What was your first turkey gun and when?

[Gooserbat]

Remington 870 3" Express turkey.  Dad gave me a choice between a class ring and a turkey gun.  I've always said that my class ring was a trigger guard.

Although it's no longer my primary gun since I've went to using an auto, I do still hunt with it.  Changed out the wood stock for a black tupperware set, added a better choke, a set of Trueglo sights, a sling swivel set and sling.  I wouldn't change anything about it.   

[hootgobbleyelpgobble]

Hunted with my all purpose Beretta Xtrema with a factory full choke for years. Eventually got a dedicated turkey gun that kicked like a rented mule...870 Super Mag. Got tired of being punished when pulling the trigger so I went with a youth model 870 20ga and have been using it exclusively for over 10 years now.

[WildTigerTrout]

Harrington & Richardson Model 158 "Topper" 20 Ga.-  1972

[btodd00]

870 Express 12ga with a 28" barrel, Hastings .660 choke shooting Federal 3" 1 7/8 oz #6's. Killed my first few birds with that setup in the early 90's then switched to the Rem Duplex 4x6 loads for a bit. Lopped the original barrel off to 24" several years back and still break it out for a bird from time to time for old times sake.

Those Remington 4x6 loads were the best patterning load I ever tried until longbeard XR came out. I still have half a box that I wouldn't hesitate to use in my mossberg 500

[bear hunter]

870

[St. Augustine Strutter]

A Beretta 390 in all black synthetic; some called it the "Walmart Beretta" because I believe it was the only Beretta ever sold in Walmart stores.  It is an Italian made Beretta and it is one heck of a gun for Walmart to have carried for just $500. 

A little background.  I had always used my dad's shotguns until I was a couple years out of college.  Shortly after college and at my first job, I was asked to shoot in a sporting clay fundraiser down in south Florida.  Excited about the opportunity but hesitant to lug the ol' Remington 1100 of my dad's down there (it feels like holding a 4x4 lumber to me), I asked my uncle (big time skeet shooter) if he had a gun that I could take down there.  He has all kinds of fancy over/unders but he bought this Beretta because it was too good of a deal to pass up and he never uses it, so he let me borrow the Beretta. 

Long story short, I am in south Florida with a couple of my bosses and I am a little nervous because I want to shoot well in front of them.  The very first station of the sporting clay course is setup to shoot 3-pairs where the clays shoot up into the air at about 70-degree angles and at the apex, they cross each other.  Well, I end up breaking all six clays with only 3 shots.  My bosses were stunned and there was definitely some luck involved because I shot average the remainder of the day.  Anyways, I went home and told my uncle about it when I handed him back the gun and he was happy for me.  A couple of weeks later for my birthday dinner at my folk's house, he brings me out to his car to give me my gift.  There she was, the Walmart Beretta and it was all mine.

I killed my first dozen turkeys with that gun, and i called in my dad's first-ever turkey and he killed it with that gun as well.  She has been retired to a wing-shooter these days but she is priceless to me.  Sorry for the longwinded story, its just a nice memory for me.

PS - SD_Smith killed one in Kansas with the her as well.

[g8rvet]

Remington 870 Express 12 gauge in 26" barrel.  Was my duck gun and a buddy talked me into spring turkey hunting (I had killed 2 gobblers in the fall as a kid with a Model 94 30-30).  I had it dialed in and used it for years until I lost it.   To my son.  He killed his first mature gobbler with that gun as well.  I finally just gave it to him (he won an 870 at a DU clay event - but it was 28" and he liked mine better).  I am proud he is now hunting with it. 

[Turkeybutt]

Some of you might be old enough to remember but for you younger people here's a little history. 
Back in the day you could buy a gun from Sears & Roebuck, JC Penney's, Spiegel, Woolworth's, Cotter & Company (which later became True Value) Wards etc. You could walk into a Western Auto or Pep Boys to buy a gun over the counter!
I remember barrels filled with WWII surplus rifles when I was a kid. I knew a few guys who were using some of those guns out of the barrel that their uncle or dad bought and made into deer rifles.  They ran from $9.95 to about $24.00.
Even today some are still in the field being used!

[btomlin]

Killed my 1st few with a Coast to Coast master mag 20ga.(mossberg 500).  It was my 1st shotgun.  I was then told that you couldn't kill turkeys with a 20ga so I bought a Mossberg 500 12ga....what a gullible kid I was.  I had witnessed down the barrel of 3 toms getting killed and some guy told me that a 20ga wasn't up to the task and I bought in hook, line, sinker.  LOL.  That fella must have never tried the Activ turkey loads.

[ElkTurkMan]

Winchester Model 12 with a full choke barrel, April 1987.

[Howie g]

Stevens double barrel 20 ga was my lst turkey gun .
Been many since !  I swap guns and bows often .... I'm that guy . 

[nitro]

1978. Wilkes County, GA

My Grandpa's old Model 12 Heavy Duck. 30" Full. Hand load of 1.5 oz of chilled lead #5s. Same load we shot ducks with.

[gergg]

870.....them Moss 835 for the last 30+ years

[sswv]

model 37 red letter Winchester 16ga...1974

[Sir-diealot]

First and only a Remington 11-87 that I got back in the early to mid 90's. I had loaned the money to a friend so he could buy the gun and he got it and it ended up being to much gun for him (He has been though a LOT with cancer) so instead of having him pay me back I just took over the gun. Have gotten deer, turkey and woodchuck with the gun, hoping to get a coyote or fox with it sometime too.