How to Choose the Best Shotgun for birds Hunting

There are a few items necessary for effective birds hunting.

First on the list is a cunning ability to outsmart the birds in their own habitat. As any hunter will attest this is no easy task. Nothing makes up for experience in the field to learn the nuances of how birds react.

Second on the list for most people is a good bird dog. There are a variety of choices for a good partner in the field. You can train them on your own, which can be great for both you and the dog. You can also send the dog to school where it will learn how to become a skilled hunter in the field with nerves of steel and the patience of a grandfather.

Third on the list is the shotgun. This is the final piece you’ll need to get out in the field and take down some beautiful pheasants. You’ll need your apparel and maybe a few hunting accessories, but none will compare in necessity to your shotgun.Purchasing a shotgun for pheasant hunting is a critical choice for any hunter. The gun will like be the one you have in your cabinet for an entire lifetime and it’s something you can pass down to the next generation when your time passes.

The shotgun you purchase now will need to be durable, accurate and something you can feel comfortable with in the field. A hunter and his gun form a bond that makes them inseparable. A good hunter combined with a good gun can lead to great results.

Here is a guide for choosing the best shotgun for hunting pheasants.

Weight - The first item to consider is the weight of the shotgun. When hunting ringnecks you can sometimes walk several hundred yards through fields and terrain. It can make for long days if you’re toting a gun that is too heavy to handle. You’ll want something at least under the eight pound mark. There are some that even get in the seven pound range and even a couple below that weight.

Also an important consideration is the distribution of the weight. A light gun is great for tracking around all day in the field, but the weight needs to be distributed slightly forward. This allows for easy tracking of the target and can reduce recoil enough to make your shoulder comfortable for the length of the hunt whether that’s a single day or an entire week.

There may be issues with recoil when you’re shooting high velocity pheasant loads. These tend to pack quite the punch and you’ll notice it on your shoulder with a lighter gun. It’s typically the opinion of hunters that a lighter gun for carrying makes up for any kick that might occur. You can always put a little extra padding in your hunting vest or wear another layer.


Gauge - For an adult hunter there is really no choice other than the 12-gauge shotgun. It’s the best option for pheasant hunting. Ammunition is readily available and cheaper than comparative shotgun gauges. The power is enough to take down the birds with ease. There are enough options available that are light and easy to carry all day in the field. 

The 16 and 20 gauge models are options. Perhaps for a youth or female hunter these would be good options, but the 12 gauge is really a good choice for any hunter of any body type. A 12 gauge shotgun is also good for a variety of different hunting. It’s a great gauge for pheasant hunting, but also works well for turkey and small game.

Style and Action - If you’ve been around the pheasant hunting world for a few years you know that the double action is perhaps the most common. The over/under action of a traditional shotgun is both classic looking and functional for pheasants. These guns tend to be more expensive, but will last a few lifetimes if handled correctly. They are some of the best shotguns out there for pheasants and most hunters will agree. The double action allows for different chokes. A more open choke is often used for the first shot while a full choke is often used for the second to allow for more distance on the second shot.

Some hunters will never go away from the semi-automatic shotgun action. It makes for easy subsequent shooting and can really be a smooth shooting gun. The action can jam a little more than other actions, but the semi-auto action is something versatile enough for pheasant hunting and other bird hunting you would use it for like turkey hunting.

The semi-auto or the pump models will also be less expensive than the double barrel. If this is a consideration for you there is really no reason to discuss the double action. A semi-auto or pump action is a very good action for pheasants. It can be your go to shotgun for all hunting meaning you’ll only need to purchase one in your lifetime as long as you care for it.

Additional Considerations - The style of the gun makes a difference for some hunters. If you’re going to be using the pheasant gun for other hunting like turkey hunting it might make sense to go with a camo pattern instead of the traditional pattern. For the traditionalist you really can’t go wrong with the classic stock and barrel look. You can get the black on black model, but for the traditionalist it’s all wood and classic barrel coloring.

Barrel length is something hunters consider. It’s not a huge issue for the pheasants. Barrel length is something you need to be comfortable with as a hunter. Anything around the 26 inch mark is likely a sufficient choice.

Typically you’ll want nothing less than a three inch shell. This gives enough power to reach out and get the birds that don’t like to get close. There is enough power and enough of a load to take down nearly any pheasant with a good shot.

Gun Recommendations - We couldn’t end the article without recommending a few guns. We’ve discussed the thought pattern associated with choosing the right pheasant hunting shotgun and here are our choices for the best out available.

Browning Citori 725 Field
This shotgun is a great over/under model for pheasant hunting. The gun comes in under 8 pounds and in the 3 inch load making it ideal for hunting pheasants in a variety of conditions.

Beretta 687 Ultralight Deluxe
The Beretta Silver models are great and so is the 687 Ultralight. The gun comes in at just about 6 pounds making it ideal for carrying in the field. It also looks classic and makes a good impression when you’re with your buddies.



Remington Model 1100 Autoloader
For those that want a versatile autoloader there is nothing better than a Model 1100. This gun works well for pheasants and can be great for other hunting too. You’ll be slightly heavier with this model than the 8 pound suggestion so there is a trade off.


Benelli Montefeltro
This is another great option for a semi-auto shotgun. The Inertia action allows for less weight in the gun, which makes it easy to carry around in the field.




Remington Model 870 Wingmaster 
This pump action model is one of the most popular shotguns available. It’s a great investment for any hunter. The versatility is ideal for the hunter that goes from the woods to the field hunting a variety of game. This one comes in under 8 pounds in just about all variations.

Winchester’s Latest Bolt-Action: The XPR

Winchester’s new bolt-action baby is called the XPR, and I got to play with it at the 2015 SHOT Show. The bolt features a round grasping ball with a hole to lighten its weight, and a short 60-degree bolt throw. The bolt itself is quite large in diameter, at least on the ones I handled.

A lengthwise groove cut into the bolt acts as a guide when moving the bolt forward or rearward, and a left-side-mounted bolt release engages with that groove. Simply push on the release to remove the bolt.

When cocked, an indicator is visible (and tactile, if you need it in the dark) at the rear of the bolt, so you can easily tell whether it’s cocked or not. Three locking lugs secure the bolt when closed. The bolt is also coated with “nickel Teflon” for slick operation and rust resistance and can be disassembled quickly without tools.

Plenty of scope clearance when the bolt is open (L); safety, bolt release, and cocking indicator (R) (Photo: Winchester)

The two-position safety is thumb-operated and is mounted to the right of the bolt’s rear end. This may be a bummer for lefties, although when shooting southpaw the thumb will be on the right side of the bolt, so… time will tell, I guess. I’d rather see it mounted centrally, in line with the bore; this is more convenient for everyone–but they didn’t ask me when they were designing it.

When the safety is engaged (rear position), the bolt is locked shut. Just forward of the safety is a small button. Push it down to momentarily unlock the bolt so you can cycle the action with the safety engaged. I found it well-positioned and easy to use.

The Winchester XPR chromoly steel barrel is button rifled, thermally stress relieved, free floated, and uses a Savage-style locknut for easy assembly with precise headspacing. The muzzle of the XPR has a recessed crown, helping to prevent damage to that critical part of the rifling.

Recessed crown (L), Barrel locknut (TR), Action profile interface pads (BR) (Photo: Winchester)

The single-stack box magazine is removable, plastic, and feels a little cheap. I asked a rep about it who agreed to some extent, but he also said they hadn’t had trouble with them. They are one of the lower-priced magazines, which helps if you want a spare or need to replace it.

XPR Trigger Guard and Magazine (Photo: Winchester)

The magazine release is recessed and located at the front edge of the magazine. I found it easy to remove and insert the XPR’s mag. Magazine capacity is 3 rounds in all calibers.

The XPR’s stock–available in black or camo–has a matte finish with textured portions to enhance grip in the pistol grip and forearm. The flattened bottom of the fore-end is a nice touch as it helps stabilize the rifle when resting it on sandbags, a shooting text, or the rail of a deer stand.

The XPR action engages the stock by lying against flat surfaces they call “profile interface pads,” and a typical recoil lug completes the fit. The Inflex recoil pad is thick and looks forgiving.

Winchester XPR’s M.O.A. Trigger (Photo: Winchester)

The trigger is called M.O.A. and boasts zero take-up, zero creep, and zero overtravel. The factory sets the pull weight at only 3.5 pounds, much lighter than we’ve come to expect from most.

The rep with whom I talked said they were fairly shocked at the accuracy this rifle consistently produced during testing, and with all these features, that’s not hard to believe. Only time will tell how this one plays out, but it looks to me as if Winchester may have a real winner on their hands.

Without a scope, the XPR weighs in at about 7 pounds, and the suggested retail varies from about $550 to $710. Check the Winchester website for more details.

shot placement to hunt boars.

First of all, as far as I’m concerned there are only two excuses for a meat hunter to lose quality meat, especially from the hams… inexperience and impatience.  There is no other reason to put a bullet into the hams or backstraps.  Wait for the right shot and take it.  Know what your gun and bullet will do, and put that work FOR you, rather than trying to work against it.

As far as head shots, I’ve touched on this before, but the bottom line is that the risks of such a shot far outweigh the possible benefits. 

To begin with, a hog’s brain is relatively small, especially if you’re not shooting straight down on it.  From a normal shot angle, the target area is only a few inches at most (the yellow on this photo is a fairly liberal representation of the target area for a killing, brain shot).  A small deviation in the shot placement can result in a horrible, maiming wound… either destroying the hog’s nose and nasal cavity, jaws, or eyes.  Any of these wounds will result in a long, slow death, and will make tracking and recovery almost impossible.   In short, it’s a really bad choice, despite the fact that there are many people out there who still swear by it.

The argument that a “good marksman should have no problem with that shot” is flawed, because it doesn’t take into account one critical fact.  A target at the range is stationary, while an animal is not. 

It’s not hard for a skilled marksman to put bullet after bullet into a three-inch target, even at 100 yards.  The target will always be in exactly the same spot, at the same distance, and the same angle.  Once a shooter has the mechanics of the shot down, it’s practically automatic.  Level the sights, control your breathing, manage the trigger pull, and you’ll put the bullet right where you want it every single time. 

But a living target, such as a hog, is never completely still.  Animals are in constant motion, and it’s safe to say that no part of an animal’s body moves more than its head.  What’s more, those movements will appear completely random to an observer, so timing the movements and the shot is not realistic.  A prey animal is constantly reacting to visual, olfactory, and auditory stimuli, and all of those reactions result in head movements. 

Not only does the head present a challenging, moving target, it’s also surrounded by some pretty thick bone.  The skull makes the gristle-plate (the shield) look like a sheet of paper by comparison.  There are weak spots on a hog’s skull, but they’re not large.  In addition to the sheer strength of this bone, the sloping angles of a hog’s head make for a tricky impact surface, and can deflect the energy of a bullet strike (much like a car windshield).  I know of at least two, very reliable sources who have bounced high-powered bullets off of a hog’s skull without killing the animal. 

The bottom line is, much better shot options exist.

First, the traditional “heart/lung” shot, when properly executed, is deadly and quick without extensive meat damage.   That bullet cut the arteries at the top of the hog’s heart, and also smashed up the ends of the lungs.  Meat loss was limited to about three or four inches on the off-side shoulder. 

Even when the heart/lung shot doesn’t make an instant kill, it seldom requires extensive trailing.  Damage to the cardiopulmonary system cases death pretty much without exception, robbing the body of oxygenated blood and usually filling the lungs with blood.  Life systems shut down quickly after that. 

There are two key reasons why this shot is so often effective and highly recommended.  First off, the heart/lung area offers a large kill zone (about 8-inches on an average sized hog), and this is the part of the animal that offers the most stationary target.  Legs and head move constantly, but the chest area tends to be fairly immobile, or to make large steady movements so that it’s easier to hit.

The second reason is simple familiarization.  Almost every hunter has been indoctrinated with the image and idea of the heart/lung area.  The image is emblazoned onto our minds by magazine articles, hunter education materials, videos, and even hunters’ conversations.  We know where this spot is, and that knowledge allows us take aim and make a shot without the second-guessing and doubts that can cause many hunters to make a bad decision.  As I tell clients and newer hunters, “Just put it behind his shoulder, and give him hell.” 

As far as the gristle plate, if you’re using a good bullet and sufficient caliber, you’ll kill the animal.  The exception might be with a truly large, old boar.  With a hog like this, the recommendation is to think like an archer.  You want to hold your shot until the animal offers a quartering-away angle, and then you can place your bullet behind the last rib, angling forward into the vitals. 

There is another option that I really like… the neck shot. 

This one is also a bit controversial, but I think the problem is more a case of a lack of understanding of the animal’s physiology than anything else, along with some failure to understand that you have to make an educated decision when you choose your shot.  The neck shot is a great choice under the right circumstances, but not so great when things aren’t ideal.  That’s when you either choose not to shoot, or fall back on the heart/lung area. 

On a hog, the kill zone for a neck shot is almost as big as the heart/lung area.  Put a high-powered bullet in that zone, about halfway between the base of the ear and the point of the shoulder, and it will kill the animal where it stands.  You’ll sever the spinal cord, effectively shutting down the animal’s central nervous system.  Vital body functions will stop almost instantly.   

You will not have to track a neck-shot hog.  If it runs off, it’s because you missed.  There is a large margin of error on the shot.  Too high, and you’ll sever the brain stem or hit the brain.  Higher than that results in a miss.   Too low and you’ll sever the windpipe, carotid artery, or jugular vein.  Lower than that is a minor flesh wound or a clean miss. 

Meat loss with a neck shot is generally minimal.  You will probably lose some of the neck roasts, but that’s a small price to pay in exchange for a quick, clean kill. 

NOTE:  The neck shot requires a proper angle and a steady rest, however.  It’s still close to the head, so if you’re not stable enough you risk hitting the jaw or nose.  The solution is simple.  Don’t take the shot.

And that’s the bottom line any time.  If you’re not comfortable that you can put the shot right where you want it, then don’t shoot.  It’s a discipline that any hunter should master, but far too few have bothered to do so.  As a result, you see bad shots taken in haste or out of desperation.  Something I absolutely hate to hear from any hunter is, “It was the only shot I had, so I had to take it!”

A sport hunter never has to take a shot… never!  The simple fact is that none of us is going to starve if we let the animal get away. 

We may be disappointed, or we may be harangued by our hunting buddies, guides, or other observers, but we are not going to go hungry.  Sure, we may have spent a lot of money for a hunt, only to be faced with a do-or-die shot opportunity.  It could be the trophy of a lifetime.  But it is NOT a matter of life and death to us.  It is, on the other hand, a matter of life and death to the animal. 

We are not out there because we have to be, we are out there for sport, and it is only ethical and right that we do the best we can to make the death of any game animal as clean and humane as possible.

the news mathews bows for 2015

For 2015, Mathews has introduced six new bows, four of which feature the company’s groundbreaking new No Cam ST Technology.

This revolutionary system boasts two circular and concentric string tracks, which allows the string to travel at a constant distance from the center of rotation during the shot cycle and eliminates camming action on both the top and bottom string tracks. This makes for an incredibly balanced and synchronized system with straight and level nock travel for unparalleled accuracy.

No Cam ST Technology is featured on the new No Cam HTR. This 32-inch axle-to-axle standout boasts a brace height of 6 5/8 inches and speeds up to 330 fps. The No Cam HTR is equipped with shorter, more rigid quad limbs, a less reflexed riser, twin Harmonic Stabilizers and the Mathews Focus Grip. Available in 50-, 60- and 70-pound draw weights and in draw lengths from 24 to 30 inches, the No Cam HTR comes standard with RockMods available in 65-, 75- and 85-percent letoff. The No Cam HTR is available in five finish options: Black Anthem, Tactical, Lost Camo, the new Stone Tactical and the new Lost Camo OT.

And because that No Cam ST Technology is so balanced and so accurate, Mathews put it into a new and improved target bow, which is available in 7-, 8- and 9-inch brace heights (the TRG 7, TRG 8 and TRG 9). New cutouts on the less reflexed riser provide added strength and stability, while the RockMods make for a solid back wall and additional customization in terms of letoff (65- and 75-percent). The 38-inch axle-to-axle TRG  comes in draw weights of 40, 50, 60, 70 and 80 pounds and in draw lengths from 26 to 31 inches. The TRG is available in Black Anthem, black, red and blue.

Those archers who liked the Mathews Chill X will find much to love about the new Chill X Pro ($1,499), a hybrid bow that features an integral grip favored by competitive shooters. The Chill X Pro, which measures 35 inches from axle to axle and features a 7-inch brace height, gets a solid back wall and the ability to customize the letoff (75- and 85-percent) from its RockMods. Capable of speeds up to 336 fps with 75-percent letoff, the Chill X Pro offers draw weights of 50, 60 and 70 pounds and draw lengths from 25 to 31 inches. The Chill X Pro comes in black, red and blue.

Mathews has also introduced a sure-to-please bow in its Solocam line. The new Z2 ($849) measures 30 inches from axle to axle, making it easy to maneuver in the confines of a treestand or ground blind. The Reverse Assist Roller Guard makes for a silky-smooth draw cycle, while the forgiving 7-inch brace height promotes accuracy. The lightweight Z2 is capable of speeds up to 330 fps. This bow sports Mathews popular Focus Grip and is available in black, Lost Camo and Lost Camo OT. The Z2 offers draw weights of 40, 50, 60, 65 and 70 pounds and draw lengths from 25 to 30 inches