Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns A soft shooting O/U?

A few years ago, the recoil from my old Franchi O/U started to get to me, so I switched to a 391. It's an OK gun, and doesn't beat me up near as much as my old Franchi, but, lets face it, compared to an O/U, it's a club. So I'm considering purchasing another O/U. I've noticed the new recoil pads and recoil reducing systems, and wondered if anybody has experience with them, and what they'd recommend.

Doc, the Hydro-Coil system is a winner, but quite expensive to install. Pads and such will help, I like the Kick-Eze pads mostly. One thing that helps is proper fit, another is reloading. Do you do that?

Doc
I had an old Franchi (in the late '70s) with tremendous cast-on. Finally got rid of it after firing both bath barrels at geese coming straight overhead. The 3" loads I shot were brutal and when I started spitting blood I realized I had mangled the inside of my mouth against my teeth. Took many stitches to close the jagged cut and forever to heal!

The price of old 101s is way down and Winchester says it is safe to shoot all the steel shot you want through them. I have been shooting steel through mine for years with no problem.
art

Kick Eze is good, as is the Pachmeyer Decelerator. A fairly new one is the Limbsaver (the same people who make cushions for compound bow limbs), and it is great - maybe the best of the lot.

I'm with Sitka Deer, and will give another vote for the old Win 101, for a user friendly O/U. They're long and heavy, and have good stock dimensions( for me anyways, Art and I are about the same size...6'3" ). I've never tried steel in mine, as I feel it's only used for one reason....it's cheap! I much prefer Bismuth, or better yet, Kent Tungsten/Polymer Matrix. Kent #5's are an absolute hammer on ducks out of both my 101, and my L.C. Smith.

Jeff

Jeff
"Art and I are about the same size...6'3" "

Same size??? Man, we are about the same height (yeah, I'm taller! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />) But you have shoulders! I got this little chicken chest and you have that huge barrel shaped thing! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

And yet we can both shoot a 101! I know lots of other folks that do quite well with them, despite the differences in build.
art

The rules of physics haven't changed, so the heaviest O/U you can handle is the softest shooting.

Gun fit is huge, particularly pitch, in how recoil is directed, so the gun that fits best will also shoot "softer".

Unlike "midgets" like Art and Jeff, I need a little more size to my shotguns <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> (6'5", with shoulders and arms of the Urang Utang variety). I just put a Limbsaver slip-on pad on my Citori, and go shooting. It adds a bit more than an inch to my gun, but it turns them into pussycats. Softer than my Browing Auto. HTH, Dutch.

Dutch
I agree physics cannot be changed, but you can change the direction enough to negate weight considerations within reason. Redirecting recoil is not that hard, but is also part of making the fit target-unfriendly...
art

Another sad point is the simple fact we, the big guys, soak up the recoil while little people just get pushed out of the way...
art

That's me. SIze 48 jacket.......size 2 hat! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Jeff

Art, I'm not quite sure I follow.....?

What I was trying to say is that if your gun fits it recoils pretty much straight back. I'm not going to argue with you that big guys like us have more inertia -- that's absolutely true.

If recoil goes straight back, it gets softened by the recoil pad, clothes, and the skin, fat and muscle that make up the shoulder pocket. If the gun recoils up (or twists), your cheekbone gets slapped, without the benefit of a recoil pad, clothes, or muscle to absorb and spread the impact.

No matter how big I am, I'd rather take recoil straight to the shoulder than getting slapped with a piece of walnut to my cheekbone. JMO, Dutch.