Beretta a400

I don't own an A400, but have a 1301 Comp which I like for general shooting an upland game because its light and fast. I would say that it is hard to beat the features and quality of the A400 for the money, and if in the market for a designated hunting shotgun, that is the direction I would go. I find the gas systems on Beretta easy to clean and reliable, and the quality to be top notch.
 
Had my A400 xtreme out this morning blasting away at some teal.
Soft shooting and handles like a dream being a gas gun. No issues so far, cycles sporting clay loads all the wayup to 3.5" bb's.
Highly recommend.
 
I guide on the salt marshes and sea duck hunt on the east coast. I have been shooting a beretta 400 for about 9 years and it works flawlessly. Best shot gun on the market for waterfowl hunting. I have owned or shot most of the guns out there, nothing compares to the beretta.
 
Great gun, shoots very soft. It is a real pleasure to shoot and ibn my case, has been very reliable.
 
I have a 3-1/2" one with a k/o. Very soft shooting. However, I don't really like it much. Nothing wrong at all with the gun. It likes to be clean to function well, but it is super easy to clean. I just don't shoot it as well as I do some others. I have 2 super X4's, a 12 and a 20. I shoot them much better and really like them. They are more trouble to clean, and will not run dirty. Same with the Brownings. No one shoots the SBE anymore since the new ones stopped the "Benelli Shuffle" and you can no longer hide a 4th shell on the carrier, and they are prone to breakage, and getting parts can be a challenge.. Guiding the Remington Versamax is the way to go. Can go a whole season without being cleaned. Mine will jam if clean, but the dirtier is in, the better it shoots. I usually shoot one of the SX4's at ducks and a Browning Gold light 10 at geese. I shoot about 40k shotgun shells a year. I guess my point of all this rant is all of the mid priced autos, $1-$2k are good guns, they all have their individual quirks too. You need to shoot each of them to find out which is best for you. It may very well be none of the above. Most anyone will let you shoot their gun a few times at a clay's range. If not pick up all of them at the store, shoulder it with your eyes closed, open your eyes and see how it fits and feels. I'd bet money one will stand out above the others, and it may not be the one you think.
 
that's weird. I never clean my a400 and guide on the marshes almost everyday of the season. The gun get soaked everyday with salt water and is put away wet and used the next day. Never had a problem with it. Mine is 9 years old and used so much the camo is worn off. Ive replaces the butt pad 2 times so far. I'm going to be so upset if it ever stops working.

Orange Dust said:
I have a 3-1/2" one with a k/o. Very soft shooting. However, I don't really like it much. Nothing wrong at all with the gun. It likes to be clean to function well, but it is super easy to clean. I just don't shoot it as well as I do some others. I have 2 super X4's, a 12 and a 20. I shoot them much better and really like them. They are more trouble to clean, and will not run dirty. Same with the Brownings. No one shoots the SBE anymore since the new ones stopped the "Benelli Shuffle" and you can no longer hide a 4th shell on the carrier, and they are prone to breakage, and getting parts can be a challenge.. Guiding the Remington Versamax is the way to go. Can go a whole season without being cleaned. Mine will jam if clean, but the dirtier is in, the better it shoots. I usually shoot one of the SX4's at ducks and a Browning Gold light 10 at geese. I shoot about 40k shotgun shells a year. I guess my point of all this rant is all of the mid priced autos, $1-$2k are good guns, they all have their individual quirks too. You need to shoot each of them to find out which is best for you. It may very well be none of the above. Most anyone will let you shoot their gun a few times at a clay's range. If not pick up all of them at the store, shoulder it with your eyes closed, open your eyes and see how it fits and feels. I'd bet money one will stand out above the others, and it may not be the one you think.
Click to expand...
 
That's the one I was sold on, but I got my hands on as sx4 and liked it almost as much....the price made my choice for me.
I do like the a400 better, but not enough to pay double the money. If I was as serious about shotguns as rifles, I would have bought the a400, the sx4 will do the job I hired it to do.
 
turtle135 said:
that's weird. I never clean my a400 and guide on the marshes almost everyday of the season. The gun get soaked everyday with salt water and is put away wet and used the next day. Never had a problem with it. Mine is 9 years old and used so much the camo is worn off. Ive replaces the butt pad 2 times so far. I'm going to be so upset if it ever stops working.
Click to expand...
We hunt a lot in cold, wet, weather. Waterfowl loads gum up an auto pretty fast, they will function in what seems like slow motion or jam if very dirty under these conditions. My partner hunts with one every day, and sometimes I shoot mine. They take only seconds to spray the gas system and they are very easy to keep running. (BTW he absolutely loves his and would never part with it.) All the semis share this except the versamax and possibly the SBE. Mine only jams when it is clean. Must be pretty loose. Its probaly had 25 flats or so of 3-1/2" hevi metal through it and a bunch of lead. The A400 is a great choice if it fits you well. I said that earlier. I'm shooting a SX4 right now for that reason only. It fits and feels great, and I shoot it very well. It is worse than the A400 about running dirty in cold wet weather and is more trouble to clean. Seems like we hunt all the time in freezing rain. All of the guns we have discussed are good guns. Which is better is mostly opinion. They all have their fans, and each have folks that do not like them.
 
I hunt in wet north East salt marshes every day of the season. Everything gets wet every time I go out in very cold conditions most of the time. I've never experienced it slowing down and like I said I never clean it. I also use a 686e over under sometimes. I had it cerakoted so it wouldn't rust.
I've owned a versamax and 2 sbe3's. I could not get used to thefeel of the Remington and the sbe3's rusted daily if I didn't clean it every day. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Orange Dust said:
We hunt a lot in cold, wet, weather. Waterfowl loads gum up an auto pretty fast, they will function in what seems like slow motion or jam if very dirty under these conditions. My partner hunts with one every day, and sometimes I shoot mine. They take only seconds to spray the gas system and they are very easy to keep running. (BTW he absolutely loves his and would never part with it.) All the semis share this except the versamax and possibly the SBE. Mine only jams when it is clean. Must be pretty loose. Its probaly had 25 flats or so of 3-1/2" hevi metal through it and a bunch of lead. The A400 is a great choice if it fits you well. I said that earlier. I'm shooting a SX4 right now for that reason only. It fits and feels great, and I shoot it very well. It is worse than the A400 about running dirty in cold wet weather and is more trouble to clean. Seems like we hunt all the time in freezing rain. All of the guns we have discussed are good guns. Which is better is mostly opinion. They all have their fans, and each have folks that do not like them.
Click to expand...
 
turtle135 said:
I hunt in wet north East salt marshes every day of the season. Everything gets wet every time I go out in very cold conditions most of the time. I've never experienced it slowing down and like I said I never clean it. I also use a 686e over under sometimes. I had it cerakoted so it wouldn't rust.
I've owned a versamax and 2 sbe3's. I could not get used to thefeel of the Remington and the sbe3's rusted daily if I didn't clean it every day. 🤷🏻‍♂️
Click to expand...
What are you using for lube? We use CLP. nAnother thing about your A400. It may also be like my Versamax. Shot so much it is lose and there is room for crud and it still function well.
 
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