Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns ATA Arms NEO and Girsan MC 312

I'm looking for an auto loader for skeet and sporting clays. Both of these guns are Turkish made and are in the same price range also they both are inertia and similar in design to the Benelli.
Have any of you guys been running these and what is your opinion of them? I've been reading the "which gun should I get" threads and have not seen these two brands mentioned.

I'll pass.

I would stay away from Turkish guns.

Far, far away....

What's the price range? What is your maximum budget?

Both of these brands have been in the 300-400 range. I've seen good reviews on them so I've been wondering if they are worth while. As for my budget i could go up to about 1k.

I've read the recommendations on the other threads so I've got a good idea what to get if I decide to spend more.

get a used, but solid Citori (if it fits you).

Coworker bought a Girsan from Buds for $250 last fall. Buds offers a lifetime warranty for like $25. He told me yesterday he’d buy a dozen more if they were still that price.

As more of an experiment in Turkish guns than because I needed one, I bought a TriStar Viper G2 Bronze for $600. Many say similar to the 300 series Beretta gas gun. I too bought from Buds to get their lifetime warranty. Have only shot a flat of shells through it so far. Haven’t cleaned the gas system. No hiccups. They make a less dressed up version in wood/blued for $400. Trigger is a creepy 7 lbs....

What does Bud's $25. warranty give you. A new shotgun if it breaks? A replacement part? How long until you get the part to get it back running? How long will that particular Turkish manufacturer be in business to back the warranty.
You get into serious skeet, trap or sporting clays and the cost of the shotgun becomes as a friend says, "Nothing more than another bag on the Queen Mary." For a gas gun, Browning, Beretta, Benelli, Winchester and perhaps Fabarm for the win. You want to get rid of it, those four give you many customers. ATA and Girsan very few.

If Buds can’t fix it they allow the cost of the gun against anything they carry. I’ve never used them before, so we shall see.

I’ve got Beretta autos and a Beretta OU, as well as multiples of every classic pump made. I don’t shoot competitive clays, just some backyard practice as well as informal days at some local skeet/trap/sporting clays ranges.

If my “experiment” fails, no biggie. I’ve wasted more money on dumber things.

Our very talented local gunsmith has repaired many CZ doubles (Turkish made) which either misfired or doubled. He says the metal the internal parts are made of are very soft steel and claims this is endemic to Turkish made guns.

They can make a good gun. Kimber had a SxS at one time that was made by the Turks. An ex Krieghoff smith took one apart and said it was made exceptionally well and the barrels were regulated for POI.

It cost more than $400. How to make a good shotgun is nothing new and the Turks have more than a few examples to copy.

All heavy use shotguns break, especially autos, it is just a matter of time. If they use quality parts, are in the business for the long term and have parts and repair as part of the business model they can produce a good gun. Until then, current buyers are their Guinea pigs. None yet have been successsful and the branded names come and go on almost a yearly basis.

There are autos out there made by companies that have been in business for hundreds of years. Autos proven to handle 100,000 plus firings with minimal and relatively quickly handled problems. You pay more and as of now you get more.