Do you like your Franchi affinity?

[Grape]

Getting close to "pulling the trigger" on buying a Franchi affinity 3.5 waterfowl elite.

Hoping to hear from all of you Franchi owners to weigh in on i f you've been happy with yours? If you had the money to do it again, would you get the same gun or get something else?

Opinions on the 3.5" vs 3"? I'm hoping to do a little goose hunting and I'm thinking I want the ability to potentially use 3.5s.

For those who have been through this, is the waterfowl elite worth the extra $$$?

 

[Cant hit em]

I have a affinity 3 12g and kill geese fine with the 3” , i dont see a real need for 3.5”. It operated flawless this year its light , nice trigger and easy to take down. Buying another in 20g soon

 

[rmarshall]

I've had a franchi affinity almost since day one when they came out, I have never had a single issue. It has become a definite favorite of mine, I just picked up another one and plan on getting one in a 20 ga. My franchi has been primarily and upland gun, but has ran plenty of 3" stuff for turkeys, and waterfowl. It's been a amazing shotgun and easy to maintain. I do want to shoot a Browning Maxus II, as they feel great but dang the price is a killer. IMO you can't go wrong with a Franchi. The Waterfowl elites get good reviews.

 

[TxLite]

Really like my wife’s affinity 3” 20g in the duck blind. Very handy little shotgun and works great with duck loads which tend to be high velocity. It does not like dove or target loads. For those I have to seek out the high velocity stuff to get it to cycle.

 

[Tahoe1305]

Really like my wife’s affinity 3” 20g in the duck blind. Very handy little shotgun and works great with duck loads which tend to be high velocity. It does not like dove or target loads. For those I have to seek out the high velocity stuff to get it to cycle.

I just got the 20g compact. Shot it for first time this weekend a bit concerned about the comments on needing faster loads.

Shot AA target 7/8oz 1300fps 7.5s and it cycled well. First 10 shells through it.

 

[FB Trout]

Another 3" Affinity owner. Never a misfire, my son uses it to shoot trap in HS rodeo, until we can get another gun. It is very similar to the Benelli M2. The Affinity in 3" has been a great waterfowling gun, too.

 

[t_carlson]

I wholly recommend.

I have the original, plain-jane version (3"). I've never shot a 3.5" gun, so I have no idea if there is a real world advantage. I will say that I've never shot a 3.5" because I've just never felt the need, if that tells you anything, but I tend to only try for bird that are coming into the decoys.

 

[Oregonboy]

I have a 12g and a 20g, they're awesome.

 

[TxLite]

I just got the 20g compact. Shot it for first time this weekend a bit concerned about the comments on needing faster loads.

Shot AA target 7/8oz 1300fps 7.5s and it cycled well. First 10 shells through it.

It could also be that ours was one of the early models. They may have made adjustments since I got hers in 2016

Edit to add- the dove loads it cycles are the monarch 1300fps 7/8. So that tracks with your experience. It did not cycle the standard velocity 20g loads we tried

 

[Ecampbell25]

I had the 2 3/4 and it was a great gun

 

[nobody]

I have the affinity 3, wife got it for me for Christmas (with a little coaching from me). It runs 2 3/4” target loads like butter, and obviously runs and cycles on heavy 3” waterfowl loads just fine. Mine is the standard model with the Sitka optifade marsh dip. When the dip wears off I’ll get the barrel and action cerakoted, but so far it’s holding up well.

Previously I had a Stoeger pump since 2006 as my primary shotgun, it’s a 3.5” chamber. I have shot exactly ONE 3.5” shell in my entire life. Modern ammunition, IMO, largely negates the need to use 3.5” shells. Semi auto 3.5” guns don’t always cycle target/practice loads reliably, especially the inertia guns (Benelli/franchi/browning a5/retay). For me, a 3” chambered shotgun running Uber high quality loads will kill anything I can point it at, plus I can also shoot trap and skeet with the light loads in the off season. I see zero functional reason to purchase a 3.5” gun in today’s world.

I wouldn’t hesitate to buy more of the same gun. Idk if I feel the upcharge for the waterfowl elite is worth it, but if you got the cash I don’t see any reason why you’d regret doing that.

 

[BCD]

I have the Affinity 3 Turkey in 20 gauge. It shoots really nice patterns with TSS and a Carlson .575 choke. That said, the fit and finish is terrible and I have had a lot of problems with it. I got it about a year ago. On the first one they sent the forend wouldn't fit (i found out later this was a frequent issue with this model). Me and the FFL tried for about an hour and eventually sent it back. I was able to get the second one together and it jammed on every single shot I took for about the first 15 rounds. I sent it back and they fixed it but it still jams occasionally. It is a backup to my Mossberg SA 20 currently. The fit and finish on the Mossberg is far superior to the Affinity in every way. Both Affinity's had spots where the paint was chipped or peeling and white spots throughout the finish. I tried to return the second one for a refund to no avail. I will never own another.

 

[satchamo]

I got a 20 g affinity compact as my dedicated turkey rig last summer. The only thing I hate is the ridiculously long trigger reach but I think that’s because I’ve hunted with a pistol grips for so long I’ve almost forgotten how to hold a shotgun lol but still it’s not overly cozy for me to shoulder. I haven’t actually hunted with it yet tho so time will tell.

Function wise it’s worked well for the 2 boxes of apex TSS I’ve put thru it.

 

[summs]

I have the stoeger m3500, the toyota if franchi is a lexus. I have never had an issue with the gun besides rust, and that's mostly on me hunting salt marsh. Beat the gun up for 10 years now, repainted and only cleaned once at the end of every season.

Only gripe - when the recoil lug is inserted in the butt, it doesn't cycle 7/8oz dove/target loads. Take it out with 2 screws and it a non issue. I was considering the franchi, but not enough of a difference. If im spending that money I would buy a Benelli

Actually after 10 years, the rear sling mount broke when I dropped the gun on a <10* morning on the last day of goose season 3 weeks ago.

 

[Top147]

3" franchi max 4 has been my go to for roughly 10years in the marsh. Not one failure yet.

But the safety, its backwards.. and still gets me sometimes..

 

[S.Clancy]

I wouldn't buy a 3.5" gun personally. The ones I've patterned with steel, the 3.5" shells never patterned as good as the 3".

As far as the Affinity, I've had mine for like 6-7 years and it still shoots like a dream.

 

[idahodave]

There isn’t a more reliable 3” semi-auto made than a Franchi Affinity imho…and I’ve shot them all for 30+ years in some pretty miserable conditions.

Dave

 

[19hunt92]

have a 20 ga affinity 2.0
Awesome gun and have yet to have an issue, plenty of kills under its wings