Automatic shotguns are they all the same?

[Super-Dave]

I have never fired an automatic shotgun before.

I was wondering do all automatic shotguns basicaly have the same rate of fire?

Are some faster than others?

If so which are the fast ones and which are the slow ones?

Does the recoil pretty much feel the same on them?

[hogdogs]

I don't know which is fastest nor slowest but they do differ by design and materials used,,,

There are 2 distinct action types with gas being one and then the other uses recoil of the shell to activate the action.
Brent

[oneounceload]

The rate of fire is the same - one round for each squeeze of the trigger

There are three types for "autos", which are really semi-autos - gas, inertia, and long recoil.

Recoil is a factor of gun weight, shot charge and velocity.

FELT, or perceived recoil can be affected by the action type, with a gas gun feeling the softest.

[Super-Dave]

what is the deference between inertia and long recoil automatic shotguns?

[oneounceload]

In a long-recoil, like the franchi AL-48 or the Browning A5, the barrel moves backwards a tad. Inertia is similar in action to a blowback pistol using a strong spring, ala Benelli

[5RWill]

The 4 fastest i can think of are the benelli inertia guns which supposedly shoot as fast as you pull the trigger, then the whinchester sx3 which has the fasted 12 rounds in 1.44 seconds. Then the beretta extrema 2 is fast. And the browning maxus has the fastest lock time recorded so it's also equally fast.

[B.L.E.]

The Benelli inertia system is unique. The entire shotgun recoils backwards except for a weight inside the bolt. The weight inside the bolt not recoiling with the rest of the shotgun works a cam that unlocks the bolt. Your shoulder stops the shotgun from moving rearward but the bolt keeps going to eject the shell and load a new one.
If you prevent the shotgun from freely recoiling, like putting the stock against a tree, the bolt will not unlock and the gun won't cycle. If you make the shotgun heavier by adding mall ninja stuff on it, it likewise may not reliably cycle.

[rbernie]

In a long-recoil, like the franchi AL-48 or the Browning A5, the barrel moves backwards a tad.

A tad? You're being generous.. In a long recoil design, the barrel must recoil back no less than the length of the chamber plus some additional margin, to allow for reliable extraction and ejection. I never notice it while shooting, but most bystanders can clearly see the barrel coming back during recoil.

Owing to the lack of gas ports and other somesuch, mechanical semiautos (long recoil and inertial) are reported to be more durable than gas-driven semiautos. For most usage, however, folk will never see the difference.

There is some minor variation in the speed of each action type, but the difference is measured in a millisecond here or there - certainly not noticable to the shooter.

Some suggest that gas-operated semiautos recoil less than mechanical semiautos - I dunno. My 1100s and Light12 Auto5s feel about the same, and I suspect that gun weight and stock fit all contribute more to perceived recoil than the semiauto action type.

[Tommy Vercetti]

recoil operated seem to kick an awful lot harder than gas operated but I haven't shot all of them yet

[5RWill]

In my eyes there is no sense in a recoil driven shotgun. I might get flamed for this but oh well. My way of thinking is why buy a recoil driven shotgun when i have an 870? They both kick the same to me and the possibilities of the inertia driven gun being more reliable than my 870 are slim. So if i look at automatics i try to find a reliable gas auto now adays or until they make a new system. Hence my new maxus.

[rbernie]

My way of thinking is why buy a recoil driven shotgun when i have an 870? They both kick the same to me and the possibilities of the inertia driven gun being more reliable than my 870 are slim

I have several 870 12ga shotguns and several Auto5 shotguns, each set up with a Pachmayr Decelerator recoil pad. The difference in felt recoil between the two is fairly dramatic, and there is no reasonable way to characterize them as similar-to-identical. The mechnical semiauto simply has a much softer recoil impulse than does the pump gun.

[5RWill]

I disagree or mabe in just in my case. My brother got a Franchi I-12 with the beloved inertia action. My dad and I both agreed it kicks the same as an 870 if not more. Now everyone takes recoil different. But as i stated in the first place in "MY" eyes. I'm not talking about shooting dove loads those don't kick in anygun. Im talking about shooting the shells the gun was made for. 3 inch mags for waterfowling. They kick the same to me and Hell i would go as far to say that the I-12 kicks harder...

[dgludwig]

The mechnical semiauto simply has a much softer recoil impulse than does the pump gun.

What makes it "softer" is that the impuse is of a longer duration, "spreading" the recoil impulse out over a longer period of time. Time here is, of course, relative. We're talking mili-seconds but a longer interval of time eats up force, redistributing it in increments rather than all at once-what some have described as a "push" or a "shove" as compared to a sharp "punch".

The biggest factor that robs recoil from a firearm is added weight to the gun. Though recoil is measured objectively, there are many factors that make "perceived" recoil subjective in nature, including the design of the stock, how well or poorly the stock fits a particular person, how someone is clothed, lack of hearing protection, individual physiques and certainly separate "mind-sets"-some people are just less sensitive to recoil and it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with their size or gender.

[lambertsteeth]

I agree with ludwig. Recoil is relative. I have owned several gas operated shotguns. I have owned one recoil shotty. I currently shoot Benellis weekly. When I switch from one system to the other (after shooting only one system for awhile) the new system feels completely strange for a couple hundred rounds. Many folks interpret this different feeling as more recoil. When I change back, the recoil on the original system feel strange, until I get some rounds through it. Of all the autos I have the Franchi's inertia system is the least user friendly to me. I'm not sure I understand why. It is supposed to be the same as the Benelli. But then again, recoil is relative to the person absorbing the recoil.