Can’t go wrong with the Italian gun(s).

 

Take a look at the Cabelas Black Friday ad….great price on the Beretta A300 Ultima.

 

Thanks. I will look at that right away.

 

The al391 I have has been flawless for many years, highly recommend it.

 

I and several of my friends have Winchester SX3's. We all love them!! If I was you I would look for a good used SX3. By the way, the SX3's are made by FN in Belgium so the steel and workmanship are both excellent quality.
Doug

 

I've hunted the A300 Outlander since 2015. I average just over a case of duck loads each year, and shoot about a case of target loads through it in the off-season. In 2018 I let the recoil spring get rusty and had a few shells fail to eject. Other than that the gun has been completely trouble free.

I do a disassembly and cleaning twice a year, halfway through duck season and at the end of duck season. Other than that I don't touch it. It's treated like a tool, It does not get babied, it gets hunted in salt marshes, and banged around in boats and truck beds, it's been great.

The gun fits me well, I don't know if it will fit you.

I've heard great things about the SX4, too. Might be worth it to handle both guns, mount them, shoot them if you can, see if one speaks to you.

 

I bought my son the SX4 a few years ago. It’s worked well. I like the big controls on it.

 

If you're shopping the used market, Browning B80 uses the Beretta 300 series gas system.
Browning skin, Beretta core.
There is a steel receiver version and an alloy receiver.

 

Thanks. Don't know this one. Is the steel receiver preferable to the alloy? Does that matter much?

 

I have both. Have hunted the Winchesters x3 40-50 days a year, plus practice ammo. It has been shockingly reliable over the last 12 (Might be 13 or 14 . Kinda lost track) years. Unless you do something dumb (Like last Thursday... dropping shells in milkshake goopy mud, and then loading them into the piece without cleaning them off first) they will keep you in the game. Any auto is gonna balk at outright neglect.

If the Outlander is the same as the old 390s, they are a solid choice as well (Dad had a 390 that he shot an insane amount of rounds thru, and it kept running). I have one an Outlander. But don't have enough experience with it to comment.

A good game plan is clean it before season starts. Give it a little attention is it starts to hiccup. If you hunt a lot, clean it every so often. After a few seasons, you will get a feel for how often it's necessary for what you do. The good news is, cleaning is fairly simple with most modern autos.

I'd suggest you stick with the 3" chamber. Have heard some of the 3.5" guns are a little fussy about target (7/8- 1 1/8 oz 1200fps) loads functioning correctly in 3.5" chambers. Not all are bad. Just a little more finicky than the 3" chambers. Plus I see zero value in a 3.5" shell in a 12 bore.

 

Gas guns require more maintenance than inertia guns but maintenance shouldn't be a problem for anyone. If a person runs to a gunsmith when their piece just needs cleaning, get an inertia gun.....and turn in your man card.

 

The maintenance issue was a deciding factor when I purchased my Benelli auto at the beginning of the year. After running multiple cases through it I'm sold. I've never had a misfire or any difficulties at all. My hunting shells aren't always very clean either...
In fact I was blown away at how simple it was to completely disassemble. I'd say it's simpler than my old pump. There's surprisingly few parts involved to make it work.

However. I wasn't aware that by going with an inertia gun that I was giving up my man card. Had I known.... I'd have made the same decision anyways.

 

HA. This is funny. I could have written this verbatim. When I was reading this post I actually wondered if I had, and forgotten. I am in the same boat as you man. Following along. Thanks.

 

FnH: The man card thing was about taking a firearm to a gunsmith for cleaning...and other simple stuff.

 

Well, I take my guns each season to Tim Copeland for cleaning and whatever needs to be done to them.

There is an 870 express 12ga, a Franchi Affinity 3.5 12ga , a Beretta A350 12ga, a Franchi Instinct 20Ga o/u, my carry pistol and whatever other guns I have lying around.

I have zero issue in hiring skilled tradesman to do things for money.

I feel like you and I have had this discussion previously and once again, I know my man card is firmly in place.

I really don't know why it gets under my skin reading these comments...I should know now not to let it bother me...but, eventually I can't help myself.

 

I am very happy with my A 300 that I use mostly for Duck hunting.

 

OP - sorry for the hijack above.

My A350 had several misfeed issues that were eventually fixed after 2 trips to Beretta.

It is a smooth firing gun that fits my frame beautifully.

I choose it before the Franchi Affinity.

 

Yea, Tagster, I got it. There's somewhat of a difference between those who are intimidated by doing such things and those who simply choose not to.

I grew up without the money to pay for things I could do myself so it's sort of ingrained in me to be almost completely self sufficient.

 

Yea, Tagster, I got it. There's somewhat of a difference between those who are intimidated by doing such things and those who simply choose not to.

I grew up without the money to pay for things I could do myself so it's sort of ingrained in me to be almost completely self sufficient.

I respect that...I know how to clean a gun...man, after all the years in the Army and daily stripping cleaning my 50 cal/M16 A2 in Desert Storm/Shield, I can do it blindfolded.

I also thought I knew how to put some accessories on my last Harley...turns out I had used the wrong screws in the wrong holes and one longer one was rubbing a groove into the back tire.

Discovered this after a 5 day tour of Oregon with my wife on the back.

This one little mistake could have been life altering - now, I chose to let the pros be pros.

AND - I have had to change out too many parts on the side of the road at night in the rain in my broke years to ever want to do that again - water pumps, t stats, hoses, belts, etc.

I think everyone should know HOW to do these things...especially hunters as what happens if you need to clean in the field in order to keep hunting?

 

I’ve had a stack of Berettas. They fit me and they feel great in hand IMO.
Every Winchester auto shotgun I’ve ever held felt like a 2x4 to me.
Both operating systems have been proven, but to be honest, Beretta semi autos are legendary for their actions.
My advice would to go handle them both, especially side by side. Shotguns are very much a fitment deal, some guns come up perfectly for one guy and not at all for another.
Go with what “feels” right and lines up for you. 👍

 

I've been using a Beretta A300 Outlander for 7-8 years and have never had any issues with it in rain,mud, snow,etc. It's a little heavy and the forearm is a little bulky if you are comparing it to a light inertia gun, I guess. Neither of those are negatives for me in a gas operated duck gun. The Ultima has a few changes, a lot of people don't seem to like the way the kick off works but that can be removed. The Beretta comes with shim kits for drop and cast, which is important to me. There is also a $75 rebate on the A300's through Beretta which combined with Cabela's black friday deal makes it look pretty good...

I've never shot the SX4. They feel good in the store but don't fit me well and have no shim kit.

 

Sorry but can‘t say I have personal experience with either, but Ive had quite a few Berettas and have had zero to minimal issue with them
Also have a SX3. Wished I bought another. I’m trying to remember the difffernece with the SX4. I thought it was subtle

 

Of all the shotguns I have run over the years, the Beretta gas guns were wonderfully soft shooters. I just wish they fit me like the nasty, retro, hard-kicking old Browning Auto 5s.

 

My wife has the A300 and it’s been a good gun. Feels good in the hands and for the price it’s been pretty reliable. It has failures evey now and then but I wouldn't hesitate to own one. I have a berreta a300 xtrema that’s a little more money and has been flawless besides not like long light target loads. Not sure they make that model any more. If I was getting a new gun it would be a A400. Those piston filled stocks are sweet.

 

I won my A300 at a duck dinner. I figured I would use it as my backup for my A400.
I took it to the blind to try it out and just kept hitting duck after duck. I sold my A400 which felt too bulky in the fore end to me.

 

Get the Beretta, there is a reason Beretta semi's are the #1 auto in the sporting clays game. They just work. Takes me less than 5 minutes to break down my 391, which is supposed to be the hardest of the Beretta semi's to clean. Friend has the A300, has shot 1000's of rounds with no problems, and he's not the best about cleaning his guns. It did have a break in period, and hated cheap Winchesters at the start. Three or four boxes on warm AA's trap loads and it's been flawless ever since.