# Pump v. Auto



## extremehunter (Dec 13, 2004)

*Pump or Auto?*​
Pump1343.33%Auto1756.67%


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## extremehunter (Dec 13, 2004)

I'm curious to see which is better and why. Vote on your choice and post your reasoning. Thanks.


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## bladepro30 (Sep 28, 2007)

I use my benelli nova, I can shoot just as fast as all my huntin buddies. Plus when its -10 degrees it still works!


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## Hardsell (Jan 29, 2007)

Auto. If it's extremely cold and one doesn't want to pump, an auto is very nice to have. With pumps you can short stroke and jam more readily, with an auto that is properly maintained the shotgun will be more consistent than the human. I have short arms and pumping my Remington 870 was difficult, so an auto was a natural choice.


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## scottjes000 (Jan 26, 2007)

the pumps are nice because there more reliable but when a gun doesn't kick i can pay more attention to my shooting and my 11-87 barely kicks so i hit more ducks


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## darkgael (Feb 10, 2006)

"I'm curious to see which is better and why."
You are not going to discover that. You might learn what different shooters think is better and why but there will be no definitive answer.
What is your vote and why?
I don't own an auto so I have no basis for comparison. I may buy one next year. In PA we have to have autos and pumps plugged for a three shot gun. A double has only one less than that and is faster than an auto and more reliable. But...that's not the issue.
Pete


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## Hardsell (Jan 29, 2007)

I have an Benelli SBEI and a Remington 870 as my back-up. I like them both. I haven't found one to be any less reliable than the other. The auto is nice for the fact that I don't have to pump and it's faster for me. 
My brother is bigger than me can pump his 870 just as quickly as his SBEI, but he uses that along with his BPS 10 as his back-ups. He guides down in Texas and says all the other guys shoot Benelli SBE's.


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## TANATA (Oct 31, 2003)

My Nova is fine and I have no problems with pumps but after shooting a SBE :eyeroll: Need to get one of those. A nice auto is the way to go.


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## Springer (Dec 21, 2004)

I have been shooting an auto for so long I couldn't find the safety on my sxs last weekend, once I was pushing on the trigger guard and another time I just didn't even try and take it off safety. :eyeroll:


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## dfisher (Oct 12, 2007)

I've never had any problem with my Benelli SBE, my Browning A-5, or my Remington SP-10. All have worked very well for me. Of course, I have had a lot of pumpguns too that were really good. Hard to say. I think the gun companies put out pretty good products overall.

I will say that most of the 26" barreled Rem. SP-10's that I've known about (buddies have had) wouldn't kick out empties too good. Some plain refused. My 30" never has let me down though. Don't know if that's a barrel thing or what though.
Good gunning,
Dan


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## 94NDTA (May 28, 2005)

I have never had any trouble pumping my 870 just as fast as my semi freinds. Of course, it helps having extremely long arms too I guess.

I still wouldn't mind a semi-auto.


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## Hardsell (Jan 29, 2007)

I'm parting with my Benelli SBEI so that I can get a Benelli SBEII. The I's aren't able to adjust the length of pull. With the II"s I can get the adjustable butt pad. 
My brother's American Arms O/U doubled all the time. It has been the most unreliable of all our shotguns.


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## Neanderthal (Oct 30, 2007)

I own a pump, and auto loader and an o/u, and I can tell you there is not one that is better or the best design, they're just completely different. Each is a little better for a certain situation, but any type will work fine. I like them all!


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## piesman (Aug 2, 2009)

i have both but in the long run i would go with the pump.


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## Kelly Hannan (Jan 9, 2007)

Auto- less recoil, I'm a whimp


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## API (Jul 14, 2009)

Hunted over 40 years with a pump. Got my first auto (SBE II) before last season. It took about 10 seconds to get used to the auto. Pump is now a backup.


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## hunter121390 (Nov 7, 2006)

i like pump shotguns but I have no problem using a semi auto shotgun when i have one


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## shooteminthelips (Jun 13, 2007)

A auto will get you more doubles and triples then a pump. Because you dont have to pull off the bird to cycle the next shell into the gun. You can concentrate and swing to the next bird. It isnt about shooting off shells faster it is about pick up second and third targets faster. Why do you think all trap shooters shoot over and unders and not pumps? Anyone who says a pump hasnt taken the time to shoot a auto day in and day out.

It is funny, all my buddies were pump shooters, until I borrow my extra Auto to them for a hunt. And they they would never go back. My first two guns were pumps and now I dont even own a pump.

And the thing about jamming in the cold is BS I hunt snows way up in Canada late in october and in the spring in snow, sleet, rain, cold, and mud. The only time you get jamming issues is if you dont take care of the gun. And that doesnt mean cleaning everyday as I have found most autos run better after cleaning and a box through them then bright and shiney clean.


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## hunt61 (Aug 26, 2008)

Anybody who thinks they can cycle a pump as fast as an auto has never shot a SX3....12 rounds in 1.44 seconds


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## southdakbearfan (Oct 11, 2004)

Having owned all three, pumps, autos, and over/unders. My preference is this.

1. Over/under
2. Pump
3. Auto

Just personal preference, but most of the guys I hunt with are all auto guys, many using magazine extensions for pheasants and spring goose hunting. I can't ever remember being outshot by any of them, but I do remember them coming to get shells from me after they ran out. It is amazing how some, but not all people, get an auto and then forget to "aim" the first couple of shots. They get a lot better when you give them shells two at a time though!


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## rasmusse (Oct 24, 2006)

Years ago, when I was in the Navy, my next door neighbour was a Marine Major. After three tours in Viet Nam he pretty much wrote his own ticket and was then on the Marine Corps skeet team. He would consistently break 200 out of 200 targets on a daily basis (I could tell by his language when he arrived at his quarters if he broke less than 200 that afternoon).

When I asked him what kind of shotgun he used he told me that "when you shoot more than a quarter million rounds a year the only shotgun to use is the Remington 1100". He had several of them, 12, 16, 20 and maybe a 28 ga or .410, all Remington 1100's and consecutively serial numbered.


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## NDTerminator (Aug 20, 2003)

I've owned a good number of both and always come back to pumps. In fact, I don't own an auto anymore, but I have several pumps and an O/U. I prefer a pump for waterfowling and an O/U for upland...

No two ways around it, pumps are less costly, easier to maintain, easier to fix if something does go south, and more reliable.


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## Hog Wild (Aug 23, 2009)

I like my pump, mostly cause I can't afford an auto at this time. I have had a pump for a long time. Just feels right


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## bandmiller2 (Oct 4, 2009)

All depends what you grew up using.I have more trouble with two triggers.Most autos seem too good to get in the muck and mire pumps are cheap and durable.Frank C.


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## Bob Aronsohn (Mar 21, 2005)

It boils down to whatever a guy feels comfortable with in regard to pump vs auto.

I read some of the posts which stated that with a pump you pull off the bird with each shot, thats true but if you are any good with a pump you can be on the next bird in a fraction of a second.

As far as which shoots faster, pump or auto has no real bearing while hunting live birds. Most young guys with good reflexes and timing can kill a pair of birds that are within 25 to 30 yards in under one second! So as long as both the pump and auto will cycle faster than that whats the point as to which shoots faster.

In regard to the Marine using 1100's all I have to say is that he better of had a full armory full of them to shoot 250,000 rounds a year. The Remington 1100 was a nice semi auto for the average guy who would go out and shoot a few boxes of ammo at live birds during the hunting season. It would last his whole life with little or no problems. That is what the 1100 was designed for, the average shooter who does not shoot 10,000 rounds in his whole life. I had the Remington rep tell me years ago that they were good for the first 10,000 rounds and after that you had better have a gunsmith check them for worn parts before you had a problem. In more recent years the Benelli and the Beretta semi autos will shoot rings around the old 1100 Remington as far as reliability is concerned.

About the only edge a guy might have in cold weather while shooting an auto is that he does not have to worry about his hand slipping on the forend and thus short stroking the firearm.

I've shot pumps and autos and like them both.

Bob Aronsohn


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## SaberX01 (Sep 25, 2009)

Which is better, that's a tough one really, as both have area's where they can outperform the other. I own O/U's, Auto's and Pumps. I'd would also say that it depends on what I'm doing as to which one I like best for the task.

For example, I would not want to think about using a 3 1/2" Mag Pump gun, loaded with real hot loads to hunt Turkey , nor would I like a pump gun to shoot 500gr slugs with. The again, I don't don't want a 30 pound 30" barreled 3 1/2 cannon Semi-Auto to shoot Clays or swing in a Dove Field. I also would not take my Beretta DT-10 or 682 Gold E ( O/U's ) into a Duck Blind or Goose Pit. And certainly, if I were in the Military still or in the police force where my life could be put in harms way, I don't think I'd want to be toting an Auto-Loader, but that's just my preferences, yours will most likely differ.

I think it boils down to personal preference and the intended use. A case could be made for either a pump of auto in whatever actitivty you choose, but clearly some models are better suited for the task. Not to say they would not functoin to some level of performance, but may not be the optimum choice.

Semi-Auto: 
Pro's: Typically Faster Shooting, Lighter Recoil, Easier for Beginners 
Con's: Overall Reliability, Jam Easier, Finiky With Ammo, Heavier, Cost More

Pumps: 
Pro's: High Reliability, Cheaper, Usually Lighter Than an Equal Auto Loader. 
Cons: Heavy Recoil

I can't really think of allot of con's for a pump gun, as they just work well, but having said that, there many applications where I would not use it, even though it's more reliable. So does that make the Auto or O/U "Better", maybe so, for that given task, the same could be said out the pump gun


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## alleyyooper (Jul 6, 2007)

Have a bunch of pump shot guns, an other bunch of OU's. will never ever own a auto.
I had a auto rifle once hated looking for the brass every time it ejected.
I also didn't like having my shotgun hulls floating in the pond so really was happy with the bottom eject on my Itchas 37's and being able to pluck the hulls from the OU's.
I guess if you don't pick up after your selves an auto would be the fastest cycleing but I still wouldn't betyou got more game with one.

 Al


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