Breda Xanthos Black

Read any shooting or hunting book from the 70’s, 80’s and early 90’s and the name of Breda will figure large, the Italian company’s semi-automatics were some of the most well-liked around and took one or two World titles. But before we take a closer look at the company’s new spec Xanthos Black, it’s worth taking a quick look back at Breda’s history and dispelling a commonly believed falsehood.

Originally manufacturers of heavy locomotives, what was originally Societa Italiana Ernesto Breda in Brescia first started to produce Revelli machine-guns during WWI which in turn lead to the production of small arms, their semi-automatic shotguns featuring Bruno Civolani’s take on the famous long-recoil inertia system invented by John Moses Browning, whilst Breda’s knowledge of steel and the production of high grades became legendary. Like all things Civolani eventually refined his inertia system into what became known as the Xanthos which besides its use in Breda’s own semi-autos was adopted by Benelli, a company that at one point in time Breda owned fifty percent of until Beretta finally bought them out.

And it is for this reason that most people tend to think that a Breda uses a Benelli action when in actual fact, it’s the other way round.

The main difference today is that Breda have once again refined the Xanthos, with the new Black - as tested here – being the first to employ the latest design.

Case Book

So what do you get for your money? Well in actual fact you don’t do at all badly. Breda and the UK importer’s, John Rothery (Wholesale) Ltd, making sure that unlike certain other Italian makes, you don’t need to buy any extras since the plastic travelling case contains everything you’re likely to need. Opening up the case you’ll find a smaller case containing five extended length flush-it choke tubes, key, sling swivels and two extra stock shims that allow the owner to adjust the stock’s drop. You’ll also find an extremely comprehensive and easy to understand handbook that - just for a novelty - is actually useful.

As the name would suggest the Black is what you’d probably been expecting, a semi– automatic 12 bore complete with a long, two-tone black steel receiver, only the gold inlaid Breda and Xanthos script acting as minimal ornamentation and the chromed band that stands proud around the 3” chamber adds an elegant embellishment where it butts up against the receiver. On the left-hand side a oblong button acts as the magazine cut-off whilst the bolt-release is located to the rear of the shell-lifter and is activated as the second round is pushed towards the magazine tube, the long travel rotating head bolt locking in the rearward position once the final shot has been fired.

To the rear of this an egg shaped and noticeably accommodating polymer trigger-guard houses a non-adjustable gold-plated trigger-blade whilst the usual cross-bolt safety is situated in the rear span. Moving forwards the gloss black barrel in this instance is 28” long and comes complete with a raised and vented 7mm rib and a small orange lozenge shaped bead, the muzzle flaring almost indiscernibly so as to accept the multi-chokes.

Ready Wrapped

Held securely in place by a tapering mag cap that locks firmly in place courtesy of a strong spring and pin ratchet, the long, tapering forend - like the stock - features a resilient polyurethane wrap coating that will protect the furniture from dirt, harsh use and the general elements. The butt stock culminates in a thin, soft rubber recoil pad but what is unusual is the grip. Echoing the forend’s chequering, the usual two panels are actually one, the diamond cut pattern extending around and over the top. Attractive and different, besides the unusual visual effect, it also enhances grip, friction between gun and hand not restricted to just two small areas, this subtle difference combining with the rest of the Xanthos to produce what is actually a very attractive 12 bore. 
   
Open Handed

As it comes from the factory the Xanthos for me shot fractionally high, a fact confirmed after a few moments with the Arrow Laser Shot fitted, although for those who share the same physical dimensions as me one of the supplied shims will drop the stock to give a flat shooting attitude.

The Xanthos weighs 6lbs 10oz with an overall length of 48 1/8”. Drops at comb and heel are 1 9/16” and 2 3/16” respectively with a reasonable 14 3/8” length of pull. The trigger breaks at an average of 5lbs 7oz, the release predictable and remarkably gentle, heavy enough to be safe yet light enough to eliminate any potential jerking of the gun.

The radius of the pistol grip’s curvature is rather open, the effect being that the back of the hand is positioned higher than usual. At first it can seem unusual but take it from me, after a few shots you’ll find it makes no difference or, by opening up your grip, your hand will quickly adopt a slightly different span and grasp.

Bed and Board

Within the pages of the handbook Breda make the point that their new system will need bedding in, not an unusual characteristic on many semi-automatics be them gas or inertia. All this means is that before you head off to shoot clays or crows, give the bolt and mechanism a goodly coating of oil such as Ballistol Universal or similar and get yourself a couple of cartons of heavy loads, my own preferred choice being 42g Eley Alphamax.

When bedding in, don’t be afraid of loading up three rounds and rapid firing them, a process that I repeated seven or eight times before allowing the gun to cool. The effect is to get everything up and running, the spring gets to compress and expand the bolt to slide to and fro and the bolt head to rotate all in quick, real time succession.

From there with ¼ choke fitted and loaded up with 28g Eley VIP Sporting fibre, a 90% score on a round of sporting clays resulted followed by two satisfying evenings on crows with 30g Eley Pigeon load and a duck flight using Eley’s new 32g Lightening Steel cartridges.

Where the Xanthos comes into its own is courtesy of the steel receiver, the weight compared to the more common alloy units bring the balance point back towards the shooter, the gun pivoting directly beneath the ejection port. This means that for what is a full sized semi it handles quickly and accurately, the bulk of the gun centred squarely between the shooter’s hands. Whilst, like most inertia driven shotgun, you can feel the cyclic system hard at work as each shot is discharged, actual felt recoil even with heavy magnum loads is kept to a comfortable minimum.

The overriding sensation was the fact that Breda’s new Xanthos is an extremely capable and efficient all-rounder. It breaks clays with the same precision as it plucks crows and ducks out of the sky, all the while transferring a feeling of quality back to the shooter. Basically, Breda’s new Xanthos Black feels right. 

You Decide

As it stands the Xanthos Black complete with case, chokes and shims will set you back £1,049. Not a bad price for what is a nicely presented, well built and extremely capable semi-auto, the options being a 28” barrel as tested or a 30” tube as a no cost option. Alternatively, if the Black doesn’t quite do it for you for an extra £250 you can go for the Xanthos Grey which as the name suggests has a grey and slightly more ornate receiver whilst the synthetic stocked and plain action Chiron will set you back an extremely tempting £999.

Whichever you eventually decide upon, the one thing you are getting irrespective of model is Breda’s latest action which is a development of an inertia system that has proven itself over decades. If there’s one thing you can guarantee is reliability, no valves or reliance on gas, just latent energy from what at the end of the day is the waste produce of the fired cartridge.

Where Breda’s Xanthos really scores is that it fills the gap between the lesser priced Turkish semi-autos and what at times are considered to be seemingly overtly expensive Italian alternatives. In other words, with Breda’s Xanthos you more or less have the best of both worlds, a sensibly priced, hard working outfit with all the looks and style of a shotgun costing twice as much.