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Semi Auto -What to buy?


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Well I've had the beretta 301 /303 /921 and then got a browning gold fusion they were a sod to clean,

But now i have a benelli and its brilliant if you dont like cleaning semi's this is the one you can put

100 of cartridges through it and it still looks clean, never had a jam and use all my home loads in it 30gr no 6

recycles easy...Best move i ever made this gun is a keeper.. :good::good::good::good:

Edited by hawkeye
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Is the Franchi Affinity a good all-rounder? Looking for a clay gun, but will also be for pigeons, crows. Cabinet space is limited (I have rifle slots to fill, aswell as atleast 1 other shotgun I want) so could do with a semi which will be good for it all. A new Affinity is pretty much at my budget (havnt handled one yet, hopefully that happens this weekend).

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hello, i must admit there are so many different models and makes and prices, inertia or gas operated most will work and shoot 1000s of cartridges with out any problems, i chose mine after some research on weight/price/ reliability/ warranty/ and most of all it fits into shoulder perfect, but then i still miss :lol::rolleyes:

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hello, i must admit there are so many different models and makes and prices, inertia or gas operated most will work and shoot 1000s of cartridges with out any problems, i chose mine after some research on weight/price/ reliability/ warranty/ and most of all it fits into shoulder perfect, but then i still miss :lol::rolleyes:

Even though I have replied a few times, I sometimes wonder if it does any good asking which is the best....anything. You end up with so many options and personal preferences that it becomes mind boggling.

 

I think the ops last post has it summed up for two guns to think hard about.

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So say

 

Browning Maxus camo

Benelli M2 camo

Winchester SX3

Franchi Affinity

Hmmm too much choice ??

hello, all are well made quality semi autos and should give years of good service, go and try each model if you can and get the one that you will enjoy using/shooting/ cleaning and most important fits you.

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Surprised theres not been a massive mention of Beretta semi's... Yes I'm confused but upto now the Benelli M2 and Browning Maxus sound very appealing..

I am a Benelli advocate and user, I have had three they are reliable but they are not without their problems, The back tube will gunk up and will cause jams without regular cleaning they are not the use all day never look at or clean semi auto some Benelli owners try to tell you they are.

They need proper lubrication and in truth a replacement rear spring to be a practical long term high volume shotgun, The rotary bolt can and will wear the extractor plate can fail these are just two comon faults that ocur in use.

Every gun has its faukts these are the key ones on Benellis well the old style benellis anyway, Benelli have done detail improvements over the years to try and combat these faults and the uncomfortable felt recoil assosiated with using these guns, its not unbearable but it is significantly worse than an equivelent weight gas auto.

The Maxus again along with the old golds the fusions silvers sx2s and sx3s all have the gas system of a basicaly similar type, they do break the gas piston springs, and this can be in the first few months or they can last forever you have no real warning or indication they will break they just do, hard use heavy loads dont really indicate when they will break, but its a very common fault with them.

Maxus do have an anoying trait called trigger trapping, it was a fault of epidemic proportions on the early maxus, Browning alegedly solved this problem, but i saw a near new on do this only last year on the Moray firth.

Google trigger trapping on the maxus, its a common fault.

Now You mention There as been little mention on Berettas I have little knowledge of Berettas but i know of many used by friends and aquaintances, they bradly are very good in every respect, but for the A 400s which can and do give issues on some guns when running 3.5 inch shells, They seem to be reluctant to feed and i have whitnesed problems in the field with this on the A400.

The older 391s extrena 1s and extrema 2s are fantastic semi autos they have the odd fault but are far more robust and reliable in the field than the older style Benellis, The vinchis super and the std vinchi are a totaly different animal, far better handling the bolt spring is repositioned for exelent reliability and no gunking up, they are efficient with a broader range of ammo and need less maintainance, they are in essence what the M2s and SBEs claimed to be, all rolled up in one of the best balanced sweetest handling semi autos ever produced Vinchis are incredible and cheapere than the M2s SBEs etc.

No mention of wildfowling bigger heavier loads was mentioned in the OP, just basic pigeon shooting and rough shooting, so never mentioned any 3.5 inch capable guns like the sx3s etc.

If i had to pick a new as in relatively new in design semi auto of todays range of semi autos, only two inspire me as something very special and inovative, The vinchis including the super but mainly aimed at the vinchi itself are Very good nothing handles any where near them in my opinion, and i defy anyone to use one even just a few hours and come away saying it was a poor handling gun, they just feel so right, if you have not tried one i strongly sujest you do before you buy anything else it would be a shame if you didnt.

And for one other gun thats proved itself as a very reliable gun is the Remington versamax its gas system is very good vertualy maintainance free and indeed near identical gas system is used by Benelli in the US military use etc M4 action, The versamax offers this inovative gas system to the general public for wildfowling pigeon shooting whatever, no other manufacturers curently offer this system besides Remington to the masses.

I think a close look at a versamax and use one of those would be worth looking at too.

Good luck in whatever you chose.

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every one has there own opinion on the subject,i see cosd remarked the beretta a400 is quality,then its much better than my a300 outlander,on all of this model that ive seen,the wood has come from a pallet,the barrel blacking isnt very good either it rusted in 2 hours getting home on a wet day,,by comparison i also use an armsan a620s,the outlander is mechanicly very reliable but so is the armsan for half the price,so i dont think my beretta is twice as good as my cheap turkish gun but it was twice the price.

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  • 4 weeks later...

In recent years Beretta's quality has dropped drastically in my opinion and a few others. I want to know when I pull the trigger the gun will work and not break or fall apart. My last 5 Beretta's have had problems some very minor to one that required replacing, a friends also had his Beretta break into two half's. The older Beretta's built when quality counted, they are great guns, like the 682's and DT10 (though a bit heavy for some).

 

They may of improved by now, not putting any faith into it though, but enough is enough for me, I was tempted by the A400 multi target, though already owned the A400 excel which I could not get it to fit decided not to get one, now after years of having s/a's decided to move solely to o/u's and not one Beretta in the cab.

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Hi i live in Essex and have a Hatsan 3 shot semi , i have only put one box of carts through it from new , as i shoot trap in competition and have lost my permission for pigeon , as suggested below you are welcome to look and try before you buy , i want £200 it is like new ,

 

Brian

Edited by chelseablue
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In recent years Beretta's quality has dropped drastically in my opinion and a few others. I want to know when I pull the trigger the gun will work and not break or fall apart. My last 5 Beretta's have had problems some very minor to one that required replacing, a friends also had his Beretta break into two half's. The older Beretta's built when quality counted, they are great guns, like the 682's and DT10 (though a bit heavy for some).

 

They may of improved by now, not putting any faith into it though, but enough is enough for me, I was tempted by the A400 multi target, though already owned the A400 excel which I could not get it to fit decided not to get one, now after years of having s/a's decided to move solely to o/u's and not one Beretta in the cab.

Thank you for the reply. The reason I was interested is that I bought an A400 Excel two weeks ago and noticed the barrel rib was out of alignment with the grooves on the top of the receiver. I sent a picture to GMK and they said "gun needs to be returned." After speaking to the workshop they said they could carry out a repair or replace the barrel. At first I was happy with that but upon reflection I'm not. If spending £1400 on a new gun I feel it should be 100% from the off. I'm still well within the 30 day consumer rights window to ask the retailer for a full refund and so I'm covered from that stand point if GMK won't replace it.

 

Upon having the gun for the short time I have I do feel it is a quality piece of equipement mind you. Have you heard of anything else negetive about the A400? The Americans seem to rave about them - particularly the Excel. I do really like the the gun. The slim forend particularly and as i'm 6' 1" tall with a fairly long neck, it was the only one that fit me well with it being a sporter. Anyway we will see what happens with this one as I've got to take it back to the retailer this week for GMK to collect.

 

KR

 

JB

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In recent years Beretta's quality has dropped drastically in my opinion and a few others. I want to know when I pull the trigger the gun will work and not break or fall apart. My last 5 Beretta's have had problems some very minor to one that required replacing, a friends also had his Beretta break into two half's. The older Beretta's built when quality counted, they are great guns, like the 682's and DT10 (though a bit heavy for some).

 

They may of improved by now, not putting any faith into it though, but enough is enough for me, I was tempted by the A400 multi target, though already owned the A400 excel which I could not get it to fit decided not to get one, now after years of having s/a's decided to move solely to o/u's and not one Beretta in the cab.

Agree with this the Berettas are just not what they once were, If you need clear evidence of this pick up an old 303 semi auto a half tidy one, then pick up an A400, just pull back the bolt handle the smoothness of the 303 is so obvious, by comparison, run your finger along the edge of the action frame around the loading port, the 303 is finished off the edges radiuses slightly ... not so the 400, the build quality is not there like it was.

Same with the OUs my old 680 trap and my 686 game were totally different guns in operation fit and feel in use to todays SP models. I don't buy Berettas anymore, they are still good but as they get worse they get closer to Franchi quality, but they still want that Beretta money for them.

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Thank you for the reply. The reason I was interested is that I bought an A400 Excel two weeks ago and noticed the barrel rib was out of alignment with the grooves on the top of the receiver. I sent a picture to GMK and they said "gun needs to be returned." After speaking to the workshop they said they could carry out a repair or replace the barrel. At first I was happy with that but upon reflection I'm not. If spending £1400 on a new gun I feel it should be 100% from the off. I'm still well within the 30 day consumer rights window to ask the retailer for a full refund and so I'm covered from that stand point if GMK won't replace it.

 

Upon having the gun for the short time I have I do feel it is a quality piece of equipement mind you. Have you heard of anything else negetive about the A400? The Americans seem to rave about them - particularly the Excel. I do really like the the gun. The slim forend particularly and as i'm 6' 1" tall with a fairly long neck, it was the only one that fit me well with it being a sporter. Anyway we will see what happens with this one as I've got to take it back to the retailer this week for GMK to collect.

 

KR

 

JB

After doing more diligence I deceided to get a refund on the A400 Excel I bought a couple of weeks ago. I loved the gun but when spending £1400 on something you want to ensure it is built to last and I'm not sure it is. I'm now on the look out for an auto which will fit my height and monkey like limbs.

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