Home Forums Birds & Dogs Upland Game favorite gun for ruff' grouse?

Just curious what you guys who regularly hunt ruffed grouse use. My favorite so far was a Fox 12 gauge, 26" barrels with open chokes, followed by a Browning 28 gauge O/U.

My Favorite is the Bernadelli Premier Gamecock made back in the 60's or 70's. 12 ga English Stock 25.5 inch barrel IC and Mod. This shotgun has Auto Ejectors and Single Trigger. I have killed a bunch of Ruffs and Quail with this shotgun.

My fave for years was a Colt Diamondback 4" .22...

Made my grouse hunting uncle in Pa. CRAZY ....

This one: Parker Reproduction by Winchester. 16gauge barrels on a 20gauge frame.

May a buzzard chit on your head. Guessing you would also shoot a squirrel with a shotgun.

Nobody but Tom264 sinks THAT low.....

Ok. Now I only wish him to throw up on you....

Nothing like an original Burgess in 12 gauge with 2 1/2 inch chambers, a wrist-slide action, damascus barrel w/solid rib, rare but fun to shoot...

A Spanish side by side in 20ga. Mod and Imp Cyl chokes. Love this gun for all small game.

I have also caught trout on lures.....

I have used various OU 12s and 20s and pumps. The one I always liked when I was a kid was my Dad's Remington Model 11 in 20g, it was just cool to me.

Well Ingwe,
I do have a model 18, close enough?

I cant hit the ground with a pistol lil winchester do work quite well though



I think that was the best grouse I have ever ate

As for actual "bird" guns though. THe fav is a Smith&Wesson m3000 12 28" full choke. Not the best but It just feels right.

Although the S&W 3000 20 ga 26" mod choke seems to get more use

I've shot trout with a .22. Wonder where that fits in? It was a K-22.

Favorite.....I took my first grouse with a 20 gauge O/U...a Weatherby Orion (SKB). I took my last one with an old Ithaca 37 12ga.
If I had to pick a favorite, though, it'd be this one:


An old Parker VH.

That being said, I may have a new favorite. I recently picked up an old Winchester Model 59. At less than six pounds, it's a walk all day gun. We'll see come October.
Pete

Yes, those Win 59s are not much for looks, but when it comes to carry and quick they do have their positives. Buddy of mine used to have three of them, now only two. An instinctive shooting marvel that was ahead of its time.

Fishing always gives me wonder. Soooooo much of it is up to the fish....

And they can be fickle...

Another bud parted with this old war horse. Model 12 16ga that is a joy to carry. Not a Ruffed Grouse picture, but it works on them also.

If I lived out your way, I'm thinking it would be another addiction....

Just to put your mind at ease a tad, and show you I'm not a complete cretin...



My Chas. Daly SxS and my pard's Ithaca 37 skeet...

I always knew you had it in ya. Sweet.

It is...and it usually involves Guns and Dogs...

MagMarc's avatar... my dog & gun

Ingwe Dog is one cool dude. He's been around more stuff on the ground and pulled out of the water than most posters here. If he could type, I'm thinking he would have some good advice for all of us.

Thats actually Ingwedog II in that pic...the original Ingwedog is retired now...goin' on 14....

But She's a good one too...sprang to the fore while fishing last year to run interference between me and a moose!

Another IngwedogII pic...



BTW she weighs in at #62..so dat's a pretty nice trout!

That white Springer in the pics, went on vacation at 14. Hard times, however she still comes back to visit.

Ingwedog on her last fishing trip..last fall...she is too old and slow and deaf now to avoid moose and griz..



we have had shinin' times......

I shoot everything with a 28 Ga. Citori Superlite these days. Works well on the Quail and Grouse and I shoot Sporting Clays with it too. I have owned many great upland bird guns but this is the one I won't part with. Just something great about the 28!

Ingwe, I always love your fishing/Ingwedog/IngweWife pictures. Montana is just a dream for most of us. At least we can live it vicariously through you!
Mike

thanks...sorry for the hijack....



Back on topic..the 28 ga. is skookum....for shure...

Some hijacks are worthwhile......

I'm a Spring Dog man too. I love the animated little characters and I've shot a bunch of birds over mine over the years. My first lasted til she was 11 and I cried like a baby the day she left.

Had no choice but to shoot squirrels with a shotgun when I was a boy growing up in New Jersey. Now that I'm in South Carolina I use a variety of 22 rfs

I pal around with WildHobbyBobbyDoggy and carry an Ithaca SKB 280E 20 gauge when after grouses (or is it grice?):

Out of touch for a bit at a SC shoot.

Cool pic and from one I can gather from previous posts one great Dog. Screw those buzzards. May we all have and be worthy of an Ingwedog sometime in our life.

hijacks ok with me.
Very cool pics, especially with the dog in them.. It has taken me about 4 years to get my wife to go along with getting a new dog- she took it hard when our last one died.

Ms. Scarlet and I use two different SXSs...

...a Pre-war J.P. Sauer, the double 12ga SXS part of a cape gun two barrel set.



...or a French Robust No. 4 16ga that works just fine for our high country Nevada blues, as well as ruffed...

40+ year old Winchester 101 in 20 ga. since around 1980.
Have taken a few with a K22 for a special mid week meal in deer camp. Was hunting in Michigan in those days, area had an abundance of grouse that were darn near tame.

Uh-oh..since Blues were introduced into the thread..I feel another mini-hijack coming on!

Last year's fave grouse gun...a recent build in a .222

The photo of the model 12 brings back memories. I used to regularly use one. That one got the worst abuse of any gun I have ever used. About ten years ago I and two friends were grouse hunting in Northern Mn. We were on an old logging trail riding four wheelers back to an area where we knew held grouse. I had my model 12 16 gauge in a soft case strapped on the top of the back rack.

When we started walking I had about as easy a shot at a grouse as you could ever have. I saw it before it started to fly and it was in relatively open woods/brush. It lifted off, I shot and...missed. Then my friend said "whats the matter with your gun?" I thought he was just giving me crap about my shooting skills, but he was serious. My gun barrel was bent. The end of the barrel had apparently caught on a tree as I took a tight corner around a pine tree and put a bend in it. Idiot!

A gunsmith was able to staighten it out so that you could not even see the damage it had sustained. Lesson learned, I switched to a hard case.

Beal175, I used a Bernardelli of the same model when I lived in upstate New York for 21 years, except mine was a 20 with double triggers. Nice little guns! Out here in CA we don't have ruffed grouse; I use a 12 guage O/U for most of my upland hunting (CA quail and chukars; a few blue grouse ). Ranges are sometimes pretty long, especially with chukars and blues.

I used to shoot cottontails when grouse hunting in NYS, but my hunting partners frown on that when hunting birds, so I leave them alone when hunting with a dog and only go after them when I'm alone (usually with a .410 Contender). Tasty.

I have a number of o&u and sxs , pumps and semi-autos but just love the Bernadelli for grouse hunting

These were excellent guns. They were built by Victor Sarasqueta of Spain.

I had one in my late teens that was taken in a burglary; I still miss the gun.

Favorite when hunting over dogs-Browning A5 Sweet Sixteen.

Favorite late season no dogs-Savage 220 single shot 20 gauge.

I'm a 28 gauge guy , but have been know to shoot ruffies with 20'16', and 12's with black powder ans brass cases as well as with smokeless stuff in either SXS or O/U.

However, for most of my upland - pheasants as well as grouse over a dog is with either a 28 SXS or a Damascus barreled 12 bore with black powder.

Cat

I love the 28 ga and used it for dove hunting last season and limited out with less than one box of shells. Beretta 686 O&U with matching 20 ga barrels.

My favorites are a 20 ga Franchi AL48 and a 16 ga. Ithaca 37. But then I've shot squirrels and trout with a shotgun and lotsa ruff's with a rifle too.

I love the 28 and use a old Ithaca 20 gauge w/ damascus barrels that I had sleeved by Briley to 28 gauge (maybe a touch too light though - swings REAL fast), a Merkel 280SL, a Weatherby Orion, and a Rizzini. Also have a favorite Beretta 686 onyx in 20 gauge, a Fox sterlingworth in 16 gauge, and a AH Fox 12 gauge that all have spent a few hours in the grouse woods Does'nt really matter much what I use as long as it handles well. Like the idea of shooting them in the head w/ a .22 but it will take lots of practice to be able to accomplish that feat on Pennsylvania grouse

PennDog

Cat, I love those doubles of yours. You definitely hunt with style. And that hat!

My favorite grouse killing machine is a toss up between a 20 gauge L.C.Smith or a 28 gauge Anschutz (Miroku) O/U. I'm hoping I'm improved enough health-wise to get out in the grouse coverts this year.

Years ago, I had a buddy who couldn't hit a grouse on the wing to save his soul. He kept switching guns trying to find the answer to his poor shooting ability. One day he showed up with a M1897 Winchester WWI trench gun. As we were busting our way through nigh impenetrable white pines to get to a "birdy" spot on the other side, one took off from between his legs. Shooting from the hip, he took it's head off at about 10 feet. Naturally he christened that short beast "the best dam*" grouse gun ever made, and used it as his sole grouse gun for many years. Never mind the fact he never killed another grouse with it.

I hunt grouse on the hills of Vermont. An ideal gun is a drilling as the bear season is open at the same time from Sept. on.

If it was raining I would carry the Ithaca Deerslayer for grouse and game. While it has an open choke it does hit the birds. It weighs 7 lbs with it's handy 20" barrel and the 2X Redfield on it.

12 gauge Winchester Model 12 Featherweight, 26" improved cylinder barrel.

In order of preferance.

1. Browning Superposed Lightning 20ga 28" SK 1/Imp Mod
2. Le Fevre Nitro Special custon skeet gun 28" 20ga SK 1/SK 2
3. SKB 100 12ga 26" IC/Mod
4. Berretta 300 Anniversary MZL O/U(BLK Powder)
5. Charels Daley Youth 20ga semi auto if I'm flying to a hunt

erich

I wanted to post a picture of mine with some grouse, but all the photos are just photographs, no digital stuff. My favorite grouse gun is my 12 bore Browning Superposed made in '32. She's light, has a single trigger and will be celebrating her fiftieth season with me this fall. I inherited her from my great Uncle Walt. Along with supplying a farm kid with Outdoor Life and Sports Afield in the fifties, he taught me to chew tobacco, cuss, sing dirty songs, and drink liquor. I suspect he would have introduced me to loose women, had he lived a bit longer. While I love hunting with Greatgrandad's Elsie, she's bored tight , is heavy and has that unsafe trap safety. She's only an occaisional nostalgic partner. While there are a few other shotguns in the safe, none hold a candle to my old O/U. She's scratched and scarred and is on her fourth recoil pad, but comes to my shoulder as if she has a mind of her own.
Bfly

When one says grouse gun the only thing that instantly comes to my mind is 28ga. They just go together so dammn good. Sorta like Peanut Butter and Jelly.

Ithica Classic Doubles NID 4E 20ga is my go to now that I am temporarily without a 28ga.

I use my ole reliable Stevens 311c SxS 20ga 28" for all my bird hunting. The blue is still in great shape but the wood, OMG there isn't any clear coat left on it. I don't have the heart to refinish the wood cause I might put a jinx on it. When I take it out of the gun cabinet the wife says " your taking the POS gun " you must be going after some birds.

Ken

I hate to admit it but I do not have a vintage double in a small gauge for grouse, which is the classic choice. And I do not have a setter.

I "run what I brung" with an 870 12 gauge light contour 26" tube and 1oz. of #7 1/2 or #8's. Birds pointed by my old girl Shorthair.

Ruthless and efficient, nobody is going to paint our covert portrait, but it works.

Nothing wrong with your set-up including dog. You nailed the load anyways, so you get bonus points for that.

That-ell work!!!! Nice.

Battue,
It has many days under it hunting in Maine for Grouse and Woodcock. The mistake was taking it to ID to hunt chukar. Got a few dings in the stock from that trip. Oh well one of these days I will have it fixed. But I need to buy a new grouse gun 28ga.

Creekhunter, if you don't have a few dings from chukar hunting, you aren't doing it right! The only issues are: are the dings on you, the gun, the chukars, or all three.....I usually end up with the majority of the dings on me! Once stepped off a small cliff in the Snake River breaks in a dense fog. On the way down, I had time to think "Jeez, hope I don't break my Elsie!" (I didn't, just me).

Dings are in the stock and forend. Nothing hurt on me but my pride. LOL

nice hunk of lumber on the NID!!! That would tempt the hell out of me...don't put it up for sale on the classifieds...

It could be yours lovemy99!!!!!

I was tempted enough by the RBL... I'm a real sucker for a SxS with a nice schttick of wood. Generally I dig English but that NID looks like black walnut. Pretty gun.

Yes the NID is Black Walnut.

Smith LC 12 gauge

Beautiful gun monatanacreekhunter

Beretta Silverhawk Featherweight 16ga

Had to dump the Citori when I got divorced, ah well it was heavy anyway.

These days it's a BPS 20 ga.

Got to agree, Fox:

I had one in 16ga. It was a great shotgun that never failed me...ever...

...so I sold it.

It was this boy's favorite shotgun until he turned 12 and got a 20ga SXS...52 years ago.

Hey, L2S, Great to hear from you on another site....I see you have a mt. spot also...take care and good shooting WCH

Haz! Hello my good friend.

Lotta good lookin shotguns in here. Lets ugly this thread up

Its far from my favorite, but when its always with you. You tend to use it the most.

Youth 870 20ga with set of fullsize stocks on it. SpeedFeed based thier full size stock off of a oompa-loompa I believe as its still way short.

870wingmaster

After posting I noticed thats a young blue, I dont have any pictures of ruffs in photobucket.