Home Forums Birds & Dogs Turkey Hunting Dedicated Turkey Gun

With the advent of TSS turkey shells I changed to the much lighter 20ga semi-auto shotguns a few year back after packing 7lb + 12ga shotguns for the last 30 something years and I love it...I cover miles of rugged country every time i turkey hunt so i really appreciate the lighter weight of the 20 guage....Hb

It really depends on what you want to do. If you want a universal gun, an automatic 20 gauge with a 24” or 26” vent rib barrel is hard to beat.

However, if you want a dedicated small bore turkey gun, hold the peas and pass me the 28! 1-3/8 or 1-1/2 ounce loads of TSS in the 28 gives a bonafide 50 yard gun. My CZ Bobwhite 28 weighs less than 5.5 pounds with sling.

I wouldn’t hesitate to buy an SA-28 and rock it for turkeys if you don’t want to setup a double barrel.

When I finally tried the 20ga TSS shells, I was sold and made a dedicated 20ga turkey gun and am invested in it. But, almost always a but, lol, there was no 28ga commercially available back then to my knowledge. If there had been, might as easily gotten into 28ga instead. Lots of great options nowadays if you're so inclined. If I was starting out today, would definitely consider a 28ga. And between 410 and 28ga, almost a coin toss...

Reading this makes me wonder if the people that went all the way down to 410 may come back up to a 28 gauge to get a little more spread closer in?

One thing iv noticed, is I'm finding tss in 410, but iv yet to fine any for the 28 gage. This is just looking local.

410 will kill at 50 no problem. We shoot viper #10 tss. I’ve seen 4 fall to it so far and one was 50yds running.
I have a 28 to get fixed up as well.
Look at some of the custom type shops loading ammo. Verdict, foxtrot, viper, apex.
I’d do 9/10 blends for a 28. (If legal in your state).

I don't own a gun that I consider a dedicated turkey gun. All of my guns were acquired with the intention for them to pull double or triple duty on different things. But, if I wanted a "dedicated" turkey gun, it sure wouldn't be a 28 gauge or a .410. I think those bores are the least desirable for a dedicated turkey gun. Can you take running shots at turkeys with #10 TSS at 50 yards with a .410 and kill one? I guess it's possible. But if you want a gun that will be ethically reliable killer under all reasonable hunting circumstances, stick with a 12 or a 20 gauge. You can get quality auto 12 gauges that just aren't that heavy. My Benelli M2 24" 12 gauge is 6.6 lbs. The M2 20 gauge 24" is 5.8 lbs, and much trimmer than the 12 gauge. The Browning Maxus II 26" 12 gauge is 7 lbs even and it soaks up felt recoil significantly. Franchi surely makes light autoloaders. And the Remington 870 Fieldmaster just isn't a log to haul around, either. You'll have more loads and chokes to choose from. If you are recoil sensitive, there's decent 2 3/4" 12 gauge turkey loads on the market. 28 gauge and .410 will kill turkeys. But in choosing one, you'll be cutting yourself out of a lot of ammo and choke options.

I've seen these start to appear now. 21" all steel Remington 870 SPS Turkey. It's also drilled and tapped for a scope base. The bronze cerakote looks nice.
https://www.remarms.com/shotguns/pump-action/model-870/model-870-sps-turkey

I've been using a 20 for the last few years. I'm sure a 28 or even 410 will kill birds. But the smaller you go the more important it is to use the expensive shells. I've been able to find reasonably priced 20 ga shells that are still effective to 40 yards. That's as far as I'll get a shot anyway.

I have an older 870 youth with a 21" barrel that I've used in the past but for the last 2 years I've used a Weatherby SA-08 that I found used at a good price. It's under 6 lbs with a 24" barrel. It does have a shorter youth stock, but so does the 870. For wing shooting that might be a problem, but not for turkey.

I just whacked a tom on Saturday with a NEF Pardner .410 single shot and a 2 1/2 inch #6 lead shot load. Nothing special but it worked at about 30 yards.

It sounds like you're leaning towards a 28 and if so, I suspect you'll never get over that itch, so you may as well go for it.

Do it...

I was leaning towards the 28, but not finding 28 shells in my area. Going to get a CVA 410 scout tomorrow, comes with a jebs turkey choke, sling swivels, and a mount for a red dot. Lots of 410 stuff, even the TSS, tho high. Thinking early season squirrels Too!

setting up 2, I agree with this sentiment, haven't chased them before, can hit two provinces, one is shotgun only with 2-6 size shot, the other is shotgun or rimfire and no other restrictions, so mossberg 940 pro turkey 18.5" getting set up for more fun, defence and coyote/wolf calling duty but will be able to do the shotgun only province turkey....then I had a .17 hmr I set up for for fun and coyote pesting etc. so it's got a scope and dial up capability to go a couple hundred yards....that will be the primary in the other province....but yeah....there's not such thing as a dedicated anything gun in my world either...versatility is a part of my DNA make up

I've used blued barrels with wood furniture for years. Mossberg 500 and a Remington 870. A guy I hunt with uses a Mossberg with black synthetic stock and has no problem filling tags either.

Agreed. The Camo and Cerakote is for us 😂.

I drank the 410 Kolaid , bought a cva Scout 410. ROMEO5 in route! To late for this season, but I'll have plenty of time to dick with it before next spring! Thanks all that posted