What is the Best Gun for Skeet Shooting?

Yet again, whatever gun you choose to use at skeet will be far more accurate than you will be. I see people who shoot skeet with £1,000 guns, $1,000 guns, $500 guns, and $50,000 guns.

I learned a very good lesson many years ago. One of the best ISU skeet shooters, which is an Olympic discipline, came from the UK. He shot a £400 Russian Vostok shotgun and shot it as well as anybody else shooting guns worth thousands of pounds.

If you’re just starting out, I suggest that you buy a gun of reasonable quality on the used market. An autoloading shotgun is just fine, as is an over/under of reputable make. Get it fitted to suit you and go out and shoot. Over time you will come to understand what you want in a gun, and you also may be able to borrow some of your friends’ guns to see how they suit you.

Some midpriced brands to consider are Beretta, particularly for autoloaders but also over/unders; Browning/Miroku, and Caesar Guerini. On the upper end Beretta’s top competition guns, Krieghoffs, Perazzis, and Kolars are popular.

If I had a budget of $3,500 to start, I would far prefer to buy a $1,500 gun and spend the rest on cartridges and targets than to blow the entire budget on a fancier gun. That can come later, once you’ve learned more about the sport.