Opinion
H/T to Henry Arms & Modern Mountain Man for their related video.
The Henry Arms Single Shot Turkey Camo 12-Gauge Shotgun is a sweet-looking gun. Once I picked one up and held it, I knew I had to test one out, turkey hunting this spring upon getting my Henry Single Shot 12 ga. I had to get it ready for turkey hunting.
Henry Arms Single Shot Turkey Camo 12-Gauge Shotgun
The first step was to put on some optics. Granted, it comes with a functional Fiber optic sight, but I wanted to feel comfortable shooting out to 60 yards, so I wanted to put on some optics. I decided to go with a Vortex Defender-CCW Red Dot with 10 brightness settings (8 for day hunting and 2 for night hunting). I do wish it had two bolts instead of one to secure it to the Picatinny rail. I say this because the modern turkey loads kick like a mule since they have 2 ounces of shot and their 3 1/2 inch shells kick like… whatever kicks harder than a mule, and the Vortex Defender-CCW slightly loosened while sighting it in.
Granted, I shot quite a bit while getting it sighted in, and it didn’t loosen while hunting.
It has sling studs, but I didn’t put one on. In due time, though, I will. I love the look of a leather sling, but for hardcore hunting, especially in the mountains, you’ll want a neoprene sling with recoil.
Now for the next big deal: What shells should I hunt with? Years ago, I did a turkey shell comparison for Bass Pro Shop, and HEVI-Shot smoked everyone else—big time! So I’ve used HEVI-Shot ever since. So whichever shells you’re going to use, you still have to sight in your shotgun.
If you’ve never turkey hunted, then it may surprise you that I say that you need to sight in your shotgun. However, the chokes that we use are so tight that to get enough BBs in the kill zone at long distances, you must sight in your shotgun just like you do your rifle.
I don’t want to sound like a little girly man, but the HEVI-Shot 3 1/2-inch shells are unbearable, so I just shoot their 3-inch shells. I like their Blended shells, which have 5, 6, and 7 shots in them. That gives a great pattern, but it also has some heavier 5-shots in the mix.
Sighting In Henry Arms Single Shot 12-Gauge Shotgun
Here’s how I would recommend sighting in your shotgun. Take a table and a Caldwell Lead Sled or you’re going to wear yourself out. I’d start off shooting some low base 8-shot just to get it on paper. That will save you from wasting your high-dollar shells plus prevent getting pounded.
When you have it semi-zeroed in, switch to your turkey shells plus, you’ll want to now use some Birchwood Casey Shoot-N-C Pregame 12×18 inch Turkey targets. Using these targets makes it much easier to count how many BBs hit the kill zone. I’d recommend aiming about 8 inches below the top of the head. Here’s why. If you aim at the head, half of the BBs fly harmlessly over his head. If you aim lower, the majority will hit the head, neck, and upper chest, which = a dead turkey.
To sight in your shotgun, you’re going to have to get out of the shotgun thinking mode and switch over to your rifle thinking mode. Just like when you’re sighting in your rifle, you move the crosshairs in the direction of where you want the point of impact to be, you’ll do the same with your shotgun. But instead of moving for a single shot, you’re moving the center of the pattern to where you want it to be.
I was ready to hunt turkeys after sighting in the Henry Mossy Oak Obsession Camo 12-gauge shotgun. I had a rough Idaho hunt, but I did get to flatten one a week later at a good 45 yards in Oklahoma, and I am now enjoying some great turkey jerky. I used some Cracked Pepper seasoning from Hi-Mountain Seasoning, which is awesome.
As we come to a close, the MSRP on the Henry Mossy Oak Obsession Camo 12-gauge shotgun is $780.00. As usual, we will close with the specs.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Gauge 12 ga.
- Chamber 3 1/12”
- Capacity 1
- Barrel Length 24in.
- Overall Length 39.5in.
- Finish Mossy Oak
- Stock Material Walnut
- Weight 6.7 lbs.
- Sights Fiber Optics
- Internally drilled for Rem style chokes (Turkey choke included)
- Drilled & tapped for a Weaver 82 base
- Made in the U.S.A. YES!
Live Inventory Price Checker
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Henry Single Shot 28" 12 Gauge Shotgun 3.5" Break Open, Polished Brass - H015B-12 | Palmetto State Armory | $ 648.99 $ 583.99 |
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Henry Single Shot 28" 12 Gauge Shotgun 3.5" Break Open, Polished Brass - H015B-12 | Palmetto State Armory | $ 743.99 $ 549.99 |
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Henry Single Shot Slug Barrel Break Action 12 Gauge Shotgun, Blued - H015-12S | Palmetto State Armory | $ 587.99 $ 528.99 |
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Henry Single Shot Slug Barrel Break Action 12 Gauge Shotgun, Blued - H015-12S | Palmetto State Armory | $ 589.99 $ 560.99 |
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About Tom Claycomb
Tom Claycomb has been an avid hunter/fisherman throughout his life as well as an outdoors writer with outdoor columns in the magazine Hunt Alaska, Bass Pro Shops, Bowhunter.net and freelances for numerous magazines and newspapers. “To properly skin your animal you will need a sharp knife. I have an e-article on Amazon Kindle titled Knife Sharpening for $.99 if you’re having trouble.”