Research for a sceenplay

[mch2k]

Hey folks here's one for you.

I am writing a screenplay and am doing research on fire arms. My question to you is this:

What would be a good solid hunting rifle (Duck Hunting) that would have been used in the 80's?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks

MCH

[RedneckFur]

A rifle would not have been used to hunt ducks. A duck hunter would have used a shotgun. Some popular shotguns would be a Remington 870, or 1100, or a Mossberg 500. Some hunters may have used an Ithica model 37 or a Browning BPS. Those are what my father used.

[mch2k]

I apologize for my ignorance and thank you for your help.

MCH

[Medicineman]

Remington 870 pump-action 12 guage would arguably be the most common

Browning A5 semi-auto 12 guage, especially if used by an older gentleman, and it looks classy.

And yes either an Ithaca model 37 or a Browning BPS would look right at home on a duck hunt. Both are 12 guage pump-action (pumps for short).

By the 80's I'd have to say that a side by side double-barrel would look out of place duck hunting. Also over and under double barrels have never ever been common for duck hunters.

Is it going to be the '80s like No Country for Old Men was '80s, or is it going to be like the movie Grumpy Old Men?

Good luck and if you have any more questions about hunting or sporting firearms just ask, you are in the right place.

[xm21]

You mean bill klinton lied when he said he had a duck rifle?

[Art Eatman]

I do hope everybody is thinking 1980s.

Some historical perspective; not useful in a screenplay, but helpful as background:

Shotgun barrel diameters were somewhat standardized in the musket era of the 1500s/1600s. "Bore" was the common word; later, "gauge". The number referred to the number of round lead balls in a pound. Thus, 28-gauge is smaller than 12-gauge. (In our modern times, the "four-ten shotgun" is forty-one caliber, or 0.410 inches in barrel diameter.)

Most hunters of ducks and geese use 12-gauge shotguns. The barrels are commonly 28" or 30". They commonly use a "full-choke" forcing cone at the muzzle to concentrate the shot pattern for the longer ranges at which most ducks and geese are shot. "Long" in this case means around forty to fifty yards. It is common to use shot-size of #4 or #5 on ducks; up to #2 on geese. (Again, the larger the number, the smaller the shot size.)

In comparison, smaller birds such as quail and doves are shot with not only 12-gauge but with 16- and 20- as well. The shot is smaller, and the forcing cones are not as constrictive. "Modified" and "Improved cylinder" are two types of chokes. It is common to use #7-1/2 or #8 shot on dove and quail.

Hope this helps,

Art

[rem870hunter]

grandfather and 2 uncles used browning auto 5,dad used 1100,i used an 870. for ducks, we used high brass (remington express) #6 or#7.5 shot. mainly used a 28" fixed mod choke barrel. but sometimes dad would use a 30" fixed full choke barrel.

[Shiner Bock]

A couple of notes for your research that may or may not be useful. If your shotgun can hold more than 3 shells (like most of the ones mentioned in this thread), you need to use a magazine plug to restrict the maximum capacity to 3 rounds when duck hunting.

The second detail is that you are required to use steel shot today but in the 80's lead shot was mostly used except perhaps in some restricted areas.

[RickB]

How old is the shooter in the story? Is he 25, or 65? Someone who was 65 in the '85 would likely be shooting a gun that was pre-WWII, so favoring something like the Winchester 12, or Remington 11.