Lately I've had the urge to buy a new nice 20ga shotgun.  It will mainly be for ducks, geese and the occasional round of skeet.  I have a Beretta A400 Xtreme Plus 12ga that has been my go-to for hunting and pushed the Super Vinci to backup duty.  With some of the new slightly more affordable options for bismuth 20ga loads lately I wouldn't mind taking out the 20ga for early season birds.

I've more or less narrowed it down to the Benelli M2 that Scheels sells that falls somewhere between a regular model and the tricked out performance center version, or the Franchi Affinity 3 Elite.  I know the actions are essentially the same, but the Franchi has the recoil spring in front and the Benelli is in the back.  From what I have read the Franchi has a bit better balance because of that, and it's also a couple hundred bucks cheaper.

The TriStar Viper G2 Bronze 20ga pops into the back of my mind once in a while also, they have been getting pretty good reviews lately too.

Too many good options!

Benelli M2 20ga


Franchi Affinity 3 Elite 20ga.

Benelli and Beretta are top-tier semi autos, but as it appears that you want an inertia action, Benelli is the go-to.

I have clients who shoot both Benelli and Franchi semi autos, and while a slight nod goes to the Benelli for overall durability, Franchi makes a solid gun.  I don't think that you will go wrong with either one.

Tri-Stars that I have handled seem to be just "OK", but their quality control can be spotty.  Problems that I have seen firsthand in their 20 gauges are extractor springs breaking (2 examples), and 1 with a trigger than would not reset after firing.  A few others had feeding problems.  All were new guns that were sent back under warranty.  I would avoid them.

My wife has an m2 20 that she uses for 3 gun and pheasants.

Sweeet little gun, super light, reliable and a joy to shoot.

Do you like a high rib or low rib shotgun? Your Beretta is a low rib. If you shoot it well, switching to an M2 or Affiinity, could cause problems since they are high rib shotguns. Have you looked at the Benelli Montefeltro? They are low rib shotguns, just like your Beretta.

Accountant

M2.  But get a black one, camo shotguns are god awful ugly.

I'm impartial as long as the gun fits and feels right.  The Beretta Xtreme Plus line has a higher stepped rib than most of their other sporting semi-autos and I shoot it well.  I shoot a Browning Citori Ultra XS Skeet for most of the summer, which is kind of a medium rib I guess and am fine with what.  The Super Vinci has a fairly high rib as well, but I had to change some shims around and put a raised cheek piece on that one to really get it comfortable for me.

I have the M2 20 with both barrels.  It’s perfect for slug hunting deer and wonderful when hunting ducks.

I’d buy an M2 again in a heartbeat.

Not to hijack, but have the new shotgun bug too and have been looking at the Franchi. Are there really any major differences between the Benelli and the Franchi aside from the stock and crio treated barrel that justify the price difference? I've also been looking at the Beretta A300 (trying to stay under a grand) since I've been using an AL391 for so many years now, but I've wanted an inertia gun for quite a while after shooting a buddy's SBE2.

Benelli, Franchi, Stoeger and Beretta have the same parent company.

For cheap, I'd look at a Stoeger before a Tristar.  They have the Benelli inertia action with the recoil spring under the handguards like the Franchi.

I've had a couple of chances now to handle the M2, the regular 20ga Franchi Affinity 3 as well as most of the other semi-auto 20ga guns that Scheels had sitting out.  Compared to the Benelli, the Franchi just felt cheaper.  Which it should I suppose since it is cheaper.  But in that price range I thought the Franchi should feel a little bit nicer than it did.

There was also a 20ga Beretta A400 Xplor on the used rack for $1199 that had my interest for a bit.  There were a few scuffs on the wood and barrel but they could have been cleaned up.  But, on the day before Christmas when the place was packed I couldn't find a single sales person in the gun area that seemed interested in selling a shotgun.  So after wandering around there for 20 minutes I left.

The Franchi is solid if you don't want to spend the $ on the Benelli. Can't go wrong with a Beretta either - and they shoot a little softer, but they're also heavier and not as easy to clean. My ultimate vote is Benelli, but I have to admit to being a Benelli fan boy.

Buddy phesant hunts with a Benelli, and I've carried shot it.
Nice gun, it fits well and isn't fussy about ammo.
Problem is going from that to a Charles Daly 20 semi., like going from a corvette to chevette

Definitely M2.

M2 SBS With Sling by FredMan, on Flickr

DSC_1680-M2 Short Long by FredMan, on Flickr

DSC_1669-M2 Barrel Billboard by FredMan, on Flickr

Well, I went into Scheels today intending to get an $8 bottle of oil and left with this...



Ended up with the 20ga. Benelli M2, 26" barrel.  It came with 5 extended chokes, which is nice.  Looking forward to some warmer weather to try it out!

Nice.  Good choice and enjoy.

I love the black version.  My favorite non-black-powder squirrel getter!!

Doc

Very nice!

You will enjoy that shotgun.