Shotgun: Hard case or or soft bag

Wildcard7

Hi!

I just put down a deposit on an O/U shotgun and so if the superintendent graces me with his trust I might be the proud owner of it in a couple weeks. I'll need a bag or case for the gun and am currently torn between the "DeerHunter Escalate Rifle Cover" soft bag and the "Plano SE Series Gun Case" which is a hard case (both 40€ on sportsden, can't link them since I'm a new user). I'd prefer the soft bag as that would probably make it easier to put in the car boot - I have a RAV4 with a compartment under the boot which would take a shotgun in a soft bag, but not in a hard case. But I'm planning to put a fiber optic sight on the gun and am bit worried that it won't be protected enough in the soft bag. I'd hate to pay 50GBP on a sight (easyhit+shipping) and then it comes off.

Are my worries justified and I'm better off going for the hard case? Or what's the preferred option for you guys?

Thanks!

Witcher

You can get hard takedown cases for shotguns, would give you the protection of a hard case but take up less space than the Plano.

Depending on the gun you got it might come with a case.

FISMA

The hardcase is nice for traveling on planes, although, I am not sure that I would trust that particular plano to stand up to the baggage handler's olympics, in which it would undoubtedly compete.

The hardcase would be nice for extra protection in the boot if there are bits and pieces about, or if you have a lot of equipment, like when going hunting or lamping.

The softcase is grand when there isn't a need for a hard shell. Most of my firearms are in soft-shells. If the boot is tight, soft-shells will more easily fit.

For firearms that you can break in half, like o/u or sxs, I like the smaller cases, like Uncle Mike's. If you have a range bag, I like the shotgun case to be minimalist.

If you have nosy neighbors, the smaller cases are great as people do not always associate firearms with them.

The hardcase will be nice if you want to put in ammo, chokes, et al.

With all this said, if I were you and had neither, I would go with the softcase.

Wildcard7

Thanks for the answers. I'm really mostly worried about the sight as it's only glued on. Will that not come off eventually when it's in a loose soft bag?

Grizzly 45

What brand of fibre optic sight are you getting??Some of them like Tru Glow will defy a hammer& chisel:eek::D once they are put in place.Put it like this.They are pretty sturdy to defy the casual knock and bump in a car boot.
As for cases.I'd go,unless you are planning some international air travel,with any of the 2nd echelon break down lockable hard cases.Just for the simple reason if,God forbid your car and gun is nicked you can say it was in a "locked container" as well.I know that those locks on them are about as sturdy as a kids piggy bank lock.But it sounds good to the AGS and it at least shows you went that" little bit extra" in security.

deerhunter1

Wildcard7 wrote: »

Hi!

I just put down a deposit on an O/U shotgun and so if the superintendent graces me with his trust I might be the proud owner of it in a couple weeks. I'll need a bag or case for the gun and am currently torn between the "DeerHunter Escalate Rifle Cover" soft bag and the "Plano SE Series Gun Case" which is a hard case (both 40€ on sportsden, can't link them since I'm a new user). I'd prefer the soft bag as that would probably make it easier to put in the car boot - I have a RAV4 with a compartment under the boot which would take a shotgun in a soft bag, but not in a hard case. But I'm planning to put a fiber optic sight on the gun and am bit worried that it won't be protected enough in the soft bag. I'd hate to pay 50GBP on a sight (easyhit+shipping) and then it comes off.

Are my worries justified and I'm better off going for the hard case? Or what's the preferred option for you guys?

Thanks!

Something like this,a quality deluxe model, have it on sale here

Wildcard7

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

What brand of fibre optic sight are you getting??Some of them like Tru Glow will defy a hammer& chisel:eek::D once they are put in place.Put it like this.They are pretty sturdy to defy the casual knock and bump in a car boot.

Cheers, that's the sort of info I was looking for. So a soft bag won't knock it off then. I'm going for an easyhit one (left hand/right eye dominant).

deerhunter1 wrote: »

Something like this,a quality deluxe model, have it on sale here

That's looking good, but it's a bit far for me to pick it up :-) I'm wicklow based and the next time I plan to go west is in summer.

Tikka391

Wildcard7 wrote: »

Cheers, that's the sort of info I was looking for. So a soft bag won't knock it off then. I'm going for an easyhit one (left hand/right eye dominant).



That's looking good, but it's a bit far for me to pick it up :-) I'm wicklow based and the next time I plan to go west is in summer.

Sorry for butting in, but I never used the type of sights the OP talks about. What would you use them for is it more for clays or can they be put on a game gun. How do they help in comparison to the standerd beed that comes with a gun.
Many Thanks.

Wildcard7

Tikka391 wrote: »

Sorry for butting in, but I never used the type of sights the OP talks about. What would you use them for is it more for clays or can they be put on a game gun. How do they help in comparison to the standerd beed that comes with a gun.
Many Thanks.

First of all I only recently started shooting shotgun so quite frankly I don't really have a clue what I'm talking about, but here's the little I know that led me into ordering one of them: I'm cross dominant, meaning I'm left handed but my right eye is the dominant one. I have these options now:
- I shoot with my left hand and aim with my left eye, with my right eye closed. This means my peripheral vision and depth perceptions suffers compared to if I had both eyes open. Apart from that it works.
- I shoot with my left hand and keep both eyes open. This doesn't work at all as I'm looking down the gun with my left eye but it's my right eye doing the aiming as it's the dominant one.
- I shoot with my right hand and keep both eye open. This works to a degree, picking up clays works nicer but it feels very wrong. I don't like it.

The easyhit bead is essentially a fiber optic sight behind a little tube. When you look down the barrel, you first look through the tube and then see the fiber optic sight behind that. So my left eye, which is not the dominant one, that looks down the barrel and therefore is aligned with the little tube, sees the fiber optic bead through the tube. My dominant right eye which does not look straight down the barrel does not see the fiber optic bead.

Side view, you're looking down the barrel from the left side:

___________________________________
___________(tube)___________________#######f/o sight###########
///////////////////////////////////////////////
///////////////barrel//////////////////////////
///////////////////////////////////////////////

The left eye looks straight down the barrel and therefore down through the tube and can see the bright bead. The right eye looks down the barrel and the tube at an angle and can't see through the tube, therefore it can't see the bead.

Now since only my left eye actually sees the bead, only my left eye can be used to align it with the target, even though the right one is more dominant.

They're used in hunting and clay shooting, mostly by people who have cross dominance issues. I only ever read good reviews so I'm hoping it'll help me shoot with my left hand and both eyes open.

Again I'm not affiliated by the people producing/selling this but I like to read up on stuff before I shell out money :-)

Sparks

Grizzly 45 wrote: »

As for cases.I'd go,unless you are planning some international air travel,with any of the 2nd echelon break down lockable hard cases.Just for the simple reason if,God forbid your car and gun is nicked you can say it was in a "locked container" as well.

Forget that, you go with the Peli/Storm/SBS cases because baggage handlers come under "Acts of God" in the insurance fine print. I've seen brand new hard cases destroyed by one flight from LHR to DUB just from baggage handlers (including us getting to watch as our rifles were literally thrown five feet onto a trolley to move them from the carousel to the security desk, with us yelling at the moron all the time to stop).

Grizzly 45

Sparks wrote: »

Forget that, you go with the Peli/Storm/SBS cases because baggage handlers come under "Acts of God" in the insurance fine print. I've seen brand new hard cases destroyed by one flight from LHR to DUB just from baggage handlers (including us getting to watch as our rifles were literally thrown five feet onto a trolley to move them from the carousel to the security desk, with us yelling at the moron all the time to stop).

I said UNLESS you were planning on international air travel....And as I well know even Peli cases aren't sometimes up to the curse of thr baggage handlers.

Tikka391

Wildcard7 wrote: »

First of all I only recently started shooting shotgun so quite frankly I don't really have a clue what I'm talking about, but here's the little I know that led me into ordering one of them: I'm cross dominant, meaning I'm left handed but my right eye is the dominant one. I have these options now:
- I shoot with my left hand and aim with my left eye, with my right eye closed. This means my peripheral vision and depth perceptions suffers compared to if I had both eyes open. Apart from that it works.
- I shoot with my left hand and keep both eyes open. This doesn't work at all as I'm looking down the gun with my left eye but it's my right eye doing the aiming as it's the dominant one.
- I shoot with my right hand and keep both eye open. This works to a degree, picking up clays works nicer but it feels very wrong. I don't like it.

The easyhit bead is essentially a fiber optic sight behind a little tube. When you look down the barrel, you first look through the tube and then see the fiber optic sight behind that. So my left eye, which is not the dominant one, that looks down the barrel and therefore is aligned with the little tube, sees the fiber optic bead through the tube. My dominant right eye which does not look straight down the barrel does not see the fiber optic bead.

Side view, you're looking down the barrel from the left side:

___________________________________
___________(tube)___________________#######f/o sight###########
///////////////////////////////////////////////
///////////////barrel//////////////////////////
///////////////////////////////////////////////

The left eye looks straight down the barrel and therefore down through the tube and can see the bright bead. The right eye looks down the barrel and the tube at an angle and can't see through the tube, therefore it can't see the bead.

Now since only my left eye actually sees the bead, only my left eye can be used to align it with the target, even though the right one is more dominant.

They're used in hunting and clay shooting, mostly by people who have cross dominance issues. I only ever read good reviews so I'm hoping it'll help me shoot with my left hand and both eyes open.

Again I'm not affiliated by the people producing/selling this but I like to read up on stuff before I shell out money :-)

Thanks for all the info.

deerhunter1

Tikka391 wrote: »

Thanks for all the info.

just purchased one of those easy hit beads.great reviews,i have something of same problem

cookimonster

Wildcard7 wrote: »

- I shoot with my right hand and keep both eye open. This works to a degree, picking up clays works nicer but it feels very wrong. I don't like it.

Off topic again, but I would recommend shooting from dominant eye side regardless of dominant hand. The fundamentals of shotguning emphasizes natural alignment of gun towards the target, the shooter sees the target and not the gun / sights. Anything else can be a potential distraction. Think of the all the duck shooters who successfuly hunt in low light with simple beads.
Practice with your dominant eye side it will be come natural. New shooters often struggle with basic hand coordination when breaking, loading, handling etc break action shotguns regardless of there dominant hand.

deerhunter1

cookimonster wrote: »

Off topic again, but I would recommend shooting from dominant eye side regardless of dominant hand. The fundamentals of shotguning emphasizes natural alignment of gun towards the target, the shooter sees the target and not the gun / sights. Anything else can be a potential distraction. Think of the all the duck shooters who successfuly hunt in low light with simple beads.
Practice with your dominant eye side it will be come natural. New shooters often struggle with basic hand coordination when breaking, loading, handling etc break action shotguns regardless of there dominant hand.

+1 on that

Wildcard7

cookimonster wrote: »

Off topic again, but I would recommend shooting from dominant eye side regardless of dominant hand. The fundamentals of shotguning emphasizes natural alignment of gun towards the target, the shooter sees the target and not the gun / sights. Anything else can be a potential distraction. Think of the all the duck shooters who successfuly hunt in low light with simple beads.
Practice with your dominant eye side it will be come natural. New shooters often struggle with basic hand coordination when breaking, loading, handling etc break action shotguns regardless of there dominant hand.

Thanks for that. As I said I'm total newbie so I'm glad for any advice.

I know you're right, most docs on this topic clearly say go after your dominant eye and not after your dominant hand, and it does make sense to me as in the end the hand doesn't seem to do much but pull the trigger. Buuuuuuuuuut. I went through mandatory army service in the country I come from and had to shoot right handed the entire time because that's the way we were drilled. And even though I had to repeat certain manipulations hundrets of times it still always felt odd. So my bottom line is that I'd rather sacrifice the last few % than feel like a complete eejet holding a wooden plank.