marine6680
New member
Picked up one of these recently.
When looking for a home shotgun, I looked at several makes and models. The basic models of the Remington 870, and Mossberg 500... The Maverick, the Stevens 320... And a few other brands in that price range. I even looked at some more expensive models from Remington and Mossberg, even Beretta and others up in price.
In the end, I felt for a light use gun that would sit unused most times and be shot little...
I needed simple, reliable, decent build quality, and reasonable price.
Do I really need a $1000 shotgun that can shoot 50,000 rounds without breakage and cleaning... Not really... Not if I can get trust my life reliability from a basic gun at half the cost. I am not in a harsh combat zone nor do I need a gun for hard competition.
So I eliminated anything over the $450-500 range.
Then looking at the sub $300, (many around $200 and a little less) I found a few that felt solid over all, but felt rough... And looked it as well. So while they felt capable, the overall was less inspiring, and the roughness of the action and finish was a little off putting. So I eliminated the $250 and less range. (Though some of the cheaper Turkey made versions seemed decent)
Fancy stocks and sights... While nice, are not really needed, so lets not look at those versions too hard.
This lead me again to the two big names in defensive shotguns.Remington and Mossberg. The basic models can be had for around $350-400 depending on the store.
I tried out a Mossberg 500, and it felt good, I liked the safety a lot. Then I tried the Remington 870, it was nice (Not as nice as a wing master, but built well if not plain) though I was less of a fan of the safety and bolt unlock control position. One thing, it felt more solid than the Mossberg. The 500 just felt looser and less solid than the 870.
So a more solid gun vs one with better controls... Then I noticed the Winchester sitting on the shelf and I asked to see it.
It felt nice, good and solid and well put together. Fit and finish were definitely better than the 500 and 870 I had sitting on the counter beside it... Well the 870 might match its fit pretty well, not the finish as much. The control locations were good as well, the safety was not as nicely located as the 500, but there are worse places for a safety than the front of the trigger gaurd.
It was even a good bit cheaper than the other two. Almost a full bill less. (And online it was even cheaper, $260 from one place) So cheaper, solid build, good finish, useable controls... I think I found the one.
So I researched a bit online, and nothing off putting reared its head.
But aftermarket, it just isn't there for this gun... But I really wasn't looking for that ability anyway. A quick Google showed at least a few stock options if I was so inclined, and generic flashlight mounts that clamp to the barrel and mag tube would work just as well on it as any other pump, or the railed forend I found would work if I so chose.
So I decided to just go for it. Barring any major mechanical screwups, it would fulfill the task I needed it for nicely.
So as you probably figured out, I like the fit and finish. The build is solid. A feeling that continued when I gave it a cleaning before taking out for test firing.
Field strip is typical pump action, and no oddities encountered for the process.
No problems with the test firing, tested everything from target loads to 3 inch mag buckshot. The only thing was that low brass target loads did not want to load into the mag as easily as others. Seems the lip of the brass catches someting, as a little wiggle usually freed the shell to pop in. This seems common to other owners of this model. They did report that it went away after a few loadings. Not an issue as this is not a shotgun to load up with target loads... This is a defensive arm, so buckshot is the go to ammo.
The only thing I am not a fan of, and it isn't so much related to the SXP, but almost all short barreled shotguns... And that is cylinder bore.
It works fine across a typical room, but larger rooms, open areas or long halls can create distances where the shot pattern can open up to 10 inches or more depending on load. An improved cylinder or modified would tighten things up some and still allow use of slugs with no I'll effect.
The SXP Marine versions and the "extreme" models offer the ability to use chokes. A feature the 870 and 500 do not have I do believe. The marine version is only about $50 more than the basic version, and if you like the hard chrome finish, all the better.
Overall I am very happy with the Winchester SXP, and I think others should give it a serious look if in the market. Though some may be turned off by the import nature of the gun... I do think it is a better made option in the price range it sells in.
When looking for a home shotgun, I looked at several makes and models. The basic models of the Remington 870, and Mossberg 500... The Maverick, the Stevens 320... And a few other brands in that price range. I even looked at some more expensive models from Remington and Mossberg, even Beretta and others up in price.
In the end, I felt for a light use gun that would sit unused most times and be shot little...
I needed simple, reliable, decent build quality, and reasonable price.
Do I really need a $1000 shotgun that can shoot 50,000 rounds without breakage and cleaning... Not really... Not if I can get trust my life reliability from a basic gun at half the cost. I am not in a harsh combat zone nor do I need a gun for hard competition.
So I eliminated anything over the $450-500 range.
Then looking at the sub $300, (many around $200 and a little less) I found a few that felt solid over all, but felt rough... And looked it as well. So while they felt capable, the overall was less inspiring, and the roughness of the action and finish was a little off putting. So I eliminated the $250 and less range. (Though some of the cheaper Turkey made versions seemed decent)
Fancy stocks and sights... While nice, are not really needed, so lets not look at those versions too hard.
This lead me again to the two big names in defensive shotguns.Remington and Mossberg. The basic models can be had for around $350-400 depending on the store.
I tried out a Mossberg 500, and it felt good, I liked the safety a lot. Then I tried the Remington 870, it was nice (Not as nice as a wing master, but built well if not plain) though I was less of a fan of the safety and bolt unlock control position. One thing, it felt more solid than the Mossberg. The 500 just felt looser and less solid than the 870.
So a more solid gun vs one with better controls... Then I noticed the Winchester sitting on the shelf and I asked to see it.
It felt nice, good and solid and well put together. Fit and finish were definitely better than the 500 and 870 I had sitting on the counter beside it... Well the 870 might match its fit pretty well, not the finish as much. The control locations were good as well, the safety was not as nicely located as the 500, but there are worse places for a safety than the front of the trigger gaurd.
It was even a good bit cheaper than the other two. Almost a full bill less. (And online it was even cheaper, $260 from one place) So cheaper, solid build, good finish, useable controls... I think I found the one.
So I researched a bit online, and nothing off putting reared its head.
But aftermarket, it just isn't there for this gun... But I really wasn't looking for that ability anyway. A quick Google showed at least a few stock options if I was so inclined, and generic flashlight mounts that clamp to the barrel and mag tube would work just as well on it as any other pump, or the railed forend I found would work if I so chose.
So I decided to just go for it. Barring any major mechanical screwups, it would fulfill the task I needed it for nicely.
So as you probably figured out, I like the fit and finish. The build is solid. A feeling that continued when I gave it a cleaning before taking out for test firing.
Field strip is typical pump action, and no oddities encountered for the process.
No problems with the test firing, tested everything from target loads to 3 inch mag buckshot. The only thing was that low brass target loads did not want to load into the mag as easily as others. Seems the lip of the brass catches someting, as a little wiggle usually freed the shell to pop in. This seems common to other owners of this model. They did report that it went away after a few loadings. Not an issue as this is not a shotgun to load up with target loads... This is a defensive arm, so buckshot is the go to ammo.
The only thing I am not a fan of, and it isn't so much related to the SXP, but almost all short barreled shotguns... And that is cylinder bore.
It works fine across a typical room, but larger rooms, open areas or long halls can create distances where the shot pattern can open up to 10 inches or more depending on load. An improved cylinder or modified would tighten things up some and still allow use of slugs with no I'll effect.
The SXP Marine versions and the "extreme" models offer the ability to use chokes. A feature the 870 and 500 do not have I do believe. The marine version is only about $50 more than the basic version, and if you like the hard chrome finish, all the better.
Overall I am very happy with the Winchester SXP, and I think others should give it a serious look if in the market. Though some may be turned off by the import nature of the gun... I do think it is a better made option in the price range it sells in.
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