Beretta or Benelli

[bugs n bones]

Beretta A400 or Benellii sbe 3 … which one and why ??

[follow maggie]

Both are good guns, you can’t really make a bad choice. I like Berettas because they’re gas operated & easier on the arthritis in my neck.

[wadu1]

That's a loaded question. I'm a Beretta fan 100%, gas system, and I know guys that love SBE's inertia. Gas system con's harder to clean, pro milder recoil (IMOP). Inertia pro, easier to clean, con heaver recoil (IMOP). For the record I have 18 or 20 shotguns and not one inertia driven.

[bugs n bones]

Everyone pretty much has said this very same thing , thanks for the insight

[Henrydog]

The only thing that matters with a shotgun is fit.  Buy the one the feels right to you, not the saleman, a magazine ect.

[ellensburgpo]

The only thing that matters with a shotgun is fit.  Buy the one the feels right to you, not the saleman, a magazine ect.

This is why I went with a benelli M2 vs the berettas they had in the store at the time. Don’t regret it at all and have had no performance issues worth talking about over the 10ish years and thousands of rounds through it.

[10mmg]

Beretta A400 or Benellii sbe 3 … which one and why ??

I own both for waterfowl. Fit and feel are going to be your deciding factors. The SBE feels a bit faster and lighter the Beretta recoils less. For me 6’2 and chunky the SBE fit better as i tend to shoot the Beretta high. If one feels better on your shoulder than the other buy that one.

[jrebel]

How about the Benelli Super Vinci in the Classifieds??  Good deal on a nice gun.   

[Klickitatsteelie]

Inertia driven guns perform better in super cold wet conditions. Inertia does not need cleaned as frequently and does not malfunction as often. But they  do recoil more. I shoot a Winchester gas operated and as long as you clean frequently gas does its job with less recoil. If your not into ripping your gun appear and deep cleaning it every few hunts inertia is the way to go. Fit is obviously the most important factor

[h2ofowlr]

Go with the one that mounts to your shoulder the best and which one feels the best for your body configuration.  Both are great guns.  A400 has a bit more weight out front.  Also has a bit less felt recoil.  I only really notice the difference when shooting 3-1/2" shells.  Which I rarely shoot anyways.  A400 are set for a rising bird.  Meaning you float the target vs. burying it.  Just something you will have to get used to shooting if you are not already used to it.  I ran a A400 last week at the trap range and went 25/25 on trap.  Shoot fine.
I personally love shooting the Benelli's.  I shoot them well; they mount up good.  Not too bulky and super easy to tear down and clean.  I see people on the forums all the time say how many shells they have shot without cleaning it.  Stupid in my opinion.  I try to always go into the field with a clean gun.  No issues and no complaints to be had with a clean functioning firearm.  Benelli is simple to clean, simple to use and light on the front end and swings fast.  My preference as I have 6 different Benelli shotguns.  My one son shoots a SBE3 and my other son shoots a Winchester SX3.  Again, my advice would be to shoulder a few higher end shotguns and find the one that fits you the best.  Shoulders the best and feels like a good fit.  Once you decide on the gun, hit the range, and learn how it shoots and where it shoots.  Create the muscle memory of mounting it and pulling the trigger and you will have the confidence of the shot.

[fowl smacker]

Inertia driven guns perform better in super cold wet conditions. Inertia does not need cleaned as frequently and does not malfunction as often. But they  do recoil more. I shoot a Winchester gas operated and as long as you clean frequently gas does its job with less recoil. If your not into ripping your gun appear and deep cleaning it every few hunts inertia is the way to go. Fit is obviously the most important factor

My Beretta Extrema 2's have never had a problem in extreme cold (single digits) or wet conditions.  I have over 8k rounds on one of them and it's still killing waterfowl like it did on day 1.  The other one pretty much sits in the safe waiting for the first one to die.  I got a feeling it's going to be waiting a lot longer.

[follow maggie]

Yeah, the cold or wet weather hurting gas guns may have been true a long time ago, I don’t know, but it’s definitely a myth now. My Remington works just as well as my partner’s Benelli in the cold & we hunt in negative digits here. It definitely runs slower in the super cold, but so does the Benelli. The only problem I’ve ever had was once when we got he dog back in he boat & she shook water all over the place. It froze the bolts shut on both guns. The next batch of ducks came & we both had single shots.

[C-Money]

I think they are both pretty good. I have a nephew and a friend that run the Beretta. I know of a few instances of Beretta customer service being horrible. From their top of the line Trap guns to the waterfowl guns, Beretta customer service could improve. I've heard more than once over the last couple years, Benelli has trigger issues. I've seen the issue in a Nova. A Friend was in Canada waterfowl hunting with a group with a few Benelli autos. Two of the Benelli had similar trigger issues that effected their hunt. The friend had the A400 and he had a great hunt. Another option to look at would be the Franchi Affinity 3.5. They point and feel like a quality Italian shotgun. The Affinity is a cloned Benelli, and Franchi did a really good job doing it. Seems like I saw Benelli stamped on some of the Affinity parts. The Affinity seems to really be popular these days in the waterfowl world. Of the 2 you mentioned, I'd go Beretta A400.

[birddogdad]

have both, beretta customer support for issues was terrible in my one attempt to reach out to them.

[Henrydog]

have both, beretta customer support for issues was terrible in my one attempt to reach out to them.

Both Beretta and Browning have horrible customer support.  Beretta just denies issues, Browning takes months for simple repairs.  I own a Benelli but have never had any work to it so I can not speak to their service.  Most hunting shotguns are lucky to have 10k shells down them in their lifetime.  To me, personal, customer service and repairs are a larger issue with Trap guns which I have put 20k down them in a year.