Home Forums Birds & Dogs Waterfowl Best semi auto for the $

For the $ , I like my Remington V3 Camo. Got mine just before Remington folded.

Takes RemChoke tubes which I already had a good selection from shooting Trap with an 1100 + 870 or two, and Skeet / Sporting with their O/U 320

I’ve never really felt the need for 3-1/2”. Handles light loads through magnum 3” w/o hiccuping
Lightweight to carry, but recoil is most pleasant. My 26” swings nice with light Contour barrels

Great gas Auto , I’m Planning on getting a Waterfowl Pro for the receiver upgrades & cerakoating when RemArms gets production fully going again.

years ago I picked up a Beretta 390 12ga. Haven't used the Remington or Benelli since. The 390 is a great shotgun and I'm looking for a 20ga.

Hard to beat a 390. I have two and will never sell either one. A 390 in a 20 gauge would be a baby doll! I wonder if the A300 will ever match the notoriety of the 390.

Franchi Affinity is a close to bulletproof shotgun with the short recoil system. You can pull the bolt, clean it and the hole it came out of in an awfully short time. Had a 12ga but sold it when I found a Browning Gold Fusion I wanted. Only thing I’d change is to a 24” barrel instead of the 26” on it.

when i saw this thread I had to see what everyone thought. I have 1 auto. An AL390 gold.

I heard that the 391 has an updated gas system. I don't hunt waterfowl . Used the 390 for upland but mostly trap and Sporting Clays now a days.

Old pic.

If new...Beretta A300. Utilizes the 391 system that is very good. Right around $700 now.

I still use my old Remington 1187. It's been flawless for years.

I am a fan of the 1100/1187 system as well. Dedicated clays shooters seems to stay away from them due to high volume reliability issues. As a hunting shotgun, so think they are great shotguns. My 4-H shooters particularly like them, typically choosing them over other brands.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^

This.

Have a SX2 and an SX3. Both are incredible and unstoppable.

I intentionally did not clean my SX2 for the first 7 or 8 years I had it. Just wanted to see how long it would go before flubbing up. I ran everything from 7/8 oz. Walmart junkers to 3 1/2" steel and turkey loads. I got to feeling guilty and finally tore it down and cleaned it. It never DID and never HAS hiccupped. The SX3 has been, likewise, flawless. Only difference is the weight. The SX3 is lighter. Nicer to carry. Rougher on the shoulder with 3 1/2 inchers. Take your pick. But the gas system makes either of them pretty tolerable with the candlestick loads.

I agree, the SX2-SX4 series are stellar. They are no-frills, reasonably priced, and very reliable shotguns. My SX4 will cycle light loads all the way to the heaviest 3.5" without a hiccup. The SX4s are made in Browning's Portugal plant along side A5s and the Maxus guns.

The only thing "better" with the 391 gas system is it allows for a little thinner forend for those who do not like the chunky one of the 390. The 390 has an easier to clean gas system. The 391 does cycle the Winchester Featherlite Low Recoil loads without changing anything provided it has at least a 28" barrel. The 390 will do the Featherlites with a replacement spring from Cole's but will cycle my 7/8 oz reloads at 1250 fps all day long with the factory spring.

I have two 391s, one is my wife's sporting clays gun, the other is her back up though wears a slug barrel for my use. I just picked up a second 12 ga 390 as I cut down the stock on the other to fit a friend and that stock is now far too short for anyone taller than a Munchkin. The 20 ga 390 is my wife's upland gun.

Unless talking about Winchester Featherlights, there should be no need to weld the piston closed. I've shot thousands of 7/8 oz Fiocchi Trainers and handloads out of three SX/2s and two Browning Gold Hunters, all with 3.5" chambering. I oz, 1180 fps target loads work fine too.

I sold my SB 1, recoil was brutal after shooting gas guns for years.

Found two Browning Gold Hunters, and shot them very well. Then I discovered the 390's and 391's which are very soft recoiling shotguns. The 20g 390 is an amazing shot gun, feels like you are shooting a pellet rifle!