Single shot shotgun for waterfowling?setting up for the season

[Roy Weatherby]

Hey all. I was recently given a single shot break action 12 gauge and am wondering if anyone else uses a single shot for waterfowling? This would be my first year to experience duck hunting,and I dont realy want to miss the season. Along with my shotgun...what sort of clothing would I need? waders(camo?) jacket? Just looking to hunt some puddle ducks.Any recomendations on calls?

I got a little carried away with the question...but I'm a rookie!

Thanks everyone

[Bucks&Ducks]

a shotgun is really all you need everything else is just extra, I hunted my first 10 years of waterfowl without camo I just needed a good blind or good cover, sure it is better to have but it isnt really needed to be successful. for waders they are nice to have to get downed birds and get into the good holes but then again they are extra and you can do just as well with out them.

Decoys are also extra but depending on your hunting style the can be a must. my first few years i would just head to the marsh in the evening and watch where the ducks would fly, then i would get underneath the path and pass shoot them. if you do have decoys to use just make a blind from chicken wire weaved with marsh grass for a hide and dont worry about camo. It all comes down to what you want to do and how much you are willing to spend, your best bet for starting out would be to find an experienced guy with gear to go out with to show you the ropes and then you can move on from there.

[TheProvider]

Not many ppl use single shots cause it offers no followup shot and if you hunt waterfawl long enough you'll need follow up shots. Camo style depends on a the terrain. The need for waders depends on your location. Field hunting you'll most likely be safe with rubbers unless its a flooded field. If your hunting potholes, some you may need wadders and other you won't. Certain marshes and potholes will be too deep for waders and you'll need either a small boat(punt or jon boat) or canoe. Theres countless calls out there, try some out before deciding. They'll range anywhere from $10-$160 dont be startled though. Starting out you don't need to spend alot unless you wanna get into contest calling. Most companies offer wood or acrylic calls, single or double reed. I love my Zink calls. Try to find someone to teach you how to call. Teaching yourself can lead to some very bad habits. However if your just hunting puddle ducks you'll basically just need to know the basics... hail, come back, basic qwuack, feeding, whistle.... Gets a lil harder when you start chasing honkers.

Try to find out the choke on the gun

[f350ps]

Does that single shot have a screw in choke? As for decoys just buy a Robo and yer good to go. K

[bearhunter338-06]

I would emagine the shotgun is a full choke. You will need to have it opened up to modified so you can safely shoot steel shot, don't worry if its only 2 3/4 ether, as 2 3/4 work well on ducks. I used a extending pole for years to reach the ducks in the water. Camo came later, I wore dark cloths. Now I am going back to Carhart olive drab pants and shirts.

[835]

What ever you got is good enough. You can improve on it later. As long as you have a 12ga and waders you can hunt ducks. sometimes you dont even need waders. As for cammo just dont wear a bright coat, and learn to hide real good! You can build natural blinds with debries from around you, just dont use any string or unnatural things in its construction.

The biggest thing about hunting ducks is to make sure and damn sure you can retrieve them. Dont shoot over water you cant wade from one side to the other or have a boat, float tube or something of the sort. You will not be killing these things dead, they will hit the water and swim away.

Everything else just makes you more successful. You have a shot gun to shoot at them and legs to get to them. When you get hooked you will need the all the other stuff!

Good luck!

[Bow Walker]

Exactly the way I started out duck hunting with - a single-shot 16ga. I used to carry an extra shell held in my singers like a cigarette - ready for a quick second shot. I often needed that second shell when I first started.....

A bit of practice and you can get off a "quality" second shot a lot of the times. Got my first "double" with that single-shot. Also got my first "green head" with it too.

Brings back a lot of good memories.

[835]

My great uncle used to hunt with a guy back in the day that had a 1912. He would keep a 4th shell in his finger tips and was able to drop it in the gun as a 4th shell. He had big hands. A Conservation Officer heard them shooting one day and stopped them. There was a bit of explaining on how he did this. The CO thought he had since put the plug back in the gun. Eventually he cycled the three shells and put in the 4th infront of the Officer to prove that was what he was doing.

[Gilmore]

When I was a kid I used a Remington 1100 (still do) when I went duck hunting with my Dad. Even though it would hold 3 shells he only let me use 1, he told me when I could start making 1 shot count on a consistent basis he would give me another shell. I still remember the first time I was allowed to fire 3 shells off at a flock of Canadas over our decoys, I was so excited my Dad said it sounded like a gatlin gun going off and all I got was our Lab looking at me like I was a complete idiot. Back to 1 shell for me for a couple more hunts!

Nothing wrong with a single shot it will make you a better shooter when it's time to upgrade to something that fires multiple shots. The first shot, or only shot in your case, is your best chance at knocking down a bird, learn to make it count.

[Foxton Gundogs]

I live to hunt waterfowl (OK well upland to) I hunted a couple of years with an old singl cooey break action hammer gun ......best thing I ever did... you learn to make that 1st one count and you get pretty good at reloading for the follow up shot after a while I always has a shell between the first and second finger of my left hand. Any kind of nuetral colored clothung that will blend into the terrain and blind and go for it have fun then when you are really bit you can start to aquire the perks.

[Bow Walker]

When I was a kid I used a Remington 1100 (still do) when I went duck hunting with my Dad. Even though it would hold 3 shells he only let me use 1, he told me when I could start making 1 shot count on a consistent basis he would give me another shell. I still remember the first time I was allowed to fire 3 shells off at a flock of Canadas over our decoys, I was so excited my Dad said it sounded like a gatlin gun going off and all I got was our Lab looking at me like I was a complete idiot. Back to 1 shell for me for a couple more hunts!

Nothing wrong with a single shot it will make you a better shooter when it's time to upgrade to something that fires multiple shots. The first shot, or only shot in your case, is your best chance at knocking down a bird, learn to make it count.

Excellent way to teach/learn how to shoot effectively.

[WaderGator]

I think hunting with a break action single shot would be an awesome way to start out. I bet it would really teach you to make that first shot count. I started out with a pump gun and it doesn't take long to realize that cracking off 3 rounds as fast as you can isn't really productive at all. Learn the fundamentals of shotgunning and concentrate on them every time you go shooting/hunting and after a missed bird figure out where you went wrong and what you could improve on for the next time. you'd be amazed at what you can accomplish by taking that extra millisecond before you pull the trigger. As for the rest of the gear I would say a set of waders is definitely nice to have. You'll probably be surprised how much you use them. I remember my first time out in boundary bay and it sure looks nice to walk on from the dyke but once you get out there theres some pretty deep channels to cross. Camo...If you hit up walmart at the right time of year you can score some of that remington brand camo clothing for pretty cheap. Its decently warm but not waterproof at all, you get what you pay for. Ive since traded in for some Drake waterfowl gear but when I was rocking the remington jacket i just took a fold up olive drab plastic poncho with me and that did the trick. All off this is a moot point anyways because after a season youre going to be hooked and ordering all the gucci gear from cabelas and pricing out autoloaders :mrgreen:

[Bucks&Ducks]

When I was a kid I used a Remington 1100 (still do) when I went duck hunting with my Dad. Even though it would hold 3 shells he only let me use 1, he told me when I could start making 1 shot count on a consistent basis he would give me another shell. I still remember the first time I was allowed to fire 3 shells off at a flock of Canadas over our decoys, I was so excited my Dad said it sounded like a gatlin gun going off and all I got was our Lab looking at me like I was a complete idiot. Back to 1 shell for me for a couple more hunts!

Nothing wrong with a single shot it will make you a better shooter when it's time to upgrade to something that fires multiple shots. The first shot, or only shot in your case, is your best chance at knocking down a bird, learn to make it count.

my grandfather told me a similar story of how he grew up duck hunting on the praries, he had a singleshot 12ga. and everyday he was given one shell from his dad. if he missed he didnt get another but if he brought home a bird he was given 2 more. there is nothing wrong with a single shot because it should always be the first shot that counts the rest are just extra

[Qwa-honn]

I started out with a 20 g side by side. as for camo just go to fields and buy a brownish work jacket. That was all i used for years and once in a while still use. Having a camo jacket is not that important but it comes in handy for pocket space. The simple fact is that it has to break up your outline. Plaid does that also.

[Deer Sausage]

A single shot? Well I heard you can put staples in by banging them with a coffee mug if you don't have a stapler! Take in the empties and get an 870! hell get a used one, they never give up!

[shotgunjohn]

O.K. Roy you better get a pen cause you will want to write this down. You can take the single shot but you will immediately want to upgrade to a semi auto , made in Italy, with a 3 1/2inch chamber. Preferably with a camo stock. Then you'll need a couple dozen floating decoys that look more like ducks than ducks do. Oh pluss a camo bag and some kind of cart to carry them in. Then a rotating wing decoy or three to bring in those high flyers.Then at least six duck calls, get at least one that's made out of acrylic and costs hundreds of dollars cause the ducks can really tell the differance in tone. You'll want to put the calls on a lanyard so you have someplace to show off all the bands you're going to collect over the years. Then lets see, camo neoprene chest waders for cold weather, maybe some light weight nylon ones for warm weather. More camo for outer wear, and some of us don't feel right if our underwear isn't camo. This should all be in specialized "marsh patterns" so no cheating and using army surplus. You'll want several types of portable blind including at least one full layout blind for field hunting. On second thought get two layout blinds and dress one in grass and one in corn stalks so you don't have to switch. Then you'll need a dog of course. Only a retreiving breed will do. This post is going to get too long if I talk about dog training or replacing chewed gear, but trust me it will need to be done. Oh yah, then there's boats, at least three if you are at all serious about ducks. An open water boat, some kind of punt for shallow water and a layout design for when there is no other way to get close enough. Let's see I'm sure I'm forgetting something? Help me out guys. Oh and then you'll start on geese but that's another story.

Oh and don't forget to enjoy!

[835]

Wicked post John!
But you missed shells,,,, only black cloud

[Foxton Gundogs]

Wicked post John!
But you missed shells,,,, only black cloud

No, I'm thinking those new winchester "stack and pack" thingies more shot and they are probably more expensive than Black Cloud.

[Roy Weatherby]

haha.... Gotta BIG time it! :D

[835]

No, I'm thinking those new winchester "stack and pack" thingies more shot and they are probably more expensive than Black Cloud.


Forgot about thoes Jim,
Im gonna give them a whirl just because of how cool they are!