Don ( Rocketman) ,
As usual you are spot on and talking a lot of sense .
It really is all about comfort to shoot and our own personal 'feel' .
I am now in my 'later' years and beginning to find mobility slow and cumbersome ( as well as sometimes breathless).
Recently I have suffered a loss of shooting form at clays and all the 'experts' have expressed their opinion that I am too old and too short to weild my faithful 32" barrelled shotgun , listening and taking heed of their self opinionated expert advice I have taken out both a 28" barrelled gun and a 30" barrelled gun that years ago did suit me perfectly as I made my progression through my dealers shotgun stock ,at the expense of my wallet .
I am glad to report that the 'experts' can keep their opinions to themselves , there is little wrong with my 'long gun' it is just the lazy user.
On another note last week upon meeting a friend at a shoot he bemoaned that he maybe had made the wrong decision in hastily buying himself a new Beretta DT11 Carbon Black . " Why what's wrong? " I asked , he replied that although lighter than his usual DT11 due to the substitution of various carbon fibre components the gun felt 'DEAD'.
I asked to try , and yes it was heavy and unresponsive . He then volunteered the knowledge that using the factory supplied weighting system he had removed 30 grams of weights from out of the buttstock, I noted that the gun was very muzzle heavy and weighted well forward of the hinge pin . With his permission I removed the two most forward barrel weights from under the forend weighing a total of 20 grams . Very unscientific I know but we can only try when our backs are to the wall .
The owner tried the gun and instantly was beaming from ear to ear the gun in his words " Was transformed, I love it ."
Now let us not get carried away , it is not always that easy and I suggested that when he got home he should fit ALL the standard supplied weights ( 30 grams back in the stock etc.) Then check the weight and balance carefully and make INFORMED decisions which way to go . If it involves reducing all weights and balancing on or around the hinge pin , between the hands or what ever , so be it . Remember most 'Pigs on a Shovel ' can be catered for .
