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Top 10 guns for game

Editor Matt Clarke of Sporting Gun gives his wish list

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The rise of syndicated game shoots means fieldsports can be enjoyed by people of all backgrounds

In my job I’m lucky enough to get to review a good few guns. Based on my experiences, and talking to our reviewers and other keen Guns, here’s my list of the best guns for game around today. (Read about the difference between a game and a sporting gun here. )

Top 10 game guns

1.Browning 525 Game Laminated 12-bore £1,695

Browning B525

Our reviewer Elliot Roberts gave this a top rating, saying: “I can see this gun proving hugely popular with the everyday shooter looking for reliability and robustness.”

2. Miroku Mk 11 Game Side plate £6,199

MirokuMK11Game

“A great all-round game gun” said Shooting Times reviewer and shooting instructor Mark Hunt, who gave the gun a score of 89%. I can’t wait to try it out myself.

3. Beretta Silver Pigeon lll £2,245

Beretta Silver Pigeon III

Where would this list be without a Silver Pigeon? The go-to gun for many game shooters has had an upgrade; Mark Heath on what’s changed, what has stayed the same and how it shoots.

4. Purdey Trigger Plate £65,000

Purdey 20-bore Trigger Plate

I was lucky enough to be the first person granted access to test the new 20-bore version of this over-and-under. Yes, I liked it and it has made its inclusion on this list.

5. Chapuis Armes C135 Artisan Super Orion £5,290

Chapuis Armes C135 Artisan Super Orion

Reviewer Alex Flint said: “You really will not believe you can buy such a stunning, hand engraved, hand finished gun for anything under five figures.” Read the review and find out why he was so impressed.

 

6. AYA Legend De Luxe £10,660

AYA Legend De Luxe 20 bore

When I reviewed this shotgun back in October 2019 I said: “It’s a gun designed to enable over-and-under shooters to buy into the AYA brand and enjoy a beautiful and well-made gun. I think this gun has a long future ahead of it.”

7. William Evans St James £17,500

William Evans St James

Reviewer Shane Robinson said: “William Evans has created a gun that is useable, practical, high quality and relatively affordable in the grand scheme of things.”

8. E. J Churchill Regal side-by-side £19,000

EJ Churchill Regal

The Regal comes in an attractive case and is tailored to your specification

When I tested out this gun I opted for a slightly unusual calibre too, as well as testing a now less common side-by-side. I found it hard to find a fault with it.

9. Caesar Guerini Magnus £3,350

Caesar Guerini Maxus

This is a reassuringly chunky gun to handle but has the lines and elegance of a thoroughbred.

10. Beretta Ultra Leggero £2,495

Beretta Ultra Leggero

This would be my choice for walked-up game rather than driven game. As the reviewer said: “With the Ultraleggero, Beretta has achieved an exceptionally lightweight gun with no compromise in strength, quality or handling.”