The .410 remains incredibly, improbably popular. A lot of people use .410s for a lot of things, most of which the little gun is completely unsuited for. The skinny .410 hull doesn’t hold much shot to begin with, and it often shoots terrible patterns. ...
16 Gauge: What The Cool Kids Are Shooting
After decades of decline and neglect, the 16-gauge is getting a lot of attention right now; it’s the in gauge. I recently told a friend who is a double-gun expert that I was trying to talk myself into a 16, but I couldn’t find a reason. Stuck in a ...
Is the 20-Gauge the New 12-Gauge?
You hear it all the time these days from waterfowlers and turkey hunters: “I don’t need a 12-gauge anymore.” “I’ve switched to a 20. It’s all anyone needs,” they’ll tell you. They are almost right. With the introduction of TSS turkey loads, improved ...
Is There Still a Reason for the 10-Gauge Shotgun to Exist?
Everyone should get a 10-gauge shotgun before they’re gone. Well, not everyone. Let me qualify that a little bit. The following people should grab a 10-gauge: Waterfowl hunters should get one if they want to go after geese and swans at ...
The ‘Freakin’ 12-Gauge’: The Only Gauge You Really Need
Don: “Hey, Napoleon. What did you do last summer again?” Napoleon Dynamite: “I told you! I spent it with my uncle in Alaska hunting wolverines!” Don: “What kind of gun did you use?” Napoleon: “A freakin’ 12-gauge! What do you ...
What’s Behind the Supposed ‘Magic’ of the 28-Gauge
Within the limitations of its light payload, the 28-gauge shotshell drops small game birds and crushes clay targets with authority and minimal recoil. You can shoot the 28-gauge out of dainty, scaled-down guns that are a pleasure to carry. Grouse, ...
Shotgun Shells: The Most Important Developments of the Past 10 Years
You would immediately recognize shotgun shells from the 1860s as shotgun shells. They would have brass cases, but you could put one in your modern shotgun and fire it, as long as you didn’t mind cleaning the corrosive black powder and primer residue ...
Cold Weather Duck Hunting Gear That Will Keep You Warm and Shooting
After a long, cold boat ride, we broke ice in the hole. Then, my host dropped me, outfitted in waders, by an oak tree in waist-deep water. “Don’t fall in,” he said as I was halfway out of the boat. “It’s 45 minutes to the ramp. You’ll be dead ...
A Thanksgiving Duck Hunt Miracle
The Thanksgiving hunt, a red-letter event for so many hunters who look forward to the field before a day of food and family bonding, is a touchy subject at my house. I don’t hunt on Thanksgiving, nor on the day or two before. My wife, raised in ...
Where Have All the Side-By-Side Shotguns Gone?
Side-by-side shotguns, whether cut-down coach guns behind a bar or bespoke doubles on a driven shoot, once dominated break-action/double gun designs. Why did side-by-sides come first before over/unders? My guess is that it was easier to make ...
Waterfowl Starter Kit: Everything You Need to Slay Ducks and Geese
If you’ve been meaning to try waterfowling and you’ve done your preliminary YouTube research on hunting ducks and geese, you can be forgiven for thinking the endeavor requires a trailer of gear, a hiding place for 12 or 13 of your closest friends, ...
Upland Hunting Starter Kit: The Gun, Boots, Vest, and Skills You Need
Upland hunting requires learning two skills: walking and shooting. You should already know how to walk. Then you give yourself over to the nose of a dog. That’s all there is to it. Get the gun and boots right, add a blaze orange vest to carry ammo ...
Learn the Shotgun Sports Like Olympic Trap, Skeet, and Sporting Clays
So you bought a shotgun and took it hunting. Hunting turns out to be a lot of fun, but it would be even more fun if you didn’t suck at shooting. Or maybe you’re streaming Olympic trap or skeet, can’t get enough, want to learn how to shoot, and don’t ...
Turkey Hunting the Pandemic, This Year and Last
“This corona deal sucks. Every parking lot is full and I heard four shots this a.m.” For once in my life as a turkey hunter, I could feel smug. The text came from a friend hunting the public area where I have chased spring gobblers for 30 years. ...
How To Start a Gun Dog
Once you hunt over a gun dog of your own, hunting birds without a dog, or hunting over anyone else’s dog, doesn’t feel like hunting anymore. It’s just walking around trying to shoot stuff. A bird dog connects you to the unseen world of scents in ...
