RFI: So...My 15 y/o nephew wants to start waterfowling

[Jason M]

As the title says, the lad wishes to do some water fowling in the PA/DE/MD areas. He just completed his first deer season with a bow. Bagged a button buck cleanly at 40 yards. Now he wants to learn the sport of water fowling. He has a buddy who lives on a farm with ponds and will be learning there with his buddy and the buddy's father. Because I am the cool uncle with gun knowledge, his dad has been asking about what to get. My wing shooting chops are dated and limited to upland hunting. An old single 16g and later a Wingmaster 12g were what I used. My first choices for him would be a Benelli Nova for a pump gun or a Beretta A300 or A400 for SA. I am thinking these vs cheaper options so this can be a life long user for him.

My job has Novas for LL purposes and they are really nice guns. My appreciation for the A300/A400 comes from using a 1301T and handling the others.

Am I on the right path or should I be looking at other brands/models?

[NPV]

Going on my first duck hunt next week with some borrowed equipment. Following along for the same answers as the OP. Being a 1301T x2 owner the A300/A400 are appealing.

[Tensaw]

Jason - You are on the right track with all of the aforementioned shotguns. Duck hunters can be pretty dogmatic about shotgun choices, but most good quality shotguns will do the job. That said, duck hunting can be tough on equipment considering the cold, wet, and often muddy environment. You want a 3” chamber for sure; 3 1/2” is nice, but unless there is a steady schedule of goose hunting on the books, 3” is just fine. Pump vs. Semi? Well, the semi’s are nice for being a little softer to shoot - which can matter on high volume days. Pumps allow me to miss slower though. Seriously, with a semi (I have) a tendency to crack the third shot a little too quick whereas a pump makes me slow down for just a millisecond and think a little more about what I am doing. I am a fan of gas guns over recoil-operated systems like Benelli. The recoil guns do very little in the way of mitigating recoil. One more argument for a semi for a beginner is that they can concentrate a little more on lead/shooting and think less about weapon manipulation. This can be a big deal if you are mostly pass shooting in tight areas. I exclusively hunt wood ducks and they generally are not going to decoy. The window to get the gun mounted and steel on target can be very abbreviated. In more traditional duck hunting where you can see them coming for a long way off and they put the landing gear down for the dekes, well, shotgun choice becomes a little less critical in those scenarios.

If toggling between shotguns for defensive and sporting use, it makes a lot of sense to have the same controls on each. I get a lot more reps in the duck blind over the course of a season than I do on the range.

I don’t know any of that helped, but I wish your nephew well in his endeavors.

[Skinner Precision, LLC]

Cz 1012. There are plenty of other solid options but this is my recomendation for a lightweight, camo, quality waterfowl gun. Stoeger m3000 and Beretta a400 are good options at a little lower and higher price points but the CZ is a solid choice.

[john c]

I’d go with the Benelli Supernova. It’s the same as the Nova, but with a Comfortech stock. It’s similar to having a limbsaver built in. He’ll appreciate it if shooting 3 inch or 3.5 in mags.

As others have said, waterfowling is brutal on equipment. The Supernova/Nova coat the receiver in plastic to reduce corrosion. It’s also a gun that will last a lifetime. They’re well proven guns.


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[Borderland]

Lots of waterfowl hunters around here. Most of them seem to prefer Benelli autoloaders. Very expensive but you asked for a good, not cheap.

I never liked hunting with a pump although I did for years with an 870 Wingmaster. I bought it when I didn't have a lot of money and made it work.

I would recommend an autoloader, synthetic stock, and 3.5" chamber for anything you buy. Autoloaders reduce the recoil and make it easier for follow up shots.

Here's some more to chew on.

https://www.fieldandstream.com/outdoor-gear/benelli-super-black-eagle-3-review/

Good luck in your search.

[Chewbacca10]

Although I am definitely not an expert, I've hunted with some serious duck hunters. They mostly shoot Benelli semiautomatics. One of them has a cleaning regimen that consists of hosing his Benelli down and spraying it with WD-40. It makes me wince, but the shotgun still functions fine.

Anyway, here are a few things I have learned about duck hunting that may help you.


Buy bismuth shells. Kent makes some good ones. In my experience, steel tends to cripple them and not hit them as hard as bismuth. They're really expensive, but they kill ducks.
Use 2.75" or 3" shells for ducks. They work fine. 3.5" have a significant amount of recoil, especially for a teenager, and may start bad habits.
Do some practicing at a local sporting clays range to see a variety of presentations.


Duck hunting is really enjoyable, especially if you have some good company in the blind. Good luck.

[Jason M]

Thanks for the input everyone! Based on the responses here and what was available I went with a Beretta A300 Ultima. Got a smoking hot deal and it is basically a "bird version" of my 1301t. The only thing missing is the compass in the stock...

[Mitch]

Although I am definitely not an expert, I've hunted with some serious duck hunters. They mostly shoot Benelli semiautomatics. One of them has a cleaning regimen that consists of hosing his Benelli down and spraying it with WD-40. It makes me wince, but the shotgun still functions fine.

Anyway, here are a few things I have learned about duck hunting that may help you.


Buy bismuth shells. Kent makes some good ones. In my experience, steel tends to cripple them and not hit them as hard as bismuth. They're really expensive, but they kill ducks.
Use 2.75" or 3" shells for ducks. They work fine. 3.5" have a significant amount of recoil, especially for a teenager, and may start bad habits.
Do some practicing at a local sporting clays range to see a variety of presentations.


Duck hunting is really enjoyable, especially if you have some good company in the blind. Good luck.

Is 3” even necessary? I’ve never been duck hunting, but I didn’t think they’d be that hard to kill.

[Tensaw]

Mitch - They actually can be pretty hard to kill ( especially with friggin STEEL shot!). Ducks are unbelieveably tough. But it is also about, they can be hard to *hit*. I want as many pellets in the air as I can get.

[Chewbacca10]

Is 3” even necessary? I’ve never been duck hunting, but I didn’t think they’d be that hard to kill.

If you're shooting bismuth, not really. I can see how people want to use 3" with steel, though, for a little margin of error.

[60pilot]

Don't worry about the shotgun itself too much. Just go with his semi-auto of choice and spend time shooting skeet of sporting clays to learn how to use it. I grew up shooting Remingtons, so I use an 1100 even though it isn't the in thing. Just what works best for me.

I wouldn't say that 3" shells are necessary, but they tend to be the norm and the added versatility of accepting them is a good thing. I used 2 3/4" for years out of a fixed modified Sportsman 58 without issue for duck, geese, and turkey. I don't know anyone that uses 3 1/2" shells on the other hand. More expensive and with more recoil. Boss copper platted tends to be popular amongst the people I know right now, although I haven't actually used them yet.

If he hasn't seen it yet, this is a useful pub: https://www.fws.gov/uploadedfiles/ducks%20at%20a%20distance-ocr.pdf

[Borderland]

If you're shooting bismuth, not really. I can see how people want to use 3" with steel, though, for a little margin of error.

3" came about when lead was banned for waterfowl. Steel is less dense (lighter) and not as effective because of reduced velocity. 3'' provided the extra powder and shot load to compensate. 3.5'' is used here for geese. I saw a thousand plus snow geese in a field here a few days ago in the Skagit flats so their on their way south.

[gato naranja]

I grew up shooting Remingtons, so I use an 1100 even though it isn't the in thing. Just what works best for me.

My late FIL used an 1100 because that is what Remington sent him in lieu of repairing his 48. He did just fine with it for many years despite not being a dedicated gun maintenance guy, and it was a beautiful example WRT fit and finish.

For as many as have been in use around here, they are kind of rare on the used gun racks.

[rjohnson4405]

I run an A300 Outlander for pheasant and sporting clays and me and my buddies have all had good luck with several A300/A391/A400. Beretta is the way to go for a semi auto shotgun, there's no reason not to.

[jc000]

Good choice on the Beretta, I have a A400 which is just so amazingly fast and balanced feeling. I've taken it water fowling a few times and also shoot clays with it. Purchased a 1301 comp (24" version) for my 14 year old son. Great gas guns. It's painful to use me 870 these days, lol.

Looks like the OP already made his choice, but I think you can't go wrong with Benelli either, particularly the Super Black Eagle for waterfowling. I think I would have been quite happy with that shotgun, but it does feel a bit less "substantial" (lighter and thinner?) than the Beretta, and not in a positive way.

3.5" seemed pretty useful, a goose looks a lot bigger than you'd think when it gets up close!

[LJP]

I can’t claim to have hunted with it (yet), but I have an A300 Outlander and have been very happy with it. It’s my budget, do everything, auto loading shotgun.

[UNK]

Ive shot 3” at geese where the 2 3/4” just wouldnt reach. That was as a teenager and I recall the first time I shot the 3” I fired several shots. It was afterwards I realized the recoil was driving the back of my head into the concrete roof of the underground blind. Its quite a thump compared to 2 3/4.

[Jason M]

Good choice on the Beretta, I have a A400 which is just so amazingly fast and balanced feeling. I've taken it water fowling a few times and also shoot clays with it. Purchased a 1301 comp (24" version) for my 14 year old son. Great gas guns. It's painful to use me 870 these days, lol.

Looks like the OP already made his choice, but I think you can't go wrong with Benelli either, particularly the Super Black Eagle for waterfowling. I think I would have been quite happy with that shotgun, but it does feel a bit less "substantial" (lighter and thinner?) than the Beretta, and not in a positive way.

3.5" seemed pretty useful, a goose looks a lot bigger than you'd think when it gets up close!

The Benelli left a bit to be desired with me in the early 90's. The inertia driven system of the M1S90 was not reliable with LE 12g loads of the time. Add a push/pull method of handling and you get a ton of failures to cycle. After having a 1301T and being absolutely thrilled with it, I was admittedly biased toward the A300/400.