Browning maxus
- Thread starter DallasBlaine
- Start date
I have a Browning Maxus Sporting (3" & 28" barrels). I have not used it a lot but it is a very soft and smooth shooting gun and has flawlessly cycled anything I have put in it. The Maxus Sporting and a Browning Silver Hunter are the only two semis I have and I like them both.
I handled all the usual suspects a couple of years back and ended up with a Maxus CF Sporting 3" chamber 30" barrel. I was determined to like the Beretta 400 Extreme but the Maxus just felt right.
I use it exclusively for duck hunting and love this shotgun. To me it handles exactly the same as the SKB XL900 I was raised on so that was the biggest factor. If looking straight down the beads it throws approximately 60% of the pattern above the bead. I shoot Black Cloud #4 and Blind Side #3 and the patterns are good and consistent out to 40 yards using the factory IMP CYL choke.
Take down and assemble are a breeze and the design is simple but effective. I could easily strip and clean it in the field if necessary with no risk of losing small parts or problems with assembly. Having said that, it runs very clean and it never feels sluggish even after many rounds in harsh conditions.
The fit and finish is just okay considering this is a flag ship auto loader for Browning. The recoils pad fit is off a fraction and the spacers are junky. I spent some time with emery paper fitting the plastic on the spacers I decided on. This is a convenient option however as one is pretty much assured a perfect fit if you take the time.
The shell lifter on mine is an annoyance. It is sharp and it has caught my finger a couple of times. It only happens when the gun is leaning in the blind and I load with my pointer finger. If I pick the gun up and stuff the shells in with my thumb it never happens so obviously it is more me than the gun.
The fake carbon fiber finish is probably the same material used for the camo ones. It has a couple of tiny marks but considering the conditions, it is holding up better than expected. It is gripy and feels very good in the hands.
Anyway, the most important thing is that it cycles every time and kills ducks. Like I mentioned, I love the shotgun and have no regrets buying it. If it were stolen, I wouldn't even look at another make or model.
I use it exclusively for duck hunting and love this shotgun. To me it handles exactly the same as the SKB XL900 I was raised on so that was the biggest factor. If looking straight down the beads it throws approximately 60% of the pattern above the bead. I shoot Black Cloud #4 and Blind Side #3 and the patterns are good and consistent out to 40 yards using the factory IMP CYL choke.
Take down and assemble are a breeze and the design is simple but effective. I could easily strip and clean it in the field if necessary with no risk of losing small parts or problems with assembly. Having said that, it runs very clean and it never feels sluggish even after many rounds in harsh conditions.
The fit and finish is just okay considering this is a flag ship auto loader for Browning. The recoils pad fit is off a fraction and the spacers are junky. I spent some time with emery paper fitting the plastic on the spacers I decided on. This is a convenient option however as one is pretty much assured a perfect fit if you take the time.
The shell lifter on mine is an annoyance. It is sharp and it has caught my finger a couple of times. It only happens when the gun is leaning in the blind and I load with my pointer finger. If I pick the gun up and stuff the shells in with my thumb it never happens so obviously it is more me than the gun.
The fake carbon fiber finish is probably the same material used for the camo ones. It has a couple of tiny marks but considering the conditions, it is holding up better than expected. It is gripy and feels very good in the hands.
Anyway, the most important thing is that it cycles every time and kills ducks. Like I mentioned, I love the shotgun and have no regrets buying it. If it were stolen, I wouldn't even look at another make or model.
I shoot a maxus sporting clays 30" for all things clay and a 28" max 5 for waterfowl. I absolutely love the fit for me. Taking it down is super simple and like mentioned, you can easily do it in the field or in a dark field for that matter with no issues or smaller parts to lose. The forearm has an ever so slight movement in both of them. There are simple fixes for this online, but never been an issue for me. I have never had a single failure with any ammo in either shotgun. I never really let them get terribly dirty so I can't comment on how long you could shoot without cleaning. If it fits you well, I don't think you can go wrong with the maxus. I really like the first shell auto feed feature when reloading in the layout blind, smoking fast to get reloaded. I really like the rubbery/grippy feel on the max 5. I'm very careful not to get cleaning solvents or oils on the camo, but the pistol grip and part of the forend is getting a slightly yellowish tinge to it which I have read could be due to salty/sweaty hands and is somewhat common. Being as it's in the field a lot, I'm not overly concerned about it. Hope this helps.
Yotarunner
CGN Regular
- Location
- Eastern Alberta
i own a maxus 3.5 inch and use it for everything from grouse, geese and ducks to skeet, trap and sporting clays. i have had a few hiccups here and there but nothing major and i ask a lot out of it. last year i found that after the temps dropped to about 5 degrees it would stop cycling light trap loads then as it got colder it would stop cycling even heavy loads. after trying multiple cleaning methods and oils in various amounts one day i got pissed off and pretty much drenched all moving parts (except the trigger) in hoppes 9 now it will run one ounce trap loads all day and when it gets cold i switch to a lighter oil and its good to go. like others have said its a breeze to take down and the perceived recoil is quite little for being such a light gun. i have found after heavy use the duratouch finish tends to scratch off but i like to look at that as character marks.
I have the Golden Clays edition (30" barrel) and it has worked flawless for me. As a test I never cleaned it yet this shooting season just to see how long it would run: to date I have fired just under 1k rounds (940 exactly) of a mix between Federal target load ( 7.5 & 8 ) which was the majority of the ammo type used and the remainder being my 1oz reloads (7.5 & 8 ) using 700X. I love this gun: worth every penny!
I just picked up a maxus hunter with 28" barrel for waterfowl.... after fiddling with the shims (pita), it fits me quite well..... had it out at the range this morning and did four rounds of skeet with it...... cycled through four boxes of cheap target load flawlessly.....
Nice looking wood Brad.
No homo
No homo
I just picked up a maxus hunter with 28" barrel for waterfowl.... after fiddling with the shims (pita), it fits me quite well..... had it out at the range this morning and did four rounds of skeet with it...... cycled through four boxes of cheap target load flawlessly.....
Lol..... thanks, no homo taken......
I have to admit that taking a pick of the gun to display the wood is different than my usual rifle pics...... I have never seen a browning shotgun that didn't have superb wood....... so mine is not "special" in any way..... I don't know where they source it from, but it's certainly worth the price of admission......
I have to admit that taking a pick of the gun to display the wood is different than my usual rifle pics...... I have never seen a browning shotgun that didn't have superb wood....... so mine is not "special" in any way..... I don't know where they source it from, but it's certainly worth the price of admission......
I owned a Maxus 3" , 26" bbl and it was a very nice gun. I don't really have a sensitivity to recoil as much as I've read from other posters but it is quite comfortable to shoot. They are very nice looking. Shot clays, waterfowl and upland with it. The only issue I ever had was a few failures to cycle target loads on very cold days. Like most gas guns it's does seem to get pretty dirty but none the less functioned fine. I also know a few buddies that own them and the only major issue was that one guy while hunting in a layout blind somehow got dirt or sand in his and it wouldn't load shells into the mag. He tried cleaning it out at the truck, but it was to no avail. His hunt was over.
IMO if you are looking for a 3.5" it's not a bad choice if it fits you, but if a 3" will do, there are other shottys out there that will perform just as well if not better and could save you a few hundred dollars.
IMO if you are looking for a 3.5" it's not a bad choice if it fits you, but if a 3" will do, there are other shottys out there that will perform just as well if not better and could save you a few hundred dollars.
So that Sporting Clays is working well for you?
I love it. Shooting it pretty much forced me to buy one for waterfowl as well. It's way too pretty to beat up in the blind.
