I am in the market for an inexpensive O/U and I've narrowed the field to either a Savage/Stevens 512 or a Mossberg Silver Reserve. Does anybody have any experience with either one of these or perhaps another suggestion to throw out?

Nobody knows anything about either one of these guns? I guess that's not much of an endorsement of either.

With apologies, O/U shooters (like me) tend to be a bit snobbish about their shotguns. There are various Brazilian, Russian, and perhaps other foreign-made "economy" over-unders now on the market bearing various name brands. Most of them are fairly serviceable, though problems can be frequent with broken firing pins, malfunctioning ejectors, and perhaps things like broken rib posts. The wood-metal fit of these guns is usually a bit marginal, and their weight and handling qualities usually cumbersome.

I don't have anything bad to say about either of the models you inquired about; it's just that most of us don't and won't have any experience with them because they will be somewhat crude compared to the over-unders we are mostly accustomed to shooting.

If I'm going to spend $600 or less for a shotgun, it's going to have to be a pump or an auto since you can buy very well-made shotguns for that money in those configurations.

To buy a quality over-under, you're going to have to resign yourself to spending something north of $1,000, even for a nice used one. Unfortunately, it just takes that much to do the fine machining an mating required to produce an over-under of the slightly more refined standards most of us demand in a double gun.

I hope this doesn't sound too elitist as I'm hardly a rich man and squeeze my nickles with the best of them. It's just that buying a new over-under at a bargain basement price point is usually a disappointing venture.

Sorry, I don't have any information about either of those models.

A few years ago I was looking for a relatively cheap O/U 20 guage and ended up getting a CZ Redhead with 26" barrels. Compared to other guns in that price range it seemed like a better made gun. The lines are nice, it balances well, and the wood to metal fit on par with the Red Labels that I looked at. The used Red Labels that I looked at started at about $1100, and I bought my CZ for about $700. I don't shoot a whole lot, but I've probably put about 500 rounds through it over the last four years or so without any problems.

I'd go with a Browning O/U, it will be worth saving up & getting a much better gun.
BTW, Browning has rebates on their shotguns right now, a buddy got $150 off on his Citori & that's worth considering.

Huglu?

Rich