Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters New shotgun(s) & sifting through the propaganda

Please forgive my ignorance on the matter, but I'm looking to purchase a new shotgun or two and I've not kept up with the advances, particularly when it comes to the operating systems of the newer semi-autos.

I will be purchasing a 20ga, semi-auto for upland birds/skeet and a 12 ga, semi-auto or pump (undecided here) for turkey. I've been considering the Beretta A400 Lite Synthetic for the semi-auto and some type of Benelli for the pump option or second semi-auto.

My criteria for the semi-auto is the followig: simple design, ease of maintenance or being able to suffer from a lack thereof, reliability and soft shooting.

When considering the semi-autos and their respective operating systems; which system, the Beretta or the Inertia Driven system of the Benelli is preferred? What are the pros and cons of each? Any info you could provide me would be appreciated.

Thanks for the education.

Benelli. Light, great handling, and they flat out work all the time.

Being an older guy, my interest in semi-auto shotguns are pretty much limited to the Browning A5s and Remington 1100s. In pump guns, to the Ithaca 37, Remington 870, and Winchester 12.

I've been shooting the same Remington 1100 20 gauge 26" skeet gun for nearly 40 years, have put at least 10K rounds through it, and have yet to have a single malfunction.

During that same period of time I've run through a dozen or so Remington 870s in 12, 16, 20, and 410. None wore out or failed to function, just bought and sold them as the commodity products that they are.

I've never owned a Benelli or Beretta shotgun, so I can't comment on them, but wonder if they will still be running as flawlessly as the Remington after three plus decades of use.

You be well served with any Beretta that suits your needs. High volume clay bird competitors that shoot "Auto shotguns" shoot Beretta for a reason.

Doc

Worked for Beretta for a while. I remember at the World Skeet tourney down in San Antonio having a few competitor's and locals showing up with their 302's and older semi's. Seems they had finally worn out a part or something around their 150,000th round or so.
Ran a sample 391 semi through 20,000 rounds without a hitch other than wiping it down inside and out. Had a competitor in Sporting Clays that I sold a 391 to that kept count and when I moved back to Texas, he was at 75,000 rounds through the shotgun.
There are a few that shoot the Benelli's on the trap,skeet, sporting clays circle. Most serious shooters go to a gas gun. NOT because the Benelli's don't work or have a problem but, because when you're shooting 10-30,000 rounds a year through a gun the recoil from even those little 1 oz and 7/8 oz loads adds up.

Long story short, for the average bird hunter, either the Benelli or the Beretta won't do you wrong. Either will more than likely outlast you and be a gun you can pass along to the next generation.

Tom Knapp put over half million shells through a Benelli M1. That should work, right?

http://www.tomknapp.net/gunroom/tomsOldBenelli.php

You could get a new A5, they're basically a Benelli now.

First, skip the 12 gauge for turkeys altogether. Instead, buy tungsten-based heavy ammo which will outshoot any lead in a 12 gauge.

For a good 20 gauge semi, there are a number of options, many based simply on what price range/social standing you wish to inhabit. Here are some that will work with your criteria of being reliable and easy maintenance:

Tristar Viper G2
Weatherby SA-08
Stoeger 3020
Franchi Affinity
Winchester SX3
Benelli, various models
Beretta 30* or 39*, various models

Of those, I think that the Franchi Affinity is currently the best if you desire high-quality with low and easy maintenance. It is an inertia gun with the spring under the forend.

If you need a gasser to relieve recoil for high-numbers shooting, then either of the first two get you there cheaply, the Winchester in the middle but heavier, while the Beretta gets you there expensively.

Lots of good advice above and I appreciate every post.

Stopped at Sportsman's Warehouse on Sunday and handled a Beretta and Benelli autos; I preferred the ergos of the Beretta.

I'll have to check out the Franchi as well; a buddy of mine has one.

You are kidding right? Benelli and Beretta are the choice of shotgun anywhere Dove are shot in huge volume. Probably get shot more in a month then most people shoot brand x in 30 years.

Stud,

My all time favorite upland gun at this point is the Benelli M2 in 20 gauge. Very tough to beat. Very light, shoots smooth. Love, love, love, love it.

The Franchi Affinity is built on that same frame. But the spring sits up front and it does change the balance of the gun. About $4-500 cheaper however so that is something to consider.

For bird hunting, the value of the mag cut off cannot be underestimated. It is simply wonderful and both the Benelli and Franchi have this feature.

The Winchester SX3 (also in the 20 gauge) is more middle of the road. Balances well but is slightly more heavy. If I wanted to shoot dove all day, I'd grab the SX simply because the Benelli is so damn light even the 20 gauge would hurt my vagina after a long day of shooting.

I can't recall a single malfunction from any of the three.

One upland shotgun for the rest of my days? Benelli M2 in 20 gauge.




Travis

There are times that it is ok to double down on stupid.

But not every day.




Dave

Don't have much experience with the Benelli and have a few friends that have Berettas and they handle nice and have been good guns . However I'm somewhat like 260RG. and have shot a Remington 1100 for years w/o issue. There are 2 things that sort of concern me about the Beretta and in one case benelli. There's something about the alloy receivers that once they begin to accumulae wear and scratches just look really bad and are tuff to address. The other thing as to the Beretta is their penchant to reintroduce new models every 5 years. The down side is eventually parts dry up. I have a very nice Beretta o/u from the 1970s that is a very nice gun but once something breaks it's done. My 70s vintage 1100 and870 would be good to go. Luckily all of these guns are pretty reliable so unless you are a competitive shooter that buys shells in pallets you are probably going to be ok.

That's what I was going to say.

He aint wrong. Browning Auto 5's & Remington 1100's get the job done with predictable regularity. Doves don't require a +/- $1500 shotgun to fall from the sky.

Stud Duck,
In October I decided to move up to a finer shotgun than my trusty 870. Looked at Benelli's, Beretta's briefly. My final choice was a 1965 Browning Auto 5. It was NIB and now has roughly 10 rounds through it. I purchased a new 26" barrel with the Invector choke tubes for it. I missed an opportunity on a couple of squirrels while I was admiring my new smoke-pole last trip to the woods. In my opinion, few shotguns are near as nice.

For me, it's Benelli and Browning. I like the inertia systems in smaller gauges like 20 and 28, but for my 12 gauge needs, my Browning Maxus is very hard to beat- gas operated, and one of the softest-shooting shotguns you will ever put to your shoulder.

The reason they are not used is they break. How are you putting an A5 in the same class as an 1100?

I have both inertia and gas guns and prefer the gas guns. Beretta, Winchester or Weatherby would be my choice in a 20 gauge. The gas guns simply mitigate the recoil better. This is especially helpful when hunting flooded timber for ducks. I am able to get off a second shot faster with a gas gun.

Benelli semi autos work great and last forever but recoil more than gas guns. I shoot a Remington Versamax and it's extremely soft shooting but is heavier than most of the competition. It just depends on what you want. For an upland shotgun I would guess you want something lighter.