Newbie question: How do I practice with a shotgun?

[Knobgoblin]

Not my cup of tea, personally, but it does fit the idea of "reduce, reuse, recycle."

 

[KrautBurner]

I don't expect my shoulder will want me to do 50-100 rd sessions like I do with my pistol. I was surprised there is only a single bead on the security barrel.

you can always add a set of ghost ring sights

https://www.amazon.com/Mossberg-Ghost-Ring-Sight-12Ga/dp/B0002INJSA

Ghost Ring & Banded Standard Dot Shotgun Bead - Mossberg

XS Sights Winged Ghost Ring & Banded Standard Dot Tritium Shotgun Bead for Mossberg 500/590 Shotguns

xssights.com

as far as 50-100rd sessions, go for it !!
my first day out with my RIA VR80, I did over 300rds (my shoulder did have a little bruising)

 

[Nephilim_hewer]

nothing beats live fire, I use clay pigeons also...

BUT for convenience & cost sake, at home dry fire practice is also good.

buy some snap caps for dry fire and develop muscle memory. MAG-PUL has an awesome video series on tactical shotgun. I have the dvd's but I think they're on youtube now, start here...

and do some research. it's worth it.
<><

 

[ilikegunspdx]

What is your goal of owning/shooting the shotgun? Self defense? Bird hunting? range fun? In any case I would shoot whatever targets at the normal pit place to learn the pattern of your gun with various loads at different distances. Also IMO its critical to learn how to hold the gun properly. watch some youtube videos on it. Holding it properly means your shoulder won't hurt and you can get back on target quickly with each shot. I tell new shooters to hold it firmly just like you would a pistol or a high recoil rifle. Don't hold it gingerly and let it slam into your shoulder. Your arms, wrists, hands are your primary shock absorber and what you depend on to be on traget and to recover for the next shot. Hold it strong. Use some forward lean.

Shooting birds/clay pigeons in the air is whole other discussion and is much more involved.

Likewise reloading quickly is more advanced. First I would learn to hold the shotgun correctly and see how it patterns at different distances and with different loads. Also as others probably mentioned above (I didn't read the thread), in a self defense scenario, you are most likely to use whatever ammo you have on the gun (unlike bird shooting f.e. where you can rely on ammo on your person).

 

[bbbass]

How do you practice with a shotgun? ....

Vewy carefully.

Stay safe!!

 

[oremike]

I learned to shoot shotguns with my first. It was a H&R topper 12 ga I paid $49.99 cash money. Bought it at K-Mart when there was such a thing. That thing was brutal to shoot and several times I thought about tossing it off a cliff. The thing was though it was a Grouse, Quail, Pheasant and chucker getting machine. I quickly figured out that if I got what I shot at I didn't need to shoot as much. Fast forward to now days I have a BPS for bird hunting and a Stoeger Coach gun for closer work. Once in a while I'll got down to the trap range and run a box of low base shells thru the Browning and if I get 20 out of 25 I figure I'm doing alright. To practice with the coach gun I like to shoot just under a coffee can to bounce it up in the air and then shoot it on the fly with the other barrel. Who says practice can't be fun?

 

[ma96782]

I thought the neighbor kid(s) to shoot a shotgun by first utilizing a 410 ga. break open. Yes, I was worried that they would be afraid if we were to go to a heavier recoiling SG for a first step.

The targets were clay pigeons. They were placed against the side of a dirt hill (backstop) and there were times when a bush happened to grow in an area where the pigeons could be placed in the branches. Of course, checking if there would still be a safe backdrop.

Stepping back (further away from the targets) kept things interesting.

As they could handle more recoil.....we moved to the 12 ga. with bird shot (the cheap promo stuff). Started off using single shots. And, as they became more familiar.....I had them using the pump action for follow-up shots.

Soon, they were proficient enough (with the Rem 870) to try hand-thrown clays.

Aloha, Mark

 

[ma96782]

Is dry firing without snapcaps bad for the shotgun?

Save your money and get ahold of some fired cases/hulls.

Knock out the old primer using a nail or punch of the appropriate size. Fill the primer pocket with silicone. Let dry. You might have to trim off any excess silicone when it drys. Viola. You have a homemade snap cap.

If you want the weight of a "sort of" real shell. Cut the front of the hull to the approximate size. Then, from the front.....you could add (glue in) lead shot or an old bullet(s) into the case hull.

Mark the cases. So that you can instantly tell what you have made vs real ammo.

Aloha, Mark

 

[Nephilim_hewer]

I thought the neighbor kid(s) to shoot a shotgun by first utilizing a 410 ga. break open. Yes, I was worried that they would be afraid if we were to go to a heavier recoiling SG for a first step.

The targets were clay pigeons. They were placed against the side of a dirt hill (backstop) and there were times when a bush happened to grow in an area where the pigeons could be placed in the branches. Of course, checking if there would still be a safe backdrop.

Stepping back (further away from the targets) kept things interesting.

As they could handle more recoil.....we moved to the 12 ga. with bird shot (the cheap promo stuff). Started off using single shots. And, as they became more familiar.....I had them using the pump action for follow-up shots.

Soon, they were proficient enough (with the Rem 870) to try hand-thrown clays.

Aloha, Mark

I did that very thing, filled empty cases with a hot glue & lead shot mixture and made weighted dummy shells. Marked them with silver sharpie to i.d. them. I used those for several years successfully...until 1 day a buddy somehow mixed a live shell in with the dummy shells and BANG. He blew a hole in a wall. By the grace of God no one was hurt, but I got rid of my homemade dummy shells and only use blue snap caps now.

There were several of us practicing together, we all checked & double checked each others gear...we had a mixture of homemade dummys and snapcaps, & dude somehow confused a live shell in the mix.

And yes, we had a separate area for the live shells to be stored while we trained, but it still happened....grrr
<><
You can't be too careful!!!! (He had to sign & date the exit wound on that wall)

 

[titsonritz]

Save your money and get ahold of some fired cases/hulls.

Knock out the old primer using a nail or punch of the appropriate size. Fill the primer pocket with silicone. Let dry. You might have to trim off any excess silicone when it drys. Viola. You have a homemade snap cap.

If you want the weight of a "sort of" real shell. Cut the front of the hull to the approximate size. Then, from the front.....you could add (glue in) lead shot or an old bullet(s) into the case hull.

Mark the cases. So that you can instantly tell what you have made vs real ammo.

Aloha, Mark

Less than $2 per round is a small price to pay for not f'ing things up by confusing them with live rounds or vice versa. I'll stick with these nice bright orange ones so there is no mistake either way.
https://www.amazon.com/Action-Pro-Shotgun-Trainer-Cartridge/dp/B00RG6RJ32?tag=link-nwfa-20

 

[Slowpoke]

Less than $2 per round is a small price to pay for not f'ing things up by confusing them with live rounds or vice versa. I'll stick with these nice bright orange ones so there is no mistake either way.
https://www.amazon.com/Action-Pro-Shotgun-Trainer-Cartridge/dp/B00RG6RJ32?tag=link-nwfa-20

The only thing I see with these on Amazon, is that they aren't really "snap caps", but dummy rounds to practice loading/unloading. I don't believe they have anything to protect the firing pin. Otherwise they seem to be a good value.

 

[titsonritz]

The only thing I see with these on Amazon, is that they aren't really "snap caps", but dummy rounds to practice loading/unloading. I don't believe they have anything to protect the firing pin. Otherwise they seem to be a good value.

You're right, they are not Snap caps, they are dummy rounds for practice loading and for inducing malfunctions to practice immediate action clearance drills. I have them in 9mm, 5.56 and 12ga for my Glocks, ARs, 870 and 1301 and have zero concern there, I also have spare parts for everything except the 1301 because it is still pretty and I have gone there yet. My S&W wheel guns with hammer mounted firing pins are a different story, they get real the spring loaded Snap caps to avoid damage to their firing pins.

That and 12ga Snap Caps are closer to 6 or 7 bucks a pop vs 2.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

FWIW I think I paid $19 for 5 of the blue snap caps but that was some years ago. So they may have went up (like everything else). They are nice in that the weight is pretty close to a regular shotshell and has the rubber where the primer would go. I wanted so the wife could learn to load unload etc. without her having any fear. It's the relaxing blue color ha ha!

 

[ob1]

I'm a little surprised that an earlier suggestion to use beer bottles as targets went without comment.
Not sure about Washington, but in Oregon you are not allowed to shoot at anything that was not originally designed to be a target. I believe you can be cited for that.

Ofcourse God designed pumpkins and watermelons for targets since they are biodegradeable. I was brought up believing that July 5 and November 1 were national shooting holidays.

You are also required to remove any debris when you leave public land.
Ask @Cogs for more info.
Do you really want to spend an hour picking up broken glass ?

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Ah still $19

Azoom Snap Caps 12 Gauge 5pk Blue

Your source for firearms, ammo and accessories

firearmsdepot.com

This one has for $15

A-Zoom 12311 Shotgun Training Rounds12 Gauge 5 Pkg.

<p>For safety training, function testing or safely decocking without damaging the firing pin, A-Zoom training rounds are much more than conventional snap caps. They are precision CNC machined from solid aluminum to precise cartridge dimensions, then hard anodized for ultra-smooth functioning and...

battlehawkarmory.com

 

[Nephilim_hewer]

Ah still $19

Azoom Snap Caps 12 Gauge 5pk Blue

Your source for firearms, ammo and accessories

firearmsdepot.com

This one has for $15

A-Zoom 12311 Shotgun Training Rounds12 Gauge 5 Pkg.

<p>For safety training, function testing or safely decocking without damaging the firing pin, A-Zoom training rounds are much more than conventional snap caps. They are precision CNC machined from solid aluminum to precise cartridge dimensions, then hard anodized for ultra-smooth functioning and...

battlehawkarmory.com

Those are the ones I recommended in my earlier post. The blue screams 'TRAINING"

 

[titsonritz]

..

 

[titsonritz]

Ah still $19

Azoom Snap Caps 12 Gauge 5pk Blue

Your source for firearms, ammo and accessories

firearmsdepot.com

This one has for $15

A-Zoom 12311 Shotgun Training Rounds12 Gauge 5 Pkg.

<p>For safety training, function testing or safely decocking without damaging the firing pin, A-Zoom training rounds are much more than conventional snap caps. They are precision CNC machined from solid aluminum to precise cartridge dimensions, then hard anodized for ultra-smooth functioning and...

battlehawkarmory.com

View attachment 1303710

Anyone know the difference between the blue and the red ones? They both appear to me from A-zoom.

 

[Nephilim_hewer]

Anyone know the difference between the blue and the red ones? They both appear to me from A-zoom.

they are the same 'except color...

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Anyone know the difference between the blue and the red ones? They both appear to me from A-zoom.

Looks like the azoom red ones are in 2 packs for $8

Blue ones five pack $15 - $21ish