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New to hunting and have questions


Chrzion

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Hello all new to the board and hunting. Just finished up my hunters saftey class and as a gift from a friend he gave me a Nova pump action 12 ga shotgun. I have shot trap with it a couple times already and i enjoy the gun. I am still new to the hunting world so i apologize if i use the wrong teminology or just sound stupid. I intend to go turkey hunting and deer hunting and i know i will need to buy a rifled slug barrel for deer. so my first question is. When i buy the rifled slug barrel is there an easy way to mount a scope to my gun or will i need to install a plate of some sort? My other question is. Is the nova 12 ga pump a good turkey gun? I apprecaite any help i get. I really enjoy the nova so far, havent had much experience with other guns but i like this one and i have learned with this gun so want to stick with it as long as i can.

 

*edit* Another question. I am going trap shooting this weekend with a friend. I have gone a few times already but with a teacher/guide and during those times i always just loaded one shell at a time, never used the magazine. As i was getting ready for this weekend. I checked to see how many shells my gun can hold. Using 2" 3/4 i was only able to fit 2 into the magazine and have one in the chamber, but i read i can hold 4. Is that 3 in the magazine and 1 the chamber and also did my gun come with a plug already installed into my gun and if so how easy is it to remove. Thanks for the help you guys already gave me I really appreciate it. It is helping me learn about guns well at least my nova pump.

 

[ 03-24-2006, 06:24 PM: Message edited by: Chrzion ]

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Welcome to the forum and to hunting.

I've used a Nova for turkey hunting for 2 years now. It's a teriffic turkey gun.

It's my opinion that scopes on a slug gun are over-rated. I've hunted deer for over 20 years with shotguns and muzzleloaders without a scope. Admittedly, most of my shots are within 75 yards. I think open sights are fine within those ranges.

I hope this helps'

John

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Great gun Chrzion, extremely versatile. It could serve you for a lifetime, if you don't get the bug and start changing your taste in shotguns. As john 1911 said, excellent for turkey. (It's excellent for waterfowl too) I respectfully disagree with him on the scope/rifled barrel issue though. With the rifled barrel; and the correct sabot slugs that your particular gun shoots best ... you have easily a 125 yard gun; and more likely a 150 to 175 yard gun. Other than possibly "jump shooting" running deer, in my opinion, there is a tremendous advantage to having the precision afforded with a quality optical scope. If you get to the point where you're ready, just ask here on Benelli and plenty of guys will steer you in the right direction.

 

Butch :cool:

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Welcome! If you end up picking up a rifled barrel that isn't cantilevered or if you want a scope (yeah... reddot!) for turkey hunting, I know that B-Square makes a mount which installs over your reciever:

http://secure.armorholdings.com/b-square/benelli.html

 

Just don't pay MSRP:

http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=0008016305

http://www.shootersmart.com/site/Library/display/?prodid=33456

http://myoutdoorsupply.dealerease.net/catalog/product.asp?pid=1161&ret_id=506692

:D

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Chrzion, if you really intend to install scope on your Nova, I suggest you go with cantilever barrel. B-square mounts and any type of mounts that require mounting on shotgun’s receiver are not so accurate because receiver and barrel are two separate pieces and even a little shift in barrel will affect accuracy of your shot. If you don't need a scope, I saw a barrel with open sights recently on Ebay for $245. Good luck.

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Well, those Texas deer haven't had the training that these east coast deer get. Ours may not be as pardy, but they tend to be a LOT more wary by the time firearm season rolls around. :D :D

 

All deer have the same instincts, but in some areas 75 to 100 yards is about all you'll get for the most part. Besides, a 75 yard range means you're capable of taking your quarry on the 17,500 square yards surrounding you. Doubling your proficiency to 150 yards does not simply double your chances ... it more likely QUADRUPLES them; because the area you and your gun cover is now 70,500 square yards. So, while you may get SOME deer to get within 30 or 50 yards ... you're absolutely going to get more deer and therefore bigger, better deer (whatever your idea of bigger & better are) within range with the scope. :cool: :cool:

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"I can usually get within 30 feet of most deer"

 

What do you do, sneak up on them?

 

Where I live, you need to keep real still and hope that a deer walks by.

 

A scope isn't required, but have one on my 1100 and I wouldn't hunt without it.

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My experience with Nova made my shoulder aching for a AUTO. But besides that I would like to say that the best investment you can make right now is a Benelli Mercury Recoil Reducer and Stock Kit. Trust me you'll thank me every shot you will take afterwards. There is a world of difference between a 1 1/8 oz trap load and 2oz Turkey load. When you get your Scope you'll want to sight it in with the ammo you will use for both Turkey and Deer. So you'll have to take aim shots shooting that 2 oz lead snaught beating Turkey load. Or the Smokin Hot 1oz Slug Sabot. Then that's when the Mercury Recoil Reducer saves you and makes you a better shot. You want be flinching on a big Tom or Buck!

About the Scope thing; GO FOR IT! I have several shotguns, twenty-two or so. Some have extra slug barrels, most don't. I have a Rem.870 Magnun that Winchester rifled slugs (the rifling is on the slug, not in the barrel: If you use them in a Rifled slug barrel they'll hurt you and the gun) Through my smoth bore(no-rifiling) deer barrel thosed rifled slugs give me impressive 3" groups at 125 yds. So maybe you should look into a good shotgun rifled slug and try it in your exhisitng barrel ONLY with Modified, preferbly Improved Cylinder chokes, NEVER with a FULL Choke in your gun. The best Buckshot and Turkey Chokes are made by Primos(Jelly Head) or for Buckshot and any birdshot bigger than 2's go with a Pattermaster choke!

For Turkey hunting I am a lil' unconventional, You see I guide Hunt and allow the clients to kill the birds. Usually they use a 3" or 3.5" #5 or #4 lead shot load with some kind of ultra tight XXXTRA-FULL choke. I am usually there to spot and call in the Tom's. Sometimes a client will wound a reallly nice bird, 10+inch bird. And I will have to finish it off. Well #4 in a realllly tight choke is great for a head shot at 10 to 40 yards. But trying to line up that Gobblers neck with him running 30+MPH is not a easy endeavor. So I use a Patternmaster with 3" lead BB's. The Patternmaster which actually is not a choke at all, it just grabs the wad away from the shot column and that gives the shot the ability to sustain 90% patterens at 40yds in a 40inch circle. IMPRESIVE! Anyways this DEADLY DUO has claimed Quite a few first shot wing and running kills on wounded birds.

Stick with the gun you know and stay attuned to the economical costs you might run into trying to configure one gun to do to many things.

Slug Barrel retail=$365

Scope retail=$50 to $300

Scope Mount=$50

TOTAL________

$$710.00

That's more than two Benelli Nova's put together at full retail. Now you know why I have so many Shotguns and not to mention that same nuber of Rifles.

You can get a Factory Benelli Nova Deer Slayer for about $425 W/O scope, but has scope rail and riled barrel.

Food $$$$$$$$ for thought!

-Mike

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Also about the PLUG in your gun. It's there, installed by the factory, to limit you to a total of 3 shots. That is the federal law on the number of shots you can use to take waterfowl, some states alos limit you to 3 shots for upland game birds and turkeys too.

In Montana we have, of course the 3-shot rule for waterfowl, but for upland, turkey and deer we can have Three or twenty shots in the gun if we want!

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