Why do people make so much of a 28 gauge?
When I ask, they tell me how well a 28 gauge patterns, but I don't think a 28 gauge with it's 3/4 ounce of shot is going to throw a pattern any better than a 20 gauge with it's 7/8th ounce of shot. Then they go on to say how light the gun is, but you can find 20 gauge guns just as light without too much of a search.
Then 28 gauge shells are so much more expensive than a 20 gauge and can be harder to find.
I have nothing against anyone who shoots a 28 gauge, I'm just curious.
Pete

In one word, RECOIL.
A 28 gauge will do almost everything a 20 gauge will and won't punish your shoulder.
Generally, a scaled 28 gauge will be lighter and is a joy to carry.

Because some weird people (like me) like them. And there are 28 gauge guns that are lighter than any 20 gauge.

A 28 gauge does not "punish your shoulder", but ............ a 20 ga. does? Really? One eight of an ounce of shot makes that much difference to you in recoil?

SRH

rationalization needs no reason....its what we do..

I miss a lot and with a 28 I can carry more shells.

Sorry couldn't resist.

The only real reason is snob appeal!!

In many of the "classic" shotguns the 28-gauges were built on the same frames as the 20-gauge and are heavier. The Winchester Model 12s and 21s come to mind immediately. Also, in the Browning Superposed the 20-gauge was available in a Lightning model, but the 28-gauges and .410-bores were only offered in Standard weight.

When Parker Bros. salesmen started pushing the 28-gauge, the guns from Meriden were rebarreled 0-frame 20-gauges that had been languishing in inventory and someone got the bright idea that that would be a way to move some product. Some years later they added the 00-frame.

Ithaca Gun Co. probably made the lightest 28-gauges in their Flues Model with some as light a 4 3/4 pounds. How many of us can actually shoot well with a gun that light? I know I do much better with guns in the 6 1/4 to 7 pound range.

While the "standard" 28-gauge shell 85 to 115 years ago was 2 1/2 inch case with 1 3/4 drams of bulk smokeless powder pushing 5/8 ounce of shot, there were 2 7/8 inch NPEs available. Gun cranks like Chas. Askins had a 30-inch barrel 6 3/4 pound Parker Bros. and was handloading those 2 7/8 inch cases with up to 2 1/8 drams of bulk smokeless and 3/4 ounce of shot!!

My dog does better when I carry my 28 gauge! I love hunting with a 28 and make just as many kills as with my 20!

I recently bought a 28b with 2 1/2" chambers, max 5/8 oz of shot for which I have to buy special shells. I'm not sure exactly why I bought this other than its a pretty cool 90 year old toy :-)

Of course on and off since 1960 we've been able to get those one ounce 2 3/4 inch 28-gauge Magnums that Jack O'Connor liked for Pheasants in his 28-gauge Eusebio Arizaga.

I have some B&P 28 gauge loads at 1 1/16th ounce.

My dad gave me his 28 gauge 870 which he thought was perfect for rabbits when he bought it. I don't think I would buy one for myself due to the cost of ammo, but it sure is a good gun for pen raised birds over a pointing dog.
CHAZ

I think the different gauges like the 28 are just fun. I enjoy the odd things shooting has to offer. 32, 24, 18, 14 gauges, etc., don't seem snobby , but seem fun to try . Same with the 28. All of these gauges are available in the pinfire guns, and I have quite a bit of fun shooting them.

The older I get the more I appreciate a light-carrying gun when traipsing the grouse and woodcock covers. They come up very easily and swing as quickly as I need them to. This, coupled with a softer shooting gun really makes my hunting a lot more enjoyable..... not to mention, I can miss just as easily with my 28's as I can with any of my 20's, 16's, 12's, and 10's and when I connect with a 28 - well, that's just the frosting on the cake.

My only desire for a 28 is pure Nostalgia. First shotgun i ever shot was a 28, a lowly H&R single. I do not know what loads I shot from it but I killed two rabbits with two shots that day. It belonged to an Uncle of mine by marriage (To my mother's Sister). Later in life I asked him if he would sell it to me but he refused, had been his Dad's gun & was saving it for his Grandson, which I couldn't fault him for that. He did loan it to me for a while so I could shoot it again. Only 28 gauge shells which were available to me at the time were "High Brass" with 3/4 oz shot. While I had it I weighed it & it went 4¼ lbs exactly, was one of the small frame H&R's. I can tell you one thing for certain; 3/4 oz of shot @ 1295 fps from a 4¼ lb gun "OUTKICKS" 1 oz of shot @ 1165 fps from a 6 lb gun & it don't matter what size the hole in the barrel is.
All this about the "Magic" of the 28 shooting Better Patterns, Shorter Shot Strings Etc, Etc because of its (So Called) "SQUARE" load is the biggest Malarkey that's ever been published in the shotgun world. Unless one wants, & can find, a sub 5lb 28 the 20 will beat it hands down on every count. The only Truly Good thing which can be said about the 28 s that it is better than a .410.

My standard argument:

Chasing bird dogs through hill and dale is inefficient, expensive, and irrational. No matter how rationally I selected the gun to carry in that endeavor it is still an irrational pursuit.

I like light 28 gauges because they are cute and light and their bullets are itty-bitty. I can get a whole box of them in one pants pocket and still have room for my Leatherman.

A 12 gauge shell is now mostly air. But a 28 gauge is mostly full of powder and shot. But the little shells appear tiny next to a 12, especially the 2-1/2" 28s.

In my old age I get to hunt much more than during young and middle age. It might mean less when I miss a bird now than it did thirty years ago.

So if you want some sport take out a 5-1/2 pound 28 gauge and stick a handful of 2-1/2" shells in your hip pocket and kick a couple of competent bird dogs out the truck and onto your bird lease. If you want to be rational drive to the supermarket, buy a chicken and go home and make chicken and dumplings.

My first shot gun was a Winchester Model 12, 28 Ga. Skeet gun. With that gun I shot everything for about six years. Dove, Quail, Rabbits, Geese, Ducks you name it. Was it the perfect gun to start out with? Must have been because it lit the fire in me that keeps me shooting almost fifty years later. I have had a 28 of one type or another ever since. First grand child will get the gun if they want to shoot, otherwise I'll let the kids fight over it when I am gone.

Quite the 1st gun Jon. Very nice.

Ithaca1
Bill

It's like asking why do some men prefer girls with small, walnut-cracking rear ends when there are plenty of girls out there with big, ponderous bottoms.

At one time I owned a Parker 20ga VHE 28" and bought a Parker Repro 28ga 28"; both for purpose of hunting quail. I normally loaded 20ga 3/4oz loads for quail. After just a few quail hunting trips using both guns it was very apparent the 20ga was clearly superior for me in dead quail and few cripples. Crippled Gamble, Scalies and Mearns quail have a significant loss rate. Sold the 28ga. Bought a second 20ga for backup and for sporting clays practice. Twenty eight gauge lost its sex appeal quickly for me.

I have been gunning grouse & woodcock for 35 years, and I have hunted with a 20, a 2" 12, and 28 and a .410. My lightest 20 is 5# 2 oz, and my 2" 12 is about the same. But my lightest 28 is 4# 5 oz. Three quarters of a pound does not sound like much, but it does add up at the end of the day, or at least it does for me. I often carry my gun for miles and shoot it all too infrequently.

I have a .410 that is 5 ounces lighter yet, and it is OK for pointed woodcock, but I feel that I need a bit more than 1/2 oz of lead for some of the shots that I want to take at grouse.

So bottom line, a featherweight 28 is the lightest weight double that is effective for me.

I use a 28 when a .410 is just not enough gun. And the goons I hunt with don't try to "borrow" my shells.

Yes, and the 32 is just the ticket for me when the 28 is more than enough.

There is a certain attraction to obscurity. I believe for most people that like the 28 gauge there is a transition period that gets them there. A few people might have one for their first gun if they come from a bird hunting family but otherwise the vast majority of us started with either a 12 or 20 as a first and maybe even tenth shotgun. Eventually many people want somethiing different. It could be double guns with unique designs, hammer guns, guns with damascus barrels, smallbores, or something else. Each person will have their own reason. The first few doubles I bought were 20 gauge guns and I could and still can do everything with any of those guns that I can do with my 28 gauge guns. For what I hunt, where I hunt, and how I shoot the opposite is true some of the time. If I could shoot nothing bigger than a 28 gauge and kill birds efficiently and effectively every time I hunt I would never choose anything bigger. I would say the same thing about the .410. I like carrying and shooting the smallest but efficient gun possible.

I enjoy using my Parker 28 GA 2- barrel set for quail, huns and dove. For larger birds, I'm happy with my 16 GA #2 AyA. I load all brass hulls for both guns.

I don't think either of my 20's (Ithaca Classic Doubles, William Sumners)--both at a bit over 5 3/4#--kick any harder with my 3/4 oz reloads than would a 28ga of the same weight with the same load. And you have to be careful with the "weight" thing, because as noted in above posts, many 28's are built on 20ga frames--which makes them heavier than the 20. My most recent example was when I had Browning send me a 28ga Cynergy Feather, which weighed right at 5 3/4 with 28" barrels--and which I shot quite well. I picked the 28ga rather than the 20ga, because the latter weighs about 1/4 lb less--and I thought it might be TOO light.

All of that being said, according to statistics from LODGH (the Loyal Order of Dedicated Grouse Hunters), the 28ga has really caught on with those who chase woods birds in the last 3 decades or so. Back in 1983, only 1% of those who submitted data to LODGH used the 28ga. 30 years later, that number increased to 13%. Thinking on why that happened, it occurred to me that the 28's available back in the early 80's would have been either skeet guns, or else the occasional vintage Parker or Ithaca (both VERY expensive guns!) Since then, the Spanish have sent a lot of 28ga sxs our way, and several thousand Parker Reproductions were made in that gauge. Not to mention other 28ga doubles with their barrels 90 degrees out of line (OU's). Most grouse and woodcock hunters are interested in light guns, and they now have far more choices in the way of scaled frame 28's than they did 30 years ago.

As noted earlier, there are certainly plenty of light 20's, some well under 6#. But if you like a 28, there are also plenty of those well under 6#. So . . . why not? And the shells do have that cute thing going for them.

Well, I guess that answers my questions, People shoot them mostly because they're fun to shoot, and that's a good enough reason.
The same question could be asked about my favorite gauge, the 16 gauge. Once while shooting skeet I was asked why I like the 16 so much I answered that it was a beautifully patterning gun and it was lighter than the 12. He answered that he could find a beautifully patterning 12 that was just as light and the 12 was more versatile and the shells were cheaper and easier to find. I had to grudgingly admit that he was right, but I still enjoy shooting the 16.
I do have a 16 with 30" barrels that weighs a shade under 6lbs., that would be hard to duplicate in 12 gauge.
Pete

I think my father bought the gun with a second purpose in mind. If I had gone down the rifle path and had no interest in shotguns he would have ended up wit a dandy quail gun. He would have bought me a rifle to replace the unwanted shotgun. He did this when my brother first wanted a Superposed then later found out he could not shoot it as well as his old pump gun. He decided to "trade" it in on a deer rifle. Dad kept the Superposed and I think that gave him the idea with getting a new quail gun by buying me it first. Sorry dad that did not work out.

While I certainly didn't start my bird shooting with one, one of my best days ever at Doves was opening day of the 1973 Washington State season with my Model 12 28-gauge Skeet Gun, down near Zillah.

GregSY,
Love that Walnut cracking comment.oh yeah!
Franc

I'm really surprised that no one mentions Brister's book & research on the subject. I always thot it gave honest credit for the gauge's cult like following.

Skeet [NSSA] has a specific 28ga. event as does Sporting Clays [NSCA]; both of those events help to keep the gauge alive & viable. Cost of factory ammo reflects that isn't "everyman's gun" anymore than a .410 is today.

They can be light, delights to carry in the rough and seemingly kill in a manner disproportionate to their bore. Its a fact. Brister went to a lot of trouble to find out why and published the results of his findings.


FWIW, 28 gram [1oz.] 28ga. loads wore out/broke a number of model 1148 Remington's used by bird hunters. I've a friend whose father broke [the receivers developed cracks] two of them using those rounds when they were made by Federal. His guns got a LOT of use.

"The only real reason is snob appeal!!

In many of the "classic" shotguns the 28-gauges were built on the same frames as the 20-gauge and are heavier. The Winchester Model 12s and 21s come to mind immediately. Also, in the Browning Superposed the 20-gauge was available in a Lightning model, but the 28-gauges and .410-bores were only offered in Standard weight. "

You are correct about the Superposed 28 and 410 gauges but CSMC now offers a true small or 'baby' frame Model 21 that will be less than 6#'s, mine with 28" barrels and metal heel & toe plates is 5# 13oz.
I have CSMC A10 20/28 set with 30" barrels that weighs 6# 6oz with either set.
I was at Kolar yesterday and they now have a 28 gauge set of barrels available.
A 30" set will be going on my Kolar SC gun!
There is recoil and gun weight for most shooters that is attractive and since 28 gauge models are usually along with 410 the least sold, there is collectability for some.
A 12/16/20/28 set also makes for a very attractive gun for some.
So I don;t think it's about snob appeal.-Dick

I am a little late on the subject, but here I am. I find shooting sub gauge shot guns more fun and challenging and give you a since of accomplishment when you fill your game bag. I started with a 20 gauge Ibar, bought a AYA xxvbl in 12 and used it for ever on everything then while living in Alaska I picked up a 28 gauge Rizzine and find it to be my go too gun. Then ordered a Aya#1 in 28 2 sets of barrels. Which I use for wood cock and grouse and dove.
But so that you know I am not a full blown snob as one may label one to be I just picked up a CSMC RBL in 20 and I can, wait to carry it afield.

We would sure like to see some pictures of your AYA #1. That must be some gun.

This dove season I'll take a few pics.

The science of recoil math is very simple. Recoil is controlled by weight of gun and shotload, and the velocity of the load. You cannot shoot the same shotload at the same velocity in a lighter gun without greater felt recoil.

It is possible to shoot lighter shootloads and lower velocities and still have excellent results.

I have picked and shouldered numerous 28 and 410's in gunshops and on clay courses. They are the grass that is greener on the other side of the hill.

I too dreamed of a sweet lightweight 28, but the more I searched the more I discovered it was difficult to find a 28 than was not heavier than the lightweight 20 gauge guns I was finding. Taking into account the shorter shot string of a 20 vs 28, it makes best sense to me to reduce payload to 3/4 and skip the 28 gauge altogether.

I tried hard to pick one gauge (16) and only one, but even though I use it 90% of the time, i have not been able to avoid other gauges

I believe like the 16 the 28 appeals because it is different.

Because I refuse to hunt with, IMHO, an ineffective .410

Because it comes up and swings fast on fast-flushing grouse.

Because it swings fast and stops quickly on zig-zagging woodcock.

Because felt recoil of my 28's is lighter than my 20's.

Because it carries so easily and never stretches my arm an extra inch or two by the end of the day.

I LOVE my 28 for kick'um up quail, but it is an absolute hoot to shoot skeet with a 410.

Was going to try quail this fall with the 410 but.....ain't a whole lot of shot.

The only reason I want a 28 sxs hammer is because I don't have one…!!!!!!! A d if I didn't build a lake house I could have called Holland or Purdey and ordered xxx wood Damascusand have some change left......I have fallen in love with my .410 rabbit hunting.not sure about the doves .

Monty

I wouldn't hunt with an "ineffective .410" either. Fortunately all mine ARE effective. They're plenty enough for quail and doves, within range. Their effective range is less than that of a 28, a 28's is less than that of a 20, a 20's is .................. you get the point. A place for everything, and everything in it's place. The .410 requires more patience, more restraint and more skill to use effectively. It ain't for everybody, but darned if I don't get tired of hearing those who can't use it properly say that it is ineffective.

SRH

With a .410 you have to be locked on to the rabbit...... No snap shooting !!!! Probably need a good fit for birds......................challenging!!!

Late in 1930 the Ithaca Gun Co. shipped a 28 gauge 7E with 32 inch barrels! How would I love to have that treasure. Wonder if it still exists?

That would be a sweetie, Walt. On the rarity scale that one must be off the chart.

SRH

$$$$$$$$$$$$

Well balanced 28's just have a certain je ne sais quoi ")
Some people get the tingle, others don't.
There is no right or wrong.
Reloading eliminates any perceived expense pain. The shells are loaded for pennies.
1300 fps hits just as hard from a 28 gauge as from a 12 gauge.

Wonder how the late bandleader Phil Harris would pronounce your French phrase for "I don't know exactly what"-- loved his deep gravelly throated voice--He shot a M12 in 28 gauge for dove and quail-- not a bad choice indeed. Wonder where his M12 is today-