Semi auto choices

[jking]

Hi,

I'm trying to make my mind up on which semi auto to go for. I'll be using it for pigeon shooting only. I'm trying to decide between:

Brand new Franchi Affinity 3.5 with 7 year warranty

Brand new Winchester SX4 (can't find any info on warranty)

A little used 5 year old Browning Maxus (no chokes, shims or spacers supplied)

I like the Maxus for the speed loading feature but will have to hope it's reliable as it will not have a warranty and I may need to buy shims and spacers to fit it to me.

As for the 2 new guns I like the fact that I will have a warranty to back them up.

I'm interested to hear your thoughts on any niggles with these particular guns and your experiences with them.

Thanks

 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Buy what fits you best, use the shims that come with modern semi-Autos and don't forget that a heavy gun will be a pain after a while.

[Scully]

No brainer, the Franchi all day long. It’s a Benelli to all intents and purposes. 

[Taileron]

^^^^This….But make sure it fits you as a lot of semis are quite short LOP. I bought the extra thick pad of GMK to get my affinity long enough.

[billytheghillie]

5 minutes ago, Scully said:

No brainer, the Franchi all day long. It’s a Benelli to all intents and purposes. 

+1 THIS, i have mine a few years now, crackin gun and not to heavy.  Yes 7 year warranty, but doubt you will need it.  Buy it, use it, clean it you wont regret it 

[jking]

I forgot to mention that I shouldered all 3 the other day and I'd say they all fitted me well enough. If I'm honest all semi autos feel a bit alien as I'm used to over and unders, but I have held a few autos which definitely didn't fit me, so I think I have a decent measure to go by.

 

Seems like people are big fans of the Franchi. I did like the feel of it and the raised rib seemed like it would suit me. 

[B391]

Franchi - had mine 4 years and put 1000s through it and no problems, just make sure the cartridges are 70mm and not 67's

Also - you can buy and thicker butt pad as I did to lengthen the LOP if necessary. 

 

[ninjaferret]

Of what you're looking at, Franchi. OR look for a benelli, and never need to buy another semi auto again. 

[Lloyd90]

I like the Maxus, very light weight but low recoil. 
 

I took a phone call yesterday whilst sat in the hide, as I did I saw a pigeon coming into my decoys. 
 

Guns so light I managed to mount it, line it up and drop the pigeon in my pattern with one hand!! 
 

Mind you I did miss some easy shots with both hands! 🤣

[jking]

1 hour ago, Lloyd90 said:

I like the Maxus, very light weight but low recoil. 
 

I took a phone call yesterday whilst sat in the hide, as I did I saw a pigeon coming into my decoys. 
 

Guns so light I managed to mount it, line it up and drop the pigeon in my pattern with one hand!! 
 

Mind you I did miss some easy shots with both hands! 🤣

Ha ha! I've just popped into a gun shop to take a look and they are nice and light.

The store I went in to steered me away from the Franchi 3.5 for pigeon shooting due to the fact that it has 3.5" chambers and they said it would struggle with 70mm cartridges as you would tend to use for pigeons. Anyone got and experience of issues like that?

[Farmboy91]

1 hour ago, jking said:

Ha ha! I've just popped into a gun shop to take a look and they are nice and light.

The store I went in to steered me away from the Franchi 3.5 for pigeon shooting due to the fact that it has 3.5" chambers and they said it would struggle with 70mm cartridges as you would tend to use for pigeons. Anyone got and experience of issues like that?

If your only using it for pigeon shooting the franchi comes as a 3” too 👍

[Dasher]

My Fanchi Affinity with 3" chambers shoots down to 65mm 28 gram clay cartridges without fault, it wont cycle 21 gram but it's not an issue for me. Do you need 3.5" chambers? If not then go 3".

Edited July 21, 2021 by Dasher

[jking]

I definitely don't need 3.5" chambers. I had just happened to see the new Affinity 3.5 Elite in the shop and it fitted me well and I liked the finish of it so had just been looking at that model. I've just looked at the Franchi catalogue and they are supposed to be bringing out a 3" Elite model as well.

[davewh100]

affinity all day long

[Marccus]

I have a maxus and an Affinity.   Both great guns and the Maxus is softer to shoot in my opinion but value for money the Affinity wins hands down .

The Maxus has had quite a few thousand cartridges through it and no issues......the affinity is catching up.  😁

[jking]

I've found a few Affinity 3 Elites for sale not too far from me, so I reckon I'll go and pick one up in the next couple of days

[Houseplant]

I like my Maxus (old version). All the guns you mention are good. For me, it came down to how the gun felt and fit. Hands down, it was the Maxus, but others may feel differently. 

Edited July 22, 2021 by Houseplant

[Westley78]

I went through a similar process a few months ago when I was deciding upon  which semi-auto to get as a hide/pigeon gun and for me the Franchi affinity One for the money with a 7 year warranty, inertia driven so no cleaning was a no brainier.

Like others I had to get the extended pad to increase lop and play around with the shims so try and get the gun fit as part of the deal as it will save you some time and faffing around.

All in all, so far I have been very impressed and I’ve not had (or expect to get) any issues with cycling even with 28g loads.

For the money I personally don’t think you can go wrong 👍🏻

[Scully]

Many moons ago a friend bought a new Maxus. I once shouldered it in his house. It was a really nice gun and as always with his gear, about the most expensive model you could get. Gorgeous wood. 
Anyhow, that was the only time I saw it, and I never actually saw him use it. 
Like all his gear, ( including his LR ) he is terrified of them getting marked or becoming worn, and he didn’t dare take it in a hide, so he sold it and bought an old Beretta 301. 🙂

Nothing relevant to the post admittedly, but my only experience of the Maxus. Another mate liked the OU type fore-end takedown. 

[jking]

Thank you all for your replies and advice.

28 minutes ago, Scully said:

Many moons ago a friend bought a new Maxus. I once shouldered it in his house. It was a really nice gun and as always with his gear, about the most expensive model you could get. Gorgeous wood. 
Anyhow, that was the only time I saw it, and I never actually saw him use it. 
Like all his gear, ( including his LR ) he is terrified of them getting marked or becoming worn, and he didn’t dare take it in a hide, so he sold it and bought an old Beretta 301. 🙂

Nothing relevant to the post admittedly, but my only experience of the Maxus. Another mate liked the OU type fore-end takedown. 

Scully - your post actually is relevant as I'm battling with myself to go for a synthetic stock when I'm a big fan of a nice bit of walnut. I'll be using the semi auto in the pigeon hide mainly and maybe the odd outing on clays. As much as I'd like a wooden stock I think I'll have to force myself to go for synthetic. In the pigeon hide is it worth going for camo instead of black or does it not make much of a difference?

 

Just now, jking said:

Thank you all for your replies and advice.

Scully - your post actually is relevant as I'm battling with myself to go for a synthetic stock when I'm a big fan of a nice bit of walnut. I'll be using the semi auto in the pigeon hide mainly and maybe the odd outing on clays. As much as I'd like a wooden stock I think I'll have to force myself to go for synthetic. In the pigeon hide is it worth going for camo instead of black or does it not make much of a difference?

 

 

51 minutes ago, Westley78 said:

I went through a similar process a few months ago when I was deciding upon  which semi-auto to get as a hide/pigeon gun and for me the Franchi affinity One for the money with a 7 year warranty, inertia driven so no cleaning was a no brainier.

Like others I had to get the extended pad to increase lop and play around with the shims so try and get the gun fit as part of the deal as it will save you some time and faffing around.

All in all, so far I have been very impressed and I’ve not had (or expect to get) any issues with cycling even with 28g loads.

For the money I personally don’t think you can go wrong 👍🏻

Thanks Westley78, that's good to know. Do you have the Affinity One, 3 or 3.5? And out of interest which stock did you go for? I quite like the finish of the new Elite model but am aware that it's intended as a waterfowling camo gun

[Blueflame]

Hi,

Looks like your going for a Franchi. I haven’t tried one but I do have a Maxus 28” & a Benelli M2 28”. Both of these are great guns and I find that the slightly short standard stocks on both an advantage in the hide. You can shoot sitting down easier, and if you have extra clothing on then the guns still come up easily. They both weigh 7lbs and the siting plain along the rib looks like a 30” barrelled gun due to the long receiver in the auto, all very pointable. The Maxus has a lower comb ( even with highest shim) than the M2 and I have fitted a foam Kickeaze  type comb raiser which works very well. 

From what you have said then I would go with the Franchi and get the gun fit set up . If you need a higher comb then the Kickease stick on foam is  the best solution. Hope that’s helpful.

[jking]

9 hours ago, Blueflame said:

Hi,

Looks like your going for a Franchi. I haven’t tried one but I do have a Maxus 28” & a Benelli M2 28”. Both of these are great guns and I find that the slightly short standard stocks on both an advantage in the hide. You can shoot sitting down easier, and if you have extra clothing on then the guns still come up easily. They both weigh 7lbs and the siting plain along the rib looks like a 30” barrelled gun due to the long receiver in the auto, all very pointable. The Maxus has a lower comb ( even with highest shim) than the M2 and I have fitted a foam Kickeaze  type comb raiser which works very well. 

From what you have said then I would go with the Franchi and get the gun fit set up . If you need a higher comb then the Kickease stick on foam is  the best solution. Hope that’s helpful.

Thanks Blueflame. I'll keep that in mind. Both seemed to fit me pretty well so I think I'll be ok without having to use any comb raisers etc. 

I would love to buy a Benelli but not sure I can justify the cost for what I'll be using it for.

[Scully]

2 hours ago, jking said:

 

I would love to buy a Benelli but not sure I can justify the cost for what I'll be using it for.

The Benelli M1 Super 90 is less than a grand new, and is all the auto you’ll ever need. 

[jking]

1 hour ago, Scully said:

The Benelli M1 Super 90 is less than a grand new, and is all the auto you’ll ever need. 

It's definitely very tempting! I keep moving further and further away from what I originally intended to spend, but I'd rather buy something that I'm happy with.

[Westley78]

22 hours ago, jking said:

Thanks Westley78, that's good to know. Do you have the Affinity One, 3 or 3.5? And out of interest which stock did you go for? I quite like the finish of the new Elite model but am aware that it's intended as a waterfowling camo gun

I went for the Affinity One as the 3&3.5 hadn’t been released yet and like you i intend to use it mainly as a hide gun so I went for the synthetic stock as I hope this will be less susceptible to damage and would look better being all black as l knew I would have to have the extended pad.