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Message
re: In the market for a new waterfowl shotgun. What do you like?
Posted on 9/14/25 at 10:59 pm to HuntFishMan
Posted on 9/14/25 at 10:59 pm to HuntFishMan
Inertia driven vs. gas driven actions.
0
Posted on 9/14/25 at 11:11 pm to HuntFishMan
Benelli SBE II in 3.5” with a 28” barrel is what I shoot and I’ll never own anything else for my bird hunting. You will be very pleased!!
Posted on 9/15/25 at 6:09 am to HuntFishMan
As has been said, go to a store and swing a few.
My favorite has always been an A300. To me it feels better than an A 400 (clunky and heavy).
Browning Maxus 2’s are really nice guns. My wife has one I got her a couple years ago that I grabbed and went in the yard to shoot a couple doves the other day. It fits me as well as my A300 and I really like it. I’d probably get one if I wanted another shotgun.
I really don’t see the need for a 3.5” gun these days. With the advent of bismuth shells, it’s really unnecessary to shoot 3.5” shells anyway.
My favorite has always been an A300. To me it feels better than an A 400 (clunky and heavy).
Browning Maxus 2’s are really nice guns. My wife has one I got her a couple years ago that I grabbed and went in the yard to shoot a couple doves the other day. It fits me as well as my A300 and I really like it. I’d probably get one if I wanted another shotgun.
I really don’t see the need for a 3.5” gun these days. With the advent of bismuth shells, it’s really unnecessary to shoot 3.5” shells anyway.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 6:19 am to HuntFishMan
Beretta A400 with a Briley extended light modified choke tube and 3” #3 steel shot. You’re welcome.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 6:52 am to Longhorn Actual
I’d love to hear the explanation of how cold weather knocks a bolt out of battery that isn’t viscous/friction related…
Posted on 9/15/25 at 7:33 am to Longhorn Actual
quote:
the "Benelli click"
Is ALWAYS due to operator error.
Thats said, SBE is pretty much the perfect duck gun, as it was designed to be.
Id get a 20ga, but I'm in no danger of going on a real goose hunt or anything like that.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 7:42 am to DownshiftAndFloorIt
quote:
Is ALWAYS due to operator error
I think 98% of mine have been from trying to “ease the bolt” down either before shooting light or not trying to spook something.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 7:45 am to CFDoc
quote:
I’d love to hear the explanation of how cold weather knocks a bolt out of battery that isn’t viscous/friction related…
Don't start building a strawman.
What I said was:
quote:
Unless you hunt in extreme cold, a Benelli SBE variant.
If you hunt in extreme cold, be prepared for the "Benelli click" (failure to fire).
quote:
I'm aware of what it is and no, it's not always a cleaning/lube issue.
Several cold-related things can hinder an inertia-driven action and cause it to to fail to return to battery (rotate and lock), causing a failure-to-fire.
Hell, heavy compressible clothing - typically worn in extreme cold - can cause less-than-firm shouldering of the weapon and interfere with an inertia-driven system. That's a very common culprit.
Moisture in the action, particularly when it starts to freeze up, slows down the action. It slows down any action, but Benellis don't have the same margin for error.
It's not a matter of "prone to." It's a matter of "more prone to than alternatives."
I grab a Benelli 90% of the time. I grab something else when it's super cold.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 7:49 am to Ol boy
100% of the times I've seen it, it was that.
It's fine to do that, you just need to whack the charging handle forward to make sure it is fully into battery. You can look at the bolt and tell its not fully forward, there's a gap between the bolt head and bolt housing.
I always see "the benelli click" brought up but nobody will sell me their damn piece of shite no shooting SBE for cheap
It's fine to do that, you just need to whack the charging handle forward to make sure it is fully into battery. You can look at the bolt and tell its not fully forward, there's a gap between the bolt head and bolt housing.
I always see "the benelli click" brought up but nobody will sell me their damn piece of shite no shooting SBE for cheap
Posted on 9/15/25 at 8:04 am to HuntFishMan
Winchester SX4.
Gas over inertia.
Gas over inertia.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 8:05 am to DownshiftAndFloorIt
quote:
there's a gap between the bolt head and bolt housing.
My pinky is a certified calibrated feeler gauge that can quickly confirm if it’s locked even in the dark lol
Posted on 9/15/25 at 8:37 am to Ol boy
quote:100% for me. I am now super careful about it when switching shells because the geese start working.
I think 98% of mine have been from trying to “ease the bolt” down
Posted on 9/15/25 at 9:51 am to HuntFishMan
My preference is the Benelli SBE series. I have the SBE II, I think the SBE III is the one offered now. I really like their inertia-driven system.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 10:15 am to RichJ
Benelli M2 20 gage all day, or any gage. You dont need 3.5" 12 gage shells.
The infamous "click" can happen to any gun with a rotating bolt head, the Beretta's included.
For ducks and geese, I much prefer inertia over gas, whole lot less moving parts when you hunt a lot, dealing with rain, etc.
Came from many years of Beretta Extrema2, Extreme A400.....then tried an M2 and sold those.
The infamous "click" can happen to any gun with a rotating bolt head, the Beretta's included.
For ducks and geese, I much prefer inertia over gas, whole lot less moving parts when you hunt a lot, dealing with rain, etc.
Came from many years of Beretta Extrema2, Extreme A400.....then tried an M2 and sold those.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 10:22 am to Tigah D
quote:
refer inertia over gas, whole lot less moving parts when you hunt a lot, dealing with rain, etc.
I always felt the same way, till I got some first hand information from a dove hunting outfit in south america. They only use beretta gas guns. According to them, the benellis are less reliable and wear out quicker than the berettas do.
I like benelli's better, but I think reliability is about equal and longevity a non-issue for the average Louisiana duck hunter.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 10:35 am to Longhorn Actual
quote:
Hell, heavy compressible clothing - typically worn in extreme cold - can cause less-than-firm shouldering of the weapon and interfere with an inertia-driven system. That's a very common culprit.
I hear this a lot but have personally never experienced it. Layers of clothing and such actually helps inertia actions because rearward movement of the gun is what compresses the spring in the bolt. You can watch guys shoot Benellis upside down over their heads and they work fine. It’s putting inertia actions against a stiff surface, like a wall, that causes them to not cycle.
quote:
Moisture in the action, particularly when it starts to freeze up, slows down the action. It slows down any action, but Benellis don't have the same margin for error
This problem is 100% solved by switching to dry lubes.
quote:
I grab a Benelli 90% of the time. I grab something else when it's super cold.
No hate from me here. With two young kids, I don’t grab hardly anything anymore, unfortunately. But there was a time when I was a high volume registered NSCA shooter, wing shooter, and just generally more pleasant to be around altogether. I got well into the 100s of thousands of rounds and I put them through all the B guns, Z guns, and even a Guerini. None are perfect, some are better than others.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 10:39 am to lsufan1971
Just bought mine from Bass Pro for $750. Expect another sale for Black Friday.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 11:42 am to Pauvetibete
Benelli click is real but I have only seen it when it's really cold and made worse by moisture, snow etc. Only saw it at 10 deg and lower.
Hasn't happened in a400s that I've seen
Hasn't happened in a400s that I've seen
Posted on 9/15/25 at 2:18 pm to DownshiftAndFloorIt
quote:
I always felt the same way, till I got some first hand information from a dove hunting outfit in south america. They only use beretta gas guns. According to them, the benellis are less reliable and wear out quicker than the berettas do.
Wasn't speaking to longevity, but rather how much breakdown do I have to do when I'm coming in from a rainy duck hunt. Fooling with a big cleaning job is the last thing you want to do at that time. There are way more parts to the gas guns......I know, have hunted them for many many seasons and got bit by not getting to the nitty gritty that then rusted.
I dont think Argentina holds a gas-gun only operation as a whole, after all the Benelli Cordoba was built on that style of hunting, most of us will never fire that volume of rounds, and dang sure not duck hunting.
Posted on 9/15/25 at 2:25 pm to Tigah D
Im having a hard time deciding between inertia and gas driven
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