Weatherby Shotguns?

[smokey1971]

I'm in the market for a new shotgun, and have always had a soft spot for the 870 Wingmaster. I've never liked the Express because it reminds me of a cheap knock-off of the original. A new Wingmaster isn't in the budget right now, and I haven't found that super-sweet deal on a used one yet, so I'm still shopping. I was in Dick's Sporting goods the other day, and the guy behind the counter showed me a Weatherby PA-08 Upland. I was VERY impressed, not only with the gun itself, but with the pricetag too. It reminded me of a Wingmaster, but was the same price as the Express (that's my kind of bargain). I've done a little research, and so far have only found one negative comment the Weatherbys, and that's that it's not made in the States. If it were an American made gun, with all of the same features and the same price, I probably would have bought it already. I try very hard to buy American products (The job I save, just might be my own), but this Turkish made shotgun REALLY impressed me.

Does anyone have one of these beauties that they'd like to tell me about? How do you like it? Would you buy it again, now that you've used it for a while? Are accessories easily available? How is it holding up?

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

 

[twostepadin]

held one for a very short period of time. then watched a southpaw shoot it for a very long time. seemed lefty friendly to me. my old mossberg 500 likes to pitch casing hulls in my face if i switch shoulders lol. never saw any problems at all with it.

fancys are a little tough to find, i believe they have a knoxx stock if that is your thing.

having said that, if it feels nice to you. pull the trigger good price.

buying american is fine, buying from the heart is paramount.

best of luck in your future purchase.

 

[danmdevries]

Bought one for my dad when he moved to acreage. Same situation, looking for a nice polished wood stocked 12ga pump (I.e. wingmaster) and came across the weatherby. Feels top notch, smooth and well balanced. Great gun at that price range, I'd buy another.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

I sold a bunch of them at Galyan's. Seemed O.K. (far too heavy and the LOP was just silly but the American market demands it) and we never had any complaints.

If you want American-made, have you looked at the Ruger Red or Gold Label weapons?

 

[smokey1971]

I sold a bunch of them at Galyan's. Seemed O.K. (far too heavy and the LOP was just silly but the American market demands it) and we never had any complaints.

If you want American-made, have you looked at the Ruger Red or Gold Label weapons?

I'm 6'3" tall, and I've got some pretty long arms, so the LOP was perfect. The shorter tactical stocks are VERY uncomfortable for me. As for the weight, it was actually lighter than the Remington & Mossberg I compared it to..... quite a bit lighter, and it had a longer barrel without feeling nose-heavy.

 

[smokey1971]

held one for a very short period of time. then watched a southpaw shoot it for a very long time. seemed lefty friendly to me. my old mossberg 500 likes to pitch casing hulls in my face if i switch shoulders lol. never saw any problems at all with it.

fancys are a little tough to find, i believe they have a knoxx stock if that is your thing.

having said that, if it feels nice to you. pull the trigger good price.

buying american is fine, buying from the heart is paramount.

best of luck in your future purchase.

Buying American is VERY important to me... This country has lost far too many jobs already, and continuing to buy cheap Chinese knock-offs just to save a few bucks will only make it worse. Fortunately, the Weatherby isn't a cheap Chinese knock-off, but it still isn't American made, so that's a HUGE strike against it in my book. If it were made in The States, I would have already bought one..... and maybe even the semi-auto version.

 

[danimal]

i have the synthetic stock pa08, picked one up back in march. they're a fairly inexpensive, but average shotgun; nothing special to write home about, nothing terrible to complain about. i have not fed it any 3" shells yet, but i've yet to have a hiccup in the first 8 boxes (winchester target loads) i've put it through. mine cycles well and feels solid to me. only thing i've done to it other than clean it is put a fiber sight over the brass bead.

even though its not American made, it is still a mighty fine shotgun

 

[451_Detonics]

If it were an American made gun, with all of the same features and the same price, I probably would have bought it already. I try very hard to buy American products (The job I save, just might be my own)

Remember when you are buying that shotgun that the money is staying mostly in the US. The importation taxes, the importer's mark-up, the distributor's mark-up and the dealer's mark-up are all monies that stay here at home. You will be keeping all those folks in their jobs. I know some folks bash the Turkish guns but all of the ones I have owned and seen used where all great guns, they hold up fine, shoot good, and are reliable. Turkey has a very rich history of hunters and they love upland game, they probably rival the US in hunters per capita.

If you like it I would say go for it and enjoy guilt free...

 

[smokey1971]

I stumbled onto a deal that was too good to refuse. I found a used Remington 1100 Magnum, 28"VR Full choke bbl, checkered Walnut furniture, engraved receiver & bolt, with a built in recoil pad, it looks to be mid-70's vintage. The overall finish is about 70%, with absolutely NO rust anywhere, and no damage to the wood. I picked it up at the local pawn shop for $225... no, that's NOT a typo. I've seen much older 1100's, in a lot worse condition, going for $400 locally, so I feel like I stole it. The best part is, it works like a brand new gun. Whoever owned it, obviously used it to hunt, and it's certainly well used, but it's also been well maintained.