Range Report_Benelli 20ga Pump and Me_6/7/16

[PT7]

The day was perfect for my first time out with my new Benelli 20ga Pump shotgun. Bright sunshine in a clear-blue sky, and temps ran between 71-76 degrees this afternoon, with a very light left-->right crosswind over the range.

DISCLAIMER --- No, I am not a traitor for buying an Italian-made shotgun, rather than another USA-made Henry rifle!!
If Henry made a shotgun, I'd be first in line to buy one. But I really like shooting a shotgun, and Benelli produces (I think) a quality firearm.

BUCKSHOT
I first patterned the Pump using two different buckshots.

~~~Winchester 2-3/4" 3-Buck, 1200 FPS. This buckshot has 20 pellets.
Shot 4 rounds at 4 different distances, and posted how many POIs there were at each distance. The target board shown is 14" wide.
I was pleased how accurately the Pump shoots after seeing these patterns. It has a mid-barrel bead sight and a red fiber optic front sight.
~~~I repeated above patterning-scenario with Rio 2-3/4" 3X3 Shot, 1345 FPS. Quite similar results with this 9-pellet one-buck. No picture.

RIFLED SLUGS
Then I went for my favorite shooting with a Pump shotgun -- rifled slugs. This was fun-fun!
Shot all slugs at a standard-sized black steel silhouette target.

~~~Herters 2-3/4" slug, 3/4 oz., 1350 FPS.
Shot five rounds at 40 yards. Placed 4/5 on target.

~~~Federal 2-3/4" slug, 3/4 oz., 1600 FPS.
~~~Winchester Super-X 2-3/4" slug, 3/4 oz., 1600 FPS.
Shot 2 rounds of each at 50 yards. Placed 3/4 on target. One is harder to see...it is at the bottom corner of the rectangular plate, which is bolted on target. But I definitely heard that pleasant "clang!"

This 20-ga PUMP was no effort at all to shoot/handle today. Everything worked perfectly -- chambered and ejected all shells w/o a glitch. The recoil was not very noticeable, and using the barrel sights was especially easy. It shoots where I want it to shoot --- that's a great start!

This shotgun is a keeper!

[JEBar]

It shoots where I want it to shoot --- that's a great start!

This shotgun is a keeper!

when you've said the above, you've said it all .... little else matters .... congrats, it should serve you well

[Sir Henry]

I don't know enough about shotguns to know if you did good or bad. I took an Italian pistol to the range today. I don't buy simply because something is made in the U.S.A. It has to be good and no American made single action revolver can match an Uberti in .22LR.

And all the ammo I shot today was made in Germany. I haven't found any American made .22LR ammo that can match the RWS and Norma quality.

But back to your shootin'. Counting the number of pellets in a target must indicate not only your skill in hitting the target but also the choke of the tube. Maybe I'll buy a shotgun, choke it down and shoot it once. Then post my small group.

[RanchRoper]

I know nothing about shotguns other than what I've learned from Elmer Fudd, but it looks like you shot well, and most of all had a good time doing it!

[JEBar]

just curious, what choke were you using .... the buckshot targets look good, the only one that seemed a little surprising was the difference in spread between 7 and 10 yards .... I wouldn't have expected the additional 3 yards would have made that much of a difference

[Sir Henry]

just curious, what choke were you using .... the buckshot targets look good, the only one that seemed a little surprising was the difference in spread between 7 and 10 yards .... I wouldn't have expected the additional 3 yards would have made that much of a difference

Doesn't the size of the spread double with the doubling of the distance?

[RetiredSeabee]

I don't recall ever hearing anything negative about Benelli shotguns. I have heard plenty of good. I don't have a shotgun.....yet. You guys keep adding the the list of firearms I seem to need.
Glad you had a beautiful day to enjoy your new gem.

[PT7]

I was using the IC choke. This model came with 3 chokes: F, M, IC. I think I read on an ammo box of rifled slugs when I was first getting some 20ga ammo, that the IC is best one to use for rifle slugs.

I agree with you that the 7-yard and 10-yard patterns shouldn't be so different, but don't know why that is. I think I might get the targets out tomorrow and do some measuring and see what that tells me.

BTW, I have a peck of learning to do about chokes. My previous shotgun was a smooth bore 12-gauge, so never had to even think about a choke. So this s/g is giving me some more firearm education. For instance, I chatted with a Carlson's Choke Tubes technician a couple of weeks ago about this new 20ga. I know that they make a choke without restriction that in essence makes the barrel a smooth bore. I've considered that. Also got a suggestion from him about shooting rifled slugs. He said the best way (from his experience in the business) is to get an extended IC choke. This extended IC is offered with their Benelli Mobil Sporting Clays Choke Tubes. The description the tech pointed me to stated: "....these are made from 17-4 stainless and precision machined to produce a choke tube that patterns better than standard choke tubes. These choke tubes feature a 25% longer parallel section in the choke thus throwing more consistent patterns than conventional choke tubes." Now I need to chew on that one a little!

I know also that chokes are helpful when using for hunting different game. And would need to use the right choke for shooting sports, too, e.g. clays or trap. That would be a good reason to keep learning about the different chokes I have rather than changing the PUMP into a smooth bore.

Bottom line, I don't know how much improvement an extended choke would yield. But I'm pretty certain that with the current IC I have, and how accurate it shot today, I'd think if I used it for deer hunting I wouldn't have great difficulty taking a deer at the 50-yard range. And that's only after my first day shooting it. Although I'm no where near an expert and have just a few years experience with shotguns, this s/g is that good to shoot. It does what I want it to do.

Thanks for your question, JEBar. Always good to look critically at and learn from the range experiences.

P.S. For further shotgun chats like this, I should move it over into the shotgun sub-forum.....got to remember that!

just curious, what choke were you using .... the buckshot targets look good, the only one that seemed a little surprising was the difference in spread between 7 and 10 yards .... I wouldn't have expected the additional 3 yards would have made that much of a difference

[JEBar]

I was using the IC choke. This model came with 3 chokes: F, M, IC. I think I read on an ammo box of rifled slugs when I was first getting some 20ga ammo, that the IC is best one to use for rifle slugs.

I agree with you that the 7-yard and 10-yard patterns shouldn't be so different, but don't know why that is. I think I might get the targets out tomorrow and do some measuring and see what that tells me.

BTW, I have a peck of learning to do about chokes. My previous shotgun was a smooth bore 12-gauge, so never had to even think about a choke. So this s/g is giving me some more firearm education. For instance, I chatted with a Carlson's Choke Tubes technician a couple of weeks ago about this new 20ga.

from your comments it is easy to see you have been doing your homework .... without a doubt, the 3 choke tubes you have will be the ones you use the most .... Carlson's is a very good out fit .... over time I've ordered about every extended choke tube they offer for our Remington 11-87, Remington 1100, and Ruger Red Label O/U .... most have never been used but if I ever need specialty tube for some weird reason, I've probably got one (for the Red Label make that two )