12ga or 20ga

[nailbanger]

Folks thanks for all your input. I had planned, after getting your opinions, on a 20ga. Mossberg. I have to shoot lefthanded due to a eye injury so I like a tang safety. So today at a gun show I found a Browning BPS 18&1/2" NIB for $335 out the door, in 12ga.[w/tang safety] For that price I'll stock 20's & 12's. In my area that is less $ than the Mossberg is bringing new. Thanks again for your opinions.

[SHOOTALL]

They are nice guns , BUT they have two bad traits they dump empties where you stand so train to be aware of the trip hazzard. Also they load and eject thru. the same hole which makes a jam almost impossible to clear in a hurry. These are not cuts but things to learn to over come .

[anachronism]

12 & 20 gauge shotguns shoot at about the same velocities. So do 410s for that matter. The difference is in the weight of the shot charges. The 12 ga. holds more shot, so more shot at the same velocity recoils harder than a 20. We buy 12 gauges, every shotgun has a 3 in chamber, most ammo is  2-3/4, but we always seem to end up with at least some 3 in. Our current house ammo is Winchester Ranger reduced recoil #00 buck. We don't allow 3-1/2 in 12 gauge anything in the house. This is consistent with our house policy of all 1911s are 45 ACP, and all magazines interchange, all 38 revolvers are actually .357s, but we keep both 38 Spl & .357 ammo on hand. All AR 15s have 5.56 chambers, but we buy 223 commercial ammo for the most part. We try to keep things simple.

[SHOOTALL]

I can get 1 oz loads for both 12 and 20 ga shotguns. The reduced load 12 ga slugs and buck shot recoil about like a 20 ( I don't know exact loads ) aa 20 being a lighter gun will recoil more with like loads. As for velosity it can run from 1100 FPS to 1900 + FPS. Also in most standard loads the 23/4 inch loads are about 100 FPS faster than the similar 3 inch load.

[dougk]

Folks thanks for all your input. I had planned, after getting your opinions, on a 20ga. Mossberg. I have to shoot lefthanded due to a eye injury so I like a tang safety. So today at a gun show I found a Browning BPS 18&1/2" NIB for $335 out the door, in 12ga.[w/tang safety] For that price I'll stock 20's & 12's. In my area that is less $ than the Mossberg is bringing new. Thanks again for your opinions.

Hey Nail

have you had  a change to use the Browning and if you did how did you like it?

Doug

[nailbanger]

I ran a box of light loads thru it to check function and trigger pull [and for the fun of it] As expected it didn't miss a lick, the trigger is of course a shotgun weight but is very crisp. Also ran some Super X 1oz slugs. With a 6 o'clock hold at about 35 yards it shot a smidge high and right, but to my surprise two out of three touched and the third wasn't off much. I'm no slug gunner, but that didn't seem bad for a smooth bore and bead sight. Perhaps one of you guys with more knowledge about this type of shotgun will offer your opinion and advise me. I'll pattern some buckshot soon. I bought this mainly for a house gun so I'm sure the buck load pattern will suffice.

[Shu]

Most full barreled shot guns will shoot a bit high they are made that way for shooting moving targets. Cut the barrel to 18 inches and that will change. (I am not recomending that but have done that with spare barrels). You can get some pretty good groups even out to 100 yards with a smooth bore shot gun, minute of soda can for sure.
I like the shotgun, it is a great all around unit. To me there is no difference except 12 guage shells may be easier to find. If you are a reloader it doesn't matter. I really like the 12 but as I get older and more brittle the 20 is great.
 
If it's a house gun short barreled 18 inches (legal limit) with bird shot is sufficent. If you take the fight outside 18 barrel and buck shot of your choice and slugs.
My favorite was a mossberg model 500 12 with 18 barrel and extended magazine. I like the tang safety also.  I called here sweet suzy, she kept the yard clean. I even shot trap with it.