cdb1
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This.
Trap shooting: Is .410 a good choice for my wife?
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This.
Charlie Martinez
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I've seen a lot of ladies shoot trap & skeet all day long with 12 Ga semi autos w/o any problem. In CAS all the ladies shoot 12 Ga doubles or pump actions quite well & some could be considered small even for women. On the other side of the coin I've seen full grown men in CAS flinch like heck, obviously bothered by the recoil of even a light target load. Before buying have her try a few guns. Just because she's small doesn't necessarily mean she's going to let recoil get in her way.
When I was shooting competitive skeet, besides some practicing with the .410, I'd drag it out once in a while for an attitude adjustment. It really pointed out problems and missed birds were frequent. If you look at the breakdown of average ranges for each class, the .410's averages are significantly lower than the other, larger gauges.
The short answer, the .410 is not good for a beginning clay shooter.
My 5'-2" wife shoots skeet with a 26" 20 gauge Browning Citori over/under. She likes it.
With today's light 12 gauge loads, that could be a good option and allow for the shooter to move up to heavier loads at a future time without changing guns.
As Jim Watson said, light commercial loads may not pattern well. Reloading may be needed to get the most out of 7/8 oz or 3/4 oz 12 gauge target loads that are comfortable to shoot.
The short answer, the .410 is not good for a beginning clay shooter.
My 5'-2" wife shoots skeet with a 26" 20 gauge Browning Citori over/under. She likes it.
With today's light 12 gauge loads, that could be a good option and allow for the shooter to move up to heavier loads at a future time without changing guns.
As Jim Watson said, light commercial loads may not pattern well. Reloading may be needed to get the most out of 7/8 oz or 3/4 oz 12 gauge target loads that are comfortable to shoot.
My daughter is 5'0" and weighs about 110 pounds. She competed on her high school shotgun team. At practice they would shoot about 100 to 150 shells a session. At tournaments it would be more around 250.
I started her off on a 20 gauge, but within about 2 weeks, she switched to a 12 gauge. The first year she mostly shot a Browning and a Beretta, both gas operated. The 2nd year she moved to a Beretta over and under shotgun in 12 gauge.
Fit is important. Remember for skeet and trap, you are shooting light loads which don't recoil much. Also, a 20 gauge does not necessarily recoil less, because most of the 20 gauge guns are lighter. My daughter says she can't tell much difference between 12 and 20 gauge recoil.
I do think you are at a disadvantage shooting something other than 12 gauge if everyone you compete with is on a 12 gauge.
I started her off on a 20 gauge, but within about 2 weeks, she switched to a 12 gauge. The first year she mostly shot a Browning and a Beretta, both gas operated. The 2nd year she moved to a Beretta over and under shotgun in 12 gauge.
Fit is important. Remember for skeet and trap, you are shooting light loads which don't recoil much. Also, a 20 gauge does not necessarily recoil less, because most of the 20 gauge guns are lighter. My daughter says she can't tell much difference between 12 and 20 gauge recoil.
I do think you are at a disadvantage shooting something other than 12 gauge if everyone you compete with is on a 12 gauge.
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