I bought one of the above a few months ago. I had not shot it until today. All I can say is WOW!!! The gun is beautiful. It is super light. It shoots incredibly well. I hammered a whole bunch of birds with it this morning.

I think this has to be the ticket for high volume birds. It is the answer for mw in Argentina .

those benelli 28 are sweet little guns, built on an awesome frame..... only issue (and it really isnt that big of deal) is that shells can be expensive and hard to get in some out of the way places...

I agree though, its pretty awesome, next on my list.

A friend brought a Benelli 28 to Argentina and it would not cycle the local shells ended up using a loaner gun

I had that problem with the 20 GA Cordoba. They rectified the problem somehow.

Those Caza shells suck on the best of days.

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
I had that problem with the 20 GA Cordoba. They rectified the problem somehow.

Those Caza shells suck on the best of days.

You just can't beat a good O/U

When you shoot 2000 rounds a day, an OU is not at all fun. Too much recoil and too much work. I did it once . I will never do it again.

Just caught this thread.

Which model of Benelli 28? I have a Benelli Cordoba 20. Love it. Flawless in Argentina.

I have complete confidence in the Benelli line of auto loader, be it SBE, M1, M2, or Cordoba, tactical or sporting. Spent my professional life within arms reach of one or another Benelli auto loader.

I know, I know. Guns are like women. Yes they are. You know the moment you take them into your arms. You just know....

I've never had an issue with a Benelli auto loader. They have all preformed flawlessly, trip after trip, time after time. And...none has ever asked me for money............

BTW.....what are the relative ammo costs for 20 vs 28 in Argentina these days?

It is a Rafello.

I have 3 SBE II's, M 90's and a 20 GA Cordoba. The only one I have had any problems with is the Cordoba. The problems with the Cordoba were monumental. I know for fact the Benelli people had the exact same problem. This is now fixed.

I was told by my friends in Argentina that the 28's have the exact sake problem as the Cordoba. The problem is the shells down there .

generally they charge something on the order of $13 per box.
General

After numerous trips to shoot high volume birds in South America (Bolivia, Parsaguay, Argentina) I have made a vow to NEVER use an automatic...Have seen way too many problems with them in the field down there...As LS stated, shells are the issue...A 686 / 687 is the way to go for hassle-free, or nearly so shooting.

And...Most lodges have gun rooms stocked with replacement Beretta parts as that is the most common rental gun in country.

JW

I have found that there is high volume....... And then there is HIGH VOLUME.....

they are two very diferent things, if you are shooting less than about 400 shells in one go, and you shoot low brass, you are ok using an over and under, specially if you can shoot a 12 gauge with 20 gauge insert tubes (like a skeet gun) the extra weight makes it pleasant to shoot up to about 4 or 500 shells.

Now if you are shooting full house 12 ga loads, the limmit, or at least my personal limit befor my shoulder hurts and more importantly my cheekbone starts hurting, is about 250 shells, specially out of a light field gun.

If you are going much above the 500 shell limit, then an autoloader with someone loading for you is the way to go, otherwise your thumb will hurt, your cheek will split, and your shoulder will ache, specially if you want to do this for 2 or 3 days straight....... However the most important part at least in my eyes is that in most people, their accuracy will suffer due to a small flinch developing.

My Ideal high volume gun in a 12 gauge is a beretta extrema 2, or the new explore unico in 3.5 inch chamber, they are heavy and kick little...

in a 20 gauge one of the beretta or benelly autoloaders......

regards

To elaborate on what JW and I both said, there are basically two brands of shells available . The are Caza and Fiochhi. The Caza shells are cheap. They burn incredibly dirty. There is a lot of stuff blowing into your eyes . On an autoloader, they will foul the mechanism on the gun which will require cleaning every 250 or so rounds. However in an O/U, my experience has been that roughly every 50 rounds the chambers need to be cleaned as they gun will no longer eject. Further, I have had so much gunk from these shells that on at least two occasions, the gun would not lock properly and/ or fire.

The Fiochhi's are no doubt better but also more expensive. My issues with them have been different. I have shots hundreds of rounds through a Benelli without problem . Open the next box of shells and every single one jams. Change to a different box and everything if fi e again.

The Benelli factory modified my gun somehow to stop the issue I was having with the Cordoba. When the Benelli factory people took the Cordoba's to Argentina, they all experienced the exact same serious issues that I did. Switch to American shells and it never malfunctions .

Larry in your experience how do the Beretta 391s fair down there with the volumes and the local shells? My wife's 1st shotgun was a Beretta 390 I had limited experience with auto loaders at the time, she ran over 3000 rounds through it before cleaning with out a hiccup and these were all 1oz reloads with fairly dirty powder./ So I'm pretty sold on the 391's

I have not shot the Beretta's personally. I have seen them used.

I think any of the autoloaders, no matter what the brand, will ultimately have issues if not cleaned and lubricated properly given the volume of shooting.

I generally fire at least 6,000 rounds in 3 days. I have had many days when my gun worked flawlessly. Then the next day have problems. I think this is often improper cleaning/lubrication. However, it is often the shells.

My SBE II's rarely have an issue. My sons' M-90's have an issue from time to time. Nothing bad. My first trip with the Cordoba was a nightmare. The gun was basically a pump. It jammed every single time. I learned that when the Benelli people went down to shoot, they had the exact same issues. Apparently, if the weight of the shot went up to 1 OZ, there was no problem. At 7/8's there was a problem. Benelli did something to cure the problem. I do not recall what it was.

I have also noticed an increased tendency to jam in cold weather. I think the lube gets thick.

Thick lube is just a matter of the right lube
one thing that I have noticed over the years with Benellis at the various clay courses that I have shot at is there dislike for low pressure loads it's one of the things that attracted me to the Beretta that and I am use to safeties on the front of the trigger guard
High volume shooting in south america is on my list, as with any adventure picking the right gun for the trip is have the fun...
Hot barrels.....

Z:

It is a hell of a lot of fun in South America if one goes with the right company. It cannot be described unless you have actually seen it. I would urge you to make a trip.

I agree with you about having the right gun. Overall,I am extremely happy with my Benelli's. I have no plans to change to any other gun. I am a bit concerned with what has been posted here in light of my prior issues with the Cordoba. That was a lot less than fun. I hope isn't a repeat.

For whatever it is worth, I shot the 28 about 200 times on Sunday and Wednesday. It never missed a lick. I really hope it does not have a problem with the shells down there. I am also planning on taking my 410. I had hoped to be able to shoot really high volume without overly abusing my body. I hate to admit it but at the tender age of 56, I can only take so much before I pay a serious physical price in addition to the cost.

I just got an e mail from Argentina last night. They recently had 3 clients with the exact same gun as mine. They had no problems and they shot those Caza shells. The lodge is in the process of buying a few for their use.

Maybe there is hope yet.

I am in Argentina right now. I have shot my 28 ga Benelli 3000 times in the last day and a half. It has not had a single jam or other malfunction. Better than any other gun I have ever brought down .

Glad the gun and the trip have been a big success keep the gun moving and HOT BARRELS

We have used Beretta 391 in 20 gauge and have been ok. They have been there twice for 10 days of shooting, one had a sliver of metal where the bolt operates on come out but still seems to work fine. Where we go they have a gun cleaning bench so if it is a dove day we try to clean some each night.A small can of
WD40 in your pocket is a good idea. I agree that it is great fun. Larry what is the temperature like there this time of year? We have been going early June for the duck
Hunting as well as doves and pigeons.

Gentlemen:

I have now shot this gun appx 5,000 times. There has not been a single malfunction or jam of any nature.

I do have a negative observation. The gun is so light it may well kick more than my 20 ga Benelli.

It is warm. Between 85 and 100 depending on cloud cover . I normally come in July. This is much warmer than I am used to.

Do you think your percentage of kills are as good as the 20 gauge and I guess you have not had a chance to try it on anything else
( ducks or pigeons ) but anyway have fun.

I would say that on doves, the percentages were about the same. However, I have to choose my shot more carefully . On quail, I am definitely higher with the 28.

Larry speaks the truth. The photo does not lie.



Between he and I we just shot +/- 12,000 doves in three days. I shot 20ga the whole time and Larry ran circles around me with 28ga and 410.

It was fun!

Fun it was. Running circles around you, I am not so sure of. I remember a certain attorney shooting a VERY high percentage.

I did like the 410 and shot a high percentage with it provided I picked my shots.

I am ready to do it again in July.

Ivan is a hell of a photographer!

My wife and I have used our Beretta O/Us, mostly because we are used to them and like them so much.

But then again, we have "only" shot around 1,000-2,000 rounds a day.

For more than that, I think I'd want a semi-automatic.

Congrats guys, on your fun and success.