Is a cheap shotgun a waste of money?

[welshwarrior]

My father bought me an original silver action 682 when I started shooting properly at 13 - 14 (I was 5'10 and 13.5 stone I'm still not a little bloke) I still have it he paid £650 in 1994 it will be worth more than that now.

 

But the orgin question is a cheap gun a waste of more no it's not if it fits but a 'better' gun would cost a bit more and last longer

[Asa Bear]

If I was starting out again I'd go for a well used old style 682 or a 3800, spend £650 and spend it once. Learn to shoot the gun and crack on. If you don't stick at it you can sell it for the same money.

Start off wig a cheap n cheerful one, you might start to shoot it ok (it will be hard to shoot it "well") then you fancy a treat as you feel your progressing, you get another gun and it will take you 1000s of shells to shoot it well again.

Buy once, buy right.

 

 

 

 

I saved & saved and bought a second hand 682 Gold E as my first gun. The only time I've wanted a different gun is in the field wading through ditches & hedges in the pouring rain.

Edited December 25, 2011 by Logo

[poontang]

A £50 gun will 'do a job,' but for how long and how well it'll do it remains to be seen.

 

For that sort of money I suspect you'd be looking at an old fixed choke sxs which may or may not suit your needs. Personally I'd save a few more £'s and look for cheap m/c gun, which will give you a bit more scope with your shooting.

[BerettaSV10]

The only time I've wanted a different gun is in the field wading through ditches & hedges in the pouring rain.

 

 

Thinking the same, just don't fancy getting the ones I have got a soaking. Might look at the new marmite (escort)gun when it comes out in Jan or just get a cheap one (must fit though and shoot like my other gun) for this sort of thing.

[Blamblamblam]

Hello

 

I was out a little while back with my £50 special and someone let me have a go of his Purdey. It went bang bang, I hit both clays and thanked the chap for letting me try his pride and joy. I didn't shoot any better than with my cheap gun. So if someone gave me a £10,000 gun I'd be very grateful, sell it, splash out on a £250 gun, new wheels for my land rover, holiday, pay bills and buy a new roof for my house.

 

I'd still keep my £50 gun though!

 

Blam!

[andy198712]

you have to think, these cheap old guns have passed the test of time... that says something

[poontang]

you have to think, these cheap old guns have passed the test of time... that says something

 

Yep.

 

It says they're old.

 

 

On a serious note though, if you do decide to buy a £50 heap of junk gun, it would be well worth checking for pitting in the barrels. Most people on here seem to think as long as it 'fits' and goes bang it'll last you a lifetime.

 

Far more important to make sure there's no damage to the barrels and that it's still in proof.

[Browning GTS]

Have a good look around, a couple of years ago i brought a used AYA no3 off another PW member that had been advertised on here. Great gun it was in such good nick a couple of mates thought i had brought it new, price £150

Edited December 26, 2011 by Browning GTS

[Guest cookoff013]

its not about the gun, its about the One shot !

[Gimlet]

Perhaps we should go back to the original question: "Is a cheap shotgun a waste of money?"

The answer, IMO is, if it is in safe servicable condition - ie. clean safe barrels, sound safety catch and breech lock with top lever working correctly, no split or loose woodwork; if it is suited to the intended task, eg. don't buy 26" barrels with improved cylinders to shoot geese, or a 30 year old gun to burst 1000 clays a week, and it fits you reasonably well- which is very important, particularly for a novice, then no it isn't a waste of money. Its unlikely to last a lifetime but it will serve perfectly well until you wear it out or choose to upgrade.

 

Fad and fashion play a big part in shotgun sales- more so than with rifles. Sometimes people sell guns because they've seen something else that they've just got to have, so bargains can be had. But equally some people keep guns to the bitter end and shoot them past the point when they're only fit to hang on the wall.

So don't rule out a cheapy, especially as a first gun, but look carefully at what you're buying, and if you're not sure what to look for, take someone with you who is.

Simple really.

[s.wray]

I haven't had a shotgun for nearly 25 years, and that was an old folding 410, and I've been thinking of getting a cheap sxs for occasional use. I prefer rifles on bunnies but a shotgun will be useful for pigeons but, as always, funds are limited so I wanted to know what the limitations of a 50 quid gun are and how much of a difference you can notice compared to a 500 gun. I'm not worried about comfort, looks or anything other than accuracy and reliability (which I assume will be hit and miss) I just want a cheap tool.

have a look on www.micksguns.com he has a lot of cheap stuff give him a ring as he has a lot more than is advertised

[storme37]

i got a £55 gun will let you know how i get on lol

[debaser]

I bought a SxS Zabala for £80 of Wabbitbosher a couple of years ago for clays. I only go clays about once every 6 months so cant justify or afford anything too fancy.

 

Never had any problems with it, it goes bang when I pull the trigger.

 

Best £80 I've spent on shooting related stuff!

 

ATB

[mikky]

before i bought my shotty,the lads let me shoot thier guns,,,some costing well over a grand..i borrowed an old Lanber,fits like glove,couldnt hit anything with the expensive ones..bought the Lanber for 200 quid and still cant hit anything...saved myself a fortune

 

mikky

[Vince Green]

You can never go wrong with a Baikal IMO, they rarely break and never seen one with any appreciable wear on it even after thousands of cartridges have been put through it. Most people find the fit acceptable with the O/U, the SXSs can be a bit short in the stock but a recoil pad fixes that.

 

Its ex serious clay guns that do the high milage usually.

Edited March 19, 2012 by Vince Green

[Mr Mark]

No such thing as a £50 gun, but there are more than a few 2nd hand buys around £300-£400 that would serve you very well. I think you can do a lot worse than a S/S AYA or a O/U Laurona for that kind of money.

Sorry to say but there is such thing as a £50 shot gun i purchased a browning 2000 semi auto of my mate i mint condition.

[ChrisAsh]

So basicaly buy what you like, and if you want to spend more do so, you may get better wood and engraving to make a nicer looking gun and some very minor improvements but it will shoot the same as the lower priced model

 

The cheap older guns being "hand made" will probably be over engineered as safety was hard to measure in the past, whilst new guns will all be made by computerised CNC machines so all built to about the same tollerances.

 

For competition you find top guns using guns with a value of £10-20,000 presumably supported by sponsors or even brought as best tool for the tradsman just like engineeres will buy "Snap on" tools, but if price ment better accuracy then why does nobody shoot competions with Boss or Purdies, which going by price means better should follow

[Davva]

My SxS cost me £50 30 odd years ago.

 

 

But £50, 30 years ago was worth more money than £50 today.... £169 apparently. So, a £50 gun today would have cost £14.79, 30 years ago....

I have free time on my hands

[Schmoo]

Someone once said to me that the pigeon didnt care what killed it, wether its a £50 or £500 gun, if you can shoot it dont really matter what you spend on a gun, its still only a gun to do a job, throw lead at an object, I have a grands worth of browning and £300 worth of Baikal, the browning never sees the light of day.

Im sure David Beckham would still be a better footballer than all of us wearing hob nail boots, while we wear £200 football boots.

Schmoo.

Edited March 20, 2012 by Schmoo

[Vince Green]

So basicaly buy what you like, and if you want to spend more do so, you may get better wood and engraving to make a nicer looking gun and some very minor improvements but it will shoot the same as the lower priced model

 

The cheap older guns being "hand made" will probably be over engineered as safety was hard to measure in the past, whilst new guns will all be made by computerised CNC machines so all built to about the same tollerances.

 

For competition you find top guns using guns with a value of £10-20,000 presumably supported by sponsors or even brought as best tool for the tradsman just like engineeres will buy "Snap on" tools, but if price ment better accuracy then why does nobody shoot competions with Boss or Purdies, which going by price means better should follow

Sponsors are usually people like Browning who want to show the top guns are using their brand. But they change the guns regularly and take the old one back to sell it as a mint secondhand example before it accumulates any significant wear. So the cost to the sponsor is quite low. The guns are just loaned which is a different state of affairs.

 

Many people still pay ridiculous prices for guns, far in excess of their ability. Same as for cars, there is an element of snob value about this which is why you see some of the guns you do on dealers shelves. Give some of those top shots an old Baikal and they would still win. (IMO)

Edited March 20, 2012 by Vince Green

[Lloyd90]

No such thing as a £50 gun, but there are more than a few 2nd hand buys around £300-£400 that would serve you very well. I think you can do a lot worse than a S/S AYA or a O/U Laurona for that kind of money.

 

Don't be silly mate, first shotgun I ever bought was £50 , had it off a bloke who was a RFD but from his own house, he had a good reputation and guarantee'd a;; his work.

 

Don't expect the world for £50 but I got a tidy gun, the spring on the left side barrel was hitting a little light and wouldn't fire some cart types, I rang the bloke and he said bring it up and he would fix it free of charge

 

I sold it a few months later and really wish I had kept it as it was a great little knock about gun, had 25" barrels, SbS, 2,3/4 chamber and had probally seen better days but it did the job for me Really do wish Id kept it tho

[jackinbox99]

Ive got a £60 sbs I bought a couple of years back. Its nearly 40 years old, a Gunmark Sabel. Have to say I love it. I get on really well with it and have shot thousands of clays with it. I actually get on with it just as well, if not better than i do with my Beretta al391 which cost me a lot more.

 

Before that, i remember my first gun was a Baikel o/u which cost me £100. Again, I had no end of use out of that.

[Therealchucknorris]

No such thing as a £50 gun, but there are more than a few 2nd hand buys around £300-£400 that would serve you very well. I think you can do a lot worse than a S/S AYA or a O/U Laurona for that kind of money.

 

With all due respect, you're better off not commenting if you aren't prepared to do any research and assist the OP. There are plenty of guns at and below that price available privately and in the trade press.

 

As plenty of others have said, gun fit and barrel / action integrity is the main thing to consider, especially if you're looking at the lower end of the budgetary scale.