Single Shot Shotgun Mods

New single shot 12. But it was cheap and I knew I wanted to do some mods on it. It had a 28' barrel that I cut down to 20.5'. It also had a notch on the Doreen's that the trigger guard folds into. I notched it out more so I could fold it tighter together and make it narrower. It fits into the side pocket open on my kelty 80. Jul 11, 2013  Single Shot Shotgun 'sawed off' and homemade shell holder.18 1/2 inch barrel and overall length of 31 inches make it easy to swing around a corner. Flashlight added to help light things up.

I have a 6 yr old grandson who is anxious to dove hunt with more than a bb gun this season. He's big for his age but he's still a 6 yr old.

I'm considering buying the single barrel.410 Y gun and cutting the stock to fit him. I'm also considering cutting the barrel back from 28' to 24' or possibly as short as 22'. The recoil with a 2-1/2' shell should be manageable.Of course, I won't be shooting if he's shooting. That way I can safely manage his loading and gun handling while he and his dad do the shooting.So I'm curious what others would think about the mods to the gun. I have two more grandsons coming behind this one, so I'm thinking this could be a hand me down starter gun. I haven't bought the gun yet, so it's hard for me to visualize if the mod to the stock is too much or if cutting the barrel will screw up the pattern.

I mean, it's only $129 bucks. Any thoughts, opinions, advice?

When my grandson was around 6 he thought big earth moving equipment was really cool looking. When one came close to him (not dangerously) it scared him a lot with the noise and all.

After that he wasn't so interested in watching those big machines do their work. Just sayin'.your grandson might be big for his age, but 6 is still 6. Maybe you could take your grandson to a range, not to shoot, but watch and see how that affects him and to get him acquainted with the sounds of guns going off. Hearing protection should be a must.IMO. I have no opinions about the gun in question, only a concern on sensitivity toward your grandson's desire to shoot with his grandaddy.One more thing, I think you should post your questions and concerns here.might get a better range of approaches and ideas:SGW is full of renowned instructors.all with expert opinions.Good luck Pa-Paw.' He who knows nothing is closer to the truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods and errors.'

Thomas JeffersonLast edited by on Sat Apr 05, 2014 7:18 am, edited 4 times in total. I have a 6 yr old grandson who is anxious to dove hunt with more than a bb gun this season. He's big for his age but he's still a 6 yr old. I'm considering buying the single barrel.410 Y gun and cutting the stock to fit him. I'm also considering cutting the barrel back from 28' to 24' or possibly as short as 22'.

The recoil with a 2-1/2' shell should be manageable.Of course, I won't be shooting if he's shooting. That way I can safely manage his loading and gun handling while he and his dad do the shooting.So I'm curious what others would think about the mods to the gun. I have two more grandsons coming behind this one, so I'm thinking this could be a hand me down starter gun. I haven't bought the gun yet, so it's hard for me to visualize if the mod to the stock is too much or if cutting the barrel will screw up the pattern. I mean, it's only $129 bucks. Any thoughts, opinions, advice?I would not want to cut off the choke of the.410 gun. Your grandson will NEED the tighter choke in order to hit targets consistently with a 2 1/2 shell.With the choke on the.410, I would opt for an H&R youth gun.

I purchased an H&R Topper youth for my daughter and it was great.I hope that helps.Maggs. Maggs,I think you make a good point about the choke. I have no idea what the pattern will look like without the choke. On the other hand, I'm not overly concerned about him hitting anything at this point. Certainly no long shots. I'm going to pick his shots and I'm thinking probably 10 shots per outing, maybe less. Skillet shots!

Preferably sitting on a limb. So maybe a cylinder choke is more desirable at 20 yards? I don't know. If he uses the gun till he's 12, then the choke would be more useful.

But this is going to be a gun he uses for 2 to 3 years max. I was shooting a 16ga Browning A5 at 9 and he's bigger than I was by a long shot. This is a big 6 year old!

My son in law is a monster, and I'm 6'3'. He got a double dose of big boy genes.The.22/.410 Rossi combo that another poster mentioned may be the better option. Already modified. But I have to say, I've never been a big fan of hammer actions. On one hand they can add an extra layer of safety, but kids struggle with them. Too hard to pull back and release safely.

I tend to believe a conventional safety is the best option. Thanks for the reply. I will certainly weigh all of the opinions before I make my decision. I'm not even sure I'm willing to start him yet or not. So maybe a cylinder choke is more desirable at 20 yards? I don't know.

If he uses the gun till he's 12, then the choke would be more useful. But this is going to be a gun he uses for 2 to 3 years max.The choke on a.410 is a whole different animal than our normal thought of choke for a 12, 16, 20, or even a 28.

Where the larger gauges are measured at 40 yards, the.410 is measured at 25 yards. There is a lot of discussion around.410 chokes in the sub gauge forum. You could find some interesting reading there.I started shooting skeet with the.410 about 3 years ago and have settled on Mod/Improved Mod for my favorite skeet chokes. If I had to pick one choke for the.410, I would pick Mod. My H&R Topper Jr.

Is choked Full. My Springfield 67 is Full. My Yildiz has choke tubes and after patterning them all, I am using M/IM.Good luck with the.410.Maggs. The fact that kids struggle with the hammer is why I liked the Rossi. When my son was smaller there was no way he could cock the gun and I did it when I was sure he was ready to shoot. When he was older I put on the hammer extension Rossi sells for use when the gun has a scope.

Mods

He does not have the scope but it is easier for him to pull the hammer back and cock it himself. The Rossi.410 weighs 4 lbs. And I don't think there is a lighter gun out there.

Another safety feature is the interlock link that keeps the gun from being opened or closed if the gun is cocked. Mddan,You convinced me. I'm going to go with the Rossi combo. I like the idea of the.22 and.410 in the same gun. I also prefer the modified choke over the full. The hammer is something I hated as a kid, but the one I had didn't have an extension option.

Mods

Also, I was duck hunting and on a really cold morning it was painful to cock. But we won't be doing any cold weather hunting and he won't be the one cocking it for a few years, so I like your argument. I do have a couple of questions if you don't mind.Did you shorten the stock for your son? If so, how did that go with the synthetic stock?Is the.22 barrel drilled and tapped or does it have a dovetail for a scope mount?This is a very light gun and so it will have more felt recoil. How old was your son and did he have any problems with the recoil? I will start him with 2-1/2' shells.Thanks for your help.

My son was 9 when I got this for him and he was and still is small for his age. He is now 12 and weighs only 65 lbs.

So he was about 40 - 45 lbs. Or so when I got this for him.

I did shorten the stock, BUT I cheated a bit. I called Rossi and bought a wood stock and forearm replacement for it.

I am using windows XP SP3 32 bit. Ifh-0009 no response from control unit e39.

This set used to come with wood but they cheapened it up by going with plastic. Note if you go with wood it takes a different length bolt to hold the stock on, got one at the local hardware store.

Anyway, I imagine you could shorten the plastic stock as well. From what I have read you can re-drill the holes in the plastic stock and reattach the butt plate, and then trim it from there. If you need a new stock Rossi sells these so no harm in doing this. Also the plastic stock is hollow so you could put some weight there to help soak up the recoil if the.410 is too much.

My son has not had any trouble with the.410 recoil.This is on another thread but he got really whacked when he was about 8.5 using a 12 Ga. Benelli at a 4H event and it took me a long time to get him to even use the.410, he used the.22 for a long time, and slowly worked into the.410 over time. He actually shoots clays with it, surprisingly.

We hope to work him into a 28 gauge this year.The.22 barrel is drilled and tapped.I don't know if Dick's sells these on discount other times of the year, they used to always blow them out at Christmas time and for a fairly high discount. I just check Gunbroker and the cheapest one I found for the combo was $175.Wow the Yildiz at 3.3lbs is really light, surprising especially with a longer barrel and wood stock and forearm. I guess there is a lot of weight savings in the receiver being aluminum over steel. MddanAll of your responses were helpful. I had already considered adding some lead in the synthetic stock. One lb of lead would knock the recoil down by a ft/lb or two.

Th weight in the rear may even help with fore end weight handling for a young shooter. I don't think a 5 lb gun will give him any issues as long as the weight is in the rear. I may opt for the wood stock also. I wouldn't have to add as much weight and it would be easier to modify. He already weighs 60 lbs or better, so it will be the startle factor that will tell the tale.Glad to hear the receiver is drilled and tapped. Much prefer that to the dovetail groove.I saw one somewhere for around $180. Most ran in the $200 range, but that's a bargain for what is essentially 2 guns.

I'm really liking the whole concept more and more as I think it through. Much appreciate the steering!PS I'm not so sure about the 3.3 lbs Yildiz advertizes. I've read a few posts that have it closer to 5.

Aluminum receiver helps, but a 28' steel barrel and all that wood has me wondering. Thanks again and good luck on the 28ga. Shooting sporting clays with a.410 is a real challenge.

The 28 and.410 ammo is a little pricey. A gas operated 20ga might be a good option. Good recoil reduction, cheaper ammo and more BBs. Mddan,That would be great if it did. I've always wanted to try a 28 but shied away because of the cost and lack of availability of the ammo. But now buying ammo online makes anything more available, and I am seeing more of the 28 outside of the skeet world.

I know two of my work mates that dove hunt with them on occasion. Both of them reload.

New England Arms Single Shot Shotgun

But I noticed some 28s on the shelf at Academy Sports and that used to be almost unheard of.I'm a 16ga lover, because I shot one growing up. Another one I wish would become popular again. Anyway, sounds like you and your family have it covered. That Yildiz in a 28 is going to be sweet shooting fun! I love my 12ga Yildiz O/U but the kick can make for a long day! I usually buy 28 Gauge ammo on line. Able Ammo typically has about the best deals, but you need to buy enough to make the shipping cost not a major driver:Bill Hanus used to have a webpage about 16 Gauge guns, sold them and wrote may stories about the advantages of the 16.

He said that 16 had the best shotstring of any gauge and was a real nut about it. Sadly he passed away a couple of years ago and I see now they have taken his website down, too bad it was some good reading.Here is a link to some comments about him:Good article on 28 Gauge.

The turkey and tactical crowds are notorious for tricking out their scatterguns with all sorts of fancy gadgets. However, waterfowlers should also consider customizing their shotguns.

The following are some practical shotgun modifications that will not only enhance your favorite shotgun’s performance, but also make it more user-friendly. Shotgun modifications: performance upgradesOne of the simplest shotgun modifications you make is having its forcing cone lengthened. The forcing cone is the area of the bore just ahead of the chamber. In most barrels, there is a rather abrupt drop-off in this transition zone between the larger chamber and the smaller main bore.Lengthening the forcing cone so it has a longer, more gradual taper provides the shot charge a gentler, less abrupt transition into the main bore, resulting in less pellet deformation, fewer erratic flyers, and hopefully more even patterns downrange.Related:After making a less-than-ideal shot on a snow goose in which only one pellet struck the bird (albeit in the heart), I felt my Benelli Super Vinci’s barrel was in need of some tweaking. I didn’t want to do anything radical, though, like overboring. Having recently tested Benelli’s SBE II Performance Shop Waterfowl Edition, which has many upgrades done by noted gunsmith including a lengthened and polished forcing cone, I reasoned that might be a good place to start.

Hatfield Single Shot Shotgun Mods

So, off my Super Vinci went to Rob Roberts to have its forcing cone relieved.On opening day, the rejuvenated semi-auto dropped two teal on the wing with a single shot. A year later, it topped that performance by felling three teal in flight with one shot. I couldn’t be happier with the results and believe the longer forcing cone made an already good gun great.Of course, you’ll want to have a qualified gunsmith perform the task, but the procedure is relatively affordable, often under $100 per barrel. Forcing cone lengthening might offer the most bang for the buck in terms of improved performance. Many shotguns, such as Browning’s newer models, now come from the factory with lengthened forcing cones, as increasingly more manufacturers recognize the rewards this relatively minor modification offers.Barrel porting is another popular modification.

While less recoil is claimed, reduced muzzle rise is probably the real benefit of barrel porting, allowing you to get back on target quicker for faster follow-up shots. Again, be sure to have qualified experts do the work, such as. Mossberg has become a leader in factory barrel porting.

Many of its new waterfowl models have ported barrels.Outfitting your smoothbore with an aftermarket choke tube can also drastically improve its performance. Almost all aftermarket chokes are extended, as opposed to factory chokes, which fit flush with the muzzle. Extended chokes have a longer parallel section in which to more gradually constrict the shot, resulting in more uniform patterns.Related:Several companies, such as and, offer affordable, extended waterfowl chokes in various constrictions. If you send your barrel, they’ll measure its exact inside bore diameter and custom-make a long-range Drakekiller choke tube designed specifically for your gun.Some chokes, such as those from or, have ports on their extended portions that not only help separate the wad from the shot column, but also aid somewhat in reducing felt recoil and controlling muzzle rise.

If you want to reap some of the rewards of barrel porting without having holes drilled into your barrel, ported chokes are a less invasive option.Shotgun modifications: convenience upgradesSome shotgun modifications simply make life easier. The most convenient add-on is a sling. Many new waterfowl shotguns, especially those with synthetic stocks, come with factory-equipped sling attachments molded into the stock and integrated into the magazine cap. If not, it’s usually not hard to find a replacement magazine cap with a swivel stud for the more popular shotgun models.

Installing a sling stud into a wooden stock isn’t too difficult — simply screw it in — but synthetic stocks might require some drilling, so it might be best to let a professional gunsmith perform the task.Of all the slings I’ve tried, my favorite is X-Cellerator. The shotgun model, available in black or Mossy Oak Duck Blind camo, is adjustable and long enough to be slung over both your shoulder and neck while wearing a heavy coat. Beware of shorter slings designed for rifles, as they’ll usually just fit over a shoulder and can slip off when you bend down to set decoys or receive a duck from your retriever.Related:A soft recoil pad that protects the shoulder is a creature comfort no shotgun should be without, especially when magnum waterfowl loads are on the menu. To replace an old, hardened pad with a newer, softer pad, simply remove the two recoil pad screws (a #2 Phillips-head screwdriver usually works), take off the old pad and install the new one.Pre-fit recoil pads are available for many popular shotgun models.

Single Shot Shotgun Mods Download

The softest aftermarket pads I’ve tried are available from. The softest factory pad I’ve felt is SuperCell. If you are one of the many waterfowlers who own a synthetic-stocked 870, try a SuperCell pad and see what I mean. It will make a world of difference to your shoulder and enhance your overall shooting experience.To protect the face, wrap a around the stock. Crafted from a soft, cushiony material that protects the cheek, the Wrapid Comb also comes with spacers for adjusting comb height.A final do-it-yourself upgrade is a fiber-optic front sight install., and all make bright sights in various colors and configurations that are easy to see in low-light conditions, and they’re easy to install with adhesives, magnets or minimal tools.Featured photo: John Hafner Photography.