Some range time.....

Dave McC · October 14, 2002, 05:52 PM

It was a fun day at PGC today, neither job needed me this Fed holiday and I had 100 rounds of trap loads just sitting there, so...

On arrival I headed up to range 10 for some singles practice and stress management.A couple of folks I didn't know were getting ready to shoot, and I joined in to fill up the stations.

There were a father and son team,using an old 1100 and one of the new 11-87 target models. These,I was informed,were their bird guns and the round was their first in two years.

Another gent of about my age and decrepitude was the proud owner of a Citori with extended chokes and gleaming wood. Not new, it was well cared for and indeed, was used to slay the occasional dove and quail. He had been trapshooting for a year, and highly enjoyed it.

Last gent was a hair younger,used a Miroku Daley, and didn't have the faintest idea of what he had.

Get this,he'd picked it up at a gun shop for $200. In near perfect shape, it has obviously been cherished and cared for. FWIW, it should go for about 1K more.He said it had been a couple years since he'd shot clays,admitting to riflery on a more regular basis.

Please note none of these were dedicated trap guns, just field guns. Good field guns, but not anything fancy.

So,we'd shoot a round,stand around shooting the bull,and then do another.We admired each other's shotguns, enjoyed the day, and by Godfrey, it felt pretty good.

Didn't shoot all that great, my high round was a 23, low 21. A little off for me, but with all the other stuff I've been doing, it was OK. I had fun, and that was the mission.

The gusty headwind may have had some minor part in the misses,but I refuse to look for excuses. I missed, not the equipment nor the conditions....

After, we were standing around when a guy I knew slightly showed up. Another Geezer In Training, he had left his usual Model 32 and/or BT99 at home and was toting a beautiful 870, circa 59. I asked permission, got it and handled it like it was Perlman's Strad.

This was a trap grade, gorgeous wood, sumptous blue you could stick your finger into up to the knuckle.Checkering done by someone who could cut diamonds in Amsterdam and not be more precise. Outstanding shape,only a couple honorable scars on the wood and a little wear on the mag tube's blue. The bbl seemed a twin of mine,long, light and tightasheck.Side by side,the two 870s seemed like mirror images.

I complimented the gent and told him to take it back before I yielded to temptation and tried to steal it. Talk turned to 870s, and it turned out each and every person there had at least one 870.

One guy used his for deer,father and son ducked and doved with theirs, and the gent with this marvelous 59 used his for everything but deer and HD.

Naturally, I found this interesting. All these folks were experienced shotgunners, average or better in skills,but not dedicated, or obsessed target shooters.All had 870s,used them with much enjoyment, and depended on them one way or another.

It was the finest endorsement I could imagine....

How about you?

HSMITH · October 14, 2002, 07:05 PM

When I first started trying to shoot birds I bought an 1100, with a fixed full choke. It was humiliating, I could not hit the an elephant in the kiester with it. Having shot pistol and rifle competitively for years it was really painful to be outshot by EVERYONE. I had thousands and thousands of rounds of buckshot through a pump in the service but I truly sucked with a shotgun on moving targets. I decided I was going to learn to shoot a shotgun, so I shot some trap and some sporting clays.

It was helping a little, but everyone told me I needed choke tubes for the close shots. Research showed me the choke tube barrel would be nearly as much as an 870 that already had the capability. One fateful day my 1100 broke, and I bought an 870. It was WORSE!!! I could not hit anything with it either and no matter how many times I pulled the trigger it only went bang once. A little operation practice and I was pumping shells like a madman, but shot only air most of the time.

I did not know a really good shotgunner, and could not afford lessons at the time unless I stopped shooting. I went to the books and magazines, read everything I could and tried it all. One thing jumped out at me, the 870 did not fit me according to all of the authors I could find.

I laid the 870 under the radial arm saw, took a deep breath and whacked 3/8" off the stock and screwed a morgan pad on it. The belt sander fitted the pad, and I was off to the range. I dropped the butt a little, and it helped, so I dropped it all the way. MAN!!! I could shoot a shotgun!!! Finally I was hitting a few targets, and able to see why I missed. My practice became meaningful, and my scores went up dramatically.

Several thousand rounds later the 870 was as smooth as glass, and a target slayer. It sure was fun to beat guys with it that were shooting Perrazzi and Kreighoff shotguns, my car was worth less than half of a lot of those shotguns! That 870 has been all over, been through some things that would make you cringe, killed a pile of birds, and taught a couple others to shoot as well. It is still mine, and gets shot mainly for nostalgia these days. A rough guess would be that it has digested over 40K rounds, and I would not trade it for 2 new ones it is so smooth now. It proudly wears a coat of Krylon camo, and LOTS of scars.

I know I will never be without an 870, no way no how. I am hopelessly in love with a SuperX2 3.5", but I know the 870 will always be there and ready to go. I have owned over 25 shotguns since the 870 was purchased and only kept it, the old 1100, an O/U 12ga, 20ga,1 28ga and the SuperX2.

EVERYONE should have at least one 870.

bamf · October 15, 2002, 02:14 AM

Well my first shotgun was an old beat up 870 express. Got it from a gun show for around 160 bucks. That was all I could afford and I wanted a gun I knew would be reasonably reliable and I just caught the clays bug and was itching to dust something.

Was it pretty? Hell no. Mirror blued? Nope dull as a nail plus it had a wonderful hard wood stock. The barrel was straight but the vented rib appeared to have some serious dings.

I think the previous owner used it a ton and never ever cleaned it because when I field stripped it, the carrier and bolt etc. was covered in dirt and grit. Spent an hour or two cleaning it and off I went to the trap range. The only modification was a hi viz sight.

I learned all the basics on my 870, shot trap, skeet and sporting. While its no longer my preferred gun (went to an O/U), I keep it mostly as a backup because I know it will work each and every time I pull that trigger.

Dave McC · October 15, 2002, 01:43 PM

Thanks, guys. The story of why/how I got my first 870 has been told here before( A Christmas Past), so I'll skip it. A couple related things tho...

Regardless of what sort of shotgunning anyone does, a case can be made for using an 870.

Fred Etchen bought one at the Grand in 1950, walked out to the line with it, and ran the first 100X100 in registered trap DOUBLES ever seen.In 1980-something, he did it again, with the same 870.

Care to venture as to how many rounds went up that bbl in between?

An agency 870 used at my last institution was used for training, starting in March,1981. It fired hundreds to thousands of rounds every month for preservice and annual qualification.
Maintenance and cleaning were sporadic,often performed in a slapdash and perfunctory manner by borderline idiots.

Total new parts needed as of Jan 98, new wood.

And there's old field 870s used on Md's Eastern Shore. Cleaning is a yearly spray of WD-40 inside and out. These are so reliable that every guide has a loaner 870 for when the newer and fancier guns owned by the clients stops functioning.

Maybe a good method of learning to shoot a shotgun when not surrounded by mentors and experts would be....

Get an 870, and have someone that knows how fit the stock. Add a coupla choke tubes if you like things complex.

Buy light, cheap ammo, use up, repeat.

Shoot it at small game,birds, landfill rats, clay targets. Just shoot it. When a plateau occurs, seek help from this BB, or one like it. Next thing you know, things fall from the sky or explode into little bits and smoke.

Then move on into other shotguns, autos, doubles, SBTs, whatever flicks your Bic. But never get rid of that 870, it's a superb goto.

Have a good'un...

October 14, 2002, 05:52 PM	#1
Dave McC Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 13, 1999 Location: Columbia, Md, USA Posts: 8,811	Some range time..... It was a fun day at PGC today, neither job needed me this Fed holiday and I had 100 rounds of trap loads just sitting there, so... On arrival I headed up to range 10 for some singles practice and stress management.A couple of folks I didn't know were getting ready to shoot, and I joined in to fill up the stations. There were a father and son team,using an old 1100 and one of the new 11-87 target models. These,I was informed,were their bird guns and the round was their first in two years. Another gent of about my age and decrepitude was the proud owner of a Citori with extended chokes and gleaming wood. Not new, it was well cared for and indeed, was used to slay the occasional dove and quail. He had been trapshooting for a year, and highly enjoyed it. Last gent was a hair younger,used a Miroku Daley, and didn't have the faintest idea of what he had. Get this,he'd picked it up at a gun shop for $200. In near perfect shape, it has obviously been cherished and cared for. FWIW, it should go for about 1K more.He said it had been a couple years since he'd shot clays,admitting to riflery on a more regular basis. Please note none of these were dedicated trap guns, just field guns. Good field guns, but not anything fancy. So,we'd shoot a round,stand around shooting the bull,and then do another.We admired each other's shotguns, enjoyed the day, and by Godfrey, it felt pretty good. Didn't shoot all that great, my high round was a 23, low 21. A little off for me, but with all the other stuff I've been doing, it was OK. I had fun, and that was the mission. The gusty headwind may have had some minor part in the misses,but I refuse to look for excuses. I missed, not the equipment nor the conditions.... After, we were standing around when a guy I knew slightly showed up. Another Geezer In Training, he had left his usual Model 32 and/or BT99 at home and was toting a beautiful 870, circa 59. I asked permission, got it and handled it like it was Perlman's Strad. This was a trap grade, gorgeous wood, sumptous blue you could stick your finger into up to the knuckle.Checkering done by someone who could cut diamonds in Amsterdam and not be more precise. Outstanding shape,only a couple honorable scars on the wood and a little wear on the mag tube's blue. The bbl seemed a twin of mine,long, light and tightasheck.Side by side,the two 870s seemed like mirror images. I complimented the gent and told him to take it back before I yielded to temptation and tried to steal it. Talk turned to 870s, and it turned out each and every person there had at least one 870. One guy used his for deer,father and son ducked and doved with theirs, and the gent with this marvelous 59 used his for everything but deer and HD. Naturally, I found this interesting. All these folks were experienced shotgunners, average or better in skills,but not dedicated, or obsessed target shooters.All had 870s,used them with much enjoyment, and depended on them one way or another. It was the finest endorsement I could imagine.... How about you?

October 14, 2002, 07:05 PM	#2
HSMITH Senior Member Join Date: June 21, 2002 Posts: 2,019	When I first started trying to shoot birds I bought an 1100, with a fixed full choke. It was humiliating, I could not hit the an elephant in the kiester with it. Having shot pistol and rifle competitively for years it was really painful to be outshot by EVERYONE. I had thousands and thousands of rounds of buckshot through a pump in the service but I truly sucked with a shotgun on moving targets. I decided I was going to learn to shoot a shotgun, so I shot some trap and some sporting clays. It was helping a little, but everyone told me I needed choke tubes for the close shots. Research showed me the choke tube barrel would be nearly as much as an 870 that already had the capability. One fateful day my 1100 broke, and I bought an 870. It was WORSE!!! I could not hit anything with it either and no matter how many times I pulled the trigger it only went bang once. A little operation practice and I was pumping shells like a madman, but shot only air most of the time. I did not know a really good shotgunner, and could not afford lessons at the time unless I stopped shooting. I went to the books and magazines, read everything I could and tried it all. One thing jumped out at me, the 870 did not fit me according to all of the authors I could find. I laid the 870 under the radial arm saw, took a deep breath and whacked 3/8" off the stock and screwed a morgan pad on it. The belt sander fitted the pad, and I was off to the range. I dropped the butt a little, and it helped, so I dropped it all the way. MAN!!! I could shoot a shotgun!!! Finally I was hitting a few targets, and able to see why I missed. My practice became meaningful, and my scores went up dramatically. Several thousand rounds later the 870 was as smooth as glass, and a target slayer. It sure was fun to beat guys with it that were shooting Perrazzi and Kreighoff shotguns, my car was worth less than half of a lot of those shotguns! That 870 has been all over, been through some things that would make you cringe, killed a pile of birds, and taught a couple others to shoot as well. It is still mine, and gets shot mainly for nostalgia these days. A rough guess would be that it has digested over 40K rounds, and I would not trade it for 2 new ones it is so smooth now. It proudly wears a coat of Krylon camo, and LOTS of scars. I know I will never be without an 870, no way no how. I am hopelessly in love with a SuperX2 3.5", but I know the 870 will always be there and ready to go. I have owned over 25 shotguns since the 870 was purchased and only kept it, the old 1100, an O/U 12ga, 20ga,1 28ga and the SuperX2. EVERYONE should have at least one 870.

October 15, 2002, 02:14 AM	#3
bamf Senior Member Join Date: May 16, 2000 Location: Davis, CA US Posts: 268	Well my first shotgun was an old beat up 870 express. Got it from a gun show for around 160 bucks. That was all I could afford and I wanted a gun I knew would be reasonably reliable and I just caught the clays bug and was itching to dust something. Was it pretty? Hell no. Mirror blued? Nope dull as a nail plus it had a wonderful hard wood stock. The barrel was straight but the vented rib appeared to have some serious dings. I think the previous owner used it a ton and never ever cleaned it because when I field stripped it, the carrier and bolt etc. was covered in dirt and grit. Spent an hour or two cleaning it and off I went to the trap range. The only modification was a hi viz sight. I learned all the basics on my 870, shot trap, skeet and sporting. While its no longer my preferred gun (went to an O/U), I keep it mostly as a backup because I know it will work each and every time I pull that trigger.

October 15, 2002, 01:43 PM	#4
Dave McC Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 13, 1999 Location: Columbia, Md, USA Posts: 8,811	Thanks, guys. The story of why/how I got my first 870 has been told here before( A Christmas Past), so I'll skip it. A couple related things tho... Regardless of what sort of shotgunning anyone does, a case can be made for using an 870. Fred Etchen bought one at the Grand in 1950, walked out to the line with it, and ran the first 100X100 in registered trap DOUBLES ever seen.In 1980-something, he did it again, with the same 870. Care to venture as to how many rounds went up that bbl in between? An agency 870 used at my last institution was used for training, starting in March,1981. It fired hundreds to thousands of rounds every month for preservice and annual qualification. Maintenance and cleaning were sporadic,often performed in a slapdash and perfunctory manner by borderline idiots. Total new parts needed as of Jan 98, new wood. And there's old field 870s used on Md's Eastern Shore. Cleaning is a yearly spray of WD-40 inside and out. These are so reliable that every guide has a loaner 870 for when the newer and fancier guns owned by the clients stops functioning. Maybe a good method of learning to shoot a shotgun when not surrounded by mentors and experts would be.... Get an 870, and have someone that knows how fit the stock. Add a coupla choke tubes if you like things complex. Buy light, cheap ammo, use up, repeat. Shoot it at small game,birds, landfill rats, clay targets. Just shoot it. When a plateau occurs, seek help from this BB, or one like it. Next thing you know, things fall from the sky or explode into little bits and smoke. Then move on into other shotguns, autos, doubles, SBTs, whatever flicks your Bic. But never get rid of that 870, it's a superb goto. Have a good'un...