Does anyone have any experience with the Browning BPS or thier Gold semi's. Either positive or negative. I am looking into getting a 10 ga.

I own a Browning DPS 12 gauge. Haven't had the opportunity to go duck hunting yet, but I've taken it to the range. It doesn't kick too much, certainly manageable. The barrow is longer than what I used to (AR 15). I know Brownings have good reputations.
A friend of mine bought a Remington 850(?) from Wal Mart, and the damn borrow blew off the first time he fired it. He took it back and got a complete refund.
So whichever brand you decide to buy, make sure and buy it at a gun store, and not at Wal Mart or any of the discount supermarkets. Guns are cheaper there for a reason.

999, it really depends on what you have planned with the shotgun. I own several browning shotguns and I'll give you my review of each.  

1954 Belgium Browning A-5 Light ribbed 12 gauge. This is an awesome semi-auto shotgun for pheasants qual and chakkars. The only drawbacks are you can't shoot steel shot out of it and the stock is a touch to short.  No mechanical problems

1988 Browning BPS 12 gauge presentation model. This is the browning pump shotgun with presentation wood. Very beautiful and swings very fast. The draw backs are it's too pretty to ding up in the duck blinds and for some reason it's the only bps that slaps my jaw while shooting it.  No mechanical problems encountered.

1994 Browning Satin BPS 30" 12 gauge. This pump shotgun with 30 " barrel can reach out and touch somebody, very accurate but somewhat heavy. No mechanical problems what so ever.

2000 Browning Stalker BPS 3.5" 12 gauge. This is has the mossy oak shadow grass camo pattern laminated directly onto the gun, this way it won't rust or scratch. This is my goose and duck gun. This one is lighter than older 3.5" models due to the older models being built on the browning 10 gauge reciver. The newer models are on their own 12 gauge reciever so they are lighter and smaller. Recoil isn't much more than a normal 3" load but does shoot quite a bit differently than my other two BPS's. I do have a hard time seeing the copper sight bead due to the camo pattern but a hi-viz sight should fix that.

If I was you I'd look at the 12 gauge 3.5 stalker model if you plan on waterfowling. You can shoot cheap 2 3/4 shells through it or the expensinve 3.5" $2 a pop shells. With a 10 gauge you are limited to what is available and it's fairly expensive.  A few of the guys I goose hunt with bought the new browning gold hunter semi-autos and have had nothing but problems.  The gold hunters work great when it's warm out with various loads but as soon as it gets cold the guns refuse to cycle and the $800 guns become expensive single shots that you must remove the barrel to clear the jam. One of the gold hunters in question has been back to the browning warranty center twice with no luck in fixing it. Needless to say there are a lot of slightly used gold hunters in the shops around here and the guys are buying up the pump guns or going with a 3.5" 12 gauge double barrel.  You can't beat browning quality, my next purchase is a browning superposed featherweight XS, awesome gun, I just need the $2400 to buy it!!

Let me know if you have any questions.

idaho-ar15

Check out the latest "Front Sight" magazine.That Benny Cooley fellow seems to like his B Gold just fine..........

I have a synthetic 12ga. BPS and really like it.  Swings well and the stock is a bit longer than most pumps I believe.  I would like to get a Gold semi eventually.  Nice fit and finish, I would recommend it to anyone.  

I have the BPS Stalker 10 gauge and I love it.  it is now the only shotgun I use for ducks and geese.  When I first got it I was disappointed in it's pattern with steel shot at longer ranges but solved that with the addition or a Pattern Master choke tube.  Now it will really reach out there and touch those geese!  A hunting buddy of mine tried mine and now has purchased his own as well.  My father also tried it and likes it, but finds the distance to the foregrip too long and uncomfortable to operate the action, so if you try it and the fit seems to be good, I think you will like it.

Ok sorry for the late reply here, I have been a little busy lately. Thanks everyone for the replies. I am mainly going to be using the 10 for geese. I am thinking about either getting one of those ruger all weather stainless/synthetic O/U's or a shadowgrass beretta 391 for ducks and everything else. I will be able to get one of these (duck vs. goose gun) this season and the other before next season. I already have a case of 3" 12 T's so I will probably end up getting the 12 this year.

Does anyone have any opinions on the berettas or the ruger O/U. I want the stainless O/U because I am tired of dealing with rust on my 870 now, when ever we go out in the marsh. That is also why I would get the camo finish on the 391. The only guns that seem to hold their finish with the guys I go out with are the ones with the camo finishes.

Idaho-ar15, how can you tell when an old brownng semi was made? We picked up an old one that has been sawed off for dirt chea at a show this weekend. It is marked Fabrique Nationale on the rceiver. The barrel has Browning Arms Ogden Utah on the top. The serial number on the barrel is in the 800's and the one on the reciever is in the 8,000's. When they sawed it off they put half of the cuts comp back on the barrel.

My wife has a Gold Sporting Clays which is primarily used as a trap gun.  It has many thousand rounds in it and has been 100% reliable to date.  I have used it a little on some speed shooting games and it ran fine.  She cleans the gas piston and mag tube it runs on about every 250 rounds.  Takedown is simple with few parts.

I currently shoot a Browning Gold Sporting model. It has a 30" ported barrel. The Sporting model is 2-3/4 inch shells only.

I shoot better with this shotgun than any of my others and  if I am shooting for scores, its the one I always grab.

Much has been written about these guns having fragile firing pins. I have never had a problem with mine.

It field strips quick, its easy to clean, and it a very soft shooting gun.

I'd get another one..