Texas shotguns

I have pretty much broken my shotguns into three categories. The thick cover slug/buckshot shooter. the Dove shotgun and the Turkey shotgun. For Turkeys I don't usually have to take long shots so I use just about any full choked shotgun I can put the pattern where I want it and that makes tight patterns. I have been using 1 1/8 or 1 1/4 oz of 7.5's for decades. No complaints. My dove gun could be my Turkey gun with a modified or IC choke installed, depends on how spooky the doves are. 7.5's or 8 shot works for me. My slug gun last year was a 870 Express with a rifle sighted, rifled barrel, year before last it was a smoothbored 20 gauge with a red dot on it. I like the smoothbore barrels better because switching to buckshot is sometimes a need and I probably wouldn't shoot buckshot through a rifled barrel for several reasons. I do like 12 gauges a bit more than 20's unless I want a light shotgun to carry when squirrel hunting. This all said I must own at least 10 shotguns even though either of my 870's could do it all for me. Rifles seem to get all the attention on most forums but shotguns are perfect for much hunting.

What would you need buckshot for when hunting that you can't do with a slug?

I seem to be getting more and more specialized in my shotgun selections. O/U for doves or quail, BPS for pheasants, Nova for ducks and geese, Marlin 512 for a slug gun, depending on what part of the house I'm in, either a BPS or 870 for home defense, oh and a 835 for turkeys and a 500 with a wide selection of ammo rattling around in my truck. 12 ga only and I'd still like to pick up a 10 ga for geese and cranes.

An 870 12 Gauge, with a 26-28 inch RemChoke barrel and a scoped fully rifled slug barrel, can take any animal on this planet.

I made a wish list up several years ago and went about getting them. Some of them changed over the years but this is what I ended up with.
Rem 870 Wingmaster 410 for squirrels
Ithaca 37 IC 20 ga for quail (My favorite shotgun)
Browning Citori 12 for dove
Rem 870 Wingmaster 12 gauge mag with buckshot for calling coyotes in close cover, also crows
Rem 11-87 3 1/2" Supermag for ducks and geese
TC ProHunter 12 ga for turkey
Browning BPS 10 ga for sandhills (Probably never hunt them again that's the only one on this list that will not go to my heirs)
If I ever run across a rifled slug barrel for the Ithaca or the 12 ga Wingmaster for a reasonable price I will buy it. Would like to have one for hogs.
That's what I keep, and the justification for having them. The 12 ga Wingmaster mag can do everything on the list, but how would that be fun.

I’m a weirdo here, because I won’t invest a bunch into a shotgun.. 12ga do all is my preference auto loader.. haha

I like buckshot for the really close thick brush hog hunting.

12 gauge semi for duck or turkey
12 gauge pump riot shotgun with buckshot for 2 legged predators
20 gauge semi for dove
20 gauge O/U for dove

I’ve pretty well decided the 12ga Benelli M2 is the best shotgun for all things shotgun.

I’m poor, so I have a Franchi Affinity.

This is what I have poor man benelli

I have five or six shotguns. I can miss equally well with any and all of them no matter the target.

I have a Turk/Academy .410 O/U and a 77-year-old Model 12 in 20 gauge. Wouldn't mind having the new Benelli auto in 28 that American Rifleman just raved about.

Im a sucker for the "new shotgun for every occasion" mentality. I've broken down and filled in the occasions as follows-

Sporting Clays O/U- Caesar Guerini Apex
Clay semi/ Trap/ Flurry- Beretta A400 Xcel
Pheasant- Beretta SP3 20/28
Quail- Caesar Guerini Magnus 28/28
Dove- Benelli Ethos 28/28
Early Duck- Benelli SBE3 20/28
Late Duck/ Goose/Crane- SBE3 12/28
Turkey- Franchi Affinity 12/28
Deer/ Slug- Savage 220
Tactical- Beretta 1301 (going to try out the new A300 Patrol soon)

Eventually, I'll add dedicated trap and skeet guns, but I rarely shoot those disciplines.

Its a problem. Don't judge me lol.

Nice collection! You are a bird hunter for sure. I haven't been a serious bird hunter since the decline of the quail population and steel shot other than doves and Turkey.

I love quality shotguns, I have more than one man should own.

Benelli SBE 3 and Remington VersaMax - both 12g

I use these shotguns for everything for mainly just waterfowl and the occasional skeet shooting.

Remington 870 tactical - home defense - 12g

Fox Model B SxS in .410 to miss any and everything.

Remington 1100 LT20 Magnum to shoot everything.

Mossberg for around the house.

I have way more shotguns than rifles. I've got all gauges in 870s, 1100s, Citoris, and Benelli's. I have a 725 Sporing 12ga. Almost got all the sub-gauges in 725s. Had it not been for the smaller hand grips on the stocks and the feel being different than my 12ga I'm sure they would be in the safe. I was very close when I was into shooting registered sporting clays to dumping the 725 to buy the Blazer. Really liked how their sub-gauge barrels fit all their 12 gauge receivers and were weights to feel and swing just like your 12ga after your stock was fitted. Very slick set up. I also had a pretty solid collection of the older Jap A5's in 12, 20, and Sweet 16s. Those guns just never fit me and I knew if I changed the stocks the value would significantly decrease, so I dumped them once the market got pretty high on them. Was going to keep them for my son, but safe room was getting limited.

I hardly shoot anything these days but the Citori field 28ga for doves and SBE3 28ga/TriStar .410 for ducks.

I've noticed alot more people using 28 gauge shotguns for waterfowl as of recently - i understand the recoil advantage, but am i missing anything else?

I do VERY little of my bird hunting here in Texas. 1-2 dove hunts a year, maybe 1-2 planted bird shoots that I get invited to, and that is pretty much it. Other than that, I spend most of my fall flying up to ND, SD, NE, or IA (grew up there) to shoot ducks and pheasants. For what lease ground costs in Texas, I can fly up 6-10 times a year and shoot on hundreds of thousands of private acres in those states and not have all the restrictions that usually come with leases, and be able to do it with my friends and family. Plus, if you've never hunted the Missouri or Mississippi flyways on a migration day... Its hard to explain how cool it is to watch.

If I were interested in duck hunting there is plenty to be had here on public land and not a lot of duck hunters. I don't like how most of them taste and it annoys me that steel shot is required.