Dave McCracken
Moderator In Memoriam
You may recall a thread I started a couple weeks past about Beretta O/Us. I had been interested in the White Onyx Sporter with 32" barrels as a GP clay cruncher. I even rented one a couple times to see how things went. Those results were inconclusive.
PGC got in a couple a few weeks back and I looked one over and told them I was interested. I went home and started working on The Permanent Head Of The Budget Committee and after the best salemanship I've done since she accepted my proposal of marriage, she concurred that our house needed one more shotgun.
As shotgunners, of course you know that "Want" and "Need" are synonyms when shotguns are involved.
And then, work got hinky. In the last 13 days, I worked 15 shifts. I got today and tomorrow off by pleading fatigue. No lie there....
So, I was at PGC an hour before shooting time. When they brought the one I had looked at out from storage, it had my name on the box. I guess guiding all the new shooters there paid off today.
After wiping it down to remove the storage gel and lubing critical points with STOS, I hit range 7 for some wobble. I had Mod and IM chokes in, a box of 1 oz Gun Clubs to see how it kicked, and excitement kicking up my heart rate a notch. Joined by a nice old guy with a Franchi O/U his family gave him, I settled in to a nice session of wobble.
None of the Geezers showed up today. The rain wasn't THAT cold...
I took a breath, opened my eyes wide, murmured my Mantra (Just shoot the thing) and called for the first bird. I swung, the shot went and the bird was obliterated. Not hit, not chipped. Crushed. So were the next 5 before my bad habits overcame the gun and caused a miss. I ended up 21/25 that round.
Low gun wobble, that's a respectable score. Out of the box and new, it shows the shotgun has potential.
As I left the line, the trapper walked over with a big grin and said something about needing a camera, it was the first time he had seen me with anything but an 870.
In my best Quentin Tarantino accent I said "Say hello to my new little friend".
Switching to my best Gollum, I rasped "My Precious".....
Moving on....
The Onyx comes with 5 choke tubes, the tightest is IM. One gripe, I need a magnifying glass to read the writing on the tubes. I can count the notches though so I can figure things out. This has the Optima barrels and flush chokes. I was toying with the idea of an extended set but I really like how this swings.
Second gripe, while the trigger is not terrible, it's a bit heavier than my 870s. Call it 5-6 lbs. No overtravel or slack though.
Third gripe, during the third round I had a couple times when it went click instead of bang. Unmarked primers. By Round 4 it was back to bang every time. I'll monitor that.
This comes with two pads of differing thickness. The longer seems right for me.
I noted that I hold the forearm further forward than I do with an 870. Not sure why but it feels right.
A red F/O front bead and a mid bead adorn the rib. Not my choice but I can live with it. The rib is a little wider than a Remrib. Nicely machined to cut glare.
Wood is straight grain with little figure. I can live with this also. Straight grain is stronger usually. Lighter also.
The whole thing runs about 8 lbs at a guess. Kick with my 7/8 oz loads is un-noticed..
The Onyx seems to be a class act.
2007 promises to be an interesting year....
PGC got in a couple a few weeks back and I looked one over and told them I was interested. I went home and started working on The Permanent Head Of The Budget Committee and after the best salemanship I've done since she accepted my proposal of marriage, she concurred that our house needed one more shotgun.
As shotgunners, of course you know that "Want" and "Need" are synonyms when shotguns are involved.
And then, work got hinky. In the last 13 days, I worked 15 shifts. I got today and tomorrow off by pleading fatigue. No lie there....
So, I was at PGC an hour before shooting time. When they brought the one I had looked at out from storage, it had my name on the box. I guess guiding all the new shooters there paid off today.
After wiping it down to remove the storage gel and lubing critical points with STOS, I hit range 7 for some wobble. I had Mod and IM chokes in, a box of 1 oz Gun Clubs to see how it kicked, and excitement kicking up my heart rate a notch. Joined by a nice old guy with a Franchi O/U his family gave him, I settled in to a nice session of wobble.
None of the Geezers showed up today. The rain wasn't THAT cold...
I took a breath, opened my eyes wide, murmured my Mantra (Just shoot the thing) and called for the first bird. I swung, the shot went and the bird was obliterated. Not hit, not chipped. Crushed. So were the next 5 before my bad habits overcame the gun and caused a miss. I ended up 21/25 that round.
Low gun wobble, that's a respectable score. Out of the box and new, it shows the shotgun has potential.
As I left the line, the trapper walked over with a big grin and said something about needing a camera, it was the first time he had seen me with anything but an 870.
In my best Quentin Tarantino accent I said "Say hello to my new little friend".
Switching to my best Gollum, I rasped "My Precious".....
Moving on....
The Onyx comes with 5 choke tubes, the tightest is IM. One gripe, I need a magnifying glass to read the writing on the tubes. I can count the notches though so I can figure things out. This has the Optima barrels and flush chokes. I was toying with the idea of an extended set but I really like how this swings.
Second gripe, while the trigger is not terrible, it's a bit heavier than my 870s. Call it 5-6 lbs. No overtravel or slack though.
Third gripe, during the third round I had a couple times when it went click instead of bang. Unmarked primers. By Round 4 it was back to bang every time. I'll monitor that.
This comes with two pads of differing thickness. The longer seems right for me.
I noted that I hold the forearm further forward than I do with an 870. Not sure why but it feels right.
A red F/O front bead and a mid bead adorn the rib. Not my choice but I can live with it. The rib is a little wider than a Remrib. Nicely machined to cut glare.
Wood is straight grain with little figure. I can live with this also. Straight grain is stronger usually. Lighter also.
The whole thing runs about 8 lbs at a guess. Kick with my 7/8 oz loads is un-noticed..
The Onyx seems to be a class act.
2007 promises to be an interesting year....