I bought a side by side on a whim and now I get it

[Kal_el]

The balance is unlike anything else I have used. On close birds it just moves naturally and what I thought was nostalgia turned out to be a very specific tool that does its job extremely well.

 

[Alan]

That’s how it gets you, one casual purchase, next thing you’re preaching the gospel of double barrels.

 

[crazymonkey]

Most fun I've had shooting dove was when I got out the Aya sxs ! Got some for bringing out Elmer funds gun but I got more birds than they did.

 

[Brisky1]

Side-by-sides feel awkward until they don’t, then every fast bird starts making perfect sense.

 

[Rizlord]

 A side-by-side shotgun just makes perfect sense the moment you start hunting thick cover with one. They lie flat against you, point so naturally and somehow, those quick bird shots feel more like instinct than some mechanical action. I used to think they were mostly just about nostalgia too, right up until I borrowed an old Fox shotgun.

 

[Coopa02]

The balance is unlike anything else I have used. On close birds it just moves naturally and what I thought was nostalgia turned out to be a very specific tool that does its job extremely well.

Side-by-sides get dismissed until someone actually shoots one right on moving birds. The balance isn’t nostalgia, it’s physics. I am glad you found that out by doing it instead of just reading about it.