15 of the best shotguns for clay pigeon shooting

1. Kofs Sceptre, from £535

Kofs Sceptre

This made the list of best shotguns for clay pigeon shooting because it’s a great beginner’s gun for those on a budget. Good quality for a low price. Kofs come in 28, 20 and 12 gauge, with various barrel lengths and upgrades available.

2. Blaser F3 Vantage, £7,500.00

This shotgun – the Blaser F3 Vantage –  is no bargain basement offering, though it certainly represents an excellent example of a modern competition gun with the genuine potential to perform superbly in the right hands.

3. Zoli Kronos, from £3500

Zoli Kronos shotguns

Real value for money. Handles nicely with low perceived recoil. A variety of barrel lengths and stock configurations are available.

4. Beretta 694 Sporter, from £3295

Beretta 694 Sporter

This is one of the newest models from Beretta, it moves smoothly and has low recoil. The styling is similar to the DT11 and the accompanying stock weights allow you to balance the gun to suit you.

5. Perazzi Hi Tech, from £9,134

Perazzi High Tech S

A fast-handling gun. Fixed chokes or multichokes available. Effortless to move around.

6. Blaser F16, £2550

Blaser F16

This was voted shotgun of the year in 2016. Ever since it has been a real force in the shotgun market. It is similar in stature to its older and more pricey sibling the F3 –  because all the controls have been in the same place but it’s slimmer in width to the F3 and semi-rounded. Barrel options are 30”or 32”, wood stays pretty standard up to a grade 4 when it starts to impress. All models have a manual safety catch and plain action keeping things simple and very effective.

7. Browning 725 Pro Sport, from £2600

Browning 725 Pro Sport Adjustable

The standard Browning 725 action has been kept with this useful clay pigeon shotgun. It comes with extras including barrel and stock weights, adjustable stock, improved recoil pad, mechanical trigger pull and a full set of 8 chokes and various coloured fibre optic sight beads.

8. Yildiz Pro Sport, from £1,840

The Pro Sport is made from excellent wood with excellent materials and has a top class finish. The CNC work inside is very well made and finished. Based on a Perazzi styled action it handles well.

9. Marocchi Evo, from £1,440

Marocchi Evo Black

A well-designed and manufactured alternative to mainstream offerings. It’s fairly priced, has a sleek design, handles well and benefits from quality engineering. It’s not overcomplicated but nails sporting and trap shooting.

10. Miroku MK38 Sporter, from £1,050

Miroku makes some of the most popular shotguns sold in the UK these days. Built alongside Browning and imported similarly. Miroku present good solid actions, well balanced, great handling guns at good value for money. The product range is kept simple, making consumer choice straightforward.

11. Webley and Scott 1000 series, £950

Webley & Scott 1000 series

Webley and Scott moved over to Italy to try and bring something more to its predecessor the 900 Series shotgun. A bit of Italian design and engineering was sought to make the 1000 series more appealing, with a move away from the plain black action. The decision worked well. This is similar to the ATA in that it’s a great all-round gun at a decent price. If you’re on a budget and want Italian styling then this gun is it – for under £1000.

A few more shotguns for clay pigeon shooting …

12. ATA Sporter, from £595

From top: 30in Adjustable Sporter, 30in Bronze Action, 30in Laminate Stock

Imported through the Sportsman Gun Centre, the ATA is probably the most popular of Turkish guns behind Yildiz. With the looks of the Beretta and the budget of the specials board they are proving very popular around the country.

The 12 gauge SP series are available in steel and aluminium actions. Barrel lengths available in 26,28 and 30ins. Perceived recoil is relatively low even though this is a relatively lightweight gun.

13. Breda 930i, £1250

You can choose a blue or red finish to your 930i

How does Breda make the list of best shotguns for clay pigeon shooting? Well this is one of the only dedicated clay semi-automatics on the market and we can’t let the over-and under-guns have all the credit. Our reviewer was impressed by the whole package in 2017.

The ability to add the extra weight in the ballast to suit the individual shooter’s balance teamed with the adjustable stock creates a good competition gun for not a lot of money. With the Breda weighing in at just less than 7 lb with the 28”, or bang on 7lb with the 30” barrel, it all adds up to a good package.

14. Winchester Select II, £1100

If you are on a budget then this should be on your must-try list of shotguns for clay pigeon shooting. It is simple, solid, effective and built to last.

15. Krieghoff K80, £11,500

Okay so this is definitely not a budget gun but then there is always winning the lottery. It has to be on your wish list because it’s one of those guns everyone wishes they owned. It offers fantastic quality and reliability in a shotgun backed up with a great importer in Alan Rhone. With prices starting from £11,500 it sounds a lot but for a serious competitor it’s not out of the question. You’re quite simply buying your own bespoke gun.

The amount of options you have with this gun is mindblowing. Although the K80 and K20 have similar actions and these are standard. You pick the wood, engraving, choke types (normal or titanium), trigger type (nickel, gold, gold chequered , titanium) to name but a few. From the balance system to the fully adjustable stock, as well as around 10 barrel options, these guns really are top deck and worthy of attention.