So I haven't actually fired a shotgun in about 10 years. Decided that that wasn't going to cut it so I went down to the shop and checked them out. Of all the shotguns in my price range, the Browning felt the nicest to me, so after a few weeks of research and a few more trips to the gun shop to fondle the various 12ga. autoloaders, I decided on Monday it was time to bring one home with me. I also picked up some cleaning supplies, a case of cheap Federal target loads (#7.5, 3DE), and a case of clay targets.
Since my dad is semi-retired and I have the week off, I called him up and asked if he wanted to go waste some time shootin' stuff with me. We grabbed the new Browning as well as an old .22LR we acquired and headed off to an open shooting area. Gotta say, I was pretty pleased with the handling of the new Browning. It doesn't get the same attention as some of it's competition, but man does it ever swing nice, was easily the best fit/dimensions for me. After switching out for IC choke, I had no problems busting clays (albeit hand-thrown). 2 and a half boxes of ammo disappeared with no problems for me. I really like how manageable it was, even though I consider myself a rank beginner all over again. This thing might even convince me to try some more competitive forms of shotgunning, it just felt that damn good in my hands. Moderate recoil, fast cycling even with 2-3/4" target loads, good looks, nice swing/ergonomics, a solid buy IMO.
Cleaning was likewise painless. Take-down is as easy as can be. I just don't like the use of push-pins in the action. That has to be my only complaint is that the trigger group is held in place with two of them and they're meant to be fairly easy to push out with a screwdriver in the field. I am strongly considering buying the factory synthetic stock for it since it was a bit rainy out today, and ultimately I'd like to take it for turkey and waterfowl in the future. Hope this helps anyone looking closely at this gun. I understand from a mechanism/internals standpoint it's the same gas valve system as the Winchester Super X3 (the salesman and I pulled them both apart to verify - they are the same!) but the gold trigger/logo and matte silver receiver add a little something extra IMO.
Since my dad is semi-retired and I have the week off, I called him up and asked if he wanted to go waste some time shootin' stuff with me. We grabbed the new Browning as well as an old .22LR we acquired and headed off to an open shooting area. Gotta say, I was pretty pleased with the handling of the new Browning. It doesn't get the same attention as some of it's competition, but man does it ever swing nice, was easily the best fit/dimensions for me. After switching out for IC choke, I had no problems busting clays (albeit hand-thrown). 2 and a half boxes of ammo disappeared with no problems for me. I really like how manageable it was, even though I consider myself a rank beginner all over again. This thing might even convince me to try some more competitive forms of shotgunning, it just felt that damn good in my hands. Moderate recoil, fast cycling even with 2-3/4" target loads, good looks, nice swing/ergonomics, a solid buy IMO.
Cleaning was likewise painless. Take-down is as easy as can be. I just don't like the use of push-pins in the action. That has to be my only complaint is that the trigger group is held in place with two of them and they're meant to be fairly easy to push out with a screwdriver in the field. I am strongly considering buying the factory synthetic stock for it since it was a bit rainy out today, and ultimately I'd like to take it for turkey and waterfowl in the future. Hope this helps anyone looking closely at this gun. I understand from a mechanism/internals standpoint it's the same gas valve system as the Winchester Super X3 (the salesman and I pulled them both apart to verify - they are the same!) but the gold trigger/logo and matte silver receiver add a little something extra IMO.
