Pennsylvania Game News - November 2013 - 63

shorter 26-inch barrel is a lot easier to
carry - weight and length - through
the brush and easier to get into action.
Turkey hunters prefer 24-inch barrels.
A shotgun is pointed and not
aimed, so it doesn't need a rear and
front sight. A bead is used and most
shotguns have just a front bead, but
some competitive models also have a
smaller mid-rib bead halfway down the
barrel. When shooting a shotgun, we
want to keep our eye on the target at
all times, while we bring the bead up
to meet it a "6 o'clock," and to have
that pattern of shot centered on it. So
to do that, shotgun barrels are designed
to shoot half a pattern high so we can
place that bead just under the target. If
they weren't, the pattern would shoot
below the bird.
Beginners assume that because a
shotgun throws a pattern of shot, it will
center the target. That is not necessarily true. I have seen many shotguns
throw a full pattern high or low to miss
completely. So until we actually pattern that shotgun (on a large piece of
paper with a 6-inch circle in the middle
of it) and see where the center of that
pattern lies, we will never know for
sure. If the pattern is off, then it could
be an easy fix by replacing the bead
with a shorter or taller one, or having
the stock adjusted.
Form and Fit
I find that most beginners tend to
stand straight up, with the gun almost
perpendicular to their chest, their head
bent down on the stock and their feet
too close together. They look pretty
uncomfortable and when they pull that

NOVEMBER 2013

trigger their body is getting hit by the
recoil, rather than absorbing it.
The most comfortable way is to
place your feet at least shoulder width
apart, mount the shotgun with it parallel to your chest, butt snug into the
meat of your shoulder, lean forward
toward the muzzle of your barrel (so
you're leaning into the recoil rather
than away) and lay your cheek naturally on the stock as far forward as it
is comfortable. Lock your head on the
stock and then swing/move from the
waist. If the target is rising straight
away from you, bring the bead up to
meet it. If it is going across your line of
sight, swing the bead in front of it, then
slap (quickly pull) the trigger.
Misses are usually caused when a
shooter picks the head up off the stock
as he/she is tracking the target trying
to see it get hit, rather than keeping
the head down with the bead under it
(if going straight away), or ahead of it
(going left or right).
Shotguns are built to fit the average person (around 5-8) so if you are
close to that size, picking up any field
gun should fit ok. But for those who
are shorter or taller, a quick guide is to
hold the gun with your trigger hand,
put the butt stock in the crook of your
elbow and if the trigger is even with
the top joint of your index finger, then
it is plenty good enough to start. If the
trigger is at the second joint or below,
then the stock is too short and may
need a spacer under the recoil pad. If
it is above the finger, then it is too long
and may need a thinner recoil pad or
have the stock cut to fit.

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Pennsylvania Game News - November 2013

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