Semi-auto Shotguns

[LukeDuke]

I have the benelli SBE II and the beretta A300(won at Rmef banquet) nothing wrong with the beretta but the benelli just feels much better to me when I shoulder it. The SBE II has been on numerous nodak and SK hunts and has performed flawlessly. Water/cat tails/snow/etc. It's a beast. Some of the guys I hunt with follow the birds from SK to Arkansas and they have the beretta kickoff which reduces the recoil. Pretty nice after 3-4 months of shooting. I use the 3.5 for some of those big Canadian honks, but have killed a heck of a lot of birds with the 3's. After a couple of mornings of those 3.5's I have had enough. From what I have witnessed in the field, you really can't go wrong with the beretta or benelli.

 

[Big Sky Dreamin]

I've got a Beretta 390 composite stock I use for waterfowl and bad weather and a Beretta 391 I use for upland. Both are awesome, I clean them once a year or so and only need to clean them when it is cold and they are dang dirty. I don't know about the A300 but I have shot the A400 and it was nice.

 

[SixPoint]

I'd go fondle a couple of Benelli's before you commit to a Remington or a Beretta.

 

[Tksd]

Check out the Winchester SX3.. be careful with benneli most of my friends have gone away from benelli's and now shoot Beretta A400 or SX3. We hunt just about everything late into the year and the benneli's have some trouble when it gets cold. they also have trouble cycling the smaller loads for doves and sporting clays when you get the 3.5" version.

another thing to consider is the fact that most of the gun manufactures patents on their actions are up and there are a few smaller companies manufacturing gusns very similar to the Remington and bennelli and there is one manufacture that has a combination of the best parts of each.

 

[F250]

I have a Versa Max. I have used it for the past several years. No problems, light recoil. I have been through 2 cases of 3.5", 4 cases of 3". and several cases of 2 3/4 " shells with no issues.

 

[shootbrownelk]

Bennelli over any of the others mentioned IMO.

 

[Elkhunter24]

I have the Benelli SBE and you can't go wrong with them. You will pay a little more for a Benelli but worth the price hands down. I have never had an issue with my Benelli ejecting shells compared to other semi's I have been around. This is only my opinion. If we were talking rifles I would say Remington. Best rifles on the market. ( besides custom rifles) I this helps. Have fun shooting what ever you decide to buy!

 

[el unit]

Love my Beretta AL391. My friend just got a new Benelli and it's awesome too! Lookout geese!

 

[Tikka06]

I picked up a used Beretta 390 a few yrs ago for a steal. Its awesome. Pretty sure its the predecessor to the A300. No complaints from me on their entry level guns.

 

[BuffaloRCody]

I've Hunted with a Remington 11-87 semi-auto 12 gauge for almost 30 years now. I hunted deer and turkey mostly with it. I have never had any problem at all. It's never jammed once in the life of the gun. Killed a lot of deer with it.....

 

[Southern Elk]

I have no experience with the A300, but I love my Beretta Extrema II. I was shooting a Remington 1187 before that and it's not even in the same league with the Beretta. The Extreme II is a $1200 gun though, so I don't know how the A300 compares.

 

[Flatland Crusoe]

The A300 has the action of the 391 and the gas system from the A400. I have an AL390 and an A300 and the for sub $1000 shotguns the A300 can't be beat and they now have a 3.5" version. The A300 is techically the replacement for the 3901 which was the budget version of the 390/391 series. The A300 largely just lacks the recoil reducing features of the A400 and the nicer finishes. It does kick harder than the A400's, but has proven nothing but reliable. A lot of sporting clay clubs use the A300's as loaner/rental guns.

 

[RUT JUNKEY]

pick a couple and shoulder them a few times...everyone is making good shotguns now. I like having the 3.5 in option for turkeys and geese for sure. . . upland birds it may be a bit overkill. I have the Browning Maxxus and absolutely love it, but hunt with the Mossberg 935 more often...I have had zero problems with either one from below zero and wet to 90 degrees and dusty. Good luck.

 

[Majja]

I do not have either I have a Stoeger and it has been fantastic. I really suggest shouldering the gun wearing your heavy clothes. I had one I almost bought that when I put on my heavy duck jacket it just did not shoulder well at all.

 

[ArkyHunter]

I shoot the A300, and I love it. Light on the recoil and a good feel to me. I've shot the versa max and it's a nice gun, but as many of the others have stated it's rare you'll use the 3.5". I'm of the opinion that 20 years ago nobody shot a 3.5" and they did just fine killing geese and turkeys. On another note I work behind a gun counter while I'm putting myself through school, the only companies I see with more quality control issues than Remington/freedom group is Hi Point but at least they take care of their customers. I don't like sending money to big Green and I feel Beretta makes a much better product. The A300 currently has a rebate for $75 for Beretta gear.

 

[406LIFE]

This is season number 4 with my Versamax Waterfowl Pro. I've cleaned it 3 times, wipe it down with oil here and there and it has never missed a shot. It is my primary dedicated waterfowl gun and I put over 30 days hunting ducks last year with it. I bagged 2 cranes shooting 3.5" and went the rest of the morning with 3" #3's for ducks. I can't say enough good things about this gun. I absolutely love it, softest shooting 12ga I have ever seen. My only complaint is that the camo pattern is MossyOak instead of RealTree. How big a of complaint can that really be. If you look online you can find this gun for around $1100 new. IMO, worth the extra $ to upgrade from the Sportsman or V3. But if you can't, I don't think you can go wrong with either of those.