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  • thunderchicken

    Grandmaster
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    5   0   0
    Feb 26, 2010
    6,436
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    Indianapolis
    Ok fellow shotgunners, I need a good recommendation for a gunsmith who can install an adjustable comb on a fine walnut stock.
    A friend has a shotgun that just doesn't fit right when he welds his cheek to the stock. LOP seems to be right and but his eye doesn't look down the barrel at all. When mounted his eye is just below the top of the reciever.
    I advised he look at a chhek riser but he can't find one that suits his fancy...he doesn't want to cover up the stock. Any recommendations in or near Imdy?
     

    4651feeder

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    3   0   0
    Oct 21, 2016
    1,186
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    East of NWI
    Well if that don't work out I have used Joe Bowles https://tronspace.com/price-list and along with many on the shotgun forums recommend his work. And while you said no pads, I also use a KICK-EEZ Cheek-EEZ from Midway on another shotgun that to me makes sense to try before cutting anything.
     
    Last edited:

    thunderchicken

    Grandmaster
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    Feb 26, 2010
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    Indianapolis
    Thanks for the recommendations guys. I spoke with IGC yesterday as well and forwarded the info to my friend. At the recommendation of 4651feeder, I looked up the cheek eez which I had never heard of. I'm familiar with the recoil pads but never seen the cheek eez before. Well I ordered the 1/16 and 1/8 pads for myself.
    I also saw a gel pad from Beretta that looked interesting but I'm not sure how well it clings since it doesn't have any adhesive. Anyone use one before?
    I shot a screen shot of it to my friend as his shotgun is a Beretta and being a clear pad wouldn't hide the wood.
     

    amboy49

    Master
    Rating - 83.3%
    5   1   0
    Feb 1, 2013
    2,293
    83
    central indiana

    X2 for Keith Heeg. He is always at the Indiana Gun Club during the week the Indiana State Trap Shoot is held there each year. He has done at least three stocks for me. His work is really top notch and fairly priced compared to the other stock folks doing this type of work. A benefit, if you are reasonably close, is you can drop the stock off and pick it up when done. Saves shipping costs and alleviates worry being damaged in transit.
    This year the state shoot is July 16-21. If you get the stock to him the first day or two he is there he will get it done in a couple of days.
     
    Last edited:

    thunderchicken

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    X2 for Keith Heeg. He is always at the Indiana Gun Club during the week the Indiana Sate Trap Shoot is held there each year. He has done at least three stocks for me. His work is really top notch and fairly priced compared to the other stock folks doing this type of work. A benefit, if you are reasonably close, is you can drop the stock off and pick it up when done. Saves shipping costs and alleviates worry being damaged in transit.
    This year the state shoot is July 16-21. If you get the stock to him the first day or two he is there he will get it done in a couple of days.

    Interesting I will pass that info along. Speaking of the state shoot, is it open to spectators at all? Many many moons ago, my dad and uncle took my brother and I to the Grand American and all it did was fuel this hobby for me. And I saw some very interesting guns and watched some awesome gunsmiths work. That was back probably '92-'93ish. It was in or near Vandalia OH (if I recall correctly).
     

    amboy49

    Master
    Rating - 83.3%
    5   1   0
    Feb 1, 2013
    2,293
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    central indiana
    Interesting I will pass that info along. Speaking of the state shoot, is it open to spectators at all? Many many moons ago, my dad and uncle took my brother and I to the Grand American and all it did was fuel this hobby for me. And I saw some very interesting guns and watched some awesome gunsmiths work. That was back probably '92-'93ish. It was in or near Vandalia OH (if I recall correctly).

    Yes, state shoot is open to spectators. In 92 and 93 the Grand was at Vandalia.
     

    thunderchicken

    Grandmaster
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    5   0   0
    Feb 26, 2010
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    Indianapolis
    So recently I've been getting back into trap shooting. Nothing serious just for fun and to improve my shooting.
    But, I've been thinking about a dedicated gun to shoot trap with. I don't have the budget for a Kolar, Perazzi or even many of the Benelli, Browning or Berettas a number of the competitors seem to be using. I'm looking for a more entry level trap gun. Was looking at. Mossberg silver reserve, Stevens OU or CZ OU. But people keep telling me not to buy "junk field guns" that they won't last. I don't see these guns as junk and why won't they last??
     

    Hookeye

    Grandmaster
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    4   0   0
    Dec 19, 2011
    15,039
    77
    armpit of the midwest
    Open and close a zillion times, plus blast it a bunch.
    Reliability costs.
    Buddy shot skeet, nationally ranked.
    Said if he had to buy a factory gun, non custom.........it'd be a Citori.
    Called them the best bang for the buck.
     

    Hookeye

    Grandmaster
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    4   0   0
    Dec 19, 2011
    15,039
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    armpit of the midwest
    If just shooting once in a while at the local club, heck anything can work.
    Personally I like a Remington 1100.
    Either a Magnum field model (walnut w vented pad- cycles 1250 FPS stuff fine).......or a Trap model with a field like comb.
    Have run each on clays and doves and find them interchangeable.
     

    Areoflyer09

    Master
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    14   0   0
    Feb 28, 2017
    4,637
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    Indianapolis
    So recently I've been getting back into trap shooting. Nothing serious just for fun and to improve my shooting.
    But, I've been thinking about a dedicated gun to shoot trap with. I don't have the budget for a Kolar, Perazzi or even many of the Benelli, Browning or Berettas a number of the competitors seem to be using. I'm looking for a more entry level trap gun. Was looking at. Mossberg silver reserve, Stevens OU or CZ OU. But people keep telling me not to buy "junk field guns" that they won't last. I don't see these guns as junk and why won't they last??

    Swing by Indiana Gun Club and talk to them. When I asked about Tri-Star, CZ and Stoeger the answers were pretty plain that they just don’t hold up in the long term. There are people using them and some have issues, others don’t. It seemed to me that the lower budget O/Us can make great field guns, but that doesn’t guarantee they will hold up to sporting use as well.

    My take away was why take the risk if I can get used Brownings for under a grand. Yes it was more than I wanted to spend, but they will be lifetime guns for us.

    Some of this will depend on your use. 1 round a week for 5 months of the year, you’ll probably be fine for quite some time. 3 or 4 rounds over the same time frame? The lifespan of some options will be shorter.
     

    thunderchicken

    Grandmaster
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    5   0   0
    Feb 26, 2010
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    Again, I will not be shooting competitively or any league type stuff. I just enjoy going and breaking clays from time to time. Right now we're talking 2 rounds of trap every other week or sporting clays once a month. For that I just have trouble determining what to buy. I have some field shotguns that I hunt with (rabbit, pheasant & squirrel). I don't really want to beat them to death on clays but can't afford a "trap gun"
     

    TJ Kackowski

    Let it begin here.
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    133   0   1
    Jun 8, 2012
    1,877
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    Hendricks County
    You're over thinking this issue. Just get out, shoot, and have some fun.

    If you can't afford something better, just use what you have. If it breaks, fix it. If not fixable, replace it when funds become available.
     

    thunderchicken

    Grandmaster
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    5   0   0
    Feb 26, 2010
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    Indianapolis
    You're over thinking this issue. Just get out, shoot, and have some fun.

    If you can't afford something better, just use what you have. If it breaks, fix it. If not fixable, replace it when funds become available.

    Well that's pretty much what I have been doing. But I'm at a point where I would like to step up to something a little nicer. But I don't have the budget to buy a big name dedicated trap gun. So I'm looking for suggestions of something more middle of the road.
    And as for a field gun vs a trap gun what are the differences? I get a trap gun gets opened and closed much more. Let me be more specific. If I buy a Browning Citori field gun and use it to shoot trap and sporting clays, why wouldn't it hold up as well as a Browning Citori trap gun?
    I get some brands don't have the same quality, but what are the best middle of the road brands?

    What I do have isn't exactly cheapo junk, but I keep getting told it won't hold up for field and sporting use even my Brownings.
     

    Areoflyer09

    Master
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    14   0   0
    Feb 28, 2017
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    A Citori field gun will hold up just as well the Citori trap guns. It’s the same action.

    A Stoeger may not hold up as well as a CZ which may not hold up as well as an SKB which may not hold up as well as a Citori or Cynergy (insert the equivalent options from other brands).

    A lot of the information I found and received when I was looking was that dedicated field guns tend to be built lighter and for a different level of abuse. They aren’t shot as much and aren’t designed to be. The upside is they are easier to carry and work just fine for their intended purpose. This ain’t true for all field guns, some are built heavier than others and some use the same action as their sporting use brethren.

    The short answer if you will probably be fine with a CZ. There are great reports of them holding up, and there are other reports of them not. It’s a higher risk with the lower budget choices.

    We may be talking that (and I’m just making up numbers for the example) the CZ may last 25k rounds before it shows signs of wear that aren’t repairable while a Citori could be 100k rounds.

    What budget are you looking to stay within? Are you opposed to a used gun? Have you spent any time over on the Shotgun World forum? There is lots of knowledge and questions about brands and reliability there.
     

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