Perazzi

[lizziedog1]

The trap club I go to has several shooters that use Perazzi Shotguns. They are nice looking and they are not cheap. Does anyone here own or use one? Are they really worth the price? I hardly see them mentioned here. Just curious.

[PJR]

I own a couple of Perazzis and believe they are worth the price. They aren't discussed much here because this forum is more focused on HD and hunting. Also previous discussions of higher end guns tend to turn into class warfare.

[johnbt]

They are very good guns. No, I don't own one yet. All I have so far is a cheap Guerini and a bunch of other shotguns.

I'm 60 and divorced. I should buy a Perazzi, I have no excuse except cheapness.

[hogdogs]

If I could afford one, I would take up wingshooting for sure... Would love to post sunset pics of a nice gun, a slew of birds and me grinnin'!!!

Brent

[oneounceload]

You'll find more discussion about them on places like shotgunworld.com

Zippy13 also owns some he has used for skeet for years.

Perazzis were used by the majority of the Olympic competitors (and winners). Used guns can be found on places like GunInternational.com for somewhat reasonable prices.

[EdInk]

You can ways blame your ex-wife too. (Even if she has nothing to do with it.)

Most states grant the husband the legal right to blame their ex-wife (undeservedly) everything (forever) in their divorce settlement. This is done as recompense for (undeservedly) giving the wife a ton of money, property and other assets that she did nothing to earn. IIRC this has become a precident that was first established in the landmark Missouri case:

Mr. Calvin N. Hobbes (aka Cal Hobbes Jr.)
versus
Mrs. Patricia A. Smith-Hobbes (aka Patricia Smith- that nagging, Lifetime-watching, non-cleaning, overweight, thinks thawing frozen food counts as making dinner, can't drive worth a darn, should've known when she hyphenated the name, oprah-pyschology spewing, all around pain in the neck-Hobbes)


Although, I could be mistaken.

[JWT]

Perazzi's are a bit out of my price range but the guy I generally shoot with uses one for trap and absolutely loves it. They're exceptionally well made guns well worth the not so inexpensive prices.

[EdInk]

BTW If any forum member is interested my (cough) non-licensed (cough) in any state (cough) legal services are available pro-bona* to any NRA or other 2nd Ammendment organization at anytime.



*not a typo for "pro-bono" rather an abbreviation for "pro-bonAfide cashier's check made out to Civil Attorney Samuel Harrison (if this is too long to write feel free to just use the intitials C.A.S.H.)

[BigJimP]

I do not own any Perazzi's ....and Zippy will be along later ...and fill you in on specific issues on Perazzi's ....but they are very durable, well built guns.

In my opinion / they appeal more to a shooter that likes the smaller grip areas - more common in the "european" or "Italian" styles...as opposed to guns like Browning, Blaser or Krieghoff - that tend to be larger in the grip area and often heavier.

[mete]

They are designed for the serious target shooter who putting many rounds through the gun. They are very durable but at the same time have easily replaceable parts.

[BigJimP]

Lots of guns are designed for the serious Target Shooters ....delivering hundreds of thousands of shell performance with few, if any issues..like:

Browning XS Skeet / or XT Trap ... $3,000 - $4,000 +
Beretta ..... $ 2,500 - $4,000 +

Perazzi $ 6,000 - $ 10,000 + ...
Blaser - various models $ 6,000 - $ 10,000 +

Kolar - selling these days for $ 15,000 +
Krieghoff - selling these days for $ 15,000 +

every mfg has some things that shooters like / don't like ...triggers ( mechanical vs inertia), rib styles (adjustable or not), length of pull adjustments, comb adjustments, forend styles ....

What we all have to decide as buyers ...is what do we want / what do we need ...and does Perazzi and Blaser give you 2 times more than what a Browning or Beretta may cost / or does Kolar or Krieghoff give you 5times more ...but hardly anyone on this forum, or any forum, will tell you a Browning, Beretta, Perazzi, Blaser, Kolar or Krieghoff are terrible guns. They all have some "lesser" priced models - which is certainly relative ...and some hgher end models...and fancy wood --and engraving ...etc ....

[zippy13]

I concur with PJR, Perazzis are worth the price. Mine are all tubed Skeet guns, so I can't respond to lizziedog1's question about specific trap models -- I assume he's referring to American trap where Perazzi single barrel and combo models are prized. My club also has an Olympic trench where Perazzis are also popular.

As I've described in previous postings, I think of shotguns as coming in three phases, or stages. There's the Stage 1 (S1) gun that get's you into shotgunning. For many is a stick gun best described as a multipurpose gun or perhaps it's a HD/field 2-barrel set. My S1 gun was a Sear's (High Standard) 20-ga pump. With your S1 gun, you can explore various shotgunning activities and find the ones that you enjoy the most, or you can put in the closet and wait for something to go bump in the night. Many folks are happy with S1 guns for a lifetime of shooting activities.

If you decide to get into a specific shotgunning activity, be it water fowl or five-stand, you'll soon find the S1 isn't perfect for what you're doing. For me it was shooting Skeet, and 20-ga pump gun with a plain barrel with a poly-choke was hindering my progress. I soon traded my S1 for a Skeet model Winchester O/U. I think of an entry level activity specific gun as a Stage 2 gun. After 20-years of on-and-off club Skeet shooting, the bug got me again and I got into competitive shooting. As I tried to fine tune my skills I realized that I'd hit a ceiling with my Model 101. I'd shot a 98 with it when is was new and never been able to improve. Those of you who shoot Skeet know, consistent 98's will get you classified AA, but won't win much. If I wanted to shoot to my potential, I needed a new gun.

I think of a comp, or pro model, activity specific gun as a Stage 3 gun. Back then, the S3's on my short list were the K-80 and the Perazzi. As a design professional, I find the K-gun's external locking device bizarre; but, it was the Perazzi's drop out trigger group that was the selling pint. It has kept me in the match more than once. (One time I'd unknowingly left a tiny bit of rag lint in the sear when I cleaned the gun the night before. When I test fired, there was nothing -- I dropped the trigger, and in the bight sun, the lint was obvious -- I was back in action in less than a minute.)

With the S3, I soon shot my first 100-straight and more followed. For me, the Perazzi was worth every penny. One of my buddies was in the same boat: For many years he shot a Skeet Citori and his progress has stagnated, with a Perazzi his scores improved.

I don't want to sound like a snob; however, if all you've ever shot is a Stage 1 gun, then you can't appreciate a S3 gun -- you don't have the experience. It's like you've been dancing all of your life with soaking wet feet and all of a sudden you discover dry shoes and socks -- but, you can't explain it to the folks who are still dancing wet. To those of you who've been shooting a nice S2 gun: You know how much better it is than you old S1 -- trust me, a S3 can be that much better, again. Is it worth it? Maybe not if you're a casual shooter; but, to many, shooting to the best of your abilities is priceless.

[PJR]

Once you get into what Zippy calls the S3 guns the world does change. My first Perazzi was a 12 gauge MX8. At the time I agonized over the decision. It was a lot of money for a gun and I already owned several S2 level guns.

I liked the Perazzi right from the start. The dynamics, durability and workmanship were better than any other gun I'd owned. When I shot one of my other guns I'd ask myself "Why am I shooting this gun when I have a Perazzi at home?" A dealer tempted me and out went a Beretta, Browning, a very old Krieghoff trap gun, two Winchester 101s (a 3 barrel skeet set and a 28 gauge Diamond Grade) and in came an MX8 20 in 28 gauge with the same barrel length and measurements as my 12 gauge. I haven't regretted buying either gun.

But as much as I like my P-guns one thing remains the same. The targets whether clay or feathered are stupid. They do not know how much your gun cost only whether the pellets hit the mark. I shoot the Perazzis well enough but not one bit better than my Beretta 391. I just enjoy shooting the Perazzis more.