a300 anyone?

[JackDaWack 2,895]

Looking for a nice upland/waterfowl semi-auto. a300 fits my budget and i'm a beretta guy. I have a wingmaster modded out for HD and i also have a 2nd 26" barrel for it, but its 40+ years old an in great condition, so i would rather not be lunking it through the woods and elements. So i need a new shotgun, and prefer semi for hunting. Was looking around at a bunch of SG's and stumbled upon this one with looks great, just wondering if anyone has one and try and get some feedback on it.. not much out there since its relatively new to the market.

[Krdshrk 3,878]

How much are you looking to spend?  I have a Remmy 11-87 I could let go of

 

I looked at the A300 a little bit online - the reviews are pretty good for it.  Apparently the A300 is a redesigned 391 that's made in the US (in the MD Factory).  It's lighter and sleeker than the 3901 and is easy to clean.

[JackDaWack 2,895]

I'm setting my limit at about $7-800, trying to keep the price low so i dont worry so much about abusing it to the elements... So far my 2 must haves are a barrel 26-28" with interchangeable chokes, i don't want to rely on flite control shells, and it needs a camo finish(preferably barrel and all). I was actually heading in the 11-87 direction until i stumbled onto the a300 which grabbed my attention

[njplinker 8]

It's been out a while in the European market and seems to get good reviews and reliability reports. As said, its a redesigned 391 with an a400 end cap (though to a lower price point). If you haven't checked out the shotgunworld forums, there are lots of reviews there, mostly positive.

 

I had the opportunity to shoot a synthetic version and it handles and points nicely (assuming berettas fit you out of the box) with fairly soft recoil you'd expect from a beretta gas gun, but fit and finish is just average with worse internal machining than id have expected, parkerized finish (not that it was bad, just not a nice polished blued finish) and the LOP spacers fitting/looking pretty funky.

 

Probably would make a great foul weather gun, especially for the price. I passed and am still looking for something different for clay sports.

 

If it winds up being the gun for you, check out Joel Etchen in PA. A month or two ago they had the synthetic stock versions on discount in the $500 range plus shipping. Even with shipping and ffl it was the cheapest option I found and i understand Etchen is known for great service. Just checked their site and they still have it up as 'call for pricing'.

[JackDaWack 2,895]

Thanks guys, good stuff. If i end up liking it i'll give him a call and see what the price is... he has the Max4 one listed too.

[Parker 213]

I liked the new A300 & A400 models when I looked at them. Both are lightweight at a shade over 7 lbs. when comparing them as 3" models, with the A400 as Beretta's premier model. The A300 is limited to only a 28" bbl. but feels nice in the hands and is slim. I would entertain one if I were to get another gas auto.

 

The 11-87 is a tried and true design but is a bit heavier. I would not call the Rem. in 12 ga. an "upland" gun, while the Beretta feels livelier between the hands and would be my choice as an all-around field gun. My $.02.

[JackDaWack 2,895]

Well, dicks over in paramus had one for me to try out and i liked it very much, so much i bought it... Tried every shop in the area and they were the only ones. In comparison to the 11-87 it feels might lighter and swings better. both fit me very well.. it was a hard decision. Now when i got it home, i had to put it together, ran into an issue... couldnt for the life of me get the barrel on... so pulled the bolt back and it went on, but then the bolt got stuck going forward, initial thought was its new and probably needs to break in OR S* F*. i got an out of spec something... i must have put it back together improperly after cleaning and lubing cause the bolt was rotated ever so slightly.. and jamming up with the chamber... PITA... once i took it apart again and reassembled all was smooth... never saw that before, gonna have to keep my eye out for when putting the barrel on next time.