LumberZach wrote:Hey guys,
I am looking for a gun to shoot 3 gun mostly, but would also let me take part in these tactical shotgun matches such as the Nordic or Forrest Lake events. I would also like to be able to use this in a HD/tactical/training class roll. I have it narrowed down between the Versa Max Tactical, and the Benelli M2 with the 21" barrel. However, I have some worries about both. Versa Max - Remington QC has been giving some mixed reviews. Most people love them, but every now and then somebody gets something wrong on theirs. Also, I understand that it is overbored and I am wondering how well it will shoot slugs. Again, most guys say it is ok, but there is that possibility that it does go wrong. Benelli - I have heard that it is hard to find M2's with the 21" barrel and that they get a little scarce at times making for an order with a benelli dealer and a long wait. I also have not seen any of these, but I have not been looking for them as much either. I would rather buy an American made gun, but I can't deny the Benelli's following. What do you guys think? What have been your experiences?
If you were looking for a semi-auto I'd take a hard look at the Stoeger M3000. Now that the patent has expired Benelli spun up another company selling inertia drive shotguns that cost literally 1/3 the price of the M2 fully 3gun ready with about 95% of the performance. The only thing I haven't seen on the Stoeger is a lightened bolt, which I'm not sure really matters as people running them can already shoot 2 3/4 dram (1145 fps) shells no problem.
If you weren't sold on inertia and were loading quads the VM 3gun would be my first choice, if loading twins (duals) the Beretta 1301. The VMs seem to have some issues every now and then but most of it seems to be from poor gunsmithing that I've seen. The port on that thing is pretty massive though and quads clear the hand guard better on it than the 1301 for me, mostly because of how deep the mag tube is on the 1301.
Really for the price it's hard to beat the Stoeger I think, especially for a first/beginner 3gun shotgun. Inertia drive reliability, easy to do port work on and the hand guard is completely flush with the receiver.