There is not a best o/u in that price range. Buy a pump shotgun like a Mossberg 500, Benelli Nova, or Remington 870 in the price range you are shopping in. Then you will have a reliable shotgun that will last for years and can be used for many different things. Do some searching on this site, this topic comes up often.

 

For bird hunting I would rather shoot a $300.00 pump shotgun than a $1500.00 to $3000.00 O/U. You will have more problems with a $600.00 O/U than you will have with a $300.00 pump shotgun.

With a pump shotgun you can shoot one or two shots and it is still ready to fire while you are reloading it. It seems like Quail, Chukar and Pheasants know to take off flying when they hear you open a O/U shotgun. LOL

Over 55 years of hunting birds I have killed quite a few triples with my pumps and semi-autos you can't do that with a O/U.

 

Thanks!

 

You won’t find one at that price range worth a hoot. Save your money, look in the used market for a browning or beretta or buy a good quality pump.

I field hunt with my over/under all the time and love it. Some guys want 3,4,5,6 or more shots all the time where legal. I can fire two, eject and reload two faster than most can operate a pump if needed and I have never felt under gunned. One doctor we use to have out pheasant hunting had to have a magazine extension on his SBE, he averaged about a box of shells per bird killed.

When I switched from pumps and autos over to my citori I found I killed just as much, but fired less ammo in doing so.

 

To answer the question asked, you may want to look at the CZ Drake. I don't own the Drake, but I do own two other models of CZ O/Us and have been pleased with them both. However, I reference the Drake based on its price of less than $700, as you requested. That said, as others have suggested, there are plenty of good pump shotguns that cost less and are extremely reliable. Low cost O/Us can be very reliable, but that can also be a function of shooting volume (hunting vs. clays), proper maintenance, etc.

 

I do and the problem is unless you like carrying a ton all day get a lighter weight gun. Dependable and nice fit and finish made of lead ( sic)

 

To answer your question, the CZ line of O/Us have proven to be pretty reliable hunting guns. I have a CZ Mallard that I hunt with and also shoot clays with in preparation for hunting. I know it has over 10,000 rounds through it with no issues. I paid around $500 for it. They no longer make this model but the CZ Drake replaced it and should be close to your price range. I see Javy beat me to it with the CZ Drake recommendation.

 

If you do want an O/U and need to stay around $600, I agree a CZ is the only way to go. My primary hunting O/Us are Brownings and Berettas. However I have 2 CZ SxSs. They are well made guns considering they were both a little over $600.

 

Another good option are the Yildiz O/U shotguns. They can be purchased at Academy Sports. You can get them with steel receivers or alloy receivers. The alloy receivers will be lighter and may be preferred for bird hunting. However, I would recommend the steel receiver versions as they are likely to be more durable and can be used for clays games as well, without the excessive recoil that the alloy receiver guns have. The steel receiver Yieldiz shotguns are in the $500 - $600 range, and the alloy versions are cheaper. I have not had any problems with my 20 gauge steel Yildiz, and it has pretty wood. Lots of good reviews on here for the Yildiz O/Us.

 

I agree. I have a 12ga/20 ga/410 bore Yildiz SPZ-ME O/U's . I've been shooting them for 6 years at skeet(have my own field). Doves(have my own field) and quail and rabbits. NONE have ever given a minutes trouble. Beautiful Turkish walnut on those guns too........Wood is better than on Brownings and Beretta's too.

 

You do not say what your upland hunting is...but, I would consider a good used pump like the Model 870 or Model 37...and forget the triples.

 

When I was a kid, the Ithaca Model 37 was the Cadillac of pumps.
Light, slim and all, fine shooters.
Nowadays, I rarely hear about them.

 

I would recommend a used Remington WINGMASTER 12 gauge pump. These are arguably the best pump guns out there.

Now, one might argue that if you find an Ithaca Model 37 from the right years, that's more elite and might fit you better and bottom ejection is better for lefties and finding your spent shells after you shoot.

Another fella might argue that an older Mossberg 500 is cheaper and just as reliable, even though it might rattle a bit, rust maybe more and that safety is strange.

New? Well, they are going to rattle a bit more and will probably work fine with a stiffer trigger and plastic stock, the screw-un chokes might not be that great and unlike a nice used gun, the new gun will lose value the instant you pay for it if you end up wanting something else mid-season.

Budget over and under? This is like buying a cheap used car. If you know how to work on them yourself, these can be very good deals. If you get lucky, they are great deals. If you don't get lucky, you're going to hate the day you "saved" a couple thousand dollars, because you're sick and tired of sending your shotgun back for service. You want to go hunting, not to the UPS station.

Oddly, semi-automatics are now perhaps the best value choice. Once you take both kinds apart, you'll see why- the semi-auto has many fewer parts.

I would not turn up my nose at a Mossberg SA-20 or even the 12 gauge, or the very similar Tristar Viper G2. Budget guns, they will benefit greatly from a deep clean after purchase to get the packing grease out of the guts, honing the action by cycling it by hand (or shooting lots, but it seems wasteful to me to cycle the action by using shotgun shells when elbow grease is free.) And then, you probably really want to spend another $70 on a trigger job, or the $20 spring kit from Wolf.. and knowing how to lubricate stuff.

Don't worry about screw-in chokes, in my opinion, Modified will do it all.
My Full choke pump gun patterns about the same as my modern 5/10 choked Fabarms, but it's well known that those fabarm chokes are tight, and more like IM... the bottom line is that no matter how the shot presents itself, half the time you'll have the wrong choke in anyhow. Don't worry, the difference between Mod, IM and FULL in a shotgun really comes down to individual guns and the pattern board, even for brand new guns. They all work fine.

As I said, there is real value in a used fixed-choke pump gun. Everyone thinks that not having screw-in chokes is a deal breaker. It's not. Anything from MOD to FULL will work great, and your knowlege now saves you $100 or more.

 

The best O/U for $600 for hunting is a vintage Remington 870 Wingmaster from Gunbroker.

 

The Weatherby Orion is a nicely finished gun and can be had for around $750 if you play your cards right. I found it to have a nicer feel in all aspects compared to a CZ bargain O/U. It’s triggers are a bit on the heavy side but they aren’t too creepy. The triggers are actually less disgusting than a Beretta Silver Pigeon field model, believe it or not.

Quality used O/U’s made in Japan can be found for under a grand.

That said…870 Wingmaster or 1100

 

There are a couple of pretty nice side by sides in the classifieds here. I don't know any of the sellers but I keep looking and thinking. Price range pretty close too.

 

What about good budget semi-auto? I basically want the cheapest gun that is still pretty good quality

 

The Beretta A300 can be had for $750 bucks and is, from what I gather, rad.

 

If you are looking for a semiauto in the $600 range, the Mossberg sa-20 or Tristar Viper G2's (they are essentially the same gun) are hard to beat. For a little more money, the Beretta a300 and Winchester SX4 are good options.

 

your budget might be difficult to work with

 

I will answer your original question honestly. The question used to be asked on here all the time as a "sub $500 o/u". My answer is that you will get what you pay for.

I will speak to the only cheap one I own. I own a stoeger condor field.

It is somewhat light weight, not a lead pipe but its no B gun.

It shoulders real nice for me.

The sight picture is a bit lack luster, i added a hiviz birdbuster magnetic sight which helped a ton (hard to see the factory brass bead over the large chamber end).

It functions fine. Opens smoothly but takes a little effort, closes very smooth. Extractors no ejectors, i prefer extractors anyways. Havent had any misfires, no pierced primers, no hung shells, absolutely no isses functionally.

Trigger feels good to me, and safety is smooth. Ive heard the newer ones are auto safety, mine does not reset after opening the gun.

No barrel selector. Thats okay for most upland applications, but i do like the option to flip to the tight choke for high doves. I havent shot it for ducks at all.

Finish is nice, my wood looks real nice on the butt stock.

Mine only came with IC and Mod chokes, and they don't pattern very well. Nothing a couple carlsons chokes didnt fix.

Thats about all i can think to review about it. IMO its worth $400 retail price or whatever it is now. Its not the perfect gun, and absolutely not a replacement for a $600+ o/u.

 

Augie,
I have mentored many many Grouse & Woodcock hunters in my life time. IMO you are looking at this gun purchase in the wrong manner. Save your money and purchase the highest quality gun you can afford that fits you correctly. A good quality gun will most times cost you more than the $600.00 in your mentioned budget, unless you are purchasing from an individual who is giving you a price break on a good gun. Having said this there are a few entry level CZ guns and Tri-Star guns that have come a long way in quality, the 28 gauge CZ Bob White G2 gun that I purchased this year has had no problems, fits me well and is a nice entry level bird gun. The new Tri-Star 16 gauge Silver guns have had some real good recommendations and reviews also. The CZ Bob White will cost you about $800.00 sent to your FFL dealer, the Tristar 16 gauge Silver about $1130.00. You can also purchase a Savage O/U for about $700.00, make sure you get one of the newer guns, that have no doubling problems and hard trigger pull.

Always purchase the highest quality gun you can afford that fits you, especially when purchasing your 1st primary bird gun. I always recommend to my clients the purchase of a Classic American entry level double gun. No trigger problems, no doubling problems and articulated correctly for bird shooting. The quality was built in from the beginning.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

L.C. Smith 00 Grade, Classic American double gun. No problems for 100 years, still works perfectly even today.

 

I have a 870 now so I think that I will just wait and save until I can buy a nice gun in the 1k to 1.5k range

 

If you can go at around 900, take a look at Gunbroker for Ithaca SKB O/U. Great field guns and the modern SKB company in Nebraska can support them. Excellent craftsmanship in the Japanese O/U from SKB.

 

With that budget I would seriously look at the Winchester SXP upland pump. Decide on 20 or 12 gauge and you will have a great shotgun that will be hard to wear out and money left over for shells and hunting gear. Sorry to not answer the question you asked, that can be annoying…..I get it. In this case I think it’s good advice though.

EDIT- yeah I would stick with your 870 and save until you get what you really want.

 

I have a CZ o/u and I have a Tristar o/u. Both look good and shoot great and are in your price range. No problems out of either one even though me and my family and friends shoot hundreds of shells through them at a time. Do not be afraid to buy one. Support is amazing with both.

I also have a Tristar Viper G2 semi auto. Again… this is within your stated budget and it is a great gun that’s very reliable. It comes with shims to adjust the fit which is nice. Mine has a synthetic stock which means I don’t have to baby it.

You would not regret the purchase of these low cost guns.

Brownings and Beretta are better quality but more money. I actually have a browning too so I understand the difference between them. I like the Browning better, but I paid 6x the cost of the Tristar G2 to buy it.

 

Hmm….not long ago, I bought a MINT Charles Daly O/U at a gun show for $500. Charles Daly older models are Miroku built and are vastly superior to their kin, Browning Citori. Most people are clueless about the Japanese not Turkish Charles Daly shotguns. Worth looking for one!

 

The Yildiz from Academy ...while is may not be the best there is ...it certainly is a serviceable shotgun .... I have shot mine three seasons now with zero problems ....is it a duty skeet or sporting clay gun ....no......but a fine handling shooter that does the job for dove hunting .... mine was $399 .... Perfect no ...but some pretty wood in some those guns .... I use Turlock Chokes in mine ...mostly light modified

Don't let any the snobs tell you that you can not buy a serviceable gun for a lot less than the high dollar guns ...

 

You might luck into a used Japanese-made SKB or Miroku with fixed chokes for $600. Short of that, I can’t think of a thing. For that budget, my suggestion would be an Ithaca 37 pump if I were looking for a hunting gun.

 

I have somewhat over 2000 rounds through my Yildiz SPZ HPS Sporting with no breakdowns. At 8 lbs it's a bit porky to lug around after birds, but I'd have no qualms in taking one of my lighter Yildizs to the Dakotas for pheasants.