>>2484001I love upland bird hunting, but I have found if you really want to be effective then you need a dog. Wild birds have a strong tendency to run the brush instead of flying for a nice shot, and you shouldn't shoot ground birds. A dog will keep the bird down and hiding, then when the dog gets too close and points or flushes, it'll spook the bird and fly. Running birds also tend to fly at the corners of fields where they can't keep running. Pheasant especially can spook if you stay still for a bit, so walk like 10-20ft. then stand still and wait a bit, you might pop a bird out, I have had this happen countless times, even with dogs.
With quail you should always expect to see multiple birds flying if you spook them, so be ready for multiple shots.
Not sure how much gear you have, you don't really need much except a shotgun and some orange as per regs, but I highly recommend a shooting vest. They usually have pockets for shells and the back will have a rubber lining so you can pop a bird in there and carry it around without tying up your hands. I've found the shell tubes kind of annoying, and the elastic shell holders lose their stretch over time and you can have shells fall out, I just dump them in one of the front pockets and fish shells out as I go.
>>2484022Any old pawn shop 12ga will do. You can try a 16 or 20 depending on what your shooting, but 12 has more options. Old browning auto 5's are great, but the square look isn't for everyone. 870s are fine, pumps cycle fast and are generally crud resistant, but modern semis don't really have that problem anymore unless you have bad ammo. Mossberg 500 is a common choice as well.
