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First outing with SA-20

K

KaylenZ

Copper BB
Went out to the range and shot today! It was my first time on ANY range.

Here's my report on the SA-20 mossberg:

I had already cleaned the gun before going. Oiled it lightly as prescribed by the owner's manual. I did not polish the barrel or chamber with steel wool, as both looked good.

Purchased the following Ammo:

Winchester 2 3/4 1220fps 1oz number6
Remington 2 3/4 1220fps 1oz number4
Federal 2 3/4 1165fps 1oz number7.5? (don't have box anymore but I'm fairly certain)

The Federal failed miserably. 90% had a fte
The Winchester failed 50% of the time
And the Remington worked 100% of the time.

The only difference between the Remington and Winchester was the size of the pellets. Remington being larger at number4

The gun's recoil was manageable but I refused to put it against my shoulder after the 3rd shot. I simply put the buttstock under my armpit. I was shooting at targets about 20 feet away, so it worked out fine.

I will definitely polish the barrel bore and the chamber with 0000 steel wool and see if that solves my fte issue as the Remington is twice as expensive as the Federal.

If anyone knows where I can get the Remington Pheasant Loads for less than $11 per box of 25 online, I'd surely appreciate hearing it.

Also need to buy some rifled slugs, but can't justify the $1 per shell cost. Wow! that's expensive.

Kaylen
 
Hello Kaylen. Thank you for the range report.(i can still see the smile on your face.) :D
Glad to hear that you did find a shell your SA20 liked. I don't own a semi-auto shotgun but from what i hear they like the more powerful shells.
As far as the recoil goes I can tell you,get yourself a Limbsaver recoil pad,they really work. Here's a template to measure your stock incase you decide on one.
http://www.limbsaver.com/technical/templates.php
 
Hi Old Mossy,

I thinking of getting this:

Past Super Mag Plus Recoil Shield

Punch that into amazon.com and tell me what you think of it. Seems to have good reviews.

Kaylen
 
those are cool because you can shoot multiple guns and you will always have that recoil reduction pad to take the edge off....I prefer to Dr. the gun instead, personal preference I guess


Don't forget proper form and having the butt in the pocket, Peck/shoulder, and not on the shoulder muscle (Deltoid) its self.

Don't know if your interested but I ran across #1 buck for 20ga the other day.....don't see it much and its great for medium to small mammals and self defense

http://www.sgammo.com/product/rio/25-rd ... -shot-ammo
 
Those look great. Don't have any experience with number 1 buck, but from the photos it looks like it's 1330 fps, so that should work great. And price isn't too bad.

If you've got an outlet that sells rifled slugs for less than $1 a piece, that would be great.

Thanks,

Kaylen
 
that's tough when you factor in shipping.....I can find them for a shade less than a buck a round online but shipping throws it over.
 
KaylenZ

I had the same issues with my SA-20. The slugs have noticeably more recoil than shot and always seem to cycle Even down to 5/8 oz. I do not know why if the weight is the same as the shot but it feels very different. The gun, when supported against the body will cycle 3/4 and 7/8 oz slugs easily but will have trouble cycling almost any size shot in 7/8 oz until it breaks in. even then it is not guaranteed..Mossberg says only 1 oz shot is recommended with this gun. I have started shooting trap and skeet and have had the best performance using:
Winchester AA 1 oz #8 1165 FPS - AAH208
Winchester AA 7/8 oz #8 or 7.5 1300 FPS - AASC208 (sporting clays)
the Remington SuperX with the low brass would not cycle dependably.

For heavy stuff (small game /HD/SD) I was able to get very good patterning and power using Black Cloud #2 steel buck in a 3 inch magnum. that easily does as much damage as any 12 gauge up to 15 yards. and shattered a wood pallet at 10 yds.

One question, why do you not want to shoulder the gun? I read that a semiauto needs something solid to recoil against to cycle and I did try shooting without shouldering and it cycled about 50% even at 1 oz.

I used the RIO ammo in 1 oz #7.5 and it worked OK but I had to clean the gun 3 times. the Winchester AA seems much cleaner and better patterning.

I find the trap and skeet excellent practice for aiming and controlling the gun and great fun. this is a great gun but it can be a little picky about ammo.

I do get some strange looks using a 20 inch tactical for trap and skeet when the others have 26 to 36 inch barrels. I did have mine threaded for Trulok chokes. the IM works great for shot (trap) and the IC (skeet) will also handle slugs if I need them. I might try a full choke soon for trap.

Hope this helps some and hope I did not just confuse the issue.
 
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