Dexter.1 Posted February 1, 2007 Report Share Posted February 1, 2007 As you can probably see from previous posts I'm just getting to know S/G's, had a lesson enjoyed it, booked another session etc. Decided to have a look around at some guns to see whats around and what prices, Beretta 687 Silver Pigeon took my eye and S/H guns seemed in right sort of area. Arranged to have a close look and play with one at £750 for a 28" sporter apparently about 12 months old. Then fatally looked around the web and started to see all sorts of prices for silver Pigeons, One dealer appears to have a new one at £825 for a game gun, but have seen some sporters at as much as £1300 new. How do you make sense of the pricing and know if you're getting a reasonable deal? II's III's etc ? does it really make that much difference game or sporter? as the price gap seems enormous Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poacher Posted February 2, 2007 Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 Hi Dexter, the prices of S/H guns varies quite abit depending on Make,Model,Condition,Barel length, Fixed/multi-choke,Age,Quality of wood/engraving etc etc and to some extent the dealers mark up on the sale.. with regards to getting a silver pidg I, II, or III as far as i'm aware its mainly better engraving hence higher cost. if you have a look on a well known gun trading site you should be able to find a similar gun and get a good idea of the cost you should be paying. If this is your first purchase it maybe wise to take someone else with you to check it out,hope this helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy W Posted February 2, 2007 Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 Never seen a new SP for less than £1100 before, if you can get one cheaper I would definately buy it and of course it depends what discipline you are going to shoot, if you intend to do a bit of everything it usually makes sense to buy a sporter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexter.1 Posted February 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 Never seen a new SP for less than £1100 before, if you can get one cheaper I would definately buy it and of course it depends what discipline you are going to shoot, if you intend to do a bit of everything it usually makes sense to buy a sporter. I Checked out Avalon guns - for no particular reason and according to their site they say the have a new sp game 28" for £825??, locally dealers are talking £975 cash no PX for a new sporter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death from below Posted February 2, 2007 Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 Never seen a new SP for less than £1100 before, if you can get one cheaper I would definately buy it and of course it depends what discipline you are going to shoot, if you intend to do a bit of everything it usually makes sense to buy a sporter. I Checked out Avalon guns - for no particular reason and according to their site they say the have a new sp game 28" for £825??, locally dealers are talking £975 cash no PX for a new sporter. You'll find avalon pretty cheap 'cause they do so much credit.......I got my semi auto from avalon and their service was tip top....and far cheaper than my local beretta stockist Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanlee Posted February 2, 2007 Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 I Checked out Avalon guns - for no particular reason and according to their site they say the have a new sp game 28" for £825??, locally dealers are talking £975 cash no PX for a new sporter. It all depends on what gun it is. I have no idea if the Silver Pigeon comes in various different types, but some makers supply a gun in various guises, with the game gun being the cheapest, the heavy stocked, multi-choked, good wood finish guns being the most expensive. The game gun tends to be a bit lighter in weight, and may have fixed chokes, and may well have an automatic safety catch.For clay usage, none of those attributes are recommended, though none of them stop you shooting clays with it. Also, the stock can be supplied in different woods and wood finishes, usually described as between grade 1 and 5. I think 5 is the best, though I dont tend to bother too much what it looks like - when you are firing, the only thing you see is the rib! Before you commit yourself, make sure it fits you. If, in a months time you find it doesnt fit as well as you thought, then you are either going to have a bill to shape the stock for you, or you'll want to trade it in. A £300 gun that fits is far better than a £2000 one that doesnt fit. Alan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexter.1 Posted February 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 Didn't get to see the s/h gun today, someone has nipped in PDQ and bought it - fair play to the seller he did say that apart from me there were a few lined up and it would be first to get there with the cash. Talking to him he seemed a nice fella, he's going to get a 682 - good luck with it Mike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexter.1 Posted February 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2007 Got to shoot a silver pigeon today over at Worsley, felt really good, I enjoyed it, felt better than the Miroku I shot last week I reckon it has to be No# 1 contender?? Also sorted the cabinet today and sent off the SGC application - I'll let you know!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ziplex Posted February 3, 2007 Report Share Posted February 3, 2007 Just to reiterate, the Silver Pigeon is sold by most dealers as a game gun. You won't find any info on the Beretta or GMK web site on the sport version of the standard SP as it was made in limited numbers. My serial number of the gun is described as 'discontinued' on the warranty...........doesn't point to anything sinister, GMK informed me of the above on checking. The game gun feels significantly different to the sport version as it is lighter, usually is available with fixed chokes only. Good luck, but if you decide on an SP i'm sure you'll be very happy with it, as I am with mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted February 3, 2007 Report Share Posted February 3, 2007 I have a SP3 purchased it last Nov time, 30Inch Barrels M/C. Lovely gun, tryed quite a few and the Berretta fitted me the best. I paid £1200 for it new, but got £600 trade in on my old Miroku 7000, so only had to find £600 in cash. Got mine from Clay Cafe nr weymouth in the end as i was down there clay shooting at the time. I did not like the design of the SP2 as the engraving did not look that good, so went with the SP3 Pheasies one side and ducks on the other...but what the hell it only sits in the cabinet when not being used, so i guess it does not make much difference...but i do like the gun Cheers Spaniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted February 10, 2007 Report Share Posted February 10, 2007 I have a Silver pigeon S field model. They vary in spec in several ways to a sporter. 1. On sporters the barrels have longer forcing cones, better chokes and are bored bigger to improve pattern and reduce recoil slightly. 2. The sporters also weigh more to soak up recoil better 3. Sporters have manual safety so you don't have to push it off every time you reload (trust me, you get a sore finger after 100 rounds of releasing the safety!) After all of that, I have the field gun and it patterns very well. I'm having the safety done by the gun smith so it doesn't reset itself every time the gun is opened. It doesn't recoil that hard either. The various grades of expensive engraving don't help your shooting, so why bother spending £400 on a posh pattern? The prices of each model vary depending on whether it's a multi choke or fixed. I went for multi for an extra £100, it's well worth it if you want to shoot skeet one day, and pigeons and rabbits the next. I paid £1040 for mine new 4 months ago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexter.1 Posted February 11, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2007 Interesting, I need to shoot a game gun to feel the difference I guess, I realise that the looks don't make you shoot any better but there's just something about a nicely engraved sideplates and decent wood. It's going to be a real dilemna. Thanks for your input Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonp Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 I've got the same dilema going on, so thats for the info within this thread all Looks like an SP Sporter 28/30" M/C is next to try out..... Si. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wacker Posted February 15, 2007 Report Share Posted February 15, 2007 I chopped and changed - i started with an 686e which was good, i part ex'd it after a year for a 686sc game gun - case hardend, with nice timber, it felt a lot lighter and had an auto saftey. I do a bit of pigeon shooting etc, but i also shoot at 100 bird sporting every weekend. The felt recoil was a bit harder, but the auto saftey kept catching me out! If i had the money i would have kept it but i part ex'd it for a silver pigeon III sporter. I could have saved myself a lot of money if i'd only stuck with my first gun - i love my pigeon III though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LEFTY478 Posted February 22, 2007 Report Share Posted February 22, 2007 As you can probably see from previous posts I'm just getting to know S/G's, had a lesson enjoyed it, booked another session etc. Decided to have a look around at some guns to see whats around and what prices, Beretta 687 Silver Pigeon took my eye and S/H guns seemed in right sort of area. Arranged to have a close look and play with one at £750 for a 28" sporter apparently about 12 months old. Then fatally looked around the web and started to see all sorts of prices for silver Pigeons, One dealer appears to have a new one at £825 for a game gun, but have seen some sporters at as much as £1300 new. How do you make sense of the pricing and know if you're getting a reasonable deal? II's III's etc ? does it really make that much difference game or sporter? as the price gap seems enormous Cheers Seen this: http://www.abgunsmiths.co.uk/guns.asp?typex=1 Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon S O/U Field 40156 NEW. 12 or 20 Bore Fixed chokes 28" Barrels. Priced without P/X. Inc VAT Price : £ 920 from:- A.Branthwaite Gunsmiths 6 Ravenoak Road, Cheadle Hulme Cheshire, SK8 7DL. Tel: 0161 485 1199 Fax: 0161 485 1199 E-mail: abgunsmiths@aol.com I don't know anything about the company though, not in my area, but they have the lowest priced Berettas' that I've found. The next best was Essex Gun, near Romford - about 20% below list price, but they're no where near you. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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