Agreed 2 Dogs. To me the humpback takes me back to hunting with my grandpa. Not only is the A5 a beautiful gun, it's got alot of sentimental value to me. It leaves the gun safe more in Sept and Oct than all the newer guns sitting beside it, for that very reason. Would I take it to Argentina? No. Do I have other more reliable options in the gun safe? Yes. Is it a 100% a solid, reliable shotgun? Yes. Will I take it on multiple shoots a year here in the panhandle and all over south Bama while leaving all the others at home? Absolutely.

I'm going to disagree with you on not calling it a great all around shotgun. JB made a truly great gun when he designed the A5. Are there better/improved options today? Yes. The A5 led the way for autoloading shotguns and made them what they have become today. So yes, the A5 is a "great" gun and while it has some issues, if used in the right applications with the right loads, it is just a reliable as anything you can tote into the woods, and more reliable than some others.

The reason I said by todays standards it may not be a great shotgun is I don't think it would be the OPs "cup of tea". However , they are mine. They are GREAT, when the other auto's have been in production 115 years they will be great too.

Not exactly.

Benelli owns Franchi and Stoeger. Beretta owns Benelli. A Franchi is a very good shotgun but it ain't a Benelli by a longshot.

Then tell me specifically the differences between the Franchi Affinity and the M1. Yes,the Benelli has the recoil spring in the rear instead of the front,and it has a comfortech stock. Other than that,they are the same gun as far as I can tell. I do know for a fact that they are made on the same assembly line.

Now a Stoegar is a different animal all together and sometimes Franchi has used another manufacturer to build some of their O/U guns especially.

I have not shot or handled a M1. I was referring to a SBE vs the affinity. Benelli has a much better stock in the comfort tech IMO. Component fit and finish seems slightly better on the SBE but hardly noticeable unless you're looking. I haven't shot a M1 but have shot both the SBE and the affinity. The SBE has a smoother action and feel than the affinity IMO. Is it worth the $600 price difference? I honestly don't know. The affinity I shot had a composite stock on it. The affinity stock just felt cheap on the gun i shot and may be why I liked the SBE better. The SBE also felt like it was a little more balanced on the front end than the affinity which seemed to have a little more forward weight, which I don't personally like. I don't own either gun so this is strictly my opinion based on limited shooting of buddies guns. Had the affinity had a nice wood stock and not one that felt like cheap plastic, I probably would've like it better than I did. Both went "bang" every time the trigger was pulled and both were either 2013 or 2014 model guns so I haven't shot the latest models in either line.

So basically beretta is the oldest gun manufacturer in the world, started around the late 16th century... and they own all these other companys’. Gotta say I still feel good about my A300 with this kind of history. Oh and a lot of shooting through my 12 bore as well haha.

Inertia action is the same.

And that's about where it stops. Franchi quality no where near Benelli. Yes I've owned both

As have I and I agree

Yep, hunting buddy of mine is on his third Franchi in 14 years or so. I've used primarily, one Benelli and its still going (with some new springs).

This is a Chevy/Ford/Dodge/Toyota argument. There's a lot of good stuff out there and unless you get a lemon, most of it works really well for the typical shotgunner.

Shoulder a bunch of models and pick what you like.

None of that Franchie VS whatever means anything unless you are talking about specific models. Some of the Franchi and Benelli models are virtually identical in their bolt carrier groups. I know they are assembled side by side with the more expensive Benelli. I don't know for sure but bolt carrier groups are very similar,and may be identical.Yes, the spring is reversed ,but it works exactly the same.

I also have a Beretta ES 100 Pintail that uses what was the original Benelli inertia system. Beretta only made it for a year or two. They discontinued it as soon as they acquired Benelli. The original Benelli guns were made by H&K. Don't be fooled into thinking the Benelli is so superior in it's present configuration. Many things are made in the same manufacturing facility by a conglomerate like Beretta.

A lot of the big breweries have mulitple brands of beer that are run down the same assembly and packaging lines too, but that still dont make them taste, or cost, the same.

Wow. I wouldn't think it would outlast a Frenchi 3 to 1 with the same action. But who knows ?

No way it's 3 to 1...your buddy likes new guns..or why wouldnt he by beneli after 2nd one..i aint saying beneli isnt the best either but for the money franchi hard to beat never had problem in 20 years other than a recoil spring

Yep, 3 franchis to one SBE II. He had a trigger assembly disintegrate on an I-12. We never found all the parts, but a bunch had sheared into fragments. Then a bolt that cracked on his new infinity (I think that's what that model was called). He's now onto a new 3" affinity. I think his now 17 y/o son has claimed that gun and he told me had a line on a SBE I.

We burn a bunch of powder. My SBE II is probably near 7K duck loads in that time period. I sheared a shell extractor off the bolt around 4K loads. Benelli fixed it for free. Springs replaced year before last with wolff springs. Its ugly, but it goes BOOM, BOOM, BOOM every time.

I have a SBE2 as well and I agree with the boom boom boom .... Franchi's are still good shotguns for the money. I know what I paid for my SBE2 so it better go boom when I pull the trigger. Franchi's are reliable as well. But 7k rounds of duck hunting ? Dude that's insane.

If they are serious waterfowlers, not really. If they travel to hunt and that's over a 14 year period, that's only 20 boxes a year.

Key word being SERIOUS ... I suppose that's right then.

I'm 99.9% positive the early Benelli's were still manufactured by Benelli but were only imported in name only under the H&K brand due to import legalities.