Shotgun opinion?

[mrbb]

your size doesn't really mean what recoil you can handle, some folks and how a gun fits can make a HUGE difference
I had a 50bmg, my 100 ;b girlfriend could shoot all day, about 3+ times the recola Ft LB's of a 12 ga 3.5
and seen some BIG guys that wouldn't shoot it

but lets says your fine with recoil
recoil does cause you to loose sight picture, fact of life we all have recoil shy or not LOL
next the simple price of shells of 3.5's over 2.75's, is a BIG factor on or for most on how often you will shoot it
plus I have never seen a guy yet that can do a full round of spotrting clays with 3.5's and not be a little tender in the shoulder(and yes I know folks don't do this often or any need to, just an example)
and to be honest the fact you mentioned a 3.5 in the begining, kinda told me you were not recoil shy of a shooter LOl

I was just trying to tell you that 99% of your hunting shooting will be done with NON 3.5 shells
so why add the costs of that to a gun you will use them in so seldom?
and if you really plan to shoot a TON of 3.5's
there are MUCH better shotguns ot there your WAY better off saving up for over said model you lstarted this post about
not bashing the model you picked, just saying, there are better one's to handle a ton of 3.5 rounds, that will pay off down the road for you and worth spending the extra for!

again, 99% of all modern shotguns(but cheap as you can find models maybe)
are more gun than most guys will ever need
shotguns are like tools, every one does "X" job better in one area
the most important thing is FIT, anyone that shoot a LOT will tell you this, 99% of all go bang every time you pull the trigger
how well a gun fits you, will make you a better shooter, or NOT
fit is a HUGE deal in a shotgun, something most folks take for granted and just live with
sure you can get buy with?? fit , but if you ever own one that fits right, you will see the difference first time you shoot it!

[nomad_archer]

Mrbb,
I agree 110% fit is the most important thing. Close your eyes shoulder the gun and when you open your eyes you should be looking down the rib or very close to it. If that doesn't happen then then gun doesn't fit and it can be an expensive process to make a gun fit correctly or close to correctly.

I am not recoil shy either but if a gun doesn't fit correctly I don't want to shoot very much because it will hurt or will eventually hurt plus I will not shoot very well. Getting beat up by a gun is no fun especially if you plan to shoot it a lot.

[mrbb]

Nomad, back when I had my store, I used to send folks all the time to a shop 100+ miles away from me, due to they carried over 1500+ over and under shotgun, from a couple hundred bucks to ten's of thousands
reasy being was NOTHING bat having a gun to pick up and hold and see how it fits
99% of the guys I sent there said the trip was well worth the drive, and 90% of the time, they had me order the gun for them, as I tened to be able to beat most folks on price, that shop had high prices to justify the inevetory they kept, plus it was actuallt in another state LOL
yes I sent customers out of state to a different gun store
and liek I said, most highly appreciated it, as when you buy a shotgun in the 5-10 k range, you kinda want to only do it once, or for sure make sure your getting one that fit you! HAHA
I stell recommend folks try guns, and in all honestly leanr what it means to have a fitted gun
its also about learning guns
and then how to pick what barrel length you want
you can get away on a semi (or a pump)with a shorter barrel than you would want on say a over under, as the reciver on a pump/semi, gives you a longer sight plane, where as with a side by side or over and under, you don't have that long reciever
a proper fitting gun will fit like a glove, every time you sholder it it will fall in the right spot
when you have to adjust to fit a gun, your always going thru a LOT more motions, and odds of getting one of them wrong, are a lot higher, the less it fits
same with bows too, you want things to work naturally as possible to get the most out of an item for said shooter, same with hand guns
a gun that fits , 99% of shooters will out shoot over a high dollar gun that doesn't fit
lots of little things can make or bear the fun you get out of things, or performance of them