410 or 20 ga?

[CLARK37]

Looking to get a new shotgun just for grouse hunting. Wondering what you guys think about getting a 20ga or possibly a 410. I just bought a super black eagle and wanna keep this gun around in the 500.00 range. Tell me what you think. Thanks

[harvey lee]

I have used about every caliber for grouse and pheasants. I went down to a .410 but for me, I wounded way to many birds. The 20 gauge worked very good with less wounded birds.

Maybe just me.

[Matt Breuer]

I have and shoot .410, 20, and 12 gauge for grouse. I have wounded birds with every caliber at one point or another, but with the .410 I've seen birds wounded more readily. 20 gauge is perfect.

[BobT]

I don't usually hunt grouse with caliber rounds but prefer shot shells.

My preference is a 12ga. with a short barrel for quick shouldering and fast pattern spread.

[jparrucci]

Youth 870 in a 20 gauge. Cheap, realiable, light.

[charliepete]

.410 is an experts round and is better left for the skeet field. The smallest I think you can safely go on grouse is the 28 gauge. 20 gauge is much more readily available and what I would recomend.

[NoWiser]

20 gauge for sure! If you like the SBE, maybe check out some used Benelli autoloaders. I got my Montefeltro 20 for under $600.00 in good shape, used, and it is a great grouse gun.

[DanH]

What a great topic for a camp fire and a Knob Creek bracer after a day in the field. +1 on that 20ga Monte. Have never regreted carrying that 5.5# around all day. Can't say that about the old A5 "Light Twelve." Consensus seems to be that the .410 is inadaquate and potentially unsporting.

Another keen debate is O&U vs. SXS. That's a whole 'nother campfire...

[paul pachowicz]

back in the day when I was a skeet-a-loic with 4 1100's with all four barels for each of them the 28 ga became my pet for grouse and doves. However, a 20 will do.

[Neighbor_guy]

When I was a kid I was a profesional groung swatter. Tagging one on the ground with a load of 4shot from my .410 bolt action Mossberg was the highlight of my day. I don't think I ever even tried to take a shot at a bird in the air with it.

When I came back to upland hunting as an adult it was with an O/U 12ga.

Now I use a 20ga SXS. I am a big fan of it. So my vote is the 20, hands down, everyday of the week.

So I guess what I am trying to say is this..... If you are going to be the guy who drives around in his truck and shoots birds in the road or just off the shoulder, ON THE GROUND, a .410 will work for you. If it is airborne birds you are after, go with the 20. If is a lot easier to get shells too.

(for the record, I dont have a problem with anyone shooting birds off the ground, I just don't think a .410 is a good choice for a bird in the air.)

[Ufatz]

There is a strong school of thought among serious sportsmen that (a) a 410 bore is not a serious shotgun for pheasants because it cripples more than it kills and ( people that shoot pheasants or other game birds on the ground eat with their hands and kick puppies.

Every man (or woman) who claims the title "sportsman" knows in their heart that blasting birds on the ground or shooting and inadequate weapon that will not assure clean, quick kills is just not done.

There. Somebody had to say it.

[Darrell Larson]

I do use a 410 in the early part of the season, then switch to the 12gauge later on, I do hunt with a Chessie, "nuff said"

[pulleye16]

.410 is a great gun. Use to hunt with it all the time as a kid. I don't own one now but its a great SECOND gun IMO. Shooting grouse on the ground when not hunting with dogs is fine with me...especially in early fall.

[TylerS]

Every man (or woman) who claims the title "sportsman" knows in their heart that blasting birds on the ground or shooting and inadequate weapon that will not assure clean, quick kills is just not done.

There. Somebody had to say it.

Of all the game animals in the region, I consider grouse to be the most appropriate to ground pound. They are, hands down, the best table fare of all the fowl. That being said, I'd rather take a carefully placed head shot on trail-squatting chicken than a hail-Mary wing shot through thick aspens. Though I might feel better about myself by hitting one in the air, my teeth thank me later for shooting it on the ground...

[#fishhunt#]

If you can carry a 20g all day it is a better all around gun as you can use it for more than one animal. You limit yourself with a .410. Ground swatting.. its just not for me but it's not illegal either.

[Matt Breuer]

Tyler is right... if you want to wax intellectual about being a "sportsman" by shooting birds in the air, you'll lose every time to a quick clean kill on the ground when the birds neck is stretched high.

Oh, I can see a young bird running in front of me on a trail now... refusing to flush as I lick my chops!

[Fins-n-feathers]

If you like the Benelli maybe try the Nova in 20 otherwise an 870. If you want it really cheap try an 870 express.

In my opinion, a .410 is just too small for pheasants and is cutting it pretty close for grouse.

[CRAZYEYES]

Go with the 20. I use my old franchi 20 for everything until late pheasant when I switch to one of my 12's.When I was about 8 or 9 I got to be a crack shot with my old 410 bolt action but it just doesnt cut it for pheasants. Not only will it be a much more useful gun you'll save money on the shells. 410 shells have gotten pretty darn pricey for the little pop you get. I also agree, I'm not a puppy kicker because I shoot a few grouse off the ground.

[Jackpine Rob]

A .410 is a fine gun for partridge hunting. Last year Jr. had a new 12 gauge he was dying to try out, so he loaned his little Topper .410 to my dad. I carried a 20 SxS. It was all good!

Ground, tree limb, flying - those little devils taste too darn good to let them escape out of some notion of "sportsmanship". Don't take low percentage shots and it all works out!

I like them best wrapped in bacon and roasted, then served on a bed of wild rice.