modern machine made Browning Vs Belgan browning

[Canis]

Hi Folks,

 

I'm considering the purchase of a new gun with about a £1750 budget +/- my webley 812 that i can't get on with

 

While my 325 Grade 1 Sporter is great for my Shooting needs ( mostly clay comprising generaly sporting but i do also occaisonally shoot skeet & trap),it is a bit tatty,is starting to have pitting in the barrel and will need a new firing pin soon (badly pitted but not misfiring yet ) hence I'm considering getting another gun, for rather than getting these things sorted.

 

I'm trying to decide wether to go for a (used) high grade B525 sporter or an old (very old at this budget) /low grade B25 . If I had 5K to spend it would be a B25 without doubt but at sub 2K it is in the balance

 

Clearly the B25 is likely to if anything only go up in value and is hand made, however the 525 will take less cleaning and will be better suited to shooting steel (if/when the lead ban occurs).

 

 

Gun fit is unimportant as being a left hander with slightly odd measurements, I am assuming that which ever gun i go for It will need altering to fit me and frankly i would rather pay to have a gun fitted than merely go for one that is "nearly" right.

 

 

any thoughts?

[Dekers]

Yep..look at Miroku as well, all the same family and fit is often different.

 

I have to say I am a big fan of Mr Beretta but there is no getting away from the fact that almost without fail evey time I pick up a Miroku it fits and feels good!

[Cumbrian]

The Belgian made guns have a reputation for rusting and, I am told by a gunsmith, are much more likely to have mechanical problems than the ones from Japan. I have had only the latter variety and they are absolutely excellent. The Belgian ones seem overpriced to me, and not apparently available with longer barrels.

[seeker]

Having had B25s they seem very different from 3/4/525s.. in handling, build and use. I was told that the B2G sporting stock is one of the best designs and one top shooter(apparently) has it copied onto a Beretta.

As to cleaning they are addicted to Legia

[VicW]

Personally,if I had £2k to spend on a gun it wouldn't be a B25 because at that money it's likely to be a bit of a nail. I would spend the money on a new grade 1 Miroku MK38 costing about £1200 or a used grade 3 or grade 5 Mk38 if you want to pay for cosmetics.

To me a clay gun is a tool and I would go for the new MK38 every time.I've owned a couple and I believe they are the best value for money clay gun on the market.

 

 

Vic.

[vmaxphil]

be careful about having a 525 altered as there is a alloy tube in the hand of the stock

[HDAV]

B525 come in LH from the factory which may be a benefit I recently bought a LH 525 and its lovely even tho it's a lowly grade 1 the prestige is stunning I dont like the black action on the Premium Gold but you may well in budget

[PhilR]

be careful about having a 525 altered as there is a alloy tube in the hand of the stock

As I think there is on Grade 3 and 5 Mirokus and it has to be removed before bending.

 

Phil (another left hander)

[Cosmicblue]

Hi Folks,

 

I'm considering the purchase of a new gun with about a £1750 budget +/- my webley 812 that i can't get on with

 

While my 325 Grade 1 Sporter is great for my Shooting needs ( mostly clay comprising generaly sporting but i do also occaisonally shoot skeet & trap),it is a bit tatty,is starting to have pitting in the barrel and will need a new firing pin soon (badly pitted but not misfiring yet ) hence I'm considering getting another gun, for rather than getting these things sorted.

 

I'm trying to decide wether to go for a (used) high grade B525 sporter or an old (very old at this budget) /low grade B25 . If I had 5K to spend it would be a B25 without doubt but at sub 2K it is in the balance

 

Clearly the B25 is likely to if anything only go up in value and is hand made, however the 525 will take less cleaning and will be better suited to shooting steel (if/when the lead ban occurs).

 

 

Gun fit is unimportant as being a left hander with slightly odd measurements, I am assuming that which ever gun i go for It will need altering to fit me and frankly i would rather pay to have a gun fitted than merely go for one that is "nearly" right.

 

 

any thoughts?

 

Two thoughts, one a bit more radical than the other:

 

1) Take a look at an Ultra XS Sporter, a clay busting orientated gun made in Herstal - and would get you an adjustable stock too, they hover around a list price of £2k - and at that price there is room for negotiation with the dealer. The Titanium Prestige version just gets slightly better wood and Titanium chokes (they are £100 each!). There are LH versions too. Either way a lovely bit of kit. Downsides, it's a tad heavy.

 

 

2) Also take a look at the Browning Maxus semi-auto - that is made in neither Belgium or Japan - but Portugal. Build quality is simply gorgeous - from the factory the stock is straight - no cast either way. In the case though are spacers so you can adjust the cast to suit your personal fit.

 

I'm relatively new to shooting but quickly encountered quite a bit of prejudice towards semi-autos, not least of which being the safety considerations, i.e. 'is it loaded'. Up until the CLA Game fair back in July I'd never picked one up, let alone pulled the trigger - did one of those 'Pay and Clay' stands, 10 targets, broke 8.

 

Took the plunge and bought one from my local dealer with the proviso that I could return it for the loss of £100 if we didn't get on. Got the Premium Grade 3 in 28" (longer overall than my 30" XS), beautiful finish, nice wood. Absolutely gorgeous to shoot with and so light too - on my third outing I beat my best ever score at ESP and Skeet.

 

Safety - it is a very neat, quick to load/unload and visually verify that the chamber and magazine are empty, it bears all the hallmarks of a design evolution - made that way for a reason.

 

I have since bought a pair of Browning Midas Gold Invector Plus extended chokes (M & Skt), as they are easier to change - and check that they are tight than the internal items.

 

Downsides - none so far - and for you brand new list price is £1130 for the absolute top of the range model. The dealer suggested putting a case of 28Grm carts through it when new to loosen up the action - ever since that I'm been using 24Grm Hull Pro Ones - works perfectly.

 

Lastly, and unsually for a semi-auto it is visually attractive - waiting for a stand other shooters are always curious as to what it is - and then puzzled by the way difficult targets are nailed. There is something especially neat in the design that makes it bizarrely easy to shoot well.

 

Go and try one!

Edited September 2, 2010 by Cosmicblue

[Canis]

Two thoughts, one a bit more radical than the other:

 

1) Take a look at an Ultra XS Sporter, a clay busting orientated gun made in Herstal - and would get you an adjustable stock too, they hover around a list price of £2k - and at that price there is room for negotiation with the dealer. The Titanium Prestige version just gets slightly better wood and Titanium chokes (they are £100 each!). There are LH versions too. Either way a lovely bit of kit. Downsides, it's a tad heavy.

 

 

2) Also take a look at the Browning Maxus semi-auto - that is made in neither Belgium or Japan - but Portugal. Build quality is simply gorgeous - from the factory the stock is straight - no cast either way. In the case though are spacers so you can adjust the cast to suit your personal fit.

 

I'm relatively new to shooting but quickly encountered quite a bit of prejudice towards semi-autos, not least of which being the safety considerations, i.e. 'is it loaded'. Up until the CLA Game fair back in July I'd never picked one up, let alone pulled the trigger - did one of those 'Pay and Clay' stands, 10 targets, broke 8.

 

Took the plunge and bought one from my local dealer with the proviso that I could return it for the loss of £100 if we didn't get on. Got the Premium Grade 3 in 28" (longer overall than my 30" XS), beautiful finish, nice wood. Absolutely gorgeous to shoot with and so light too - on my third outing I beat my best ever score at ESP and Skeet.

 

Safety - it is a very neat, quick to load/unload and visually verify that the chamber and magazine are empty, it bears all the hallmarks of a design evolution - made that way for a reason.

 

I have since bought a pair of Browning Midas Gold Invector Plus extended chokes (M & Skt), as they are easier to change - and check that they are tight than the internal items.

 

Downsides - none so far - and for you brand new list price is £1130 for the absolute top of the range model. The dealer suggested putting a case of 28Grm carts through it when new to loosen up the action - ever since that I'm been using 24Grm Hull Pro Ones - works perfectly.

 

Lastly, and unsually for a semi-auto it is visually attractive - waiting for a stand other shooters are always curious as to what it is - and then puzzled by the way difficult targets are nailed. There is something especially neat in the design that makes it bizarrely easy to shoot well.

 

Go and try one!

 

I a had a go of a Maxus on sunday at the sporting shoot i went to - a wildfowler I was squadded with had one that she was breaking in prior to the start on the season. - She shot the hundred bird event and three of us had 6 shots each on the last stand without a single jam. I liked it, and hit 5/6 . If they did a left handed action I would trade the webley in for it without further thought !

[Cosmicblue]

I a had a go of a Maxus on sunday at the sporting shoot i went to - a wildfowler I was squadded with had one that she was breaking in prior to the start on the season. - She shot the hundred bird event and three of us had 6 shots each on the last stand without a single jam. I liked it, and hit 5/6 . If they did a left handed action I would trade the webley in for it without further thought !

 

That's the kind of buying signal I had too - it shouldn't be as good as it is.

 

I suppose as a LH shooter you would have the ejecting empties being spat through your line of sight. You would have to load with your right hand too - though inserting one in the chamber and releasing the bolt and another in the magazine doesn't require much dexterity. It says in the Maxus manual that the safety catch operation can be reversed by a gunsmith for LH shooters though......the said document can be found here Browning Maxus owners manual

Edited September 2, 2010 by Cosmicblue

[retromlc]

I tried a Maxus,loved it,then I tried the Beretta A400,had to have one,so pleased with it I bought my son one too.my scores went up 25% on first time out.

don't dismis the semi,they don't hold as much favour from a snobbery point of view, but they are excellent pieces of kit,and i've seen more failures with the second shot fromO/U where the shooter has failed to relese the trigger suficiently for the second shot than I have seen semi's jam,in fact i can honestly say that in the last two years of shooting I haven't seen a modern semi Jam.

Edited September 2, 2010 by retromlc

[VicW]

I am pretty sure that the current versions of the Browning Maxus and the Beretta A400 are the game/field versions and as such are lighter than the forthcoming sporting versions. A lightweight semi-auto can be very tiring if you put 100+ cartridges through it as you may do in a days clay shooting. The heavier sporting versions are more suited to clays.

They are both very nice guns although I suppose I would side with the Beretta as I have used Beretta autos for 25 years. In that time I have had very few problems with them and I am not one who cleans a gun every time I use it.My gun gets cleaned about every 1000 cartridges or so.

 

Vic.

[HDAV]

I a had a go of a Maxus on sunday at the sporting shoot i went to - a wildfowler I was squadded with had one that she was breaking in prior to the start on the season. - She shot the hundred bird event and three of us had 6 shots each on the last stand without a single jam. I liked it, and hit 5/6 . If they did a left handed action I would trade the webley in for it without further thought !

Benelli Montefeltro & Benelli Duca di Montefeltro come LH as do many other semi's

[retromlc]

VicW the A400 i used at a 70 bird shoot was the non kick-off version,using 28gms,it felt like 21grm loads,the non kick-off version would feel even better,

after 70 clays i feel it with the Franci more.