Semiauto - Best Value?

[gr7070]

So I'm looking for the best value semitauto shotgun there is.

Something reasonably priced that will function flawlessly for decades. So what's the best buy these days?

Note: for all-purpose, a little clays, a little hunting.

[JWT]

Remington 1100. Many varients available. Proven design. Low recoil.

If you can't find a new one in your price range there are generally lots of good used ones to be found.

[zippy13]

Look into a used Remington 11-87

[Dragunov54]

A used Remington or a new Stoeger shotgun will be the way to go.

[ebutler462]

Brand new in the box Stoeger 2000 camo for $439. Add $30 for a Limbsaver, #10008. You will own an Inertia Driven gun that has served me well. It is light enough to tote all day, thus the recommendation for the Limbsaver pad. It is a carbon copy of the Benelli Montefeltro at less than half the price. I enjoy mine.

I have a Remington 11-87 that has never failed me but it is too heavy for uplands. Good gun, it is, but not for carrying upland hunting. Great for clays or stand hunting.

[darkgael]

The Remingtons have the history.
I, also, found them a bit on the heavy side or my use, walking the uplands looking for grouse. I like the Stoeger; it is a full pound lighter than the Rems and has always worked for me. It is a best buy, IMHO.
Pete

[rugerfreak]

The new Mossberg 930's have been getting good reviews-----I don't own one so can't personally vouch for them.

[hogdogs]

I too, do not own one but the onlt shotguns I will EVER buy are Mossbergs. Work great for the cash outlay...
Brent

[crowbeaner]

Buy a good used Browning A5. It will oulast you and your grandkids.

[longcall911]

Not sure how much you are willing to spend, but the Mossberg 930 SPX ($589) is in my view a real workhorse that is also fun to shoot.

It handles 3" magnum loads with ease, comes with great sites (for a shotgun) and looks awesome even though it is a very plain and simple design.

/*tom*/

[Smitty in CT]

The best value currently on the market is this one:



R & R has it for $462.02 and it incudes two barrels.

http://www.rrarms.com/catalog.php?prod=G85325

[hogdogs]

I like that offering smitty... Now to find a combo with the 7+1 tube.
Brent

[Smitty in CT]

Originally Posted by hogdogs

I like that offering smitty... Now to find a combo with the 7+1 tube.

Just get the combo and then you can add a +10 if you want from Choate...

http://www.riflestock.com/catalog_pa..._index=search2

They make them in 7(+2), 8(+3), 9(+4), & 10(+5) shot extentions

Brent

[4thPointofContact]

I'll put in another vote for the Mossberg 930-series. My 930 SPX was quite a value considering what came standard with it for the price.


In the interest of fairness I'll list a few shortcomings, you decide if they are valid or not:

It uses a recoil spring in the buttstock, making folding stocks impossible and short/youth/cqb stocks a bit problematic. It's an easily solvable problem however.

Using the bolt release button to release a shell from the magazine tube to the shell lifter will almost always lead to a double-feed onto the shell lifter. That will require one shell to be pushed back into the tube before the action will unjam. Note that if the bolt release button is used to move a shell onto the shell lifter, the bolt handle must still be pulled to move the shell from the lifter to the chamber. Using the bolt handle eliminates the chance for a misfeed and trims one step from the loading procedure. (If by some chance you Do use the button and get a double feed, the bolt handle is easily pulled out for a field emergency shot shell pusher thingie.)

It does not come with a front swivel or any place to mount one. Fortunately the 930 and the Remington 870 share a near identical barrel-to-magazine tube measurement so a sling plate for an 870 will fit quite nicely on a 930.

It does not come with a magazine clamp. If one is desired or thought necessary, an 870 clamp will do a yeoman's job of keeping the magazine tube protected.

Sidesaddle shell holders should be coming out in late September, if they are not out already.



EDIT: My 930 SPX was putting Federal LE132-00 buckshot into a 6-inch group at 25 yards (that's better than I shoot a pistol ) On the down-side, the tube would only hold 6ea. LE132's instead of 7 like it will do for most other shotshells. Using the spring from a 590 allowed the 7th shell another 1/8 of an inch of spring to compress so that it will now hold 7+1 LE132-00. (Actually, 7+1+1 can be loaded if you're expecting the zombie apockyclips at any moment.)

[rantingredneck]

Remington 1100's and 11-87's have always given me good service.

[gr7070]

A lot of great replies! Thanks!!

I haven't settled on a price range yet. It partly depends upon how much I need to spend in order to get a quality gun. $500 max, looks like that might be reasonable. Not sure if that prices me out of an 1100 or a 3901.

So it looks to me like the best value guns to really research are these:

Stoeger 2000
Beretta 390/3901
Remington 1100
Remington 11-87
Mossberg 930

Anyone like to add any additional information, comments, etc. on the above list. The Stoeger is very intriguing to me.

[bejay]

ive heard good things about the remington spr453 and they also would be under 500 price range new but have never used one myself.

[zippy13]

With your requirement of "function flawlessly for decades," the Remingtons have stood the test of time. Their 11-87 is member of the 1100 family, I don't think of it's changes as improvements so much as fine turning of the gas system. You can't beat Beretta's track record, they've been in business around 500-years. On your short list; the Remingingtons and Berettas have gas systems that inherently have less recoil than inertia operated guns.
The Stoeger 2000 seems like a lot of bang for the buck, but I don't know if I'd want a gun that's made in Turkey. Will parts be available in 10 or 20-years? For that reason alone, I'd remove it from your short list.
To meet your initial requirements, it seems a used gun will work best within your budget. Of course, as bejay mentioned, there's the new cheaper Remingtons to look into. But, who has any experience with them?

[gr7070]

FWIW, if I need to go above $500 that's fine, $600, $700 whatever is needed to get quality. Like I said I'm still refining my budget with my desires in mind.

[BigJimP]

Best value - is relative to what gun reallys fit you / what you want in a semi-auto shotgun. What's cheapest is a different issue.

In shotguns you often get what you pay for - there just isn't much " fluff " in terms of components, features, quality of steel, adjustability, quality of wood, etc.

For my money, the best value in gas operated guns is probably the Remington 1100 or the Beretta 391 - but I would have to make some stock adjustments in either gun - to make the comb paralell to the rib on the barrel. A gun with an angled stock - in general - does not fit me - so it will not have a point of impact, to the same point I look at. So I have to adjust the stock or put a custom stock on it. New that would cost me about $ 1,250.

The best semi-auto with an inertia system - is Benelli. The model I prefer is the Super Sport ( synthetic stock with the comfort tech recoil system in the stock ) - but that gun new is retailing in my area for about $1,700. But it comes with a lot of adjustability / add a comb insert for $ 80 / add a left handed recoil pad for $ 80 - so I'm into it for about $ 1,860. Benelli system, I think, shoots a lot cleaner than a gas gun and I think it is a faster cycling gun as well - and soft shooting. Benelli super sport comes with 5 external chokes - so overall, I think its a very good value / and better for me than a gas gun.

[Smitty in CT]

Originally Posted by jixer @ Shotgunworld.com

the Good Folks At Whittaker Guns Got A Special On The Black Synthetic Field/security 930 Combo (#85325) Right Now That Comes With The 28" And 18" Barrels, If You Don't Mind Going That Route.

I Ordered Mine This Morning For $369.99 (+ 20 Bucks Shipping To Cali).

http://www.whittakerguns.com/special.htm

^^^^^this Is The Best Value^^^^^

[gr7070]

>>>Best value - is relative to what gun reallys fit you / what you want in a semi-auto shotgun. What's cheapest is a different issue.<<<

I agree, and it is why I chose to use the word value rather than cheap.

[ebutler462]

There is very little difference between the Benelli and the Stoeger actions. I read an article in Field and Stream by one of their editors that stated that the returns for service for the Stoegers are less than those for the Benelli.

Taken apart side by side, it is easy to get the parts mixed up as there is so little difference. The exterior of the Benelli is much more refined. The innards are pretnear the same with minor differences in specs so that the parts can't interchange.

I'll stick with the New Model Stoeger 2000. The Benelli ain't worth the extra $1000 to me. For less than $500 you can have an inertia driven gun that will go bang every time.

[BigJimP]

So which gun fits you ??