tankerjohn
A little poofier than I prefer
Hey there, Shooting Sports folks! Long time B&Ber, first time gun owner here. I mean, I've shot plenty of GI weapons in the Army, but for many reasons that I don't need to get into here, have not been able to have one at home. Until now. I needed something to pull double duty for hunting and home defense, so I selected a 12 gauge semi-auto shotgun. Specifically, its a Tristar Viper G2 with walnut stock and a 26" barrel. It holds five shells, instead of just three or four, is relatively light weight, and looks amazing. About the only thing I don't like is that it didn't come from some heritage Italian gunmaker (cuz sometimes I'm snooty like that), but then it would have cost two or three times as much and not fit my needs any better. The guy at the gunshop recommended Tristar and the Viper seems to have a lot of positive reviews online. Heck, even Randy Wakeman called the Mossberg SA-20 (same gun, different label) his favorite 20 gauge. So I summoned up my inner Janissary and ordered this Turkish beauty.
I've had it for a couple weeks now. I broke it in with a box of magnums, per manufacturer's instructions. Ouch, I think it broke me in worse. This ain't no M-16, that's for sure! Well, 1 1/8 oz target loads were a lot better, though I still think I want a cushier recoil pad. I stocked up on some birdshot since I couldn't find buckshot anywhere. I know birdshot is not ideal for home defense, but I figured it would better than swinging the gun like a club. Today, I was at a gunshop with a range out back, and low and behold, they had buckshot. I scooped up a few boxes and killed some paper. The "low recoil" buck actually cycled just fine, so I bought a few more boxes to take home. A couple of teenagers were shooting clays in the next station over and they invited me to take a few shots. Well, let me tell you, the safest spot on the range was riding the back of those clays I was shooting at. I emptied the whole magazine on the first one...and, nothin' (and yes, I was shooting the target loads, not the buckshot) Clearly, I have some work to do before I'll be hunting anything moving faster than a snail. But it was sure a lot of fun trying.
Anywho, there I am. I'm confident that the Tristar scattergun will do its job if a mob of rioters shows up at my casa. Now I just need some proper wingshooting instruction and maybe a tweak or two to the shims to dial in the fit. Hopefully, I'll be busting clays well enough to chase a few doves this fall. So I don't know, if any of you veteran shotgunners have any tips, tricks, or advice, I'm all ears. Cheers!
I've had it for a couple weeks now. I broke it in with a box of magnums, per manufacturer's instructions. Ouch, I think it broke me in worse. This ain't no M-16, that's for sure! Well, 1 1/8 oz target loads were a lot better, though I still think I want a cushier recoil pad. I stocked up on some birdshot since I couldn't find buckshot anywhere. I know birdshot is not ideal for home defense, but I figured it would better than swinging the gun like a club. Today, I was at a gunshop with a range out back, and low and behold, they had buckshot. I scooped up a few boxes and killed some paper. The "low recoil" buck actually cycled just fine, so I bought a few more boxes to take home. A couple of teenagers were shooting clays in the next station over and they invited me to take a few shots. Well, let me tell you, the safest spot on the range was riding the back of those clays I was shooting at. I emptied the whole magazine on the first one...and, nothin' (and yes, I was shooting the target loads, not the buckshot) Clearly, I have some work to do before I'll be hunting anything moving faster than a snail. But it was sure a lot of fun trying.
Anywho, there I am. I'm confident that the Tristar scattergun will do its job if a mob of rioters shows up at my casa. Now I just need some proper wingshooting instruction and maybe a tweak or two to the shims to dial in the fit. Hopefully, I'll be busting clays well enough to chase a few doves this fall. So I don't know, if any of you veteran shotgunners have any tips, tricks, or advice, I'm all ears. Cheers!