Which Semi-Auto?

[steyrman13]

I personally like Benellis. I have used the M2 and SBEII. I like them both with slight edge to the SBE because of ease to break down and clean and the CRIO system and Stainless parts for corrosion in field use. However, at SHOT this year, I shot the Beretta A400 Extreme and it felt really nice. Was less kick, and first time to shoot it, I hit both clays thrown 4 out of 4. I know it's not much firing time for experience; maybe someone with more time can chime in, but I did enjoy it. It is gas operated though and as mentioned above, the recoil operated is normally more reliable. Also looking at Tom Knapp's records, he can hit 10 clays, originally 9 clays, with the semi and 8 with a pump hand thrown. This indicates the extra speed and ease of staying on target with a semi.
The Winchester 1300 pump can help with the best of both worlds. I'm suprised it isn't as sought after as the 870 or Mossberg 500/590. It has a system call Speed Pump which helps push the action to the rear after a shot. In fact, with no 4 or 5 turkey 3" loads, with no hand on the pump, it will push the bolt all the way to the rear, so all that is needed is to push the pump foward to engage. same for some Buckshot and definately slugs.

[Armati]

I had a chance to put about 100rds thru a military M4 and I didn't have any issues with it (recoil or otherwise). I am not sure I am too keen on the M4 price tag. Will I miss much if I go with an M2 or other Benelli? Mainly I would like to be able to add an extended magazine (total of 7-8 rounds in the tube) and a scope rail.

With so much Benelli love, what is the deal with the Mossberg 930 series and Remington 1100/11-87? The Remington's seem to have been wildly popular for generations.

[Alaskapopo]

I had a chance to put about 100rds thru a military M4 and I didn't have any issues with it (recoil or otherwise). I am not sure I am too keen on the M4 price tag. Will I miss much if I go with an M2 or other Benelli? Mainly I would like to be able to add an extended magazine (total of 7-8 rounds in the tube) and a scope rail.

With so much Benelli love, what is the deal with the Mossberg 930 series and Remington 1100/11-87? The Remington's seem to have been wildly popular for generations.

Remington 1100 1187's suck. I see them fail more than any other shotgun in three gun. The new Versamax however is good.
Pat

[GunnutAF]

I like my A5's even with heavy buck loads they are a dream to shoot. Heavy loads of buck - 3" turkey loads in my Mossy 500 were brutal even with a recoil pad. Neither of my A5's have a recoil pad and I can shoot heavy buck/slugs all day long. Inertia semi auto's are the way to go alot less cleaning required and they just plain work!

[GH41]

I like my A5's even with heavy buck loads they are a dream to shoot. Heavy loads of buck - 3" turkey loads in my Mossy 500 were brutal even with a recoil pad. Neither of my A5's have a recoil pad and I can shoot heavy buck/slugs all day long. Inertia semi auto's are the way to go alot less cleaning required and they just plain work!

If the Mossy weighed what the A5 does it wouldn't kick either! The reason I don't like the Auto 5 is one of the reasons recoil isn't bad.. It cycles so slow. The recoil impulse is spread out over a long time. GH

[GH41]

"Its like preferring a revolver to a Semi auto"

If you pull the trigger on a revolver and it goes click you pull it again. With a semi you can only pull again after doing some work! A small DA revolver is in my opinion the best home defense gun if it has to be shared by the family. Would you rather arm your wife with a semi or revolver in a point and shoot situation? I would rather mine have the revolver. I would use the semi for speed when playing games... one on one across the bedroom I'll take the pump and a revolver. GH

[.46caliber]

I had a chance to put about 100rds thru a military M4 and I didn't have any issues with it (recoil or otherwise). I am not sure I am too keen on the M4 price tag. Will I miss much if I go with an M2 or other Benelli? Mainly I would like to be able to add an extended magazine (total of 7-8 rounds in the tube) and a scope rail.

With so much Benelli love, what is the deal with the Mossberg 930 series and Remington 1100/11-87? The Remington's seem to have been wildly popular for generations.

If you enjoyed the M4, you will enjoy the M2 or an SBEII. Mag extensions are definitely available. I'm not a fan of the Vinci design, but no hands on with it so I may not know what I'm missing.

No experience with Moss 930, but I did run two 1100's over many years and many duck seasons. O-rings and seals for the gas system and gumming of the system in colder weather lead to more than a few missed ducks and definitely not something I would put my life on. They are also quite weighty. Overall, they were good field guns but not near as reliable and durable as a Benelli.

My brother ran an 11-87 for a number of years and he also had gas system problems which lead to him putting it down for an SBEII.

I've never owned, but spent some limited time with different auto Berettas, Urika and Extrema. Very good gas guns. Smooth and fast cycling, very soft on the recoil. If I was looking for a gas gun, Beretta is where I would look.

[.46caliber]

I like my A5's even with heavy buck loads they are a dream to shoot. Heavy loads of buck - 3" turkey loads in my Mossy 500 were brutal even with a recoil pad. Neither of my A5's have a recoil pad and I can shoot heavy buck/slugs all day long. Inertia semi auto's are the way to go alot less cleaning required and they just plain work!

A5's are a dream to shoot. I have no clue about the new ones Browning is producing. A classic A5 just feels right, the same kind of feeling you get from grabbing a 1911. It just feels right.

[Gutshot John]

Remington 1100 1187's suck. I see them fail more than any other shotgun in three gun.
Pat

Really? They suck?

You sure you're not overstating the case just a little bit? I know it isn't Italian, but suck? Really? What happened to those guns? What parts broke? How long were they down?

All I've used for skeet/clays/3gun everything for years and I inherited 2 of 3 from a grandfather who was a fanatic skeet/clays shooter. They're still pretty popular though not as popular as they were. Clays guns go through way more use during a season than most 3 gun competitors. No one ever complained that they "sucked".

The only ones I see fail are ones that aren't properly maintained, even then the fix is usually two minutes and you're up and running typically after a bit of lube or a new gas ring.

An 11-87 is a perfectly adequate and reliable shotgun. Like any other gun, it has to be maintained to be reliable.

If I had the cash, and was new to the game, I'd perhaps go with the Versamax too, but I see no reason to swap out what I have. Let's not pretend that you're going to die if you shoot an 11-87 instead of something Italian. I've seen those Italian semis go tits up as well, even the vaunted M2.

[bluejackets92fs]

For the price I still think it is hard to beat a Mossberg 930 series. If cost isn't so much an issue I would go with a Benelli M2. I've heard of some reliability issues with the M4 but I can't confirm it.