is there a review out there that compares all the sub-$1000 O/U against each other?

There's not very many sub 1000.00 O/Us out there. Stoeger, Mossberg and a few Turkish guns? Take your pick. You get what you pay for. There's this but it's from the US. I doubt you could buy any of these guns in Canada for under 1000.00.

https://www.outdoorlife.com/photos/.../11/best-over-under-shotguns-less-1000#page-7

BTW, there are dozens of used O/Us in the EE for under a 1000.00. All of them much better than these.
 
There are a couple of youtube channels that review over unders but they don't compare any head to head or talk about sub $1k guns. I think a lot of reviewer just write off the less expensive o/u's and are not really interested in reviewing them. However, having said that "The Gun Shop" a British youtube channel and "OSOG" an up and coming American gun reviewer and long time collector/dealer have both reviewed a couple of inexpensive o/u's such as the Biakal over under. They both had very different opinions about it which is quite interesting.
 
Under 2K you are still playing in the little league, a Beretta or a Browning ought to please you
 
Cheap o/u shotguns are here today, gone tomorrow. Witness Churchill 206 being sold off cheap across the country. Webley and Scott Turkish guns also seem short lived in the marketplace.
Don't be looking for parts a few years down the road.
 
saskbooknut said:
Cheap o/u shotguns are here today, gone tomorrow. Witness Churchill 206 being sold off cheap across the country. Webley and Scott Turkish guns also seem short lived in the marketplace.
Don't be looking for parts a few years down the road.
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Ruger attempted to compete in this nitch with their Red Label but found it imposible to build a quality American made over under for under $1k and discontinued the gun within the first year of production. Mossberg attempted this under their "B" brand, Maverick which is made in Turkey. I know of one person who owns a Maverick over under and he now uses it exclusively for hunting because the action losened up after a round of skeet.

Even CZ have come out with a $1k over under, "Redhead" and it is the same story all over again. Made in Turkey, low sales which is a reflection of quality even though they are better than the Maverick or so I have heard. I have only held one once at a gun show and I can say that my initial opinion is that it is a better gun than the Akkar Churchill but about 2 grades below the Ruger. Rumour has it that the Redhead will soon get axed.

I always thought Stoegers made a good over under only because they are owned by Beretta. I can attest to Beretta's quality because I have every ranging from 92s to cx4 to Silver Pigeons to M14s but I shy away from Stoeger because they are made in South America. That, and there are a couple of youtube videos showing how sloppy the lockup becomes after a few rounds of clays. It's too bad becuase I was hoping that the Stoeger was Beretta's serious attempt to replace the s55 and s65. Those are exceptional guns at the sub $1k price point. I would put my s55 and s65 up against my Silver Pigeon or my Browning Citori any day of the week. Beretta stopped producing the gun because they were loosing money. They tried saving late production models by introducing South American parts and instantly quality and sales begain to suffer and Beretta had to scrap that line quickly before their name gets dragged through the mud.

So this is my long winded way of saying that although cheap over unders may not be worth taking a serious look at, the OP has a good point, that someone should do a head to head comparison for those who are just getting in to the over under game and don't want to spend over $2k for their first gun. If someone is buying a cheap o/u at lease they will be well informed as to why they are cheap and make an informed decision. Who knows a quality over under might be found in the piles and piles of sub $1k that are being produced today like the s55. BTW, the s55 did eventually evolved into the Silver Pigeon... kinda like the ugly duckling story or rather ugly pigeon story.

As for o/u's on the market today, there are still Ruger Red Labels around but I have noticed their prices creeping up and now they sell for over $1k. I want to buy one because they are good quality guns at their price point IMO but what is stopping me is that unlike Beretta, Ruger is not at shotgun maker and I suspect the lack of available parts will begin to decrease the Red Label value after a few years. Maybe I will just buy a couple of $200 Baikals instead.
 
When the S55, 56 series of Berettas were made they were not particularly cheap guns, but priced by the level of finish and quality of wood. Beretta never sacrificed quality of metal parts and reliability for price.
Unfortunately there are very few parts for S55, 56 Berettas. Fortunately, they rarely need parts unless worn out.

I am sure there are fair value for dollar shotguns from Turkey. The problem is sorting the good from the dross. With the usual inadequate warranty support in Canada, buying a cheap O/U is a crap shoot.

Geraltao did point out one opportunity in cheap shotguns - if you can get over their lack of refinement, Baikal shotguns have a reputation for being built like a tank, and very reliable and cheap. The country has been flooded with surplus Baikal over/under shotguns from Scandinavia.

One thing to remember about buying shotguns from Scandinavia. When Swedish hunters are getting rid of guns to meet the limit they can hold, they are mostly getting rid of their problem, low end, or damaged, pitted guns. You have to pick and choose, and even get lucky, to get a really good gun from this pool of imports.
 
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So long as used B guns are on the market for around the 1k mark, I can’t understand for the life of me why someone would buy a cheap O/U. I have never known anyone genuinely interested in a O/U or SxS to buy a cheaper one, shoot it and not lament after a few years of use that they didn’t look harder for a used Browning or Beretta.

I love my Stoeger coach gun in 410 because it’s handy and fun to shoot but it’s by no means a fine example of a double barrelled shotgun and I didn’t buy it thinking or wanting to have that. Nor did I think I was cheating the system by buying a Brazilian gun, it’s crude, functional and entirely utilitarian, not the features one usually associates with O/Us or SxS’s.

Anyhow, I’m obviously wrong because these guns are selling so people want them, go figure

Patrick
 
Baikal of which i own several and new production churchill break actions seem to be the best value. I run the local skeet range so i see what guns go week after week and what ones have issues
I have a baikal sxs ij58 that has a loose forearm as the metal has worn out. It didnt start to wiggle until about 55000 rnds. I now have over 65000rnds and the action is still tight its just the hook that attaches the forearm has thinned
Bout it used almost unfired for $375 and id have no issue getting $300 for it now im sure. Its my favorite crow killer
The 206 churchills have done very well with many showing up
 
65000 rounds if you shoot skeet for 5 months of the yr at 1300 rounds per month for 10 yrs that's 65000 rounds and your gun is still mechanicly perfect that's axing .
 
struff55 said:
65000 rounds if you shoot skeet for 5 months of the yr at 1300 rounds per month for 10 yrs that's 65000 rounds and your gun is still mechanicly perfect that's axing .
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I shoot skeet 50 weeks a year. Mix in trap and my home range i had on the farm where i shot very often it wasnt hard to go thru 2 flats a week thru the gun. It also accounted for over a thousand crows a year on said farm

That said i just bought a turkish canuck pump that only lasted 10 rounds and now i have to deal with odell engineering who have already lost my trust. I also have an ou tristar setter that i cant sell because of the extreme problems its had. It was junk right out of the box. It has been a lesson in gunsmithing and parts fitting
Theres good cheap and bad cheap. Baikal is good. Churchill is good. Others are bad to worse
 
A friend of mine has a Stevens 555. The Stevens 20 gauge is a nice little gun for the price and knocks birds out of the air just fine.
If you're only shooting a flat a year I'd look at it...they were on sale at cabelas lately for like 699.00....that's 2000.00 less than my Beretta 686.
You can always trade up later!
 
I have a 555 as well. Only reason I acquired it last year is because I made a trade with a dealer for a military surplus gun that I didn't have much into for the NIB 555. A few years ago I was in WSS and someone had brought out a Stevens 512. I took a look at it for about 50 seconds and handed it back. I had read better reviews about the 555 so when the trade was offered I thought I'd give it a try. It is a nice light gun and handles very well. Recoil is not bad for its weight. And so far I've had no mechanical issues although I don't have many rounds through it so the jury is still out on that. But make no mistake. It is a hunting gun, not a high volume gun. But the OP didn't sate that he was actually looking for a gun but rather just a comparison among the budget guns.
 
I think for the occasional bird hunter who wants to carry an ou most models will do fine. If fed a steady diet of heavy hunting loads or the volume of shells a clayshooter will put thru than shopping for a better higher end gun will be better.
Figure the cost of even 5000 rnds is nearly $1800. Its easy ato spend more on ammo than the gun
 
as I mentioned...I was curious. I wanted to see what the fit/finish and form were reported against each other.

I've got a bad taste in my mouth for Baikal as I had a SxS and one of the firing pins went. the Baikal importer in Canada refused to help and simply said, 'can't get, bye bye'. <_<

that said, I'm not against buying a good used model. I'm really fond of CZ products, so would likely look at them first...then Browning/Berretta.
 
I have the 555 silver. Its ok. No problems yet other than the comb is a bit high.

Ive heard from the ogs at the range the 555 has issues with breaking firing pins and collapsing firing pin springs.

I have about 1000 to 1500 rounds through mine. So far so good.
 
I did a fair bit of looking before I bought a new spare 20 ga field O/U for myself and the kids...esp if they want to shoot a round of skeet or clays too.
I currently have a couple Browning's for my sporting clay ventures...a beautiful 625 and CXS 20,... but I really don't want to drag those thru the brush after birds, I'm afraid of the dollar signs falling off them LOL...

I settled on the Webley & Scott. Been around for a long time in the UK...like the others, these are being built to a price point too, but the quality appears to be way ahead of the CZ, Canucks, Pointers, Stevens, Mossbergs and the Ruger red labels too !!
They've got good reviews.
Annnnnd...being on sale with 400 bucks off the reg price of 1299.99 sealed the deal for me. All have 28 inch barrels on both gauges..also 3 inch chambers. Comes with 5 chokes, choke case, wrench, take a nice down case included !! They have them In both 12 and 20 ga too !
Couldn't believe the fit and finish on these guns, and the wood (walnut) is awesome...satin finish...looked like what many others call a a grade III or IV walnut !! Sale's still on too... gun dealer.net
I like them sooo much, I'm honestly considering a new 12 ga in the same gun...only got two weeks till bird season so my wallet and me need to have a chat SOON ! (( without the lil wifey of course )
I honestly don't think you'd be one bit disappointed in these beautiful O/U guns

Best of luck in your search...that's half the fun of wanting a new toy !....Kevin
 
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