3gun shotgun choice

You can definitely have fun running a basic pump in 3 gun. You will probably want a suitable mag tube extension. I've been running a 9-shot 590 with a 6 shot sidesaddle and 6 shot butt cuff and that gets me through most stages at my local club. You can run a pump surprisingly fast. It's the loading where you will lose most of your time and that goes for pumps and autos equally. After you try it out a few times you can decide whether you want to invest in a dedicated auto. But again, loading the shotgun is where 90% of your time will be lost so just go have fun.

Shoot your first few matches with a pump. Several of my friends are still using pumps with turkey barrels. It works fine. If you are going to upgrade equipment, the more matches you shoot with your current set-up the better informed you will be regarding upgrades. For me, multigun matches are a chance to improve with existing equipment. I prefer not to join equipment races.

Tony
When you say you have auto shotguns, I’m pretty sure you mean semi auto. I don’t know of a full auto shotgun.

Now I’m not an expert and have been long on which shotgun to get for 3 gun. The Mossy 930 JM seems to be the best value out there for a beginner. So if any of your guns are 930s I’d use one of them. Take the plug out, and add an extension tube. Then when you go back to hunting just reverse it.

Remember the first few times out your looking to try 3 gun, have fun etc. Youll be learning so your using as much of what you have with a few new things to complement is a good strategy.

In my case, I’m putting together a 3 gun rifle but it’s more for the fun of it and to learn the AR platform better. After that, getting gear is just part of the fun!

Please post and let us know how it goes

"...a full auto shotgun..." Atchisson. C 1972. 8 round box mag or a 25 or 40 round drum. Makes me sweat just thinking about it.
http://www.gunslot.com/pictures/atchisson-assault-shotgun
If you're going to play games with your firearms, play with the one you're most familiar with. Your Mossberg will be fine. Which barrel will depend mostly in the course of fire.

Sunray said:

If you're going to play games with your firearms, play with the one you're most familiar with.

Click to expand...

This doesn't apply if a guy wants to be competitive, and the one with which he's most familiar has a competitive disadvantage.

Time to get familiar with a gun which can be competitive. Otherwise, be sure to bring brownies in your range bag, guys will still be glad you're there.

The Mossberg 930 is a popular 3 gun shotgun.

Tony k said:

Yep. I used the term "auto" as shorthand for "auto loading shotgun" in this context. Didn't mean to confuse.

My semi-auto options are a lefty 1187 (I'm a lefty), and a 20guage Charles Daly. I've had just enough misfeeds with both to make me not want to use them in games.

Good thing about the 535 is that many Mossberg 500 accesories are interchangeable.

Thanks everyone. I think I'll just use my mossy as is for now (bone stock). I'll make decisions based on a few tries.

I'm kinda "pumped" about giving three gun a try.

Click to expand...

Tony, I agree you should not change your shotgun before you shoot a match or two. I'm sure the guys and gals who shoot the matches a lot can help you decide which parts to change to help you go faster without spending a lot. The good thing is, they already tried a lot of options so they can save us from making costly mistakes lol.

Good luck, have fun and please keep us updated.

Why not figure out what's wrong with the 1187 and use it? With a mag tube extension that would be a very reasonable starter shotgun. You could really upgrade it, as well, without spending a whole lot. Do extended controls, a ported barrel, that sort of thing.

Hoser said:

Trying to get and keep an 11-87 or an 1100 running 100% in 3-gun will drive you to drinking.

Click to expand...

Seriously? I've never had either one, but how can they be that unreliable? I mean, LE agencies all over the country use them. If they're reliable enough for duty use how can they not be reliable enough for a little competition?

If that's the case I would sell that lemon and buy a used Benelli. Any Benelli. You've not truly lived until you've owned a Benelli autoloader.

Stoeger M3K is a great entry level option. It's got a lot of 3-gun modifications straight from the factory.

I've seen a lot of benellis jam in dusty three gun competition. Seen all types of shotguns jam. I agree with the stoeger suggestion if you want to try an inertia gun. I don't really like them personally.

Hoser said:

Your average 3-gunner shoots a *lot* more than your average cop.

When I first started shooting 3-Gun/SOF about 15-20 years ago I had two 1100s. Take one to a match and on the way home drop it off at the gunsmiths shop and switch to the back up 1100 for the next match. Just a revolving door. I played that silly game for several years.

I shoot with quite a few cops and of them are shooting a Benelli or Versa-Max.

My current M2 has about 30-40K rounds through it and still runs like a champ. For some matches I take my SBS Benelli Entry when I don't want to look like a gamer.

Click to expand...

What kind of stuff goes wrong with them? I can't believe one match requires a gunsmith. I could see having to replace maintenance parts after X number of rounds, but to have to get a gunsmith involved... That's just ridiculous. I can't believe Remington is even still in business if that's the crap they're peddling.

The 1100 isn't crap but 3 gun matches are very hard on equipment. It's down right abusive and while you may use the 1100 for many many years in the field without a single problem like many shooters do, it might not weather a match or two without problems.

The Remington 1100 is one if the best semi-auto shotguns ever made but every tool has it's best use.

ArchAngelCD said:

The 1100 isn't crap but 3 gun matches are very hard on equipment. It's down right abusive and while you may use the 1100 for many many years in the field without a single problem like many shooters do, it might not weather a match or two without problems.

The Remington 1100 is one if the best semi-auto shotguns ever made but every tool has it's best use.

Click to expand...

I still don't get it. Shotguns get run hard for skeet, too. I had an autoloader crap out on me shooting skeet one day, and it was only because there was so much carbon built up that it wouldn't cycle anymore. After being wiped down and oiled it was fine.

Hoser said:

How many skeet and trap shooters shoot slugs? 00 Buck? Shoot 10-25 rounds through them in a minute or two? Hang 8-12 round tubes on them? Toss them, not gently, in barrels when they transition to a different gun in the middle of a stage? Put dot scopes on them? Add tech-loaders?

I learned a lot about the 1100/11-87 and I didn't need a gunsmithing intervention after every match once I figured out how to repair some things myself and learn what was going wrong before it broke.

I was just giving advice based on my experiences.

But, your call. Believe me or not. I am new here.

Click to expand...

There's no need to get testy. I'm just trying to understand the specifics. If it's a matter of things breaking when they get tossed into barrels, then that's one thing. Although I see lots of 3 gun guys with extended carbon fiber tubes, which would take the brunt of the abuse in that case, so I fail to see how that would excuse anything. I also fail to see how a dot scope would excuse anything.

Like I said, I'm just trying to understand the specifics. If it's a matter of the firing schedule breaking internals, that I'm not okay with. I've thought about getting an 1100 on a few occasions, but it sounds like I wouldn't be happy with it.

From what I've seen It's primarily the conditions (usually dusty) and high round count in low amount of time. Skeet or trap you shoot what... one or two shots (for doubles) every couple of minutes? Or 5 shots of trap in mabye a minute, with a couple minute break between stations? It may be more than that or less but isn't that the ballpark? In 3 gun you often shoot 20 or more shots very quickly, including a mix of birdshot, buck, and slugs, to the point that the barrel is too hot to touch. Plus with some strange positions and fast action people often don't get a good shooting stance or the stock tight against the shoulder which can contribute to jams. With regular maintenance and cleaning the 1100 series can perform adequately. I have run mine.

The other issue is the bolt catch/loading button. Most people load either weak hand 4 at a time or increasingly, twins or quads nose to tail. The 1100 series needs to be modified pretty significantly to be able to do either, and it's still not ideal. The more modern designs with long flat elevators and aluminum receivers with shell catches further away from the port can withstand a lot of shaping and polishing to allow very fast loading. About the only thing you can do on an 1100 is install Dave's EZ loader (which I have, and it works much better) or fashion some custom funnel if you want to run open division.

But it's still not ideal. I am an apologist for the 1100 because I like mine and I think it's cool to run guns that others don't or can't run. But honestly I'm faster overall with my mossberg 590.

Replace the O-ring regularly, clean and lightly lube regularly and you'll probably be pretty ok with the 1100/87. but you're behind the curve to begin with. There are much more suitable designs out there for this game.

I'll offer a third to the fact 3gun shotties get ran harder than any other scattergun in the biz. I had the notion to start shooting sporting clays and skeet in college, and at the time was apprenticing under another smith to learn how to make them sing. It wasn't until I started shooting 3 gun a couple years in that I learned what a "hard life" really means for a shotgun. I started with a Win 1300, ran it to pieces in a few months, amped to an 1187, ran it into the ground too. I spent so much time borrowing another shooter's M1S90 half way through a match day, he offered to just let me keep it until I could buy my own. Always something tweaking out of kosher, failures to feed/catch failures, broken slide arms, extractor failures.

I'm personally a big fan of the M4, but it just doesn't seem to have the following as the M2. I've never really asked why, as I haven't been competing much at all since my son was born, but I assume the answer is pretty straight forward.

Wow. I had a bad experience with my first and last Remington, and have avoided them ever since. I thought maybe I would take a chance with their LE models on the assumption they were better, but it sounds like I've done right just staying away from them altogether. I've had nothing but Benelli and Mossberg since then and haven't ever regretted either brand. Also have an Ithaca, but I've never shot it, although it seems nice. My issue with Benelli, and Mossberg to an extent, is the complete lack of aftermarket stuff for them, namely furniture, and the cost of parts.