The Benelli's used to be "The shizzy" but I've been hearing lots of bad things about them lately, reliability problems and such.

My father just got back from Argentina and he bought one of the Beretta 20 ga. auto's they have at Wally-World for $529 specifically for the trip. The gun worked flawlessly, and it's hard to beat the price.

My $.02

The ever-ready Remington 1100 and variants are still the go-to 20 ga. dove gun in South Texas for light recoil. There are others, I'm sure. I use my 20 ga Franchi AL-48 religiously, though. I can hit better with it than the 1100; feels lighter and less fatigue in the arms but it does kick a little more than an 1100. 8-10 boxes per shoot aren't a problem but several cases a day might be a huge difference.

I agree with Kingfisher, been hearing some bad stuff about the SBE. Berettas can't be beat, and leave the 1100, the OU's and SXS at home.

Sorry AC, your thought/experience/perspective is not universal. I know a 390 can such down 5000-6000 shells of AA between cleaning, and I'm not sure it's needed then. I would assume the 391 etc. will do the same.

Prof242, Old Sarge,
I was out Dove hunting today, and have to amend my prior posts. The 20 gauge Montefeltro is probably the best semi-auto general upland gun made. It is the perfect Chukar gun because it is light enough to haul up cliffs and down into ravines/swales/tulie patches. It fits very well, swings like a dream, and after a few post purchase modifications it is stone cold reliable. BUT, I think it might pound you after a couple cases of Argentinian 20 gauge ammo. If you want a sweet 20 gauge for general duty before, during and after your trip I still think it is the best way to go. Just wear a Browning vest with a Reactor pad.
Upon reflection (and penance) I must agree with prof242. Maximum recoil protection will come from a Remington 1100, if those fit you. The Berretta comes in a very close second, and will likely shoot much better with the built in cast off. Berretta still sells the 390 in twenty gauge. It is priced under $500.00. If you only want the gun for down there, you can save enough to buy another day of shooting. There are after market reliability and shootability mods available for Benelli's, Beretta's, and (choke) Remington's.

As to the reports of problems with the Benelli SBE, about seven years ago a large batch got out with improperly heat treated ejectors. Those were cracking after extensive use, especially in cold weather with big duck and goose loads (what the gun was designed for). As I mentioned before, I've owned a couple of the original SBE's. I got rid of them because there was no cast off in the stock on the plastic and matte models. Benelli can tell you if your gun has one of the bad ejectors. To take it out you need a heat gun because it is held in partly with a high strength Loctite product. I swapped mine out without much difficulty. I have not heard about any big problems with the new SBE 2's. That doesn't mean much because I haven't asked. I load my own bismuth and use a 10 gauge for geese, so I don't need a gun that handles those nasty 3 1/2 inch 12 gauge shells. With Bismuth and Hevi-Shot 3" shells that will drop any goose as far as you can hit them, I think the 3 1/2 inch guns will slowly fade away.
No matter what semi-auto shotgun you get, the Sure Cycle stainless steel buffer assembly will make life easier.
JCN

Kingfisher,

Would you mind explaining your comments in greater detail? I know of several Benelli's and none have had any issues.
Just interested in learning more, not trying to start anything.

ASS_CLOWN

Kingfisher, I, too, am interested in the Benelli problems. Do we know which models were involved, as there are several models that don't use the super-90 design.



PS. Oldsarge, I used a side by side 16 guage with 30 inch barrels over picked fields in georgia 35 years ago. God, that was fun. It was a bad day when you didn't shoot a case of shells. The bad part was having to clean all those birds. but they sure did eat good baked in a pyrex dish with mushroom soup and garlic salt. WHEW !!!