Selecting a barrel comes down to what you want in it's design, and what type of loads you want to fire. They come as smooth bore or rifled, and have a fixed choke or screw in choke design. Some may be ported to decrease felt recoil. You can get a single barrel model ,or a dual barrel that comes as a
side by side or an over / under. Here's a few things to consider when choosing a barrel or shotgun.
In regards to length, think about the environment where you will find your game. A longer barrel is more difficult to move with in heavy brush, but gives you more weight and balance when swinging through a bird and taking a shot. Shorter barrels are lighter, have greater mobility, and can be comfortably aimed longer.
Sights are another consideration. Most come with a single or dual bead as the standard sight. The single bead allows you to properly point the gun. The dual bead works by creating a figure eight (8), with the front bead on top and the mid bead on the bottom when you aim. High visibility fiber optic's are great open sights as they capture the natural daylight and glow, allowing the hunter to see their sight picture in low light conditions. The cantilever barrel has a rail built on to it to accept a sight system such as a reflex, holographic, or a scope and is rifled to fire sabot slugs.
The chambering of the barrel will be designed to handle different shell sizes. You have the standard 2 3/4" loads, and Magnum loads that are 3" and 3 1/2" in length. The larger the shell size, the harder its going to hit your quarry. However, keep in mind the recoil will hit you harder too. Always check to see what size shells the shotgun is designed to fire.
Thanks for reading,
- Rhody
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