Budget Friendly Over/Under?

Scott Sewall

Scott Sewall

New member
I've been kicking around the idea of buying a new shotgun mainly for dove hunting and maybe rabbit. I'm wanting a 12 ga over under but not sure which of the cheaper models are worth the money. I've looked at tristar, stoeger, charles daly, and a few others. Just wanted to here you guys opinions. Don't even suggest I buy a citori or something way too expensive for my poor butt. Thanks for reading.
 
If you have teh coin cdnn has teh winchester 101 for 999 as do some other places.

THe franchi instinct is also right in this price range.

I was at bass pro the other day they had franchi alcion for 799 on closeout and that is really a good deal.

If you can't swing that much then the CZ's are your best bet. The mallard with double triggers in only 500 shipped from buds gunshop. Or the ultralight would be sweet for upland and its around 700.

Lots of people hate the cz's but for hunting they are fine and have a great warranty. They got a bad reputation from guns made prior to 2008. CZ has put in a lot of effort to work out the kinks and as said they are known to have the best warranty service around should you need it.
 
Thanks for the info triple deuce! I will have to check out the CZ guns. I would say 700 is about as high as I need to go but I want to go higher haha.
 
This is a personal opinion, so take it for what it cost you - nothing. A quality O/U is a real joy and has some certain advantages, such as two barrels with different chokes and even two different loads if you want. A quality O/U handles extremely well and is very reliable. Good quality O/U’s retain their value and last forever with little maintenance. If/when maintenance is required it is easily done by qualified gunsmiths with top quality parts.

A cheaply built O/U is an abomination. They are bulky, heavy, handle poorly, and usually have poor fitting and inferior interior parts that eventually will cause a problem. If faced with a strict limit of $600 and I absolutely needed a gun right now with no time to save a bit longer I would gladly pass the cheap O/U and go for a good quality repeating shotgun like a good pump gun or semi-auto. It would be a smarter investment of money and one more likely to be trouble free over the long haul with the potential to hold a decent resale value. Otherwise, save just a little extra and buy a good quality used O/U. A Browning, SKB, or Beretta O/U can be had in solid used condition for around $1,000 - $1,250 and will put you miles ahead. In fact, you can find a good used SKB for probably around $750 and that is an excellent value.
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Originally Posted By: GCThis is a personal opinion, so take it for what it cost you - nothing. A quality O/U is a real joy and has some certain advantages, such as two barrels with different chokes and even two different loads if you want. A quality O/U handles extremely well and is very reliable. Good quality O/U’s retain their value and last forever with little maintenance. If/when maintenance is required it is easily done by qualified gunsmiths with top quality parts.

A cheaply built O/U is an abomination. They are bulky, heavy, handle poorly, and usually have poor fitting and inferior interior parts that eventually will cause a problem. If faced with a strict limit of $600 and I absolutely needed a gun right now with no time to save a bit longer I would gladly pass the cheap O/U and go for a good quality repeating shotgun like a good pump gun or semi-auto. It would be a smarter investment of money and one more likely to be trouble free over the long haul with the potential to hold a decent resale value. Otherwise, save just a little extra and buy a good quality used O/U. A Browning, SKB, or Beretta O/U can be had in solid used condition for around $1,000 - $1,250 and will put you miles ahead. In fact, you can find a good used SKB for probably around $750 and that is an excellent value.
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Would a cheaper o/u stand up to just a few dove hunts a year? Thats really all I want it for. I don't need a new gun I just want one and I figured an o/u would help keep me from burning up the ammunition as I watch the dove laugh at me as it flys away. If I had the money I would be buying a better quality gun but its just not possible.
 
GC is correct, but there may be one exception.

CDNN is selling new Lanber O/Us in your price range that are very well regarded. Unlike most lower price O/Us, you won't find any flies on the Lanber.

My vote is still to save an extra few hundred and buy a used B-Gun. Some older Charles Daly O/Us were made by Miroku (makers of the Citori) and can be great buys when you find them.
 
Find your closest Academny Sports and Outdoors store and check the Yildez O/U shotguns they carry. Don't own one, just have done some research on them and spoken to a long time Academny salesman who works the gun counter in local store. Basically, if you are a competition type shooter, going thru hundreds of rounds each week, then you may not want a Yildez. From what I gather from visiting a shotgun forum on the Yildez, basic models are on light side and recoil could be bothersome. Why Academny stocks a limbsaver recoil pad for it. Also, alloy receiver of Yildez lower priced models are not as durable as higher priced O/Us. For a casual shooter, the Yildez should last a long time. Give one a look.
 
I'd also look for a CZ or Franchi for a "cheaper" over under. I have seen Citoris selling around $800 on used market with 2 3/4" chambers (Upland Specials). The really "cheap" O/Us are that way for a reason, I wouldn't drop a dime on one.
 
for doves i would get a 20 ga. the o/u s kick a little more than my autos and they have a more upland feel. the low end ones feel too clubby to me. just as soon use my auto. saving ammo??
 
Save some more cash and don't waste it on junk. In the mean time only load 2 shells in your repeater. I have shot a citori for 20+ yrs and tried a couple other lower end o/u there is no compairing. You should be able to pick up a used ruger red label for under $900.00.
 
Intresting comments.

I have O/U's in my safe, a couple of Win 101's, a couple of Berretta's and a Browning Superposed Lightning

I have SxS also, LC Smith, Lefever, Husqvarna and Darne, I just sold a pair of Ithaca SKB's. I needed a nice little 20ga SxS that I could shoot steel out here on the saltwater and for high volume steel inland. The CZ Bobwhite is doing the job just fine, it feels good, barrels are a little heavier so I went with 26 instead of 28". I expect it to last a long time and I shoot alot.

I'm starting to think about a 12ga O/U for steel shooting, it looks like more and more places are going that way. I've picked up the CZ Malard and it seems to be solid shotgun and I prefer the double triggers.
 
Whatever you decide on (original poster) try to get your hands on it first and see how it feels. Hitting moving targets with a shotgun is all about gun fit. If the gun doesn't fit regardless of what makers stamp is on it you are going to struggle with it.

I live in Browning country and the Citori is an extremely popular gun in these parts. I always wanted a Citori like everyone else so when it came time to finally buy one I handled them at the local gun shops… beautiful and well fitted guns that made my head swoon and my hands sweaty. However deep inside I knew they didn’t fly to the eye like they should if I were to actually hit anything with them. I made the acquaintance of an older gentleman who shoots regularly at a local shotgun club. He invited me to shoot some clays with him and I could borrow one of his Citori’s for a trial run or two. I hit only so-so with the first one I borrowed from him. He loaned me a second one with a HiViz triangular front sight and I couldn’t hit anything with that danged thing. That bright glowing green triangle was like an alien ship trying to land on the clay and drew and focused my eye transfixed on the sight instead of the hard target focus one needs on the clay. I’m quite sure I shot behind every target with that particular gun. Yet, with one of my Benelli semi-auto’s I did pretty well, surprisingly so in fact.

I did well enough that I got really interested and began to show up often to shoot skeet, trap, five-stand, and sporting with the boys in the club. To a man they all shot O/U’s and many of them very expensive high end Beretta, Perazzi, K-guns, ect. These guys were very generous and let me shoot about all their guns and that really tuned me in to what I needed to be able to consistently hit flying and quick moving targets with. I settled on Beretta O/U’s as an affordable option for me personally. The SKB’s of Weatherby persuasion do as well and in a couple years I bought a pair of Beretta’s and a Weatherby/SKB. I have access to guns costing 5X+ more money than mine, but I can’t hit squat with many of those guns. Once you reach a certain quality point in which you are assured of a well built quality shotgun then fit is everything from that point on.
 


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