Opinions please!

faktat

Inactive
Hi all,
I am a new one here and have a question:
I am about to buy a good, overunder shotgun for both hunting - all birds - and clay shooting - trap, skeet and sporting...

I have hunted for 10 years and shoot Benelli m2 at the moment - and would like an upgrade.

I am specially interested in Blaser F3 or Beretta SV10 Perennia in 12 cal and 28" . Both fit me well and can be set to suit me. I would like to know how they work in practice. Any opinions/experience on either or both of those are appreciated?

Thanks in advance!
 
Both are excellent guns - I have had the chance to shoot the Blaser - nice fit and finish. I like the device that can alter the balance point located in the stock. While I'm not the biggest fan of the Schnabel-style foreend, I do prefer it over a Beavertail.

I have not shot the SV-10, but from the website, it appears to be a field gun, which should make it lighter than the Blaser (good for hunting, bad for target shooting.

Both are well designed and should last for years without issues.

If you can, I would suggest actually shooting before you buy. Hopefully, someone at your club has these you can borrow for a test drive
 
What is your priority? Is it hunting or clay shooting?

If clay shooting then the Blaser is the one I'd choose. I like these guns a lot and if I weren't shooting a P-gun it's the one I'd own.

I don't know much about the Perennia but it might be more suitable for hunting. The Blaser isn't a lightweight gun.

Why 28" barrels? These days 30" seems to be the minimum for clay shooting.
 
Greetings faktat, and welcome aboard

PJR
makes a valid point about setting your priorities. Typically a comp gun is on the heavy side to hump after birds all day. And, a lighter carry-all-day gun isn't going to be as stable as a comp gun on targets. You seem to be of the general purpose gun mind set. This is common with stick gun owners who do everything with one gun. They may have an extra barrel for slugs and one for HD, but, they are still of the "one gun can do everything" mind set. Some folks never change, while others want a gun that will let them shoot better in their discipline of choice. Or, they just want a nicer all-purpose gun.

Transitioning from a stick gun (pump or auto-loader) to a comp O/U is quite a change, and typically I recommend going to an entry level sport specific gun. However you haven't chosen a sport. Neither of the guns you mentioned is a general purpose gun, and will probably give poor service in that respect. The Blaser F3 is a comp gun and is offered in 7 types. Each type is specifically suited to its clay target sport. On the other hand, the Baretta SV10 Perennia is a field gun, more specifically an upland gun. Neither of these is marketed as an all-purpose gun.

What you're asking of your shotgun is like looking for a car that you can drag and road race with, get plywood or drywall from the building center, and take the family out for a Sunday drive. No car will do all that very well, neither do all-purpose shotgun. Of my comp O/Us, I have different models for the different clay sports. My 28 and 30-inch Briley tubed Skeet P-guns are vastly different from my Trap combo.

Unlike my friend, oneounceload, for me a beavertail forearm with finger ridge works best. I know this because I competed with a Schnabel-type forearm for a year and went back to the beavertail and compared my averages. The finger grooved beavertail provides me a reference for my "pointer" grip. What works for me might not work for 1-oz -- that's why both types are offered in higher end guns.

When you buy a gun like the Blaser F3, you're getting a gun that the manufacturer thinks has the features wanted by the majority of the shooters in that specific sport. That doesn't mean it will be perfect for you. The same applies to the Beretta, they are trying to provide what most upland hunters are looking for in a specific price range. They hope you'll think they offer more bang for the buck in an upland gun than the other upland guns in that price range.

Another way to look at an all-purpose shooter is to consider it as a gun of compromises. Too heavy for the field, but too light for serious target shooting. The stock not quite high enough for trap, but too high for an upland hunter. The barrels are are on the long side for doves but on the short side for handicap tarp. I think you see where I'm going with this. If I was thinking of spending in the neighborhood of $5K on a gun, I don't want to make any compromises. Perhaps you first step should be to decide it the new gun is going to be for targets or hunting. That way you can eliminate many compromises. There are quite a few nice guns these days marketed as "sporting" guns. They can be used at the club level of all the clay target games. On the other hand, you may not find a nice O/U that's at home in a duck blind as well as upland hunting. Many folks don't want a nice O/U in a wet environment.

Good luck, and try as many O/Us as you can beg, borrow or rent. That way you can evaluate the many variables.
 
While Zippy has hands like a monster, us little folks prefer the handling of a field foreend - same effect, just a different approach - whatever works for you is what is important
 
Thanks, everybody - much appreciated!

Both guns seem to fit me, and can be modified to fit like a glove - I'm mostly wondering how they are in use and how they will be in the long run, how they will work and stay in order. Both are fairly new models...

I know I should have more than one shotgun, but one cannot have everything, unfortunately... :o
Also, I try to believe that if I find one gun that fits and train with that I will handle most of my shooting good enough. Need to know my gun. Maybe plain wrong, though.

F3 Game is for field so that might be the answer...
 
First of all Welcome ...

You've gotten good advice -- and my friends OneOunce and Zippy are both very knowledgeable. I will second the recommendation to shoot as many O/U's as you can before you decide(especially both guns you are looking at - if you see them around). I don't own either gun you are looking at - and while I see a few Blaser's around / I don't think I've seen any of the Beretta SV10's ... I like the Blasers a lot / and I'm not in general a Beretta guy - so I would probably lean toward the Blaser....but have no basis for the opinion really - other than the slimmer feel in general of the Berettas / and I tend to like a bigger grip area and a heavier gun.

Personally - for an all around gun --- I think you do need to first decide on which forend style you like / want. I prefer the Beavertail style as well ( like on the Browning Citori's XS Skeet / or the XT Trap ) compared to the schnabel forend found on the Citori 625 series. I can shoot either one ...but the semi-beavertail just feels more natural to me.

Gross Weight is a big deal. I prefer a general purpose gun - at around 8 1/2 lbs ( but to a lot of shooters that's too heavy in the field). But a lighter gun to me - tends to get a little too whippy ...and I tend to snap off my follow-thru which is not good. So for my all around gun - I go to the Browning Citori XS Skeet model with 30" barrels - for birds, Sporting Clays and Skeet. For Trap - I like a longer and even heavier gun - around 10lbs and 32" barrels in an O/U like the Browning XT Trap...

I also prefer all of my shotguns have a more traditional style Trap stock / with an adjustable parallel comb. Its uncommon to see a gun of that type in the field especially ...but to each his own .... So it really all comes down to what you want.

I don't think you'd be unhappy with either gun / as long as they Fit you ... Both mfg's have solid reputations.
 
IIRC, the M2 IS a field gun - if it serves you well in that regard, then keep it for field use and go with the Blaser for targets. Unless you live in Argentina, odds are you'll shoot more targets than birds. ;)
 
Thank you everyone!

Any more views or experiences with these guns?

I am tending to go to the German route... It is a bit same like with my cars - I like German.
;)
 
Advice on gun

As has been stated before you are asking too much of one gun. Clay targets and field shooting are two different animals and require two different guns. In the short time you have to shoot you cant be thinking "where do I hold" Another thing I will mention,a game bird like pheasant and quail appear and gradually pick up speed,a clay is traveling about 70 MPH when you first see it. I was on my way home from a very troubling pheasant hunt when I figured this one out.
 
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