Top Lightweight Shotguns for Fall 2024

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Once upon a time, the 12 gauge was king for American shotgunners. Times are changing though. While the younger hunter and shooter demographics are targeted by manufacturers, middle-aged shooters and graybeards alike are embracing today’s sub-gauge craze. Today, younger and older scattergun enthusiasts are discovering reasons to tote a sub gauge. This includes youth and women—who are smaller framed—DIY adventurers making deep treks into the wingshooting outback, those with shoulder issues looking for something a little kinder and gentler on that troublesome joint, or someone who simply wants to enjoy an easy swinging scattergun frame at the sporting clays shooting line.

Whatever the reasons, many hunters and shooters today are finding much to like about sub gauges in .410-bore, 20-gauge and 28-gauge offerings. With that in mind, here are 10 sub-gauge shotguns to consider for fall 2024.

Benelli Super Black Eagle 3 Waterfowl Performance Shop 28 Gauge

Few modern shotguns have won over waterfowlers like Benelli's Super Black Eagle lineup. Adding to the semi-auto's legacy is the Benelli Performance Shop edition of the SBE 3, a new customized shotgun that features all of the SBE 3 scattergun's technology and good looks, except in a 28-gauge package.

Checking in with a 28-inch barrel, this new Benelli 28 gauge comes with the company's Comfort Tech 3 stock configuration, chambering for up to 3-inch shotshells, a HIVIZ CompSight metal mid-bead and a weight of 5.5 pounds. The gun also has a look that today's waterfowlers want with its anodized black receiver finish, a matte Labrador Gray BE.S.T. finish on the barrel that aids in superior corrosion and abrasion resistance, and Gore Optifade Timber camouflage on the stock and forend.

Add in three Rob Roberts Triple Threat choke tubes, a lengthened and polished forcing cone, and computerized pattern analysis, and this shotgun will shoot non-toxic loads to max consistency and even pellet distribution. And with the Performance Shop's DNA that delivers an oversized handle and release for cold days in the blind—not to mention the Comfort Tech 3 stock and Inertia-Driven System that has been known to fire a half-million rounds without a hiccup—and this sub gauge will find its way to countless duck blinds this fall. MSRP: $3,399 | benelliusa.com

Browning A5 Hunter 20 Gauge

Thanks to its needle-moving status all year, we’ve covered this gun starting with the days after its release at the 2024 SHOT Show, and again a few days ago in Game & Fish Magazine's Top Lightweight Shotguns for the Fall story.

But no digital tale about the best new sub-gauge shotguns for 2024 would be complete without another look at the 20-gauge A5 Hunter brought out earlier this year by the iconic Utah gun maker with the familiar Buckmark logo.

Fans of the Browning scattergun design were delighted for this model's release a few months ago, which checks in with a weight of 5 pounds, 9 ounces, while still featuring a compact design comprised of a 26-inch barrel and the ability to cycle shotshells of up to 3 inches.

Like the other A5 models, Browning's load-operated Kinematic drive will help tame the heavy recoil of 20-gauge high brass loads no matter what you're in the field for. And like the 12-gauge and 16-gauge predecessors in this A5 lineup, the 20-gauge model comes with a five-year/100,000-round guarantee.

With an Inflex II recoil pad, three Invector-DS chokes (Full, Modified, and Improved Cylinder), a fiber-optic front sight and ivory mid-bead, a Turkish walnut stock featuring 18 lines-per-inch cut checkering, a durable gloss finish, blued barrel, and a deep black finished receiver with the Browning Buckmark logo, and this sub-gauge shotgun performs like a champ. MSRP: $1,980 | browning.com.

CZ Redhead Premier Reduced Length 20 Gauge Over/Under

While this shotgun isn't technically new for 2024, it's a great choice for new wingshooters this fall. Ideal for smaller-statured hunters and clay target enthusiasts, or just a youngster who wants a stack barrel design like dad’s or granddad's over-and-under, the CZ Redhead Premier Reduced Length 20 Gauge is an excellent choice indeed.

Coming with all the high-quality features of CZ's Redhead Deluxe, this rooster- and greenhead-busting, reduced-length shotgun design sports auto ejectors, a Turkish walnut stock, a single selective trigger, chrome-lined barrels and a rugged black chrome finish that delivers good looks while still repelling the elements.

With 24-inch barrels, 3-inch chambering, five chokes (Full, Improved Modified, Modified, Improved Cylinder, Cylinder), ejectors, an 8mm flat vent rib, a manual tang safety, and a weight of 6 pounds, this is a gun that young or new small-framed shooters will love. This sub-gauge model gives them not only stylish good looks sure to draw a few glances in the duck blind or uplands but also plenty of hard-hitting performance that brings a big grin after the shot as a retriever brings back that first mallard. MSRP: $999 | cz-usa.com

Franchi USA Instinct L 20 Gauge Over/Under

With upland bird hunting campaigns waiting to hit the scene in September and October, there are few stylish over-and-under shotgun options like the Franchi USA Instinct L 20 Gauge stack barrel. The over/under delivers stylishly good looks, hard-hitting function, fine craftsmanship and Italian shotgun-making tradition in a design that is right at home on Montana's sharptail-filled prairies to a rooster-infested South Dakota cornfield to a Louisiana swamp harboring a fresh migratory wave of late-season woodcock.

Coming with an A-Grade satin walnut stock and forend finish, a blued gloss barrel finish, and a color case-hardened receiver finish like the one you found on your granddad's classic twin barrels of the past, this is one fine-looking shotgun. Complementing those features and providing easy handling in the rough-and-tumble terrain of the wetlands and uplands is the Instinct L 20-Gauge's Prince of Wales grip on the stock, not to mention subtle trigger guard and underside engraving to go along with fine checkering.

But this gun doesn't just excel in good looks and ergonomically superior handling characteristics, as it comes with three choke tubes (Improved Cylinder, Improved Modified and Full), auto ejectors for spent hulls, a horizontal barrel selector switch on the tang-mounted auto safety, steel receiver construction, a vented rib and vented barrels to aid in the dissipation of heat, and a recoil pad destined to tame high-brass loads in a December creek bottom where a few wily late season roosters are holding tight.

There are even a few custom feature options for the 20-gauge stack barrel weighing 6.4 pounds, such as included ported choke tubes, additional flush-mounted choke tubes, or extended choke tubes to give this over-and-under plenty of Italian flair and smooth swinging and hard-hitting performance no matter where your bird dog roams this fall. MSRP: $1,500 | franchiusa.com

Retay Gordiaon Compact 20 Gauge

A compact shotgun that gives a customizable length of pull no matter a shooter's age or body size, this new Retay Gordion Compact 20-gauge comes with all of the performance features shooters have grown accustomed to with the gun maker's other shotgun models.

Checking in with a weight of 5.7 pounds (the weight is variable when the different shims are added in), this compact, semi-auto scattergun comes with a 3-inch chambering, five MaraPro choke tubes (Cylinder, Improved Cylinder, Modified, Improved Modified and Full), an adjustable shim set, an automatic anti-repeat trigger system, a TruGlo fiber-optic red single bead, a flat hunting style rib, a single-piece aluminum receiver, a milled aluminum trigger guard, and finishes in either walnut, black synthetic, or two Mossy Oak camo patterns.

With the Gordion Compact's deep bore drilling barrel and elongated forcing cone, this shotgun does not stress the barrel while delivering dense and accurate shot patterns downrange. Available in either 24-inch or 26-inch barrel lengths, the customizable fit and Retay's five-year limited warranty add up to make this adjustable shotgun design a model that delivers plenty of bang for the buck! MSRP: $899-$999 | retayusa.com

Rizzini BR 550 28 Gauge

While this side-by-side sub gauge doesn’t come with the break-the-bank price tag of a London Best custom-made scattergun, it's still the most expensive shotgun featured in this field of sub gauges.

Still, when you consider the renowned side-by-side gun-making capabilities of this well-known Italian gun maker, the Rizzini BR550 is a fine investment for the field and the gun safe. That is if you've got the George Washington's in the wallet to buy this exquisite 28 gauge.

A box lock design, the Rizzini BR550 comes with a round body steel frame, a single selective trigger (double triggers are available by special order), a variety of barrel length options ranging from 26 to 30 inches and five flush nickel-coated choke tubes—all in a design that weighs 5.7 pounds.

But the design features noted above for this superbly crafted Italian scattergun only tell part of the story—because this gun is also a great looking side-by-side that comes with a coin or case finish, ornamental scroll engraving, a Grade 2.5 Turkish walnut stock with 26-LPI checkering, a side-by-side pistol grip and splinter forend, and either a fixed ramped rib or adjustable rib.

Add in the Rizzini ABS hard case for takedown and carry, and this will be a shotgun that you'll shoot for the rest of your life. And someday, pass it down to one of your kids or grandkids. And whoever is lucky enough to shoot this heirloom-quality scattergun in the field or on the clay target range, they'll always do so with a smile on their face and a fond memory of you—all thanks to a sub-gauge shotgun you have to see and shoot to believe. MSRP: $5,590 | rizziniusa.com

Stoeger M3020 Compact 20 Gauge

A sweet handling 20-gauge at home in a duck blind or the uplands this fall, this short-stocked semi-auto 20-gauge M3020 Compact model from Stoeger offers great fit, good feel and top-end performance for smaller framed shooters.

Rugged and easy to care for, this Stoeger model comes with a blued barrel and receiver finish, a synthetic stock and forend, a barrel length of 26 inches, a red-bar fiber-optic front sight, 3-inch chambering, three choke tubes (Improved Cylinder, Modified and Xtra-Full Turkey) and a weight of 5.5 pounds.

There's also a shim kit included to give a tailor-made fit to the shooter, not to mention the Model 3020's Inertia Driven system that helps cycle various-sized shotshells and make recoil easier to bear. Add in other purchase options that include varying barrel lengths and finishes, additional choke tubes, and different stock options, and this is a great shotgun for someone wanting to test the waters of waterfowling and upland wingshooting this fall or turkey hunting next spring. MSRP: $559 | stoegerindustries.com

TriStar Bristol SxS 28 Gauge

Unless you stumble upon a rare vintage Parker scattergun for sale, it's not always easy to find a 28-gauge, side-by-side shotgun.

But if you're in the market for a 28-gauge side-by-side, TriStar Arms of Kansas City, Missouri, has just that with its Bristol SxS that combines beautiful style, elegance and performance in the field, whether you're chasing ruffed grouse, woodcock, sharptails, bobwhites or even mourning doves.

The Bristol SxS is a good-looking shotgun that features an oil-finished English stock made of select Turkish walnut and a case-colored receiver. Coming with a brass front sight at the end of 28-inch barrels, a single selective trigger, five Beretta-style choke tubes (Skeet, Improved Cylinder, Modified, Improved Modified and Full), chrome-lined chambers and barrel, and a safety on top, the 28-gauge Bristol weighs in at only 5.24 pounds.

Built on a true steel frame and having precision engraved details, the 28-gauge Bristol SxS is joined by four siblings that come in .410 bore along with 12-, 20-, and 16-gauge models, all giving shooters endless possibilities to achieve great performance with stylish good looks in the American uplands or on the sporting clays range. As TriStar says, this is a side-by-side with competition-grade craftsmanship and all at field-grade pricing, not to mention a five-year warranty from this Show Me State gun maker. $1,250 | tristararms.com

Weatherby Orion .410 Side-by-Side

As you may have noticed, side-by-side shotguns have seen a resurgence in recent years. If you've ever seen an old hunting scene for ruffed grouse in New England or the Midwest, you probably understand why thanks to the grand old looks of grandpa's golden-era shotguns and their smooth swinging characteristics at home anywhere in the American uplands.

The problem can be in finding one of those grand old side-by-sides from a bygone era that is both affordable and still in prime working order. That's where Wyoming gun maker Weatherby has entered the equation with the company's new Orion SXS shotgun in .410 bore along with 12 and 20 gauges.

Equally at home chasing ruffs up north, bobwhites in the south or mourning doves around a sultry September waterhole in Texas, this modern side-by-side in the .410 bore checks in at 6.1 pounds, has 3-inch chambering, comes with five Yildiz chokes (Improved Modified, Improved Cylinder, Modified, Full and Skeet), has a brass bead and features a 28-inch barrel length.

Certainly not an entry-level bargain basement kind of .410 shotgun, the Orion SxS .410 bore features all of the classical styling of timeless side-by-side shotguns made in years gone by including a straight English stock, a splinter forend, an oil-rubbed finish on the Grade A walnut, a classic blued finish on the metal, mechanical double triggers and a swamp rib.

Whether you are chasing real birds in the uplands or clay birds on the sporting clays range, you'll also appreciate the Orion SxS extractors that are designed to make sure that empty hulls don't end up littering the landscape after a smooth swing and hard-hitting shot on the final bird to complete your limit. MSRP: $1,099 | weatherby.com

Winchester SX4 Long Beard 20 Gauge Mossy Oak Obsession

Looking ahead to next spring, you might want to avoid the rush and start looking now for the new Winchester SX4 Long Beard in Mossy Oak Obsession this fall.

Described as the ultimate turkey shotgun, the 20-gauge version comes with a pistol grip stock and spacers to adjust the length of pull, and interchangeable comb height pieces—all designed to give that just-right fit in the woods as Mr. Johnny Gobbler sounds off and closes in. And with the Mossy Oak Obsession camo, Invector-Plus extra full choke tubes, and adjustable rifle-style TruGlo fiber-optic front sights, you'll have his flaming noggin covered up as he makes that final strutting waltz into shooting range.

Chambered for 3-inch shells, this 24-inch-long barrel shotgun weighs 7 pounds, 6 ounces, thanks to its aluminum alloy receiver, steel barrel and composite stock. With a magazine capacity of four shotshells and its Inflex 2 recoil pad, this sub gauge will punch your turkey tag in a few months while not punching your shoulder too hard or breaking the bank account in the process. MSRP: $1,300 | winchesterguns.com

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