Favorite Shotgun For Rabbits

[redrick]

What is your favorite shotgun & gauge for rabbit hunting with dogs ?

[eastbank]

double barrel browning 20ga bss sporter with one 0z #4,s mod barrel and 0ne oz #5,s full barrel, kills well at close range with the #4,s with out loading the rabbit up with shot, and the #5,s kill well at mediun range with out loading the rabbit up with shot. eastbank.

[Pahoo]

double barrel browning 20ga bss sporter

That would be sweet and I wish I had one !!!

Till then, mine is a Savage 24 BDL, .22 over a 20Ga. Great for deep snow hunting or rabbits that don't run very far. I get plenty of clean head shots. ..

Be Safe !!!

[Dufus]

Never shot a rabbit with a shotgun, so, my favorite is a 38 Spec/357 LSWC in a 6 1/2" Blackhawk....or a 22LR Mossberg 144LS.

Shoot lots of birds with an Ithaca 37 12 ga.

[upstate81]

I use an Ithaca 37 20 gauge with a 26 in. barrel and a fixed modified choke. This particular gun is a 1970 model, handles and carries like a dream. The Ithaca 37 featherweights are by far the best run and gun shotgun in the woods and briar patches. Extremely light and well made, not to mention smoooooooooth!

[Virginian]

double barrel browning 20ga bss sporter. eastbank.

Okay, you're off the hook. I just went and looked and my baby is safe in the safe. Mine is also my favorite fair weather dove gun.

[SHR970]

Verona 702 (F.A.I.R.) 410 recut to skeet 1 / skeet2. Works great in my environs.

[Dufus]

upstate: what a coincidence. Mine also is a featherlight mfg. 1970.

371108XXX

Bought it in an estate sale around 1980. Shoots very well.

I am a lefty, which drew my attraction to it.

[bamaranger]

My Dad was an avid bunny hunter,and my best times with him were with his two good beagles, Jack and Jake on a cold fall morning! My Dad and I killed a bunch of rabbits back in the day, and we both hunted with .410's of various makes and actions depending on the year. We found that the various econ bolt .410's did not hold up to all the shooting we were doing, and basically wore out/broke a Mossberg bolt and a Savage as well.

We ended up with a High Standard pump, and a Savage/Springfield 67 pump. Not top shelf guns, blue collar all the way, but they worked and held up well.

What stayed the same was the shell and the choke. Three inch, #7-1/2 shot, and all those field guns were full choke. Most shots were close enough that the other loads posted, with #4 and #5 shot would have worked just as well. but past 15-20 yds, the pattern from the big pellet loads were pretty thin if you took a shot at a running bunny. We thought so anyhow.

Dad was a 16ga fan too, and his "heavy" rabbit gun was Savage double in 16ga, then later another blue collar Springfield pump in 16. Seems like the 16 ga got #6 shot.

[upstate81]

Dufus, those ithacas sure are sweet arent they? Funny you mention that because ive been searching for a 12 gauge match for about a year now. They are harder to find in the configuration i want. There are truck loads of 30 inch full choke guns around however.

[SARuger]

It seems like a 100 years ago since I shot my last rabbit. I was a kid then and rabbit hunting with beagles was huge around here but not anymore and you rarely see the little buggers since the coyote have moved in.

The last one I shot was with a Winchester 190 22LR, but I also hunted them with my 870 Wingmaster 20ga and all I had was a mod barrel and used mostly whatever shells I had laying around(remember I was a kid then)

I wasn't much help but thanks for dragging some old fond memories out of the "memory bank"

[drcook]

Dufus,
Did you convert yours to a left hand safety ? They are really easy to do.

For me, either a 16ga Ithaca 37 or, this year, one of the 20ga Ithaca 37's I acquired.

Dufus, those ithacas sure are sweet arent they? Funny you mention that because ive been searching for a 12 gauge match for about a year now. They are harder to find in the configuration i want. There are truck loads of 30 inch full choke guns around however.

Upstate81,

What exactly are you looking for ? Detail it out. I keep an eye on what is for sale online and might be able to point you to it.

[upstate81]

Dave, ive been searching high and low for a similar vintage 37 to match my 20. I have a 1970 model with a 26 inch barrel with a modified choke. I want the same in 12 but with a factory IC. I realize the option of adding tubes but i kinda want a factory example. I actually was going to make a post over on SGW because of the Ithaca following over there. Sad to say i want to see before i buy but that may not be an option.

[Mike38]

I always used one of those over/under .22lr - .410. Savage or Stevens, I don’t remember the brand. Running, use the .410. If the rabbit stops to check out the beagle on chase, switch it over to .22 for a head shot. I even used 2 ½ inch .410 shells, fewer pellets to clean out.

[Dufus]

I forgot to mention that I have hunted squirrel with an old 410 SxS that my uncle used when his eyes went south. Sweet shooter. That full choke barrel would nail them where you aimed it.

Never shot a rabbit though.

upstate: you are looking for my 37s brother or sister. That is exactly what I have is a 26" IC.

[drcook]

Dave, ive been searching high and low for a similar vintage 37 to match my 20. I have a 1970 model with a 26 inch barrel with a modified choke. I want the same in 12 but with a factory IC. I realize the option of adding tubes but i kinda want a factory example. I actually was going to make a post over on SGW because of the Ithaca following over there. Sad to say i want to see before i buy but that may not be an option.

I think a relative of mine in Kentucky may have that gun, I will contact him and see.

Then all you will need is a 16ga set up the same way to have the full set. I actually prefer a 16ga. I hunt rabbits, squirrels, pheasants etc with mine.

[upstate81]

Dufus, now that is a coincidence haha. That is the perfect game getter you have there.
Dave, let me know what you find out i appreciate the help. Your right i do need a 16 to round out the collection. There is a pre war 16 with a mod barrel in great condition at my nearby cabelas. Only bad thing is a recoil pad has been added, however it is a sunburst pad so atleast it looks OK. Price was 500 what do you think about that? I really prefer the pre mid 50s guns best due to stock design

[drcook]

How is the rest of the metal on the pre-war ?

Was the recoil pad fitted correctly? Is it hard from age?

How are the screw slots ?

If everything is in really good shape, that is on the higher end, 400 to 450 would be better.

But it is a pre-war. Pre-war stocks are different in drop and height of comb by a little bit than post-war, thru '53 (It was either 53 or 54 when the design changed again).

Cabelas is always a little high. Was there anything about it that you could use to negotiate with ? The dreaded Ithaca crack in the wrist ? A buggered screw head (as I mentioned above) ? Etc

I have been scavenging late 40's, early 50's stocks and converting my guns over to them. I bought a late 50's 20ga, 26" I-Cyl gun and put an early 50's stock on it.

[redrick]

Can we get back on the topic please .

[drcook]

only slightly off topic.

the pre-war Ithaca stock designs are superior for upland small game, rabbits, birds, squirrels (in my opinion) (that is what they were built for)

very light and quick to handle. due to the fact that the pre-war guns have the buttstocks hollowed out, the balance point is changed. they shoulder and point fast and are a dream to carry when humping through the brush after rabbits.

my wife's rabbit/bird gun is a 16ga Ithaca 37 that I built her with a 24" vent rib choke tube barrel using a buttstock off a 1952 gun

I would bet that by the time the thread is done, most every field gun will have been covered, from .22's to 12ga's as everyone has their own idea of what is their favorite at the time they posted

this could turn into one of those 100 + page posts if people choose to participate

[gtodan]

Savage .410 double.

[Creek Henry]

I grew up using a 22 and later a Mossy 12. I got to use my little Stevens 20ga SxS a couple of times. That was great. I think the SxS is more classic but a pump is more fumctional.

[Dufus]

Can we get back on the topic please .

redrick: you started the thread and are the only one so far that has not stated a preference for the gun.

[redrick]

I just started rabbit hunting regularly last year . I am mainly a deer hunter until deer season ends .

I have a Remington 870 12ga. and it does the job just fine . But I am thinking would a 20 or 28ga. be better ? Less weight and recoil , but will they reach out there like a 12ga. ?

I started this thread just to see what you really like for rabbit hunting , I might buy a gun just for rabbit hunting .

[drcook]

A 20ga or a 16ga is more than adequate. Rabbits are not particularly hard to take. Big fox squirrels are harder to deal with than a rabbit is.

The key is weight -vs- how far you have to travel while tracking the dogs. I started back out a few years ago with my 12ga Ithaca 37. After 1 day of that, I had enough and went on a search mission for a 16ga Ithaca, which I found in a pawn shop.

The older ones, ie: pre- serial nbr 855,000 are lighter. The downside is that they have barrels fitted to the action. (ie: Ithaca 37's).

One of the old Stevens 77 series guns (in a pump) in 20ga (I have one of these also) work quite well and aren't that heavy to carry.

If your budget allows, a Remington 1100 in 20ga would be a good rabbit gun.

The key is what will fit you and your circumstances. If you are hunting private grounds and don't have to hump over hill and dale, then your existing gun will do just fine.

Here are some articles that will help resolve what you are asking about whether the 12 is superior ballistic wise (ie: reach out there) which it isn't, except in some very specific situations where the hull capacity comes into play.

the first is a link to all the articles, spend some time reading. I pointed one out specifically, but I think you can find the answers to some of what you are asking and generate some new questions. use Google, it is your friend, just remember though, everyone has their opinion on the best gun, gauge, dog, woman, car truck etc

BUT

the scale doesn't lie, a 5lb gun is easier to carry than a 7 to 8 lb gun and shotgun ballistics are shotgun ballistics. you just have to do some home work.

http://www.chuckhawks.com/index2c.shotguns.htm

http://www.chuckhawks.com/twenty_vs_twelve.htm

http://www.fieldandstream.com/articl...erful-20-gauge