HD Auto Shotgun

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X2 on the FNH SLP.

Just last month, I ran it through its paces in a 2 day tactical shotgun course. Cheap Walmart bird shot, standard 00 buckshot, and reduced and standard velocity 1oz slugs.....they all cycled clean. I don't see it getting much better than that in terms of reliability.
 
With all due respect to all of the above folks; get a pump. Mossberg or Remington. Excellent first HD weapons. Cheap and reliable. Easy to learn on. The "speed" factor in HD shooting is a non starter issue. If anything it can become a distinct liability if you rely on speed over training.
I have almost half a century of lugging weapons professionally, I can fire a couple of my pump guns faster than ANY semi auto can function (specifically a Ithaca 37 and Winchester M12). Speed of fire in any semi auto is limited by trigger reset, not speed of action, exception is the old Browning A5 design which is disctinctly slower than some other autos, but is still one of my favorite for serious weapons because it always works.
Do not get lured by ease/speed of use sirens, there is a reason that most of the pros still use pump guns-mostly unadorned with gadgets.
If you really want a semi auto, my vote would go to the FN series, just about as foolproof as they get, closely followed by Remington 1187/1100 series. Yes the FN series is the same action as the Winchester SX2 series, but the FN models are more utilitarian, just my HO. All semi autos need periodic cleaning as recommended by the builder, I think more semi autos are harmed by over cleaning than by over use.
 
Altho no longer made, I have had an on going love affair for most of my life with the old humpback Browning Auto 5. I have never had one fail and never heard of one failing they seem to have a reputation for reliability. I would pick up an old used one for not much money, reblue the metal and refinish the stock and cut down the barrel to 18.5 inches.

The old ones were not made for steel shot if I remember correctly, but buckshot and slugs are lead anyway. Heavy and kicks but reliable.
 
With all due respect to all of the above folks; get a pump. Mossberg or Remington. Excellent first HD weapons.
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I guess you missed the part where the OP said he has a Mossberg 500.

I can fire a couple of my pump guns faster than ANY semi auto can function (specifically a Ithaca 37 and Winchester M12).
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Maybe. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXUOvHlQuRA

there is a reason that most of the pros still use pump guns-mostly unadorned with gadgets.
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Because that's what their agencies buy, because they are cheap.

Don't get me wrong I own multiple pump guns and they are fine guns. I don't think it really matters if you get a semi or a pump if you are not willing to invest the time and money to learn to use it. For me I get my best three gun times with a semi so that's what I use.

Either can work provided that the user is willing to invest the time and money to become proficient with it.
 
+1 for the FN SLP Mark-I... Another happy customer!

Pros:

- 8+1 capacity out of the box.
- Fiber-optic front sight for quick target aquisition.
- Fastest action on the planet for quick follow up shots.
- Cantilevered rail mount for optic if you desire.
- Reliable
- Less expesive than the Benelli M4
- Adjustable rear sight.
- Briley choke tubes are available to make this a versatile shotgun (HD/Skeet/Turkey Hunting/3-gun).
- Two (2) gas cylinders for light & heavy loads come standard with the shotgun.

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Is the FN gas? If so, I'd still be skeptical...
Al
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the FN SLP and the Benelli M4 are both gas operated...they are major improvements over the Remington 1100 system. you might want to give them a 2nd look
 
they are major improvements over the Remington 1100 system
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Everything is, except for Remington's warmed-over crap.

In real-world use, I would rank modern top-tier gas guns (FN & Beretta families) as a cut above the Benelli system across the board. They aren't sensitive to gun mount, and they handle a wider variety of shells.

Where the Benelli system is clearly better is that it is lighter, requires less cleaning, and it works better in temperature extremes. Given that modern gas guns can go 1000 rounds between cleanings and still cycle, and that HD will likely be at room temperature, these are not issues for HD guns. For hunting, the Benelli has a hell of a lot going for it.
 
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I can fire a couple of my pump guns faster than ANY semi auto can function (specifically a Ithaca 37 and Winchester M12)
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you had to know you'd get called out on this statement right?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2QPvuEk5dg

an SX3 is pretty darn fast, and it's a given that patrick is a freak of nature, but it would be truly beyond freakish if you could get off 3 shots in the time he empties that SX3 and I would call two shots inhuman.

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And my choice for a semi is a bit dated Bennelli M1 super 90 that was in perfect condition I scored for $400. I and nobody I know, and many have tried, can "outrun" the trigger reset in that shotgun.
 
X2 on the FNH SLP.

Just last month, I ran it through its paces in a 2 day tactical shotgun course. Cheap Walmart bird shot, standard 00 buckshot, and reduced and standard velocity 1oz slugs.....they all cycled clean. I don't see it getting much better than that in terms of reliability.
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I'll see that and raise you, pard. ;) Once out of the break-in, this is an incredibly reliable piece of hardware.

In real-world use, I have had more trouble with a pump gun failing to go "boom" for one reason or another, than a semiauto. 870s, in particular, become clubs if you shove a shell in backwards (as do 1100s and 1187s), and I have short-shucked, too. I have also had stuck hulls that wouldn't eject.
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One highly under-rated failure mode that I've seen in civilian classes with pumps that I've never seen with gas guns is failure to cycle the action. As in, pull trigger and just stand there waiting for The Next Thing.

BTW/FWIW/IMHO, I'd stay away from the recoil operated Beretta and Benelli guns unless you can try one first. I'd rather shoot 3" duck loads out of a pump gun than 2 3/4" tactical loads out of one. I used to own a Beretta, and "used to" is the key phrase. ;)
 
During my last shotgun class, we had a competition. We had to put the pump guns in a separate class because all the semis were about twice as fast. It was not even close.

My Benelli M1S90 cycles EVERYTHING I put in it.
 
recoil operated Beretta
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There hasn't been a recoil-operated Beretta-branded gun for years. My Berettas (all gas-operated) are soft shooters, even with hard buttplates. The downer is that the mag tube is limited in size. I believe Beretta has started selling a defensive 391 recently, though, that addresses that.
 
The 1201 was sold long after the sporting guns all went to gas. IIRC, it was still in the line as of 2005, which isn't all that long ago, as firearms go ;) and they are stll on the used market. However, the Beretta gas guns are a completely different animal. I own three AL390/391 Berettas now and have owned others. They are superb. A HD 391 would be a very nice and very, very dependable gun.
 
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They are superb.
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I don't own a Beretta yet, but will. I did read a lengthy article about reliability of shotguns in the vein of dove hunting in Argentina. Apparently, this is some sort of epic shooting marathon because of invasive birds. There are no bag limits and it is open season year round. It is apparently common to shoot thousands and thousands and thousands of shells per day.

Beretta's, both doubles and 390/391 are standouts in terms of not breaking and continuing to operate.

Wish I could find that article.
 
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