Ruger v. Yildiz

[Bill Bates]

Okay, i'm going to let you in on a secret. Here are three over/unders that are real sleepers on the used market and are really a great values.

First is the Miroku built Charles Daly. It is the same shotgun as the Browning Citori at 2/3 the price.

Second is the Nikko (Golden Eagle) 5000 which are the same gun as the Winchester 101.

Last, this one is a real bargain, the Beretta BL series. These can be had cheap when compared to Beretta's newer O/U. The sub gauge guns are beginning to take off price wise because they are an upland hunters dream. The 20 gauges only weigh about 6 lbs, which is pretty light for a 20 gauge over/under.

All of these, with a little searching, can be found in great condition priced for less than $1000, sometimes much less. All are a better gun than the Yildiz and are less expensive than the Ruger Red Label.

 

[MOONDAWG]

Arguing gun brands, like the Ford vs. Chevy debate, will never be settled...so each to their own.

I personally like the Yildiz line.

Academy Sports is their biggest US importer.

My favorite is my 3" magnum 20 ga. Over/Under SPZ ME20.

It came with beautiful Turkish walnut and modest engraving and 5 choke tubes.

It's been an awesome dove & quail gun.

As a side note, many of the high volume Argentine dove hunting lodges use Turkish shotguns (Yildiz, Hatsan, Huglu et al) for their clients with good reliability.

 

[gregintenn]

The only Ruger Red Label I ever fired kicked like a bee stung mule. Perhaps it just didn't fit me correctly, but I didn't like it one bit. They are pretty, however.

 

[Maximumbob54]

Every single time I try to mention O/U shotguns I'm told the same thing:

Beretta 686

 

[ralph7]

I was told the Turkish shot guns get all kinds of problems...

Personally I would buy a shotgun who's name starts with a B.

They hold value better, a lot of places can repair them if needed. You can find chokes and accessories easy.

Boito started with a B.

 

[Rastoff]

Boito started with a B.

Yeah, so does Bikal. It's an over generalization to say any gun starting with a B.

The fact that Academy is the largest importer of Yildiz should tell you something about their quality.

 

[Bill Bates]

I was told the Turkish shot guns get all kinds of problems...

Personally I would buy a shotgun who's name starts with a B.

They hold value better, a lot of places can repair them if needed. You can find chokes and accessories easy.

me too...but a Boss is way out of my budget.

 

[Andy Griffith]

I learn something new every day.

Never knew there was a Yiddish shotgun manufacturer.

All joking aside, who services them?

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

I learn something new every day.

Never knew there was a Yiddish shotgun manufacturer.

All joking aside, who services them?

Why Morty the Mench

 

[RonJ]

I think a name change would go a long way towards increasing
sales in the US. If someone walked up to me on the skeet field and asked what kind of gun I was shooting I just can't imagine myself proudly holding it out and saying "this is my Yildiz".

 

[kwselke]

Happy New Year!

This topic made it to 2014, so I clicked over to Academy - Yildiz SPZ ME/12 12 Gauge Over-and-Under Shotgun to find out if the inexpensive Yildiz came with extractors or ejectors. that question is not answered there.

The product reviews are mixed but generally favorable. The product Q & A regarding warranty is not a good omen.

 

[Old Corp]

For a 20 O/U, I'm still making do with a Superposed Lightning my mom gave me in 1976. (HS grad. gift)
For a 12 O/U, picked up a barely-used Citori at the LGS I worked at for <$600.
Both shoot really good and have taken boatloads of birds.

 

[RonJ]

Ejectors included
YILDIZ S?LAH-YILDIZ SHOTGUN

 

[Bill Bates]

For a 20 O/U, I'm still making do with a Superposed Lightning my mom gave me in 1976. (HS grad. gift)
For a 12 O/U, picked up a barely-used Citori at the LGS I worked at for <$600.
Both shoot really good and have taken boatloads of birds.

Making do with a 38 year old 20 gauge Browning Superposed Lightning must be a real struggle ;^)

 

[Bill Bates]

I must be the odd one out. I'm not a big fan of ejectors. I don't like chasing cases. Extractors are simple, rarely break and take an ounce or three off the total weight of the gun. I've never found pulling a case out of the barrel a big deal; even when shooting is fast.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I had a 26" Red Label that was very used when it got to me. It was an early Blue receiver fixed choke (sk/sk), that had been sent to Brily\ey and thin wall chokes installed. A previous owner said he alone put 200,000 rounds through it. It was a fine gun but, was a true skeet model and didn't meet my Sporting Clays needs. I still see it around the skeet and clays courses from time to time. 3 of us who had owned it were talking with a young fellow who owned it at that time. Together we estimated that the 4 of us had put 375,000 to 400,000 rounds in that gun. I have 8 Browning and 1 Beretta O/U shotguns but have no complaints about Red Labels. Keep the trunnions (barrel pivot points) clean and greased and not too large of diet of Magnum shells and it will outlast most peoples great grand kids! Modern Turkish SxS and O/U shotguns have seen the return bench way too many times for the people I've known that were fooled into buying them! Many were beautiful but not one held up to ONE SEASON of Sporting Clays. Ivan

 

[tkevan]

What the heck is a Yildiz, and what are the repair and sales issues? People know what a Ruger is and where to get one repaired.

Yildiz is a Turkish company, and their firearms are serviced in the US by Briley. The ME/12 is a fair o/u with an alloy action sporting a titanium wear insert.

First time I handled one, I was stationed at Balikesir, TU. Light weight, easy swing, good fit. That was 23 years ago.

Is it a competitor to a $1500 O/U? Nope. But it doesn't cost $1500, either.

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

Thanks to everyone for the great replies!

 

[Texas Star]

No one mentioned the SKB guns, whether imported by Ithaca or not. Aside from Beretta, if I was shopping for a O/U shotgun for a moderate price, that's what I'd seek. I believe that many of Weatherby's double guns have been made by SKB. That's a pretty good endorsement.

If you can't afford those, you shouldn't be buying a double shotgun. They're luxury items, for those who CAN afford good ones.

Your money goes a lot further in buying a good pump or auto gun.

 

[gdogs]

I owned a 20ga Red Label many years ago. One of the ones I should have never sold off. It was a solid gun, though I did have a firing pin spring break. It's not a gun that the faint of heart should ever take apart.
That said, I currently own a Yildiz 12ga that's seen several thousand rounds without a problem. One of the nicest things about the Yildiz guns is the quality of wood on them - though a acetone strip and refinish with a quality stock oil is needed to really bring out the best. They are light due to the alloy frame. You can decide if that is a good or bad thing, but I tend to favor a heavier gun when firing a lot of 12ga rounds in a day.