28-Aug-2026
Pigeon shooting is the most demanding practical shooting most of us do. The birds come in fast, decelerating, changing direction, from any angle the wind decides on, and unlike driven game, you often get a very high volume of shots in a single sitting over stubble. That combination puts particular demands on a gun, and they are not the same demands a game gun or a clay gun is built for.
This guide covers what actually matters for decoying pigeons, then works through sensible choices at each budget. Late summer over cut stubble is peak season for it, so if you are buying, now is the moment.
What makes a good pigeon gun
Capacity, within the law. A semi-automatic or pump-action holding more than two in the magazine plus one in the chamber becomes a Section 1 firearm in the UK and requires a firearms certificate rather than a shotgun certificate. Most pigeon shooters run a three-shot semi-auto on a shotgun certificate, and that third shot is genuinely useful when a pair comes in together. Our guide to Section 1 and Section 2 firearms explains the distinction.
Recoil tolerance. A good day decoying can mean a lot of cartridges. Gas-operated semi-autos soak up recoil noticeably better than fixed-breech guns, which is the single strongest argument for one.
Weather and mud tolerance. You will be lying in a hide in a hedge in the rain. Synthetic stocks and hard-wearing finishes earn their keep here in a way they never do on a game day.
Handling in a confined space. Hides are cramped, and mounting is awkward. A shorter, lighter gun with barrels around 28 inches is generally easier to work with than a long-barrelled trap gun.
Choke flexibility. Decoyed birds come in close; birds that flare go out fast. Multichokes let you adapt, and most pigeon shooters settle somewhere around quarter and half.
Under £500: The honest starting point
At this budget you are buying function, and there is plenty available for pigeon work specifically because the guns that suit it are not fashionable.
Older semi-autos. Earlier Beretta and Browning gas guns turn up regularly at this money, as do the Turkish makes. They will not be pretty. They will kill pigeons perfectly well. Check that the gas system has been kept clean; a neglected piston and cylinder is the number one cause of cycling problems, and it is a cheap fix once you know.
Baikal over-and-unders. Heavy, agricultural, and effectively indestructible, which is exactly what you want for a gun that will live in the back of a truck. Our Baikal buyer’s guide covers them.
Pump actions. Underrated for this job in Britain. A Mossberg 500 or Remington 870 is cheap, tough, and utterly reliable; see our Mossberg 500 vs 590 comparison and Remington 870 guide. The trade-off is that you must work the action, which costs you time on a second bird.
£500–£1,500: Where most people should buy
This is the sweet spot for pigeon shooting, and it is where the genuinely well-suited guns live.
Beretta A400. For high-volume decoying, this is close to the default answer in Britain, and for good reason: the gas system is exceptionally soft-shooting, and it cycles a very wide range of loads reliably. Used examples in this bracket are plentiful. Browse the A400 listings and our A400 guide.
Benelli M2. The inertia-driven alternative. It runs cleaner than a gas gun, no gas system to foul, and it is lighter to carry, which matters if you walk to your hide. The trade-off is more felt recoil, so it suits shooters who are less sensitive to it or who use lighter loads. Interest in the M2 has been climbing steadily on Rightgun.uk. See the Benelli M2 listings and our M2 review.
If you prefer an over-and-under, a used Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon or Browning B525 is a fine pigeon gun; you simply accept two shots and more felt recoil in exchange for better balance and the ability to use the same gun for clays and game. Our 686 Silver Pigeon guide and B525 and B725 guide cover both.
Miroku MK38/MK60. If you want one gun for everything and pigeons are part of that, a Miroku is hard to fault for the money. See the Miroku buyer’s guide.
£1,500 and above: Refinement and round count
Above £1,500, you are buying durability under high round counts rather than fundamentally better performance on the day.
Newer A400 variants with the recoil-reduction systems are noticeably softer again over a long session. Browning Maxus models are excellent gas guns with good reliability records; see our Maxus review. At the over-and-under end, a B725 or Beretta 682 will absorb far more shooting before needing attention than anything below it, and both are covered in our semi-auto and competition guides.
Be honest with yourself here, though. Beyond a certain point, the gun is not the limiting factor on a pigeon day; hide placement, decoy pattern and reading the wind are. Our pigeon decoy patterns guide is probably worth more to your bag than another £1,000 of gun.
Chokes and cartridges
Choke. Quarter and half is the sensible default for decoyed birds. If the birds are committing properly and coming into the pattern at 20–25 yards, improved cylinder and quarter will give you a more forgiving pattern. Save tighter chokes for days when they are hanging off and flaring wide.
Shot size. UK pigeon shooters generally settle around 6s or 7s for decoyed birds, with 5s if the birds are high or the wind is pushing them out. Nothing here is dogma.
Steel and lead. Lead restrictions are tightening across UK shooting, and if you are shooting over agricultural land, you should know where you stand and what your gun is proofed for. Steel loads pattern differently and generally want one degree more open choke. Our piece on alternatives to lead ammunition covers the current picture, and the cartridge selection guide goes further on load choice.
What to check when buying used
On a semi-auto, strip and inspect the gas system; a fouled piston is common and cheap to sort, but heavy corrosion in the cylinder is not. Cycle snap caps through the action repeatedly. Check the magazine spring and confirm the gun is fitted with a legal capacity limiter if it needs one.
On any gun, check the bores for pitting, confirm the gun is on the face, look for hairline cracks at the head of the stock, and verify current British proof and chamber length. Our second-hand shotgun buying guide goes through the full checklist.
Fit matters more than badge. Pigeon shooting involves awkward, hurried mounts from a seated position, and a gun that comes up wrong will cost you far more birds than a cheaper gun that fits. Read our shotgun fit guide.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best shotgun for pigeon shooting? For most UK shooters, a reliable gas-operated semi-automatic in 12 bore, a used Beretta A400 is the common answer. It gives you three shots, soaks up recoil over a long day, and handles a wide range of loads. If you prefer two shots or want one gun for game and clays as well, a used 686 or B525 will do the job perfectly well.
Do I need a firearms certificate for a semi-auto shotgun? Not if it holds no more than two cartridges in the magazine plus one in the chamber; that remains a Section 2 shotgun. Anything with greater capacity becomes a Section 1 firearm requiring a firearms certificate. Most pigeon shooters use three-shot guns on a shotgun certificate.
What choke should I use for decoying pigeons? Quarter and half suits most decoying situations. Open the chokes up if birds are committing close; tighten them if they are hanging off and taking longer shots. If you are shooting steel, open one degree from what you would use with lead.
Is a semi-auto or an over-and-under better for pigeons? The semi-auto wins on recoil absorption and the third shot, which matters on high-volume days. The over-and-under wins on balance, simplicity, and versatility across other disciplines. If pigeons are the majority of your shooting, take the semi; if they are one part of a broader year, take the over-and-under.
Browse pigeon shooting shotguns on Rightgun.uk
Stubble season does not wait. Browse shotguns for sale on Rightgun.uk to see what UK sellers and dealers are listing now, filter by make and model to compare like for like, and check the semi-automatic listings if you have decided that is the route. Selling a gun you have outgrown? Listing it takes minutes and reaches shooters who are actively looking this month.
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