am hiking creeks I'll take my Ruger O/U Red Label 20 ga.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

My favorite shotgun is a 1970s Remington 870, fixed modified choke, 2 3/4" lead shot shells only.

All my other shotguns suck - shoot low and to the right.


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

Ray said:


> Mossberg 500 with a Carlson's non-ported snow goose choke LR


I bought my grandson the youth model when he was 10. He shot alot of ducks with it.


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

Benelli M2


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

Critter said:


> I have 3 that I will take with me depending on the conditions and what I am planning on shooting.
> 
> If I am sitting I have a Ithica Mag 10 that is still my go to shotgun for most waterfowl.
> 
> ...


I need to get my 1200 out of the safe and shoot it!


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## Ray (May 10, 2018)

Irish Lad said:


> Ray said:
> 
> 
> > Mossberg 500 with a Carlson's non-ported snow goose choke LR
> ...


I have three other shotguns but the 500 is my go-to, points well, light enough for packing all day, I can beat the hell out of it and it just keeps running


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Irish Lad said:


> I need to get my 1200 out of the safe and shoot it!


I did get a new barrel for mine that is rated for steel with a modified choke. Originally when I got my 1200 it had a full choke and steel shot was not even thought of way back in 1969


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

I bought a new barrel for mine too. 20 something years ago. Do they say steel ok on the barrel?


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

Ray said:


> Irish Lad said:
> 
> 
> > Ray said:
> ...


In my opinion, a very under appreciated shotgun.


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## Clarq (Jul 21, 2011)

I've been using a Super X3 for about 10 years now, and loving it. 

Sometimes I'm tempted at the thought of an over/under, but for semi-auto I think I will stick with the SX3 for a long time.


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## SX3 (Jun 3, 2014)

Had the SX3 for several years. Sold it and bought an SX4 as my SX3 did not shoot 3 1/2inch. I have loved them both. For price I don't think they can be beat. I was in Oregon for business a couple weeks ago and we did a short duck hunt. Borrowed an M2 and enjoyed shooting it.


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## Al Hansen (Sep 7, 2007)

Remington 870 Wingmaster 3 in. Mag. 30 in. barrel and a Hastings barrel 28 in. for steel shot. Left Handed. Bought it in 1980 at Sunset Sports for about $300.:grin:


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## Fowlmouth (Oct 4, 2008)

JerryH said:


> Depends on the day of the week lol


Exactly.....I took the O/U out the other day. I forgot how fun that gun is to shoot.


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## Papa Moses (Sep 27, 2018)

SX4! Best bang for the buck


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

I was "window shopping" one day this October and saw a Stoger M3500 for under $700. I did a quick search for reviews and it had a great review. Well, I couldn't just let it sit on the shelf alone, it needed friends so I got it. I've only shot one shell so far, so I'll give it a go and see what my conclusions are. 


I've always loved my BPS's though.


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## 35whelen (Jul 3, 2012)

I had a stoeger m3500. It was a really nice gun.


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## JerryH (Jun 17, 2014)

Fowlmouth said:


> Exactly.....I took the O/U out the other day. I forgot how fun that gun is to shoot.


I should retract my reply with.

Big or small it doesn't matter as long as they go bang!!


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## silentstalker (Feb 19, 2008)

I shot an 870 for a long time. Killed a ton of birds with it. 

I now shoot an SX3 and love it.


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## goosefreak (Aug 20, 2009)

If I only had one choice of a shotgun to shoot the rest of my life I would pick my SX3 12 gauge but, my favorite gun would be my SX3 20ga.. Hell, maybe I would just pick that one to shoot the rest of my life. Good thing I don’t have to make that choice


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## Raptor1 (Feb 1, 2015)

taxidermist said:


> I was "window shopping" one day this October and saw a Stoger M3500 for under $700. I did a quick search for reviews and it had a great review. Well, I couldn't just let it sit on the shelf alone, it needed friends so I got it. I've only shot one shell so far, so I'll give it a go and see what my conclusions are.
> 
> I've always loved my BPS's though.


Don't want to be a downer, but my biggest mistake was buying that gun, my second biggest is I'm still using it. Doesn't work well in cold weather and has to be torn down after a box of shells. Contacted them and they said it can do that in cold weather, and to use a thin synthetic oil. Asked Sportman's about it and they said maybe to not oil it at all (I didn't take sportsman's advice, but I do use a thin oil).

One time while cleaning it I bent the spring a little bit on the firing pin and since then it works about 80 percent better. Not as many clicks as I had in the past in the cold. Hopefully they got it working better in the cold with later models! If not PM me and I'll take a pic of how the spring is bent :smile: and send it to you. We haven't had really bad cold yet (or I wasn't hunting), so it has worked fine this year so far.

I'm hoping to get an A400 next year, I've shot one and it was nice, but I was hunting with my bro last week and his was having a hard time on 3.5 inch shells, but he doesn't really clean it ever, so that may explain it. I usually only go up to 3 inchers, but if I find 3.5 on sale I'll grab them and use them.


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## MWScott72 (May 23, 2011)

Hunting waterfowl, it's my good'ol trusty Benelli Nova. You can't make those things not fire, and I love how you can field strip them in about a minute. Having that 3rd shot is nice too.

If it's upland, the Browning Citori O/U gets the now. I love how balanced and easy swinging it is. If it had a 3rd shot, I'd take it over the Nova.


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

Raptor1 said:


> Don't want to be a downer, but my biggest mistake was buying that gun, my second biggest is I'm still using it. Doesn't work well in cold weather and has to be torn down after a box of shells. Contacted them and they said it can do that in cold weather, and to use a thin synthetic oil. Asked Sportman's about it and they said maybe to not oil it at all (I didn't take sportsman's advice, but I do use a thin oil).
> 
> One time while cleaning it I bent the spring a little bit on the firing pin and since then it works about 80 percent better. Not as many clicks as I had in the past in the cold. Hopefully they got it working better in the cold with later models! If not PM me and I'll take a pic of how the spring is bent :smile: and send it to you. We haven't had really bad cold yet (or I wasn't hunting), so it has worked fine this year so far.
> 
> I'm hoping to get an A400 next year, I've shot one and it was nice, but I was hunting with my bro last week and his was having a hard time on 3.5 inch shells, but he doesn't really clean it ever, so that may explain it. I usually only go up to 3 inchers, but if I find 3.5 on sale I'll grab them and use them.


Raptor, good to know. whenever I get a new weapon I strip it down, pour boiling water over the parts to get the grease and oil off. I lightly lube the pieces that require it with a synthetic lubricant when assembling back for use.

If I'm chasing waterfowl and shoot a box of shells out of whatever gun I'm using, it gets taken down and cleaned anyway. I've only had one Autoloader shotgun that was a POS in the cold weather. After having it worked on by a gunsmith (porting out 0.030) it worked better. EDIT.... Not one auto, but two autos. My berretta A302 was a finnicky pile too. Haven't shot that one in 20 years.


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## paddler (Jul 17, 2009)

I like my M2. Don't love it, as it's just a machine gun, but it functions perfectly. Dropped it into the water and mud a couple of days ago, had to completely strip it down, rinse everything under the kitchen sink, dry it, lube it and reassemble. Easy to do and it's the cleanest its been since leaving the factory. I lubed it lightly according to a Benelli video using the factory supplied oil. Perfect now, ready to go. I've killed everything from teal to geese with it, 20 gauge, 2 3/4" 4's, 3/4oz, CYL choke. I like to use nicer guns when conditions allow.


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## mtgreenheads (Nov 29, 2020)

I can't say enough good things about my original SBE. I went through a pile of other guns, including SX2, Browning Gold, Extrema 2 etc. None of them functioned as well of my old SBE.


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## Greenhead_Slayer (Oct 16, 2007)

I'm a fan of the SBE's. A very nice neighbor sold me an SBE1 when I was 12, it got for 10 years and then upgraded to the SBEII, and this year just bought an SBEIII. I've never had a reason to try anything different.


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

I'm surprised there's not alot of Berettas as favorites. I know a few waterfowlers who love theirs.


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## Gundrum-Cheesehead (May 19, 2016)

I like my browning Cynergy o/u 12 with the Patternmaster chokes. I don't get the 3rd shot but when I use my other gun, my 3rd shot is a waste of $2 anyway. Likewise not much out there for Left Handed shooters.


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## 7summits (Nov 28, 2017)

Irish Lad said:


> I'm surprised there's not alot of Berettas as favorites. I know a few waterfowlers who love theirs.


The Baretta A400 Extreme Plus is one of the best waterfowl guns ever produced.


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## Brettski7 (May 11, 2020)

7summits said:


> The Baretta A400 Extreme Plus is one of the best waterfowl guns ever produced.


It's a nice one for sure. I personally like the SBE line better though.

I shoot a Super Nova though cause I'm poor and you can't beat it for the price lol.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## BearLakeFishGuy (Apr 15, 2013)

Remington 870 Super Mag in waterfowl finish. Shoots everything and anything. Never jams, just rack the action and it goes bang!


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## pollo70 (Aug 15, 2016)

Remington 870 express


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## 7summits (Nov 28, 2017)

Brettski7 said:


> It's a nice one for sure. I personally like the SBE line better though.
> 
> I shoot a Super Nova though cause I'm poor and you can't beat it for the price lol.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


The only reason I like it better than the SBE line Is it is basically a gas version of the SBE (no Benelli finger issues when shooting 3.5").


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## Brettski7 (May 11, 2020)

7summits said:


> The only reason I like it better than the SBE line Is it is basically a gas version of the SBE (no Benelli finger issues when shooting 3.5").


Never heard of benelli finger issues. I mainly shoot 3.5". Actually this is the first year I've bought anything other than. Maybe it's a semi-auto issue? I did forget about the gas thing however the inertia system is one reason I like SBE. I almost bought one when sportsman's had them $600 off. I'm an idiot for not doing so.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## 7summits (Nov 28, 2017)

Brettski7 said:


> Never heard of benelli finger issues. I mainly shoot 3.5". Actually this is the first year I've bought anything other than. Maybe it's a semi-auto issue? I did forget about the gas thing however the inertia system is one reason I like SBE. I almost bought one when sportsman's had them $600 off. I'm an idiot for not doing so.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Benelli finger is pretty common. When shooting 3.5 shells the recoil would cause the trigger guard to bump hard into your middle finger (finger right behind your trigger finger. Have one friend that actually had to wrap the upper part of his middle finger whenever we went after geese. Before that his finger would always bruise and swell.

Having said that, $600 off is a great deal.


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## paddler (Jul 17, 2009)

7summits said:


> Benelli finger is pretty common. When shooting 3.5 shells the recoil would cause the trigger guard to bump hard into your middle finger (finger right behind your trigger finger. Have one friend that actually had to wrap the upper part of his middle finger whenever we went after geese. Before that his finger would always bruise and swell.
> 
> Having said that, $600 off is a great deal.


Simple solution- shoot 2/3/4" shells.

I got a good deal on my Beretta Onyx after some guy bought it because it has 3.5" chambers. He couldn't handle the recoil of the Roman candles so returned it to Gallenson's after firing a few shells. I've never shot anything but 2 3/4" shells through it, and it works just fine.


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## Irish Lad (Jun 3, 2008)

Brettski7 said:


> 7summits said:
> 
> 
> > The only reason I like it better than the SBE line Is it is basically a gas version of the SBE (no Benelli finger issues when shooting 3.5").
> ...


Sportsmen's warehouse $200 gift card with purchase now. Still a good deal .


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