budget Over/under shotgun.

[bdg848]

I am looking for an over/under for upland hunting for $1k. Just hunting, no trap/skeet. Obviously, if I find a used Citori or Beretta that fits my needs, I will buy that. However, for new guns, I am looking at the CZ redhead and redhead All terrain model vs the Mossberg International Silver reserve. Does anyone have any RECENT experience with either? I've seen some old reviews saying the Mossberg has issues but I'm pretty sure that was with the old version of that gun and the new one is an entirely different gun. The CZ is $300 more than the Mossberg and I'm curious if it is a notch higher in quality to justify that.

 

[tt_johnsclist]

I have a CZ sharptail SxS and I am very impressed with the fit, finish, and quality for a gun at that price point. I have handled the mossbergs in the past and don’t recall being impressed, but that was a while ago.

 

[Lytro]

Very happy with my Stevens 555 Silver I picked up 2 years ago. I use it for everything from doves to turkeys. For $1K you could pick up the gun and all the chokes you would ever need.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Don't get a Stoeger.

 

[Thinkingman]

Wait for a used Citori Lightning or Beretta.
BTW, they fit very differently.

 

[ElPollo]

The $800-1000 range in o/u shotguns is not significantly different from the $400-500 range if you consider Yildiz. I would personally take a Yildiz over a CZ, Stevens, or Mossberg any day. I don’t see a measurable improvement until you get passed $1500, and that does not affect function at all. I’ve had two CZs and sold them. I had plans to buy a Franchi and passed. My daily hunter for the last five years has been an alloy framed Yildiz 12 ga.

 

[OMB]

Wait for a used Citori Lightning or Beretta.
BTW, they fit very differently.

Yup. If you have to have an O/U right now, starting on the entry level stuff isn't awful, but I'd rather save another $1k for a used Browning or Beretta. There's a lot of excellent used O/U's out there that look like they've never left the case (probably didn't..)

 

[eldeuce]

Just saw this on gun digest:

Best Over/Under Shotguns: Affordable Doubles (2024)

Over/Under shotguns tend to run a pretty penny. But, there are some affordable double-barreled gems nearly any shooter can work into their budget.

gundigest.com

 

[PredatorSlayer]

I was in the same boat a few years ago. Ended up getting a new Browning Cynergy Feather for $1200 on gunbroker. Good deals are out there if you can be patient.

 

[Terrapin]

The only “budget” o/u that I’ve had good luck with is the Franchi Instinct SL. They can be found new for about $1300. It is a respected Italian gun maker. I have a 28ga and a 12ga. Both have been flawless in the field and hundreds of rounds of warm up sporting clays.

They are very light, so for serious clays I opt for Browning, Beretta or Blaser. But for all around upland, I always grab the Franchi.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Macintosh]

If the $1000 limit is a hard stop I would keep using what you are using or get a cheap pump for the interim and keep saving. O/u’s are more complicated to make, and the benefits that come with a double gun (to me that is mostly faster handling compared to nearly all pump or autos) are lost in 100% of the cheaper ones I’ve seen. In my opinion a double gun less than a Beretta, Browning or one of the other Italian makers is not worth spending on at all. Keep in mind this is not to say that they don’t work for low-round count shooting, I just don’t see the benefit over a pump or auto at that point. At that price point the pump or auto is going to be a better quality gun with better long-term service and better resale value, and it will last longer and perform better over time. I don’t remember all of the names, but there are some house-branded Italian made shotguns that were sold under various brands for relatively short money. A lot of these were made by rizzini and some other brands before those brands had their own distribution in the US. Those guns are the best of the inexpensive over and unders that I’ve seen, by far. They’ll be marked as made in italy, gardone v.t. Or Brescia, and they’ll have the characteristic low-profile reciever and lines of the less-$ rizzini guns (There are multiple brands called rizzini, I’m not certain but I think i.rizzini is the one I’m referring to, sometimes called f.a.i.r.). Fausti is another italian maker that has had some decent inexpensive guns. These are basically guild guns, there are gun factories in that area and various brands contract to have guns made by the same factories. They are essentially the same design and parts on all of them, just with different grades of steel and different finish work applied, etc. A older winchester 101 with fixed chokes or a miroku (same gun) can also sometimes be found in that price range and would be a good option. An older beretta BL3 or bl4 could also be a good option, the 20-gauages ar epretty exceptional handling and get a higher $, but a 12ga is a decent, basic O/U that will handle and last better than any of the modern sub-$1000 new O/U's.

Of the brands mentioned in the original Post and since, my preference would be a CZ simply because it’s a bigger, more reputable company with more shotguns out there and shotguns make up a big% of their business, so I think you are more likely to get service or parts if anything goes south over time. But you DONT get the weight and handling characteristics that to me are really the reason why I like double guns.

At that price point You could do a lot worse than look for a good shape Winchester model 12 in a lightweight configuration, or a newer Beretta or benelli auto. You can get a lot of gun for well under 1000 bucks in one of those.

 

[KenLee]

The $800-1000 range in o/u shotguns is not significantly different from the $400-500 range if you consider Yildiz. I would personally take a Yildiz over a CZ, Stevens, or Mossberg any day. I don’t see a measurable improvement until you get passed $1500, and that does not affect function at all. I’ve had two CZs and sold them. I had plans to buy a Franchi and passed. My daily hunter for the last five years has been an alloy framed Yildiz 12 ga.

Agreed. They get the job done

 

[ElPollo]

Agreed. They get the job done

I quail hunt 4 months out of the year and had planned to buy an $1400 alloy framed Franchi SL, but found myself not pulling the trigger on the purchase. They are great guns, but my guns are tools that are intended to perform as opposed to impress. I bought the Yildiz for $429 and never looked back. The fit is the same as the Franchi, I shoot it well, and I don’t cry if it gets scratched up. A good friend of mine bought a Beretta Silver Pigeon at the same time. Durability has been the same. Mine is significantly lighter. Don’t get me wrong, his Silver Pigeon is a nice gun, but the Yildiz is a better option for me.

 

[Macintosh]

Durability will be the same until a part breaks or you get into high round counts via target shooting. The beretta has the locking lugs designed to be replaced, so that gun will go half a million rounds, get a new set of trunions and lugs for a couple hundred bucks, and then go another 500,000 rounds. The others generally use lower grade materials and metal:metal parts arent finished as closely, which means joints will loosen much faster and those parts generally arent designed to be replaced. if you shoot a flat or two of shells per year and never break a spring or a cast part, you may never see the difference in durability. If you get into target shooting you might shoot that much every weekend. Just remember that if you have to have a part MADE for a repair, or deal with a loose action without bolt-on locking parts, it will take a long time and probably cost more to repair than it would to replace the gun. Thats the durability difference. If you wont ever shoot a lot of clay targets with it it’s just a matter of a possible broken part and finding parts/repair at a reasonable price.

Durability is not why I prefer a double though. I find the ones I like have more of the weight of the gun near the physical center of the gun…its the difference between carrying and swinging a 7lb tennis ball versus a 7lb 2x4, ie with more of the weight out at the ends of the gun, it feels heavier to carry and is slower to mount and move, without any additional benefit of that weight in terms of recoil or being easier to shoot. means I can carry a slightly heavier gun and get the benefit of reduced recoil and more forgiving to shoot, while being easier to carry and faster to move than same-weight auto. In order to do this, it takes a lot of work and a lot of effort to make the barrels very light and the stock very light, which takes better-quality material and more work ($$$). It’s also why you’ll see a lot of people gravitate to older guns with fixed chokes, because many of the newer guns, even pretty nice ones, have to have thicker barrels to accept choke tubes. Some of the nicer modern guns still use pretty thin barrels and sometimes you’ll see a slight bulge near the muzzle to accommodate chokes, in my eyes that’s actually a good thing because it indicates they’re still putting a lot of emphasis on faster handling. Some of the European brands, Perazzi being one, still offer fixed choke barrels for exactly this reason.

 

[Remington92]

Shade over your price range but I had one of these and it was a nice shotgun. O/U wasn't for me so I sold it and got well over what I paid for it back (I picked mine up used). Made in belgium/portugal if I remember right. Far nicer fit and finish than my buddies budget CZ.
https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/Winchester-Model-101-Ultimate-Field-OverUnder-Shotgun

 

[jags]

I picked up a Weatherby Orion a couple of years ago. So far I've shot 2 100rds of sporting clays and 2 upland hunting seasons without issue and like it just fine. You can get it in either 12 or 20 gauges.

 

[bdg848]

Okay, so I'm really looking for a good USED gun.

I have a lead on a Beretta 686 essential for $700. It's in ok shape, small dings and scratches, slight discolored smudges on the receiver etc. and one inch long crack on the fore end. My dad just bought the same gun three weeks ago in similar shape for $450. Is $700 a bit much or did my dad get a really good deal and I'm just not as lucky?

Also does anyone have a reasonable figure for a Beretta Blackwing in fair/good condition?

Opinions and figures on the Franchi Diamon Elite and Franchi Instinct L?

 

[bdg848]

I should add that the 686 stock was cut short and a spacer added.

 

[greenomics]

If I had a $1,000 to spend on an upland gun, I would not buy an o/u. Maybe try browsing listing on shotgunworld and trapshooters.

 

[bdg848]

If I had a $1,000 to spend on an upland gun, I would not buy an o/u. Maybe try browsing listing on shotgunworld and trapshooters.

Ok, but I'm getting an O/U. Like I said above, I started looking for used guns to get in the $1000 range for a quality firearm. That's how I found the used Beretta I mentioned...........do you have thoughts on the prices I quoted?