semi auto for clays? which gun is the best

VLT79 said:
Oh ok...I just get curious when others mention them because for such a great gun they are basically unknown. I actually own 11 Super-X Model 1 shotguns...and lots of extra parts! LOL! I find one of my 30" trap barrels opened to LM does the trick for about 90% of Sporting Clays presentations, so I'm unsure about chokes...and I can't decide if I want to go with Briley or Wright's anyway.
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11 ... you are being a hog (LOL). When I bought the barrel, it had Briley's in it. I understand Wright's chokes are very good and he does manufacture Super X-1 parts. I would probably lean toward Wright, if I was going to have one tubed.
 
adamg said:
My reasoning is:
-Randy says so ( http://www.google.com/cse?cx=partne...2:4i6c5pgk51j&q=fabarm#gsc.tab=0&gsc.q=fabarm )
-Available with exactly the features a clay gun needs, such as adjustable rib, adjustable comb, flat comb
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Thanks. People who make their buying decisions based on gun rags and blogs risk disappointment. An honest review is a hard thing to find and most reviewers do not put a gun through the same volume of shooting over an extended period of time.

I've owned guns with all of those features and while not without their use they are not what a clay gun "needs" and can be a distraction. Adjustable ribs are often flimsy and too many shooters will start fiddling with the adjustable parts after a bad outing in the mistaken belief that will correct their problems.

The Fabarm might be the best clay semi on the market but I'd like to hear from someone who was put 10,000 rounds through one in all types of conditions before reaching for my wallet. YMMV.
 
The Fabarm might be the best clay semi on the market but I'd like to hear from someone who was put 10,000 rounds through one in all types of conditions before reaching for my wallet. YMMV.
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It would have to last 50,000 rounds, before I would even consider it as my primary clays gun.
 
stubblejumper said:
It would have to last 50,000 rounds, before I would even consider it as my primary clays gun.
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I generally hold semis to a lower standard than an o/u. The first 10 thousand should give a pretty clear idea of how the gun operates, what is vulnerable to breakage, how it feeds a variety of ammunition, any quirks it may have and how it performs in various conditions. I've seen too many guns hyped by the industry only to watch them fail in real life. The Remington Model 105CTi and Beretta UGB are two that come to mind.

The Fabarm may be everything that the blogs say it is but I'd like someone else to do the field testing before I buy one.
 
A co shooter of mine has a Fabarm xlr5 velocity . the gun is adjustable in every way rib ,comb ,trigger . I have no idea what the round count on his gun would be other than he shoots it on a regular basis and so far it has worked as it should .I can tell you at just shy of 9# it is a very soft shooting gun .if you don't like a gun that is big in the grips the fabarm is not for you as they have a bulky forearm and pistol grip . he seem to be pleased with the gun and shoots it very well .personally I will stick with my 30" barrel 725 sporting I bought it for sporting clays but also use it for skeet and trap .it feels great in my hands and shoots where I am looking .
 
50,000.? That's 40 rounds a week for 50 weeks. With this criteria I'm surprised you ever buy a gun. Who does your testing for you? How do they breakdown their findings?
 
nemesisincanada said:
50,000.? That's 40 rounds a week for 50 weeks. With this criteria I'm surprised you ever buy a gun. Who does your testing for you? How do they breakdown their findings?
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I posted 50,000 rounds, I didn't specify 50,000 rounds per year. When I spend my money on a gun for clays, I expect that it should last me at least 50,000 rounds, be it 10,000 rounds per year, for five years, or 5,000 rounds per year for ten years. I have found that it takes several thousand rounds for the hinges on my O/U skeet/trap guns to even begin to loosen up, and I personally know of skeet and trap guns that have over 200,000 rounds through them.
 
stubblejumper said:
I posted 50,000 rounds, I didn't specify 50,000 rounds per year. When I spend my money on a gun for clays, I expect that it should last me at least 50,000 rounds, be it 10,000 rounds per year, for five years, or 5,000 rounds per year for ten years. I have found that it takes several thousand rounds for the hinges on my O/U skeet/trap guns to even begin to loosen up, and I personally know of skeet and trap guns that have over 200,000 rounds through them.
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And there lies the difference between a shooter and a competitive shooter!

Lets face it, the average shooter/hunter vastly over estimates the amount of rounds that have been thru their guns whereas the guy that shoots competitively will be within 1000rds of the actual number if not right on it! I've witnessed lots of guys come to clubs with a new gun in the spring, burn up 2000-4000 rounds by the time snow flies, come back the following spring and by mid-summer their guns are having mechanical issues because they are actually worn out. Upon inspection and telling them so, they typically figure it's normal because they shot well over 15 000-20 000rs thru it! LOL! Actually, no...it was less than 6000rds and the gun is toast because it was built and sold with the idea that the owner would only shoot 200-300 rounds a year, at most and in doing so, would last a 15-20 years or long enough that said owner figures his gun was built to last a lifetime. Cheaply made guns are fine...if you use them for what they are intended.

If I'm buying a new shotgun, I'm buying one that will, like stubblejumper said, last at least 50 000rds and if I can't afford a new shotgun that will last that long then I'll buy a used one in my price range that will! After running a little under 44 000rds in 13 years thru my Browning Gold 3.5" with only 1 bolt buffer and action spring replacement, which was more preventative maintenance than requirement, I have no issues recommending the SX3 (the Gold's sibling) as a reliable and trouble free gun!
 
stubblejumper said:
I posted 50,000 rounds, I didn't specify 50,000 rounds per year. When I spend my money on a gun for clays, I expect that it should last me at least 50,000 rounds, be it 10,000 rounds per year, for five years, or 5,000 rounds per year for ten years. I have found that it takes several thousand rounds for the hinges on my O/U skeet/trap guns to even begin to loosen up, and I personally know of skeet and trap guns that have over 200,000 rounds through them.
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You specified a gun should be reliable to 50,000 rounds before you would consider buying it. My point was that when a new gun is released you would have to do the amount of shooting in one year or the more reasonable amounts you have highlighted before hitting you 50,000 and unless you did the testing yourself you wouldn't know how reliable the gun is anyway. In any case you would only know how reliable that one gun was an not the type.
I have two UGB-25s one has fired 10,000 rounds without issue, the other about 4000 before it had a trigger issue that was resolved under warranty. Since then it has been as reliable as the other. How reliable is the UGB25? In my experience with two examples, I would say good.
My DT10 skeet has it's hinges greased and is as stiff as the day it was new. However one of its firing pin springs need to be replaced due to failure.
 
nemesisincanada said:
You specified a gun should be reliable to 50,000 rounds before you would consider buying it. My point was that when a new gun is released you would have to do the amount of shooting in one year or the more reasonable amounts you have highlighted before hitting you 50,000 and unless you did the testing yourself you wouldn't know how reliable the gun is anyway. In any case you would only know how reliable that one gun was an not the type.
I have two UGB-25s one has fired 10,000 rounds without issue, the other about 4000 before it had a trigger issue that was resolved under warranty. Since then it has been as reliable as the other. How reliable is the UGB25? In my experience with two examples, I would say good.
My DT10 skeet has it's hinges greased and is as stiff as the day it was new. However one of its firing pin springs need to be replaced due to failure.
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They are an interesting concept, actually handle very well and with a price tag like that you would hope they last as long as the old A300 series. However, with that complicated action and just way too many little parts that won't happen! The design will be lucky to survive 30000rds without any parts breakage. Didn't they stop making them for a year or so only to resume production and almost double the price tag because they had invested millions into the design and felt it was bad business to abandon it and admit it wasn't the smartest concept to bring to life?
 
nemesisincanada said:
You specified a gun should be reliable to 50,000 rounds before you would consider buying it. My point was that when a new gun is released you would have to do the amount of shooting in one year or the more reasonable amounts you have highlighted before hitting you 50,000 and unless you did the testing yourself you wouldn't know how reliable the gun is anyway. In any case you would only know how reliable that one gun was an not the type.
I have two UGB-25s one has fired 10,000 rounds without issue, the other about 4000 before it had a trigger issue that was resolved under warranty. Since then it has been as reliable as the other. How reliable is the UGB25? In my experience with two examples, I would say good.
My DT10 skeet has it's hinges greased and is as stiff as the day it was new. However one of its firing pin springs need to be replaced due to failure.
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I choose shotguns with a proven track record, to use as clays guns. For instance, my go to guns are Browning Citori shotguns, and I knew of several that had shot well over 50,000 rounds, and some considerably more than that, before purchasing my first Citori. There may be slight changes from model to model, but the overall design is well proven. If I had to use a semi auto for clays, it would likely be Remington 1100, because of that proven track record.
 
VLT79 said:
Bang for your buck, the Winchester SX3 is still the gun to beat. They are the softest recoiling and most dependable gun with the largest range of loads and cost a few hundred less than the competition. The Sporting model as an adjustable comb and come with a spare gas piston for even more load versatility. If you get the field models they have all the shims and spacers require to make it fit you. Inertia guns are popular because the company has great marketing and advertising skills...that's about it though!
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The sx-3 is a decent Gun but a joke compared to the SX-1.

To the op get one of the various Beretta Clay Guns reliable and soft shooting.
 
Another vote for a Beretta. But if round count is your thing I believe Tom Knapp had a Benelli M2 that went 400,000 before being retired. At 70 dollars a flat, 112,000 dollars............
 
I have a 391 Teknys Gold Sporting and it's the cat's ass. The only problem I could find with it is that I wanted to get an adjustable comb installed, and couldn't because of the weird recoil reducing thing. Not a big deal. I put a piece of pipe insulation on it and now it's perfect. 12 cent raised comb :)
 
I know that there are benefits to shooting semi's as mine is a little nicer on the shoulder after 200-400 clay events, but I'd change up ammo before that became my chief concern. The main issue that drove me away from semi-autos might be unique to the shotgun that I used (Remington Versa-Max) but maybe some of you gents can weigh in on it.

I clean guns after each event. I don't think that it's unusual but I'd imagine some prefer the shoot until it stops and then clean (Not how I was raised). However, I grew REALLY tired of the hours I spent cleaning the Versa-Max. Two gas chambers w/ two pistons and two allen bolts requiring removal, and then all the fouling that builds up in the receiver quite fast. If I use cheap ammo (Federals), I find it builds up even faster. Was enough to turn me off semi's (For clays at least) and to purchase a Winchester Select Energy O/U (Love it).

Is this something that others find with semi-autos, a high expenditure on time to properly clean them? Or are others just simpler to clean? I realize it's no AR, but sometimes I'd rather spend my time reloading more shells.

In any case, the Versa-Max has seen 2,500 shots against clays, and another 100 from the blinds. It's holding up well and can shoot any load I seem to put through it. Some wear on the cam pin (first gen and early production so I'm having Remington replace it), and there is some slight wear on the hammer (earlier recalled item, but it seems they still break from time to time)
 
I shoot a beretta a400 exel with KO and love it.i clean every 800 rounds it never misses a beat what ever the ammo.
If you can afford its good one to go with some don't like the blue ,but easy to get over if breaking clays.
 
Vmaxx that's my experience exactly. 32" Xcel with KO, clean as you say every 800 rounds or so and it was money. All I would recommend is the addition of a shell catcher for trap shooting.
 
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