Stevens 311A

[Capt. JEB Forrest]

Came accross a Stevens 311A in very good condition today in 16 ga for 299.

Questions:

Will this hold up for CAS?
Is this a good price?

Also, thinking of going to brass hulls if I get this, anyone got a good load...BP of course!

My first gun was an Ithaca featherlite 16 ga pump. Been wanting a 16 guage and this one is "talking" to me if you know what I mean!

Doesn't hurt they also have a Navy Arms 51 Colt for 150.

May have to make an offer on the both of them! The best thing is..the BOSS has already given her blessing!!

[Pettifogger]

If you want a sixteen gauge double, you pretty well have to buy used.  The 311 used to be pretty popular for CAS shooting, but has some problems so it has pretty well fallen out of favor.  The biggest problem is that the way the lock mechanism works the barrels keep trying to tip back partially closed and this makes reloading slow at times.  The gun can be worked on to help reduce the problem, but it can't be entirely eliminated.  Most people would now opt for the Stoeger or the Spartan/Baikal in this price range.  Of course, they aren't available in sixteen gauge.

[Howdy Doody]

I have a shotgun marked Montgomery Wards. After some research I found it is made by Savage and is almost a carbon copy of the Stevens 311. I had a gunsmith work it over a bit and it shoots really well. I forgot the length of the barrels when I got it, but I had them cut to 22" and the sight remounted.

Larson is right though, if you have to have a 16ga that would be the way to go, but there are issues with finding supplies like hulls and wads and 12ga is by far the most popular gauge. I like the Baikal. They can be fixed up to stay open and it is hard to beat the chrome lined barrels. Remington sells them now. Stoegers are probably the most used SXS, they hold up well, but they do have a firing pin issue now and then.

If I had the money, I would have a 12ga SKB, with shortened barrels, that would be what I shoot. Someday. I think $299 is steep for a shotgun you will need to put another $150 into. I paid $80 for my Savage. Then spent $150 on it. I did my Baikals myself.

[Capt. JEB Forrest]

Thanks for the info.

I checked when I was looking at it and it serems to stay open. I had a Baikel that I had to work on to fix that issue.

I don't plan on cutting the barrels. I know every once in a while they will get in the way, but usually there is plenty of room and I can use it for other things.

I am not stuck on 16..but do like them, I checked on the hull issues because that was a concern of mine also and they are available from Midway as is brass hulls from Midway and Buffalo Arms.

This was at a Pawn shop so they price may be flexable. There are two gun shows coming up that I can look for also.

Thanks for the inpu and keep it coming.

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

DON"T CUT THE BARRELS!

Full length barrels are no real handicap besides all the other things that can go wrong in a match.  My best match results ever were with a full choked, 30" barreled  '97.

The 16 gauge is an ever diminishing resource. There were fewer of them made, and 16 gauge interest is rising. You will have cut its resale value considerably.

Full length barrels will come in handy when you take it hunting, or want to pot a few skeets or traps  (very poor eating though!)

If you want a bar keep's gun, buy the one that the keen competitors use. Sounds like the Stoeger?

PS;  Short barrels have a short sighting plane, and tend to shoot high, especially if you don't keep a solid stock-weld.  When the English gunmnaker, Churchill, developed his 25" barrelled game guns  (Model XXV, AyA still makes a version with the same model name), his real innovation was a higher, narrower rib, that brought to pattern to centre.
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For BP loads, the standard is 1 oz. of shot, and the same volume of 2F powder.  I use about 60 grains, or less.


CORRECTION;  TWO F powder

[Capt. JEB Forrest]

Sir Charles,

Thanks for the load info.

I do not plan on cutting the barrels on what ever I get. Going to look at it again tomorrow to check on the staying open issue.

[Delmonico]

Them 16 ga 311 are a delightful bird gun, learned on one, that was Dad's, still use it once in a while.  Much lighter than a 12 ga 311.

[Dick Dastardly]

I love 'em 311s.  Got one each in 20ga, 16ga and 12ga.  I wish they had made a 10ga.  They are very strong guns.  Properly tinkered, they will stay open and they will shuck empties.

Please don't cut that sweethart.  She will deliver very tight BP patterns and will take down any KDs that the short gun 12ga pards can't tip.  FWIW, my lil 20ga is a death ray.  The 16ga is the best all around scattergun.  My pair of 12ga guns are. . . ok.  I do have a mighty 10ga, but it's not a 311, darn.

Get that 16ga and never look back.

DD-DLoS

P.S. If you like sparkle, Midway has Magtech 16ga shells on hand. . .

[Driftwood Johnson]

Howdy

I bought a used 16 gauge 311 way back around 1970 or so. Took it to my first CAS match about ten years ago. I shot it as my main match shotgun for a few years. The only reason I laid it down was because I wanted to start loading Black Powder shells and could not find a source for 16 gauge hulls. Regular plastic hulls, I cannot understand why anybody wants to go to brass hulls. They are expensive, and you dare not lose one.

The 311 will stand up to the rigors of CAS just fine, but it does have issues, like the tendency for the barrels to close halfway. Definitely do not cut the barrels as that will limit their help in keeping the breech open. It's the weight out front that helps. The other thing about the 311 is the lug between the two barrels can get in the way of fast loading.

I love Stevens shotguns, I have 4 of them, two 311s and a couple of older guns. I am not aware of a weight difference between a 12 gauge 311 and a 16 gauge 311. I will have to weigh mine and find out.

[Dick Dastardly]

I would only add this.  The 311s made for many different companies are all high quality very strong guns.  The minor problem of not wanting to fall open and stay that way has made them less than popular with SASS shooters.  For this reason they are some of the best VALUES to be found.

Yes, they do require a bit of tinkering to be competitive, but it's worth it if you're going for that belt buckle.  For most that have other means of holding their pants up the 311s will last for generations.

I like strong stuff that's well made in the USA.

DD-DLoS

[Delmonico]

Drifwood, I never weighed them, but spend a lot of miles carrying both my Dad's 16 and the 12 ga 311 I bought when 18.  The 16 sure was a better handleing gun.(Paid $79.98 got it through the JC Pennys catalog)  Picked it up at the store in down town Lincoln, carry it though down town to the parking lot and took it home.

Both 28 inch barrels, always wished I would habe bought the 16, but was wanting power back then.   Little brother now owns the 12, switched to a 10 for power and a 28 ga 870 for the 99.9% where I don't need power.

[Capt. JEB Forrest]

Gonna pick it up Thursday!

Don't really care about no buckle but am ordering a Wolff reduced power spring kit from Brownells Mon and found out another thing to check also. It looks like it will be easier to do than the baikal I had a few years ago.

Not gonna cut it. I think a little tlc, some use, and the healing powers of the holy black is all she needs!

Got some brass shells and cards and wads on order from Buffalo Arms, can't wait to try some loads!!