Why the heck would you use a 20g for turkeys?

[silvestris]

Not toting enough stuff.

[deerpoo22]

Like most have said with the advent of Hevi-shot and even more so TSS 20 has become every bit as lethal as a 12 with much lighter weight. Not for me tho. I still anxiously await the arrival of 8 gauge 4 inch shells with 3 1/4 oz of TSS

[Crawl79]

My 20 gauge took 2 of the 4 birds I killed this year and would have easily killed the other two as well. Think I will only be carrying the 12 ga next year when I girlfriend or a youth hunter tags along with me.

20 gauge Rem 870 youth compact, FFIII Sumtoy choke and Apex #9's, anything under 40 is a guarantee. Never patterned in farther than that but will next year. THis year I used it when I knew for sure I would be hunting thick woods or swamps where most shots will be 30 yards or less.

[owlhoot]

Any chance you guys who are looking to lug around 2 fewer pounds of gun could also lose a couple lbs from under your belt?   

Shoot what ya like regards,

Could be .With the 3:00 am donuts, cookies and granola bars snacks,cheese burgers and fries for lunch.

And the fried turkey nuggets from the bird just taken with the 20 gauge 

[Meatseeker]

The 20 gauge I hunt with know throws a better pattern than what I used think was great shooting a 12 gauge with copper-coated lead 5's.  This is all in a 5.5 lb package that lethal out to 45 yards.

A better question is why would you carry 12 gauge?

[Happy]

A better question is why would you carry 12 gauge?

I will answer this one.
1. I ain't a weakling.
2. I ain't skeerd of a little recoil.
3. I don't have to pay $5.00 (or more) a shell to kill a turkey at 40 yards.
4. I don't use a turkey satchel.
5. I don't care about what's popular.
6. I don't lug around a blind, decoys, turkey chairs or a cooler which frees me up to actually carry a real gun.
7. Real guns look better with me carrying them.

Now to all those who are offended because they don't get my sense of humor or logic, please understand this. I don't care what you shoot. Have fun and understand I like being a smart alec.

[Happy]

I almost forgot my last reason.
8. Because Chuck Norris wouldn't be caught holding a 20 gauge.

[spaightlabs]

As somebody that has had surgery on both shoulders within a year I can understand why somebody would want to reduce recoil. Lucky for me I did not have a problem with my 12 but it has made me rethink my desire for a 10

Rem SP 10 is the softest shooting gun you will ever shoulder.  Gun weighs in at something like 118 pounds and is so heavy it doesn't move when you pull the trigger.  Tremendous benefit for waterfowl hunting as once you get that sucker moving, ain't nothing gonna stop your swing.  Plus, if you lug that sucker around the woods for a bit you can skip leg day that week.

[Tom Foolery]

My 12 gauge hasn't left the safe in years after getting a youth 870.  I enjoy the lighter weight and shorter stock allows more maneuverability when setup on a bird.

[Marc]

I almost forgot my last reason.
8. Because Chuck Norris wouldn't be caught holding a 20 gauge.

The flaw in your logic is...  Chuck Norris would probably not even use a gun to kill a turkey...  He would probably be embarrassed to use anything more than his bare hands (gloves are for wimps).

[Happy]

You have a point. Prolly just eats watermelon and spits the seeds at them.

[sswv]

I have become a big 20ga fan but still (and always will) love my 12ga. Personally, I don't care if you chase them down and choke'em to death so, what gauge shotgun you use don't make one bit of difference to me. Just have fun.

[Sir-diealot]

As somebody that has had surgery on both shoulders within a year I can understand why somebody would want to reduce recoil. Lucky for me I did not have a problem with my 12 but it has made me rethink my desire for a 10

Rem SP 10 is the softest shooting gun you will ever shoulder.  Gun weighs in at something like 118 pounds and is so heavy it doesn't move when you pull the trigger.  Tremendous benefit for waterfowl hunting as once you get that sucker moving, ain't nothing gonna stop your swing.  Plus, if you lug that sucker around the woods for a bit you can skip leg day that week.

I am having a bit of a hard time carrying around my 1187 now because of the weight, when they did the right shoulder (Butt stock shoulder) they also had to remove part of my bicep muscle so I don't have all I had strength wise anymore. I am hoping working out some will help me improve. Left shoulder is still weak because it was just done Jan. 26th and I am still in PT for it. I used to walk all over with it but right now am having to carry it in a case in my right hand as I am also lugging around a blind and decoys. I would still like to try a 10, but worry about it  a bit. I was really worried about the 12 til I shot it but no problem at all, did not even hurt a little bit.

I will have to remember that waterfowl trick, trying that for the first time this fall/winter.

[Yoder409]

For me, it's because you can pack all the.killin of a 12 in a lighter, more compact package with a 20.

So far this spring I've killed 2 longbeards with a 3 1/2" SX2 and 2 longbeards with a 3" SumToy tweaked NEF single.  All 4 got the tar whooped out of them real good.   The farthest kill was with the 20 and it was as violent a whoopin as the closest kill which was with a 3 1/2" 12.

Boils down to the modern, pimped-out 20 will do today what NO 12 would do 25 years ago.   

To each, always, his own.   But I'm really liking on these little 20 singles my kids and I have taken to using.

[BrowningGuy88]

I'm probably a little backwards from most, but I hunted for 20 years with an 870 Youth 20 gauge as my primary turkey gun and most of that time shot a flush extra full choke with Winchester 1-5/16 5's in the black box. At some point, I saw an extended choke in a cabelas mag and had to try one, so I got the first one I could put my hands on - Truglo GSX and shot the same Winchesters or Rem Nitro 5's. I didn't know you should have X pellets in a circle at any distance. My folks shot their guns at 30 yards and made sure it shot where you pointed. Even my stepdad with his 835 and Federal Premiums. Now don't get me wrong, he killed turkeys a heck of lot farther than I would even dream of shooting one with my 20 at the time. Then, somewhere around 2006 or 2007, I ran across a handful of Nitro Ray 4,5,7's at a sporting goods store and bought all 10. My granddad's Win 1300 NWTF Laminated had a Kick's 660 in it and it shot Winchester Black Box like it was on fire, but I had to try these new shells. I shot exactly one at a turkey target at 50 big paces and we all just shook our heads and couldn't believe what we saw. We had never seen anything like it. We killed 9 turkeys between us that year with that load. The next year, I went right back to using my 20 but I had the itch for a 12 now. Somewhere along the way, I bought a 28" 1300 in all black and I honestly tried to like it but I was used to those short barrels we all had and it went down the road. I kept looking around locally for a short barreled 1300 and never had the cash when one came up. Finally got college behind me and bought 2 of the short 18.5" 1300's. I kept the best one.

I've had or have everything from single shot 410 up to a 32" 10 gauge double with M2 Tactical and a Super Vinci mixed in. I have settled on for a short, light gun you simply will not beat the youth 20 gauge in your flavor or brand. I have 3 dedicated turkey guns and one of those is the 870 Youth and the other 2 are 12 gauge 1300's - one 22" and one 18.5". I want to build one more and it will be a SxS double with double triggers and FF3.

Point being, I have had the 20 as my go to gun but it has mostly become a loaner or back-up gun because I have really noticed no difference personally when carrying it and the 18.5" 1300 except I can run 8's in the 12 and keep the same pellet count pattern as 9's in the 20. I have that short 12 gauge set up as my field gun and running 265-275 with straight 8's and it will kill one a long way. I thought I would use the 18.5" 1300 exclusively, but I bought a Maxus for a wing shooting automatic and like it so much I carried it all season except twice this year.

The only way I see myself going back to a 20 exclusively is if I build the SxS and just fall in love with it.