Belgian Browning Superposed for Skeet

[Tag457]

Is this still a viable choice?

 

[spike.t]

My father bought me a browning A1 105 special skeet gun in 1974...still going strong....few years back I found a very nice 2nd hand one and bought it for my son....for some reason I can still give you the serial number of mine off the top of my head... ends in S74

 

[BeeMaa]

The last production Browning Superposed rolled of the line in 1987. Today they are made in limited numbers by their custom shop at a premium price. Here is a list of the production years and serial numbers.

https://www.browning.com/support/date-your-firearm/superposed-shotgun.html

Is it a good choice for skeet? Sure, why not. Most skeet ranges limit your ammo to 2 3/4" 7.5, 8 & 9 shot and many of the Superposed are only chambered in 2 3/4". As long as it's in good condition with a low round count and tight lockup...you should be fine. Before you buy it, see if you have a competent gunsmith look it over. Bring them with you to the gun shop for a quick inspection. Knowledge is power and you need to be armed with as much as possible when looking at a used firearm.

BTW - Is it only skeet or is it skeet, wobble, trap, 5-stand & sporting clays? If so, you should be looking at a "sporting" shotgun. If you want to hunt birds and small game with it, a "field" model shotgun would be best. The length of barrel, LOP, weight, weight distribution, features and stock shape are different for field or sporting shotguns...you need to know the difference. Take a look at these pictures as an example. They are both 725's but that only describes the action...everything else is different. Same goes for the Superposed.

Browning Citori 725 Field

Browning Citori 725 Sporting

That's not to say that a sporting gun can't be used for hunting but walking though the fields with a 8.5 to 9 lb sporting shotgun designed to absorb recoil from hundreds of rounds in a single day will make you quite tired. You should have a shotgun that is designed to be carried more than it's shot with quicker handling and a more open grip that weighs around 7 lbs. Think of it like taking a benchrest rifle on a mountain goat hunt. It will work, but each one would be better with it's own rifle.

Now if you are asking if there is a better option for skeet than the Browning Superposed, you just opened an entire can of beans and I'm not sure there are enough words available to me at the moment (still having my first cup of coffee) to fully explain it.

The best advice I can give is take a look at what you want to do, and go from there. If you want to be good at hunting, get a field shotgun and go to the skeet range with the intent on getting good a breaking clays so you can drop birds on your next hunt. If you want to be good at the game of skeet (or any of the others), buy a sporting shotgun and if you do go hunting press it in to service as necessary...or buy another shotgun for that purpose.

If you have more questions or if this post sent you into a tailspin with the volume of information that's out there, don't sweat it. Send me a PM with your number and we can talk about it. I'm sure we can narrow down your search with just a short conversation.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

You won't find a Superposed with chokes. And you'll be hard pressed to find one with two skeet barrels. Very hard pressed. Look for a Citori.

I have a Citori but I shoot my other Browning much better.

My skeet average with old Black Not-Beauty is 22.5. 1961 Browning A-5 Magnum Twelve.

 

[BeeMaa]

If your pursuit is hunting, you would be best served by using the same choke you intend on using in the field for the game of skeet, trap...etc. If it's going to be used primarily for sporting a multi-choke shotgun might be the better option.

The good thing about having fixed chokes is that it makes for a lighter overall shotgun, all other things being equal. What this translates to is a light and really nice handling field gun which is what the Superposed is known for.

If you are dead set on a Browning Superposed...most of them have fixed chokes with a thinner wall that will not allow the installation of screw in chokes without changing the point of impact (POI) of both barrels. If it comes with IC and FULL barrels, you can have the barrels bored out to MOD and IC or whatever you decide. Just keep in mind that it will be an additional cost and you will still have fixed chokes that can not be tightened back up.

A Browning Superposed that does have removable chokes has most likely been modified by someone. Just depends on what you really want. The Browning Superposed was being phased out at the same time that screw in multi-choke barrels really started to hit there stride in the mid-1980's. It didn't make sense for Browning to invest money in R&D for a model that was going away.

I still believe you would be best served with a modern (new or used) Browning Citori 725 or Beretta 686. Most important is how the shotgun fits. It took me a few years and a couple of O/U shotguns to get my gun mount and fit consistent enough to warrant a properly fitted O/U shotgun. It's typically not a one and done deal if you really want to shoot well.

 

[Finprof]

You won't find a Superposed with chokes. And you'll be hard pressed to find one with two skeet barrels. Very hard pressed. Look for a Citori.

I have a Citori but I shoot my other Browning much better.
View attachment 576211
My skeet average with old Black Not-Beauty is 22.5. 1961 Browning A-5 Magnum Twelve.

When I lived in Connecticut I shot skeet with an excellent shooter who had a Diana grade Superposed. When it was time to go to the state championship he switched to a Remington 1100.

 

[Nevada Mike]

I have owned and shot both classic Superposed and Citori guns. My current Super 12 is a 1937 gun and my current Super 20 was made in 1957. IMO, the Superposed (especially the earlier ones) is far superior to the Citori, which are decent enough guns. The Supers handle better. True - they do not have choke tubes- but I prefer fixed choke guns, so this is a positive for me.

 

[Mtn_Infantry]

I too have a pre-war, early 30’s production Superposed and it’s an excellent pointing/feeling gun. I agree with the comment above about the early ones being superior to a newer production Citori or 686. However I think the new production citori’s and 686’s are on par with and maybe even better than a late production superposed.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

If you can find a Superposed in IC/Mod, you might be able to have someone open up the Mod barrel to IC and make it a usable skeet gun. But then you've wrecked the collector value. I think you'll find most of them available are Full/Mod. Even modified in both tubes would not cut it for me on the skeet range. But Full/Mod would be fine for trap. As stated above, FN Browning guns were noted for thin wall barrels. Miroku made their Browning shotguns much better with more metal. And of course they put chokes in them. Lightweight shotguns are immensely overrated, ESPECIALLY on the range. Heavy guns swing better ... for grown men anyway (note that Superposed was not a particularly lightweight shotgun). I seem to recall Briley could put thin-wall choke tubes in old Brownings but not sure if they do it for O/Us. Usually A-5 autos.

 

[BeeMaa]

I shoot skeet with my SBE3 and a FULL choke and average 19 to 22 on most days and I'm not that good a shooter. I did a round of 5-stand with @HankBuck a couple of months ago with the same gun and choke...broke 19 again and that was my first ever time shooting 5-stand. Most of the guys I shoot with are a 23 or better average so I get my chops busted pretty regular.

Choke make a huge difference in how the shot hits the game, For example...you don't want to use a full choke for dove because you won't have any meat left undamaged. For clays, it's more about getting good at breaking them. Having removable choke tubes allows a novice to start with a SKEET or CYL choke. As you become better, slowly raise the constriction to up your skills and become a better shooter for when the hunt arrives.

I understand that skeet, trap, wobble...etc are games, but for me they are training tools to get good at hunting. However I completely understand that some are there for the competition of who can break the most clays.