Pick THE BEST shotgun for me for coyote

I have the Benelli M1 Super 90 exactly like GC has. With my Carlson's DC choke, that thing rocks on coyotes to 50 yards.

I like the short tubes with chokes for the thick cover I hunt. The Benelli short, lightweight and shoots fast. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
I have an 11-87 SuperMag Turkey Gun, camo, Carlsons Coyote Killer Choke, Dead Coyote 3 1/2", still waiting to find out how it works on a coyote !
 
After owning a Benelli Black Eagle, I can say that it is without a doubt the kicking auto shotgun on the market. This shotgun turned both of my shoulders green shooting doves in S. Arizona. It would also start jamming after shooting 10 boxes of shells through it. It took me a while to get over the flinch after shooting the Black Eagle.

The Beretta 390 has been the softest re-coiling shotgun that I have ever fired in 12 GA, and you can forget cleaning it.

Now back to your question. Your 870 is fantastic, forget buying another shotgun unless you feel the need to just buy another gun. I killed many, many yotes with a 30" Full choke 870 years ago, painted the shotgun with archery paint.

GC's post on patterning is priceless, so pay attention to how folks pattern and try different chokes.

If you have a fixed choke for your shotgun, then it should be a "Full" choke and use #4 Buckshot.
 
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Hey CDR, cant possibly argue with those patterns! You have obviously done your homework. And yes you are correct, the only thing I ever shot out of my 10 guage was the factory stuff, never did load my own shotgun shells.



I was amazed and disappointed with the performance of factory 10ga. lead loads, when I shot them. At nearly $1 a shot, over 10 years ago, I expected better. But, with a little experimentation, a good load can be developed.

The ones pictured (lead) were using a Fed. case and a BP10 wad, with 3 slits. I normally found Fed cases patterned better in both lead and steel shot. And, also was a surprise is that the BP10tuff wad, and the BP10 was with 4 slits, didn't pattern as well. They gave good, high percentage patterns, but not center dense enough for extended range shooting.

I tried a variety of chokes, but the best patterning choke for large lead shot, up to 4 buck, was the .705" Terror choke. It was designed as a steel shot choke, and that's the reason for my purchasing it, but it patterns large lead shot very well. The choke could be tightened a bit for the lead 2's and BB's, but then it would probably be too tight for the 4 buck.

I suspect it's too tight for buck shot bigger than 4, though.
 
SkeetLee, that was a great post!

I hunted in the S. West to N. West for yotes, doves, Ducks, and quail. I used the following shotguns:

Ithaca 37 3" mag Modified choke Pump-light weight and kicks your hat off
Rem 870-3" Pump- Modified choke-not enough choke
Rem 1100 3" mag, full choke, still in use-fast recovery for second shot
Ithaca 10ga Auto- 32" full choke-long range heavy shotgun
Browning 10ga Auto-28" screw in choke-Great long range shotgun
Two Browning Gold sporting clays in 12 Ga-Needs maintaining like the 1100's.
Benelli Black Eagle 12ga-HARD kicking shotgun!
Rem 1187-3" 26" Still in use
Mossburg 500, 26" 3" mag
Beretta 390 three inch-screw in chokes.

After extensive patterning, it is evident that the 10 ga is king of the hill on shotguns for coyotes. A coyote at 60 yards has no chance with a 10ga loaded with 2 1/4 oz of BB'
s.

Personal thing, I don't like pumps. They kick like hell and recovery time on second shots is longer.

Of the auto's, the standard 1100 three inch mag with the standard full choke is a great shotgun for coyotes, but maintance is critical, same thing with the 11/87. Recoil on the 1100 is minimal, also.

At $1200, Benelli Black eagle kicks worse than any auto shotgun that I have ever fired. Shooting doves with the Benelli Black Eagle was a very painful season that I will never forget. I shot doves with the Black Eagle for 28 days straight. The Black Eagle started jamming after firing 10 boxes of Remington "Dove load" shells on every occasion. The Black Eagle is the equal of a pump and over and under in Recoil, and this light weight shotgun is simply brutal in recoil.

The beretta 390 is the best auto shotgun that I have ever owned. This shotgun has very light recoil, light weight also, seems to never need cleaning, and never jams with any reload that I put through it. When I die, I will probably have a whole closet full of Beretta 390's and 391's.

I enjoy hunting yotes with a shotgun. There is nothing wrong with a guy starting off with an 870 and hunting with that exact same shotgun for the rest of his life, same with a cheap Mossburg 500 that can be bought at a pawn shop for $150 with screw in chokes.

Pattern your shotguns at various ranges. Point of impact for a particular shotgun fit is critical for you to know if you want to shoot yotes at ranges past 40 yards. Shotguns of the same make and model with the same choke may pattern completely different. Also, shoot more than one pattern with the same load because one may be a lot better than the other...check for consistancy of the load.

The 10ga shotguns are monsters. They are heavy to carry and recovery time for second and third shots are long. For a guy that wanted to get into reloading 10ga shells, loads that would dispatch coyotes at 70-80 yards is not unreasonable thinking.

The 1100,11/87, and the Browning Gold should have their gas tubes wiped off after every shooting session and you will never have any problems, at least I never did.

If you are the type of guy that never likes to clean his shotgun, then get a pump, over and under, or a Beretta 390.

Good luck!
 
I will put a little different spin on this.

I'm not as experienced a "shotgunner" as I am some other things, but I am familiar with 870's, 1100's, Benelli Nova and SBE, Mossberg 500 and 835, Beretta 390, Winchester 1897 and Model 12, and Browning BPS.

That said, the fastest handling, lightest carrying shotgun I've used is the Winchester model 1300 "speed pump". Mine has a 22" barrel, fully camoed, very light, and very fast handling. It is equipped with fiber optic sights (no vent rib) and Weaver scope bases, if I so desire to slap a red-dot or low power scope on it.

This set up is a pleasure to carry, cycles faster and weighs less than an 870, and is totally reliable.....
 
I got a benelli nova 20 gauge yesterday. I got it for birds mostly but want to use it for yotes. Wut is a good load and choke for it.
 
My favorite 12ga.? Benelli M1 Super 90. Light weight, quick and handy, 26in BBL. You can fight my son for it when I'm dead and gone. Other than a quick wipe with an oily rag it hasn't been "cleaned" in years. It's NOT an SBE so it doesn't kick bad even when dove hunting. Tried my brother-in-laws's SBE. Told him to keep that kicking b%$#*.
Ya'll can keep your 870's most unreliable piece of junk I have ever owned. Put 3 or 4 3in shells in the magazine and it's GONNA jam. Every time. Plug it and put 2 2-3/4in shells in and it might/might not jam. Would have sold it a long time ago but me wife gave it to me for christmas 20 years ago. It hasn't left the gun cabinet(except for oiling) in about 12 years.
When I switch to a 20ga. the Beretta AL391 usually gets the nod. Otherwise it's probably gonna be an old Remington 31 pump.
 
I should add, that this shotgun is one that is aimed at turkey/deer hunting. It would also serve right well for predator hunting. Due to it's lightweight construction, it is not optimal for any type of sport requiring extended shooting sessions, as recoil is fairly substantial.....
 
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The 1100,11/87, and the Browning Gold should have their gas tubes wiped off after every shooting session and you will never have any problems, at least I never did.






Every session well, session equals season to me on my 11-87 in fact my newest is going on 2 1/2 years and its about time I do that. Thanks for the reminder but three 1187s I have only had a handful of jams or problems. Mostly to abuse, hunting in blowing sand, freezing spray and burnt O rings from to much oil sprayed down through the side of the forend. I actually have a video with my 1187 resembeling a flame thrower at first light with 5-6 inch flames shooting out the reciever after the first shot.
 
NEF SBS-2 Turkey Special 10 ga. Throw away the choke tube that comes with it and get a KICKS tube. Very cheap, very effective set-up It's uglier than ten miles of mud road, so you won't feel guilty putting the spray paint to it.
 
ya'll must have special super black eagles or somethin mine hardly kicks at all even with 3.5's. but then again recoil dosnt bother me at all. i have shot it all day on dove and duck hunts and its never bothered me. as far as reliability, the first year i got it i wanted to test its name. it went an entire duck season of being wet cold dropped in mud sand dirt water even the lake, and it never jammed. i even had to use it to paddle the boat a couple times. it went through about 1k rounds of 3 inch duck loads and target loads for practice that season without one cleaning and it never once jammed.

but that being said i wouldnt use this gun for yotes unless i got a short barrel cause this thing is just long and a pain in the back side tryin to move it around in tight woods. thats why i bought a mossberg 835 with a 20 inch barrel for yotes and turkeys. its short light ultra reliable and packs a mean punch. i havnt patterned it yet but hope to soon

i noticed you said your 870 has a vang comp barrel... with a good choke and a vang barrel you should have no problems waxin coyotes at 40 plus yards. i hear very good things about vang barrels and his shotgun work, so you should be fine with that gun
 
The Super Black Eagle I shoot doesnt kick near as bad as the Nova I shoot but Its a Super Black Eagle 2 and it has the ComforTech stock and it really makes a difference.If you dont like long barrels a Trench Gun might be a good coyote gun.My grandpa owns one and that thing is sweet.The bad thing is that it only shoots 2 3/4" shells but it patterns buckshot really well at 40 yards. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif
 
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but that being said i wouldnt use this gun for yotes unless i got a short barrel cause this thing is just long and a pain in the back side tryin to move it around in tight woods. thats why i bought a mossberg 835 with a 20 inch barrel for yotes and turkeys. its short light ultra reliable and packs a mean punch. i havnt patterned it yet but hope to soon



Let us know how it patterns. I have a Mossberg 835 Tactical Turkey with a 20-inch barrel and I love it for coyotes in tight cover. The problem with the gun is that it shoots 8-10 high and to the left at 40 yards and there is not enough adjustment in the rear fiber optic sight to correct the problem. I had to put a red dot sight on the thing to make it work right and ended up really liking the sight.

Despite the high/left problem it does pattern well with both the stock and Carlson Dead Coyote chokes using DC and Wingmaster T shot. I also have some Wingmaster BB that I haven't tried yet. I'm in California where we are getting ready for the lead ban on 7/1/08 so I didn't do a lot of test patterening with #4 buck.
 
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When it comes to some tough long range shooting...shotguns are like racing engines or athletes. You just cant beat cubic inches and the good big man always outdoes the good littleman. Browning Gold 10ga. gets my vote. Also, suggest you take a look a the Wad Wizard choke. It works just like they say.
 
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