Winchester SX3 vs Franchi Affinity vs SH Maxus 1

[Ste1986]

Looking at getting a new gun, fairly new to Wildfowling , currently have a hatsan. Which of the above would be best option please? Been struggling to get on the geese, and ducks for that matter! I know its not the gun! 

im tempted by a new one so I can get it patterned, fitted etc.  

 

ps, if anyone in the north west wants some company goose shooting, and is willing to help me and see where I am going wrong, please get in touch! 

Edited September 10 by Ste1986

[Ferretlurcher1970]

Have a maxus. Good gun

[Ste1986]

1 hour ago, Ferretlurcher1970 said:

Have a maxus. Good gun

So you would go for second hand maxus over the others new?

[Cawdor118]

I would go Benelli, but seen as that's not on your list the obvious choice is the Franchi. 

Time tested and proven, less bits to go wrong. 

[Ste1986]

1 minute ago, Cawdor118 said:

I would go Benelli, but seen as that's not on your list the obvious choice is the Franchi. 

Time tested and proven, less bits to go wrong. 

Someone else has mentioned benelli, it’s just price range unfortunately, would you go for sh benelli over new Franchi?

 

thanks 

[Cawdor118]

4 minutes ago, Ste1986 said:

Someone else has mentioned benelli, it’s just price range unfortunately, would you go for sh benelli over new Franchi?

 

thanks 

Yes, I absolutely would. A second hand Benelli M2 around the £700-£900 would do 99.9% of all the wildfowling you will every do. Pair it with Eley Lightening Steel 3" 36gm 3s and a 1/2 choke and your singing. 

[marsh man]

I would stick to the gun you are used to and spend more time observing the habits of the wildfowl before splashing out on a new gun that can mainly only be used for shooting geese , if the geese are constantly to far then getting a bigger gun isn't going to solve the issue , only a few threads ago we were discussing shooting geese with using a 20 bore with  one of the top goose shooters on P / W , is your goose shooting inland , coastal or decoying ?

[Ferretlurcher1970]

I have a fair few guns . The maxus is my go to gun for wildfowling. Was second hand when I bought it, Never missed a beat. Had 7-8 years worked it hard. Still going strong. Easy to strip and clean if you drop it in the sea or mud.

[Ste1986]

29 minutes ago, marsh man said:

I would stick to the gun you are used to and spend more time observing the habits of the wildfowl before splashing out on a new gun that can mainly only be used for shooting geese , if the geese are constantly to far then getting a bigger gun isn't going to solve the issue , only a few threads ago we were discussing shooting geese with using a 20 bore with  one of the top goose shooters on P / W , is your goose shooting inland , coastal or decoying ?

Thanks for reply. I’ve got a hatsan at the moment, which is prone to jamming. I think it’s only part of the issue why I’m struggling though. I also lack experience, and don’t get out enough. I shoot on the marsh and on waiting list for a few clubs.

10 minutes ago, Ferretlurcher1970 said:

I have a fair few guns . The maxus is my go to gun for wildfowling. Was second hand when I bought it, Never missed a beat. Had 7-8 years worked it hard. Still going strong. Easy to strip and clean if you drop it in the sea or mud.

Thank you 

[Mutiny]

I bought a hatsan second hand 4 years ago and have given it hell, left uncleaned after foreshore trips for weeks, dropped in the sea, dropped in the mud etc etc. After a good clean its always ran well. Save the money you’d spend on a gun and use it for fuel/days off for more trips to the marsh - worry about the new gun when you’ve had some success with the current one

[nellywinner]

I have  a second hand Benelli M2 and it is fantastic. Ashamed to say I never clean it and it never misses a beat. My mate has the Franchi Affinity and it is basically the same as my M2 Benelli and just as good. 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

8 hours ago, Mutiny said:

I bought a hatsan second hand 4 years ago and have given it hell, left uncleaned after foreshore trips for weeks, dropped in the sea, dropped in the mud etc etc. After a good clean its always ran well. Save the money you’d spend on a gun and use it for fuel/days off for more trips to the marsh - worry about the new gun when you’ve had some success with the current one

Is the CORRECT answer, changing the gun will not bag more geese.

[marsh man]

2 hours ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Is the CORRECT answer, changing the gun will not bag more geese.

If you are not fully committed from the beginning then whatever sport you take part in is not going to bring the desired results , take Pigeon shooting for instance, you need to do a massive amount of homework before you can get a reasonable bag of any sorts , then if the commitment is still there and most of your free time you are out watching and weighing up what crops are going in and where they are going in then that Red letter day will surely come , it might not be the next time you go but rest assured it will come one day .

This is exactly the same with goose shooting and wildfowling in general , if you are not prepared to spend early mornings , evenings and time out under the moon in very often adverse conditions then wildfowling is not for you , the gun itself have always been the least of my problems as I have only ever had side x sides apart from a 5 shot pump action Beretta Silver Pigeon , this gun only lasted a matter of weeks before it went to a new owner and I certainly didn't shed any tears when we parted company , one of the ole sayings that Archie Coates used to say was , Time spent on reconnaissance is never wasted ,............ and never a truer word is spoken .  MM

[Pushandpull]

If your present gun "jams" on any occasion then you need to be rid of it soon. Even an occasional lapse affects your confidence,

[Ste1986]

13 hours ago, nellywinner said:

I have  a second hand Benelli M2 and it is fantastic. Ashamed to say I never clean it and it never misses a beat. My mate has the Franchi Affinity and it is basically the same as my M2 Benelli and just as good. 

Thank you

10 hours ago, Pushandpull said:

If your present gun "jams" on any occasion then you need to be rid of it soon. Even an occasional lapse affects your confidence,

Yeh it is a pain in th axx, I believe the hatsan is know for it 

10 hours ago, marsh man said:

If you are not fully committed from the beginning then whatever sport you take part in is not going to bring the desired results , take Pigeon shooting for instance, you need to do a massive amount of homework before you can get a reasonable bag of any sorts , then if the commitment is still there and most of your free time you are out watching and weighing up what crops are going in and where they are going in then that Red letter day will surely come , it might not be the next time you go but rest assured it will come one day .

This is exactly the same with goose shooting and wildfowling in general , if you are not prepared to spend early mornings , evenings and time out under the moon in very often adverse conditions then wildfowling is not for you , the gun itself have always been the least of my problems as I have only ever had side x sides apart from a 5 shot pump action Beretta Silver Pigeon , this gun only lasted a matter of weeks before it went to a new owner and I certainly didn't shed any tears when we parted company , one of the ole sayings that Archie Coates used to say was , Time spent on reconnaissance is never wasted ,............ and never a truer word is spoken .  MM

I disagree with you there fellas, Its not about commitment here, the gun is jamming when I’m trying to shoot, so I have much more chance at shooting geese with a gun that doesn’t jam, id appreciate your thoughts on which gun you would go for

thanks

[Big Mat]

To answer your question,  any of the 3 is a good choice,  all 3 are used successfully by wildfowlers every season.

Speaking with first hand experience of having an unreliable gun, it knocks your confidence. Get out there, buy the new gun that is reliable and you won't have that doubt in your mind every time you get chance of a shot.

I stuck it out for several seasons with a gun that rarely cycled properly, and it was a terrible decision.

[marsh man]

On 10/09/2024 at 18:29, Ste1986 said:

Looking at getting a new gun, fairly new to Wildfowling ,  Been struggling to get on the geese, and ducks for that matter! I know its not the gun! 

 

You stated in your first post that you were fairly new to wildfowling , struggling to get on the geese and ducks and you know it's not the gun , so although you know the gun jam    at times that is not the reason you are having a job in getting amongst the wildfowl , that is why I said it take total commitment to learn the habits of whatever you are going after and you would need to spend as much time as possible down the marsh , or either side of the sea wall ,  if you are waiting to join a club you will no doubt be accompanied by another wildfowler for your first few visits before you are let loose by yourself , ask him if you can join him on a few visits and weigh up what he do and where he go , learn the tide times and if at all possible , you want to consider in owning a decent working dog .

As for my choice of gun , as I said , apart from the one pump action Beretta , all my guns for the last 60 odd years have been side x sides , they very rarely let you down and you can easily use the same gun all the year round , not once did I ever feel I could have done better if I had used a three shot auto , if I can't hit them hard enough with two shots then they deserve to live another day , you will get people say that the third shot is handy to finish the second bird off if needed , then you can say if you killed the first two and then hit the third one hard then you haven't got anything in the chamber to finish that one off , so where do you draw the line ?     MM 

[sharkeyes]

you wont go far wrong with the Affinity 👍.

[TIGHTCHOKE]

On 11/09/2024 at 20:28, Ste1986 said:

I disagree with you there fellas, Its not about commitment here, the gun is jamming when I’m trying to shoot, so I have much more chance at shooting geese with a gun that doesn’t jam, id appreciate your thoughts on which gun you would go for

What, before your first shot?

[sportsbob]

I have had many semi autos in my time but the Franchi Affinity is by far the easiest to clean and most reliable of them all.

[marsh man]

On 11/09/2024 at 20:41, Big Mat said:

To answer your question,  any of the 3 is a good choice,  all 3 are used successfully by wildfowlers every season.

Speaking with first hand experience of having an unreliable gun, it knocks your confidence. Get out there, buy the new gun that is reliable and you won't have that doubt in your mind every time you get chance of a shot.

I stuck it out for several seasons with a gun that rarely cycled properly, and it was a terrible decision.

Hi Mat ... As I have never used a auto I am not in the position to say what they are like to use , but I am very keen to know the reason for using a auto in the first place , with the amount of three shots I hear throughout the season I know they are a very popular gun , I agree by having a extra shot in the breech can by handy if needed to finish something off that was hit hard with the second shot , but no doubt you have heard certain gunners firing three shots at whatever they are firing at .

As you know until fairly recently I would be down the marsh four or five times a week throughout the season and yes you do get the odd chance where you have got the time to fire at three birds but again certain people seem to get the opportunity where they get the chance to fire three shots at just about everything they fire out , either they are rubbish shots if only the odd duck  or maybe the odd pair come in , or very good shots if three or more are coming in all night  , it also seem at times there is a race to see who can get off three shots first , either that or they think if they put enough shot in the direction then something is sure to drop out , don't get me wrong as I am sure there are a lot of decent shots who use these guns and find them excellent guns for wildfowling who mainly just fire one or two shots with the odd three shots now and again , but sadly not all three shot auto owners ,     

 MM

[nic]

It is the gun that fits you best is the one to go for.  the make is largely irrelevant

Most guns will work, if the companies only made guns that did not then they would soon be out of business.

Why only a semi?  why not consider OU?  do you normally shoot a semi?

Reason I ask is I changed to a semi (SBE2) and wasted a couple of season trying. too shoot it well, when it just did not fit/suit me.

now is use a 425 waterfowl.

 

 

[Welshpestcontroller]

Go for a Benelli, they will function when others fail, they are top end autos but are expensive for a reason, and will most likely outlive most owners.

you can on occasions find a super black eagle 2 for sale, they are brilliant guns, i shoot Geese with mine, usually with Gamebore mammoth 3.5 inch 1’s, the comfortech stock also significantly reduces recoil .

a M2 will work just as well, but is only chambered in 3inch.