12 Gauges Are Overrated Change my mind

[ozyclint]

In Australia sub gauges are very uncommon.
The most common sub 12g is .410 but the price of .410 ammo is crazy.

There is a little bit of 20g and 28g ammo about but shot size selection is very limited.

 

[Jesse Jaymes]

When someone says a 12 g recoils more, they obviously aren’t comparing similar weight and velocity loads. Gone are the days only one or two velocities and weights are available. Physics is physics - if anything the lighter smaller rifle will kick more, unless you’re just picking random shells off the shelf at Walmart.

Do smaller gauges pattern better with same weight of shot? No.

My buddy has a streak of aristocrat in him leftover from his big deal first marriage who wouldn’t be caught dead with anything less than a $15k Brittany sired by Sir Douche Dove Licker, and a 28 ga costing at least that much. I laugh when he drags out 1 oz loads doing 1400 fps and tries to say his gun recoils less, but it makes him happy and reminds him of the days when his ex father in law would talk down to him while on the family’s fancy Texas hunting ranch with the ex wife treating him like dirt whenever possible. Lol

This was the entire backstory to Troubadour's "Bird Hunters"???? lol

 

[Jesse Jaymes]

I have to ask....WhTF....is buying TSS shells? Really? $13 a shell to be a Stunt Shooter? Why?

 

[S.Clancy]

I've shot the same Franchi 12 ga for a decade, or close to it. I like the 12 cause the ammo is generally easier to find and a lot of times cheaper. I shall continue

 

[Kurts86]

In my circles and my family’s everyone was looking for bigger payloads in the 90’s for waterfowl because early nontoxic shot was terrible so everyone moved towards 3.5” 12 gauges and 10 gauges. You would hear about a lot of guys moving away from 16/20 gauges once nontoxic shot was a thing.

Similarly in the 1990’s getting a 40-50 yard turkey gun with lead 4, 5 or 6 shot required 3.5” 12 gauges and 10 gauges. 20 gauges were youth guns and .410 was reserved for squirrels and snakes.

In the early 2000’s we got hevi shot (tungsten polymer) and bismuth that moved the needle forward a bit with non toxic shot design.

In 2005 federal came out with the flight control wad which helped improve patterning of all shot regardless material. Any higher end wad you see today for hunting is going to be of a similar design that is far more substantial than cheaper wads

Interchangeable chokes got better materials (17-4 ph) and got 2x as long. Barrel technology progressed in steel tech and with back boring to keep more pellets on target.

In the 2010’s TSS became common for turkeys and hevishot/bismuth became more common in duck loads.

Prior to TSS 28 gauge and 410 were often illegal for turkey hunting and #6/7.5 pellets were the smallest legal shot for turkeys in many states.

In the last decade Beretta and Benelli came out with flagship 28 gauge autoloaders. Benelli also brought out 3” 28 gauge to bridge the gap to 20 gauge. Prior to that lots of sub bores were limited to double barrels, cheap single shots and pumps with fixed chokes.

12 gauge logistically is a great round and really only 20 gauge is somewhat close on availability. 12 gauge isn’t always the best nuanced answer for every shotgun application but it’s never the wrong answer.

I rather enjoy shooting shotguns that aren’t 12 gauges because it’s different and interesting. That said I’ll never recommend a newbie buy anything besides a 12 or 20 gauge on logistics alone.

 

[fallschirmjaeger80]

I can't change your mind because the 16 gauge is king in the uplands