IWA 2015 Shotgun Special

There can be little doubt that Benelli had the gun of the show this year in their 828U. It’s their first ever double-barrelled gun and it really does re-write the rulebook, with a list of genuinely innovative features as long as your arm. The stock has the Progressive Comfort polymer recoil-damper and gel comb from the Rafaello semi- auto, and uses the same shim system for drop and cast. The top lever cocks the action as well as opening it. You would think it would be stiff as a result, but it isn’t, and it can be set up for left-handed use. The trigger unit can be dropped out of the bottom of the action for security or cleaning. The barrels aren’t pinned between the hinge pin and the standing breech in the conventional way, but hooked over a breech plate inside the receiver. Not only is this very strong (a very similar system is used by Blaser in their kipplaufs and drillings) but it also allows the receiver to be made from lightweight alloy, making the whole gun more sprightly. The ‘impulse’ ejectors aren’t tripped by the action either, but by tabs in the walls of the chambers that are squeezed like triggers when the body of the cartridge expands on firing.

Then there are the barrels – cryo-treated to be stress-free, they have no mid rib, being joined just before the muzzles, and a carbon fibre top rib with a red fibre-optic bead. The 828U comes with a silver or black action and high-gloss walnut furniture. Stunningly unconventional to contemplate, when you pick it up it’s one of those guns that just begs to be taken shooting. (Initial reports suggest that handling is positive and responsive, the trigger crisp, recoil light, and the extra gape enabled by the action design makes reloading as easy as it is with a side-by-side.) What a surprise! What an extraordinary gun! In other Benelli news, left- handers rejoice! We now have a choice of Montefeltro, Ducca di Montefeltro, Crio Comfort, M2 (camo & black), and SBE II camo semi autos to choose from.

Beretta

Unlike Benelli, Beretta hasn’t found a way to reinvent the wheel, but they have introduced plenty of new variants of their current models for 2015. There are two new 690s: a 20g version of the Field III; and a Sporting Black Edition, with smart orange detailing, stocks and forends made from walnut blanks specially selected to take the punishment a clay gun metes out, and a matte black barrel finish to minimise glare.

The 486 Parallelo has started a family too, with this autumn’s designer version by Mark Newson being followed at IWA by more conventional, but scarcely less elegant, side-plated (EL) and standard models in 20g and 28g.

Finally, there are a pair of A400s: the Xcel Multitarget, with a B-Fast adjustable high rib, adjustable comb and balance- weight system; and the Lite, a polymer-stocked variant that comes complete with the new GunPod 2 which links via Bluetooth to a smartphone app to let you record all the hunting or range data you could want.

Browning

Browning has some great things for UK shooters this year. Best of all is a Miroku MK60 game gun in 20g. Like last year’s 12g offering, this is presented with 32 inch barrels choked 3⁄4 and full, a silver receiver decorated with full- coverage foliate scroll engraving, a Grade-5 stock with an oiled finish, drop points, and a semi-pistol grip. The only thing I didn’t like was the black plastic buttplate. A recoil pad isn’t required, and the smooth plastic won’t hang up on your shooting coat, but the rest of the gun shows that looks and feel can count just as much as practicality. Anyhow, a bit of plastic at the back end pales into insignificance when you realise that the new Mirokus not only handle well but are also available in a cased, numbered pair for around £6K. What a great start to the next game shooting season that would make!

Fabarm

Despite the presence of several attractive new additions to Fabarm’s ranges of hunting and target shotguns, Fabarm’s stand was dominated by a display introducing the firm’s new tactical STF/12 pump-action series. Modular in construction, and fully equipped with folding pistol-grip stocks, Picatinny-rail- mounted sights, railed forends, mag extensions, and muzzle brakes, they’re impressive, but all fall short of our length criteria – unless Anglo-Italian arms get a 24 inch barrelled version made for the UK – so it’s back to the more conventional offerings. The first of these is a new gas-operated semi-auto, the L4S, which shows attractive styling and is available in Grey Hunter, Black Hunter and Hunter Deluxe Variants, as differentiated by the finish of the receiver, its decoration, and the grade of walnut used.

Then there are two new Axis RS12 O/U clay guns: the Trap S.B. and the Sporting Q.R.R., both of which feature free-floating barrels joined only at the muzzle.

Longthorne

This was Longthorne’s first IWA, and they managed to get a great spot in my favourite hall (4A), opposite Krieghoff, in sight of the Beretta group, and on everyone’s route from the East entrance to the halls beyond. A well-designed stand and a warm welcome from owners James and Elaine, and of course a great display of their unique shotguns, ensured exceptional interest and plenty of orders.

If you don’t know Longthorne, they’re a Lancashire-based gunmaker who combine traditional finishing skills with 21st century aerospace technology to make striking O/U game guns whose unique characteristic is that their chambers, lumps, barrels and ribs are machined in one piece from a single billet of steel. This is done with exceptional precision and ensures an unparalleled combination of strength and light weight. In a hall full of high-end continental gun-makers, no one had seen anything like it. The only downside is that, with most visitors to the stand being equally amazed by the comparative affordability of Longthorne’s guns, James must be sorely tempted to put his prices up; so maybe now is the time to get your order in!

Perazzi

Perazzi’s new model for 2015 is the High Tech, which combines an edgy modern look with some new refinements to help get you on target and reduce recoil fatigue. Based on the MX8 action, the High Tech’s is slightly wider with a consequent increase in thickness at the head of the stock adding a little extra weight and inertia, but keeping it between the hands so handling isn’t impaired while recoil is slowed. Further changes in bore profile also claim both to reduce felt recoil and to enhance shot velocity. Interesting too is a new top rib design, with a reverse taper (from 7mm at the breech to 10mm at the muzzle). The laws of perspective mean that the shooter sees this as a parallel rib, whilst the narrower breech end leaves a wider field of view either side, aiding target acquisition. As for the gun’s looks, all the metalwork, from the barrels to the tangs, is finished in a semi-matte black, whilst the raised profile on the sides of the action and the top lever have been given a brushed silver finish that looks smart, makes the action appear smaller, and sets off the business-like lettering on the former and the Perazzi monogram on the latter.

The stock is handsome too, with swooping contours behind the action and along the sides of the butt, a matching rake to the front of the forend and the rib supports, and the Perazzi name and High Tech designation etched into the wood ahead of the recoil pad and under the forend.

There are versions for all shooting disciplines – though the Sporting version is based on the fixed selective-trigger MX12 action – and Perazzi say that in future all the options currently provided for the MX8 will be available for the High Tech also.

Remington

This year sees a new semi-auto 12g from Remington. Called the V3, it represents an updated version of the clever Versa- port system introduced with the Versamax model shotgun introduced five years ago, in which a series of ports regulate internal gas pressure according to the length of the shotgun shell. The Versamax had seven ports, but the V3 has eight, for improved cycling with three inch loads. Remington claim that the ports also help decrease felt recoil by extending the recoil impulse. An added bonus is that the piston cleans itself. The V3’s Versa Port system is also more compact, reducing weight and placing what’s left more centrally between the hands. The location of the gas system near the chamber helps do this anyway, but it also makes possible a slimmer, more ergonomic forend. The V3 weighs just over 7lb, is available in a Field Sport model with a 26 inch or 28 inch barrel, in wood, black or camo (Mossy Oak Shadow Grass Blades or RealTree APG) synthetic. Future offerings are expected in compact, tactical and competition formats.

Benelli:  Benelli: www.benelli.it; (UK) GMK: www.gmk.co.uk;
Telephone: 01489 579 999

Beretta: www.beretta.com; (UK) GMK. www.gmk.co.uk;
Telephone: 01489 579 999

Browning: http://browning.eu; (UK) International Sports Brands:
Telephone:01235 514 550

Fabarm: www.fabarm.com; (UK) Anglo Italian Arms: www.gueriniguns.co.uk;
Telephone: 01564 742477

Longthorne: www.longthorneguns.com;
Telephone: 01772 811 215

Perazzi:  www.perazzi.com; (UK) RUAG UK: www.ruag.co.uk;
Telephone:  01579 362 319

Remington: www.remington.com; (UK) SMK: www.sportsmk.co.uk;
Telephone: 01206 795 333