Who still shoots an 8 Ga. shotgun ??

Seems like the 8 bore rifles are more common than the 8 gauge shotguns. I have a 4 bore rifle that I shoot fairly often. These monsters are a lot of fun. These big ones are all custom made now. Prices tend to be very high.
 
I once shot an over-under Ferlach 4 gauge shotgun, ONCE. The shotgun weighed 16 pounds and I felt like a six year old shooting grandpa's 12 gauge. However, it was a memorable experience.
 
A 8ga. would be unique indeed.
I briefly contemplated a 10ga. for geese back when steel shot was mandated. Didn't need it because 12ga. goose steel loads improved dramatically. I knew guys that had 10's, but I never bought one. Just had to get em in closer until shotshell tech improved.
I've never physically even seen a 4ga in the wild, ever. And I'm a big shotgun fan.
 
4 bore rifle is about 1 inch bore diameter. I typically use a 450 grain powder charge. It has over 11,000 ft/lbs of muzzle energy and about 340 ft/lbs of recoil energy. It was the standard elephant gun of the mid 19th century. Mine has no recoil pad. Just a brass butt plate. On a well designed rifle the recoil is not painful, but it will knock you back a good 5 or 6 feet. I have never gotten a bruised shoulder from shooting it. It does not spin you around AT ALL. It does not give you detached retinas or an incurable flinch. The stories of shooting one from horseback are nonsense. You could shoot one from horseback but you won't be on the horse anymore afterwards.
 
Bert

Bert Gummer uses an 8 gauge
 

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I’d like to see it tested in ballistic gelatin. Might need a pretty large block of it.
 
Shot a lot of 10G out of an SP10 back in the 90's when lead was outlawed for duck hunting. Those first steel loads were not good at all. Switched over a Benelli with 3.5-inch chambers when they came out. That gas 10 never bothered me at all with 1 7/8 of steel. It was a gas auto and weighs in about 10lbs. The Benelli had more of a punch with the 3.5's since the gun only weighs in around 7.5

I would like to shoot the 8 just to say I did, but when the gun is so heavy it is more of a push than the sharp kick of a rifle or lighter scattergun. I was always told market hunters used them to clean up large numbers of cripples after the initial punt gun shot, but that may just be a yarn.
 
I run across this video now and then and it never gets old!! It is a 4 gauge shotgun.

It works, but you have to click on "Watch on YouTube" Not sure what the problem is since most videos load properly?

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uJouw9uh84[/ame]
 
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yeti said:
A 8ga. would be unique indeed.
I briefly contemplated a 10ga. for geese back when steel shot was mandated. Didn't need it because 12ga. goose steel loads improved dramatically. I knew guys that had 10's, but I never bought one. Just had to get em in closer until shotshell tech improved.
I've never physically even seen a 4ga in the wild, ever. And I'm a big shotgun fan.
Click to expand...

I’ve killed thousands of geese with a Spanish SxS 10ga. I only use it in pit blinds in MD or VA where duck opportunities are very rare.

A 10ga is remarkably more effective than a 3 1/2” 12ga.
 
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