Dear Technoid,

I would like you to tell me which soft side gun case you like the best for a 390.I have the wild hare case but I do not like how it opens.I know that there are better cases and need your advise.I also would like to store my gun in it and would like to know if the soft side case is ideal for this.

thanks Dean

Dear Dean,

I have a Wild Hare case and just hate them. Quality is good enough, but they are a monument to poor design. They are awkward to open with the Velcro AND snap top. Inserting the gun into the top of the slip is also awkward.

The Wild Hare carry strap is
1) too thin, and
2) located too low at the top.

The low top location makes it difficult to carry the cased gun over the shoulder without the muzzle swinging out in front. If they would just raise that top anchor point six inches, it would be far better.

By far my favorite gun case is the Boyt. I have a number of them and find that the more expensive one, the shotgun case with the leather handles and wide strap clipped on to the side of the case, works best for me. It carries normally and the side zipper makes it very easy to insert a gun. The cases have a life-time guarantee, so when the zipper wears out in a couple of years, they will repair it for you. I have several Boyt cases that are over 15 years old and used heavily. When something finally wears out, they have always been repaired immediately.

My only complaint about the Boyt case is that they use a metal snap at both ends of the carry strap. The top end is exactly where it rests on your shoulder, so the metal digs in. This is easy enough to redesign, but they haven’t figured it out yet.

Which is the best case to store the gun in? None of them. I recommend strongly against storing any gun in a standard case. From a rust point of view, guns are best stored where a little air can circulate around them. Any gun case promotes rust because it holds the dampness close to the gun and doesn’t permit it to evaporate the way circulating air does. You can buy special storage sleeves made of rust inhibiting impregnated paper for storage, but that is a lot more trouble than just keeping the gun in a safe with a Golden Rod to raise the dew point. I really believe in keeping a gun in a safe, even if it is just an inexpensive “locker” type.

Best regards,

Bruce Buck
Shotgun Report’s Technoid
(Often in error, never in doubt.)