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Post by ukwil on Jul 1, 2014 9:07:42 GMT -5
Dad and I are in the market for a good semi auto shotgun. Intending on using it for waterfowl and upland game such as dove, pheasant and possibly quail. We aren't wanting to break the bank, but would like something good and dependable. Any suggestions? We have looked at the stoegers. Thanks Brandon
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Post by dbd870 on Jul 1, 2014 14:43:29 GMT -5
Unfortunately all the semi auto's I would consider tend to not be on the cheaper end. I'd probably go with a Benelli or Beretta, or a SX3. Thing is I don't do much shotgun shooting so I really don't see the need to use anything else but one of my Wingmasters. (for me personally) I broke parts on my 1100 and the guy that ran a range I used to shoot at some said that was not uncommon for 1100's that got shot hard so I've been kind of leery of them since.
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Post by drs on Jul 2, 2014 4:31:44 GMT -5
I own a Browning Gold 20 gauge shotgun, which is one of the best semi-auto shotgun I've ever owned. You might consider purchasing a Browning.
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Post by swilk on Jul 2, 2014 8:40:04 GMT -5
If you are set on a semi I would not go cheap. I personally own a Winchester SX3 and am happy with it.
I also own a Remington 1187 and can honestly say I would never, ever, ever purchase another one.
Reliability is the name of the game in a semi auto shotgun and reliability costs money. Benelli. Beretta. Browning. Winchester.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 2, 2014 8:45:56 GMT -5
I have a Remington 11-87 and it's the best gun I've ever shot. Maybe you got a lemon?
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Post by dbd870 on Jul 2, 2014 9:19:17 GMT -5
If you are set on a semi I would not go cheap. I personally own a Winchester SX3 and am happy with it. I also own a Remington 1187 and can honestly say I would never, ever, ever purchase another one. Reliability is the name of the game in a semi auto shotgun and reliability costs money. Benelli. Beretta. Browning. Winchester. Agree with pretty much all of this. Sounds like the 1187 is following in the 1100's footsteps - the guy that owned that range really had nothing good to say about the 1100's. Guess if you only took it out hunting and to the range a handful of times a year it would be OK. |
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Post by swilk on Jul 2, 2014 9:32:17 GMT -5
I have a Remington 11-87 and it's the best gun I've ever shot. Maybe you got a lemon? If I were a betting man ... which I am ... I would say the likelihood of getting a good one is just about as good as getting a bad one. Mine is fine as long as you shoot shells it will properly cycle. It took me about 10 brands/makes of slugs to find one that would reliably cycle. I have a friend who has one and has very few problems with it. Another friend had one and after years of trouble got rid of it to get a Mossy. I have heard that a sure cycle action spring would cure the problem but I have not purchased one yet .... hate the thought of fixing a new gun. When was the last time you read of a person having an issue with a more expensive semi auto? I cant recall hearing or reading to much from guys with Berettas .... or Brownings. But if you go and research the lower end guns you get a lot of mixed information. The most frustrating thing about the 1187 is I would not consider it a low end gun .... but the reliability is on par with the low end guns. |
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Post by steve46511 on Jul 2, 2014 10:02:26 GMT -5
One of the older 1100 Remington's would get my vote.
I had a 11-87 but I never liked it near like the 1100s I had, and I had lots of them over the years in all gauges but 16ga.
The 28 and 410 and 12 I bought in the 70s is still going strong, never missing a beat at a friend's house.
That said, I can't come up with a single NEW Remington I like better than the old ones. Might be something there to consider ....like I'm stuck in a rut. LOL
2 cents
God Bless
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Post by swilk on Jul 2, 2014 10:05:40 GMT -5
Asking a gun to go from waterfowl to doves is pretty taxing .... the heaviest of heavy loads to the lightest of light loads.
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Post by steve46511 on Jul 2, 2014 10:24:26 GMT -5
And something everyone over 50 did with a 2 3/4 inch 12 gauge for years and years and years.......some of us still do.  Skeet loads to baby magnum shells in the appropriate shot size leave very little to want for within ranges the normal person could ever consistently hit birds. MORE gauges is more FUN of course, and Ive hunted with all gauges but the 10 gauge. Never thought I had a real need for one of those either but have shot them. For someone on a limited budget, the 2 3/4 inch 12 gauge is still king for all around hunting......IMO, it's just more fun to buy a bunch of difference ones if funds allow. God Bless |
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Post by swilk on Jul 2, 2014 10:33:39 GMT -5
I thought more old timers used single shots or pumps for waterfowl and geese back in the day. Didn't know there were a lot of semi autos being used back in the 40's-60's.
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Post by drs on Jul 2, 2014 11:02:45 GMT -5
One of the older 1100 Remington's would get my vote. I had a 11-87 but I never liked it near like the 1100s I had, and I had lots of them over the years in all gauges but 16ga. The 28 and 410 and 12 I bought in the 70s is still going strong, never missing a beat at a friend's house. That said, I can't come up with a single NEW Remington I like better than the old ones. Might be something there to consider ....like I'm stuck in a rut. LOL 2 cents God Bless Back in the late 1970's; I bought a Remington Model 1100 in 28 gauge and had a Poly Choke installed. The shotgun performed very well, but it was no better than a 7/8 oz. loaded 20 gauge, or a 3/4 oz 3" .410 load. Also not every store carried 28 gauge shells, even back then. Also owned a 12 gauge 1100 Deer Sluggun, which I harvested my very first Deer with on a Crane Deer Hunt. |
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Post by BIGHORN on Jul 4, 2014 13:45:31 GMT -5
Stogers are made by the same company who owns Benelli and Berretta.
Parts from my sons Stoger M3500 fit on my Super Black Eagle II.
I have shot several hundred rounds through his Stoger and would not flinch at owning one for myself.
To each his own.
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Post by GS1 on Jul 4, 2014 18:31:21 GMT -5
I have an older 1100 20 gauge that has never gave me a problem. The guy it came from shot a lot of trap/skeet, so I would guess it has been shot atleast 10X more than most guns get shot.
I also have a Browning Gold NWTF edition that will not cycle shells when it is cold. Even the people at Browning couldn't explain it. I can fix it like my friend fixed his, but don't like the idea if taking a dremal to it.
Have you looked at Tri-Stars?
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Post by zoltangoode on Jul 5, 2014 17:33:13 GMT -5
Of course it really boils down to the amount of money you want to spend. If you can pay for some of the high end ones mentioned, go for it. Personally, I use Remington 11-87s and have four now in different gauges, styles, and colors and have been happy with them for deer, geese, rabbit, and doves. The oldest ones have been used the most, treated the worst, and have shot the best. They need to be kept clean to cycle properly, but I have poured tons of rounds through them at the range (slug and clay target) with no hang ups. Extreme cold weather has caused issues if I got too happy with the gun oil. My first autoloader was a lower cost Winchester 12 gauge Ranger (I believe) I purchased as a teenager with high school graduation gift funds. It seemed an appropriate educational expense to me at the time. It ended up being too low-end for my needs (held only three 2 ¾ inch shells, had only modified choke, and other issues) but before I upgraded to the first 11-87, it worked fine for small game, doves, and waterfowl plus one whitetail doe taken by a young man who borrowed it from a friend I loaned the gun to. This friend had no qualms about loaning out guns he did not own, I learned. I still have both the Winchester and the friend.  |
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Post by chubwub on Jul 7, 2014 14:06:48 GMT -5
My first gun was a Stoger 3500 and one of my favorite presents from my fiancee. I dove, turkey, coyote, small game and waterfowl hunt with it. When his old bird gun finally dies, my guess is this will be his replacement gun. The first thing you should do when you get this gun is strip it down and clean it to get off the crappy machine oil. This causes a lot of the jamming problems people have. Make sure to clean EVERYTHING, including breaking down the firing pin. Then after it's all clean, take it out the range and shoot about 100 rounds in it to help break up any machine burrs that might be there from the factory. This will help it with cycling lighter loads if you choose to leave the recoil reducer in.
Pros:
Devours 3-31/2 inch shells like a champ. I rarely jam, even in very cold weather, and usually the jam is due to my idiocy. No problems mixing and matching shells.
If you put in the recoil reducer in, the 3/12 goose loads feel like nothing.
The choke patterns for different kinds of ammo are fairly consistent.
Easy to break down and clean. I'm a novice, and after a few tries I was able to break down, clean and reassemble the gun by myself.
I'm 5'6, it fits a shorter person like myself pretty well.
Cons:
Sometimes the 23/4 under 11/8 oz don't like to cycle properly when you have the recoil reducer in. I had this issue in the beginning with it, but after a through cleaning, it still cycled the lighter loads through just fine even with the recoil reducer still in.
If you like fancy, this gun isn't for you. It's a no frills gun.
It does better if you clean it after each hunt. No way I would go an entire season without cleaning this gun.
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Post by Boilermaker on Jul 7, 2014 14:24:52 GMT -5
I'd have to agree with others on the low-end auto loaders. I sold my 11-87 that I had endless cycling issues with and purchased a new Browning A5 3" and love it. It cycles anything and is super simple to take down and clean; not to mention light as a feather.
Came to learn the guy I sold my 11-87 to lost it in a boating accident while duck hunting this past winter; best place for that gun is at the bottom of a river.
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Post by chubwub on Jul 7, 2014 14:47:48 GMT -5
I couldn't stand the way they set up the Remington 11-87 for loading. The  gun seemed to find a way to pinch my fingers no matter what I did. It did shoot smoothly though. The one my fiancee had didn't seem to have any issues that other people describe, but my fiancee just couldn't get used to it after shooting a Mossberg 835 for 20 years. He could still kill birds with the 11-87, but not like he could with the 835. Incidentally, I hate the 835 as well and it hates me. It kicks the ever living crap out of you, but my god can my fiancee slaughter birds with it. It will be a very sad day when he has to replace that gun. He decided to sell the 11-87 and buy an engagement ring instead. |
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Post by 45shooter on Jul 7, 2014 17:57:49 GMT -5
Do not overlook Franchi. Their Affinity runs on the inertia drive action and is a great shotgun. Benelli owns Franchi and manufactures some of their shotguns.
The patent on the inertia drive has expired within the last few years. So Benelli has begun to use that system in some of their more affordable brands (Franchi). Also, some other brands have copied the system.
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Post by esshup on Jul 27, 2014 12:59:29 GMT -5
12ga, I have a couple older 1100's in 3" magnum dress. No problems with them at all shooting 3" shells for ducks/geese or 1 oz loads for clay birds. Just flip the recoil system like you are supposed to, keep 'em cleaned and oiled and they won't give you any problems. The newer ones? It seems that everything now is being made cheaper and cheaper. Look at the the fit/finish and quality of parts on a Model 12 vs. an 870.......
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