Over/Unders... $900 vs 25k?

VW vs Mercedes. You will spend many times the cost of a shotgun on shells and targets before you wear it out. People buy nice cars for plenty of reasons. Personally I don't buy into the "b-gun or nothing" camp, but plenty do for good reason. There are cheap guns and there are inexpensive guns. Avoid cheap, but inexpensive can be very servicable. Many Turkish guns fit this description. Life is too short- if you want and appreciate the mercedes- get a Mercedes! However you could also be quite happy with a VW. Personally I think $2k is around the minimum for a solid gun. Less than this requires you to be picky and potentially fix some nits, but definitely a great gun can be found. Move to $3k and you are safely in to "enthusiast" level guns. $5k and up things just get prettier and prettier but likely not significantly better mechanically.
 
Like with many products( especially rifles/guns)there are certain sweet spots in manufacturing, no different with O/U’s.If you want the best bang for your buck, look for a Beretta 686 or 687 from 1990s through mid 2000. There are few safe queens around from that time.Beretta was making some great guns then in the 2-3k price point.They have held their value....for good reason.
The problem today is that you really have to pay a premium for comparable quality.I have a 687 silver pigeon III form early 2000, and had a silver pigeon I from 1998....I have looked at some newer Beretta’s last few years and you can see the difference.
The new guns ain’t the same.The USA runs the worlds gun market just by sheer volume of purchases.There is a reason Beretta’s recent guns...690 series did not sell as well as 686/7. Surprise, what did They just re-release? ........686 silver pigeon III.
 
infidel29 said:
Wow, that sucks. Im sorry to hear that. I've only heard good things about Will, wasn't aware of that. I personally have not bought guns from him, only supplies, so my opinion is only worth whatcha paid for it. He should have sent the guns back to be refit for what they cost.
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I dealt with him on two occasions, neither one was very good and I'd certainly never order from him again. I know many other people who feel the same way, the guy has no concept of customer service.
 
Tgs on youtube just released a vid on the new 828 sport. He seemed to like it alot more than the original

Price can often be overlooked if the gun fits. At the cgn annual sxs classic a gun that didnt belong anywhere under the same sky as those masterpieces (baikal ij58) shot the highest score of the day amoung some of the best built guns by the biggest names in the business. I paid $375 for it and after over 75000 rnds could likely still get $300 for it on a good day. Its in no way in any regard equal to a fine double worth 5 grand but it fits me well and shoots where i look. In that regard its priceless and im not afraid to scratch it lol
 
Falconflyer said:
The 828U is hideously ugly, no regrets living without one here! :)
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Hideously ugly is not the biggest concern imo with that gun but the design is. All aluminum receiver to lighten the weight with a folding steel breech face that comes up into place between the monobloc and rear of the receiver as the gun is closed for firing. Without that the receiver face isn't strong enough to take the force of firing. I don't forsee that being an easily repairable replacement after firing tens of thousands of rounds. It's not going to be as simple as changing a locking block and a few springs like on a Perazzi, which by the way you can buy an older MX8 these days for around $3000 in good condition. When I bought my older TMS I had a new locking block, firing pin, firing pin spring and top lever pin installed for under $400 and it's good for another 100,000 rounds now. I am doing the same with an older MX8 I picked up as well and the previous owner had it briley choked and adjustable comb installed. Cost me $3000 and another $400 will give me a dedicated doubles trap gun to do me the rest of my days.
 
rmsg0040 said:
I asked a guy at my club about someone who has a $120K shotty and how does it compare to my BT99. He said both are great guns. Then went on to say, you can drive to Montreal in a Pinto or you can drive there in a Rolls Royce. That sure shut me up!
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when you know that bentley is owned by vw and rolls royce by bmw lol ...
 
the spank said:
Hideously ugly is not the biggest concern imo with that gun but the design is. All aluminum receiver to lighten the weight with a folding steel breech face that comes up into place between the monobloc and rear of the receiver as the gun is closed for firing. Without that the receiver face isn't strong enough to take the force of firing. I don't forsee that being an easily repairable replacement after firing tens of thousands of rounds. It's not going to be as simple as changing a locking block and a few springs like on a Perazzi, which by the way you can buy an older MX8 these days for around $3000 in good condition. When I bought my older TMS I had a new locking block, firing pin, firing pin spring and top lever pin installed for under $400 and it's good for another 100,000 rounds now. I am doing the same with an older MX8 I picked up as well and the previous owner had it briley choked and adjustable comb installed. Cost me $3000 and another $400 will give me a dedicated doubles trap gun to do me the rest of my days.
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The 828U receiver is the perfect solution to a non-existent problem.

From Benelli's website;

"Benelli's patented steel locking system eliminates wear and tear on the receiver and hinge that cause traditional O/U's to fail. "

That may be a problem on some of the bottom end guns but anything in the 828U's price range doesn't have this perceived problem. And if someone does happen to wear one out then most of them can be tightened up quickly and cheaply. In my opinion, the 828U has far too many moving parts to ever be a high volume gun and would take multiple rebuilds just to make it to the first rebuild round count of a Beretta or Browning let alone a Perazzi. Also, I know two guys who have them and both have had ongoing trigger problems.
Like a lot of things, if they turn some ones crank then that's fine... but I'll pass.
 
I have both the 828 and the cynergy wicked wing as well as a Beretta ASE Gold combo.They all do what they were intended to do and if you want looks in a duck blind or a punt you are in the wrong sport.The 828 is light easy to pack ,comes up nice and have murdered more pheasants than any of my other guns.The Cynergy is a bit bow heavy but don't mind that as it swings through pretty nicely and can use 3.5 " when I choose and works in a punt well. Neither has had any issues with many cases of shells through each of them. The ASE gold is target smashing machine hand built by Beretta before the DT and is a beautiful gun to look at and shoot. But even if it wasn't and still did the job I would not hesitate. I have had several cheaper o/u that I have literally shot to pieces and now are retired farm guns in the interior. We can only offer opinions up to you to go have a look ,buy what you like not what we do..RD
 
I just found this used Citori Lighting Sporting for not all that much more than a new Turkish gun. Made in 97, Invector +, doesn't seem shot much at all.

It isn't a Rolls Royce but it sure beats a Lada!

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Falconflyer said:
There's a 686 Sporting with optima barrels in the EE for $2550.... I'd be asking for more pics if I were you!
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Yea I saw that there’s also a 690 black for under 4K right now... 5k all in is my max hence why I haven’t pulled the trigger on a 828U sport, there’s a couple used regulars out there that are tempting but I’d kick myself hard if a sport came up and I couldn’t jump on it. It would be much easier if I could just go the the shops and start handling them but we are where we are right now.
 
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