The "Dovenator's" Winchester: Truth or over-heated hype?

I recently read a review on the Winchester Model "Super-X3" shotgun by author Brad Fitzpatrick in the 2013 issue of the Gun Digest, some of which I found to be "super" incredulous at best but mostly unbelievable. Quoting Mr. Fitzpatrick: "...If it (the Super-X3) was ever going to win fans, it had better be extremely reliable. It did that, proving it would continue to work under the worst conditions, and quickly gained a reputation as one of the most dependable semi-autos on the market. One of the first examples of this was when Dr. Scott Breeze, also known as the "Dovenator" took over 15,000 doves in a single day of shooting in Argentina with a pair of 20 gauge SX3s, setting a new world record. The SuperX3's design had shown itself to be fail-safe, even under such brutal shooting conditions."

Taking nothing away from the many merits the SuperX3 shotgun has, does anyone else find this supposed feat bordering on the impossible? Assuming an eight hour day, sans lunch and rest breaks, shooting at and killing over 15,000 doves (that I assume were flying) seems to me to be nothing more than a flight of fantasy. After all, there are (according to "Alexis") only about 28,800 seconds in every eight hours, which would mean the Dovenator would have to kill a dove every two seconds or so.

I will concede that how many hours constituted "a single day" was never stipulated. Maybe the Dovenator shot through the night and the next morning to account for his pile of 15,000 birds...

LRDGCO said:

The article references a pair of SX3s, so maybe two shooters?

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No, one shooter; aka "Dovenator".

cdb1 said:

I find 15,000 dove hard to believe too. On the other hand I own four SX3’s, two 20 gauges and two 12 gauges and do believe they are very durable and reliable.

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As I said, "Taking nothing away from the many merits the SuperX3 shotgun has...", my only point was/is that one man killing 15,000 doves in a single day seems to be a bit of an exaggeration. The SX3 shotgun has indeed been proven to be a very durable and reliable shotgun from all accounts.

gunsmither said:

Perhaps it is a mis-print? 1500, though still a slaughter, is probably feasible.

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Not a typo. The author used the 15,000 figure twice in his article. Of course, it's possible he typo'd twice, I suppose.

newfalguy101 said:

Two loaders and 3 guns in rotation with a 4th for backup, provided by Winchester.

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I simply quoted what the author reported: A "pair" of 20 gauge Winchester SX3 shotguns, not three or four, were used. Too, the author never said how many, if any, loaders were employed (I would say that's it's safe to assume at least one loader was used). Maybe you are privy to more information regarding this specific event than the author provided; if so, please share.

newfalguy101 said:

I dunnu, I suppose you could click the link in my post above....which takes you to the article you referenced....

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I did read it and I guess I can only assume that the article I quoted in the 2013 issue of the Gun Digest pertains to the same event as the one in the link you provided. That said, it seems that the author (Brad Fitzpatrick) I referenced reported the event differently and likely inaccurately, at least in terms of the number of guns used. As improbable as the "feat" is and as arguable as the nature of the ethics of it might be to some, killing over 15,000 birds, even in a 14 hour day, is pretty astonishing to me- and if you knew how well I hit flushing grouse, you'd understand why.