Stainless vs Nickel Benelli shotgun question

**87th PVI** · January 10th, 2009, 01:42 AM

So I'm looking at the Benelli Legacy and the Benelli Montefeltro silver, and I'm wondering if they would hold up equally and what is determining the price differential.
They both accept 2 3/4 & 3" shells, both are 4+1 capacity, both have the AA grade walnut stock and both have the inertia driven system, and both are beautifully engraved.
The Legacy and the Montefeltro silver are within $50-$100 of one another with the Legacy being the higher priced of the two.
The Mont had less engraving than the Legacy but the Mont includes some gold inlay which the Legacy lacks.
The biggest difference I see between the two is the recievers. The Mont has a "nickel plated alloy" reciever (anodized aluminum) while the Legacy has a two part stainless steel lower/polished blued upper reciever.

Will the stainless hold up better than the anodized aluminum? Will the Nickel plating and gold inlay wear off? Will the nickel (or the stainless for that matter) discolor from the powder residue? (I normally clean my guns within 48 hours after firing them.)

While I'm only considering the Legacy & the Mont at present and not the Legacy Sport... I have trouble understanding what makes the Legacy Sport so much better that it is priced another $600 higher than the Legacy.
While I like that the engraving wraps up over the top of the back of the reciever on that model, IMHO the engraving as a whole (the scene) on the two lower end models is more appealing to my eye. Otherwise the L Sport is available with a 30 inch bbl instead of the 28 on the other models. (but my understanding is that the 30 is available separately and will fit the others) So what makes it worth another $600?

I've held the Legacy & it feels so natural it's like it's always been there. I've not yet had a chance to hold a Montefeltro, but they look to be almost identical guns other than the recievers.

Thanks in advance for anyone's .02

**BUCKMARK** · January 10th, 2009, 02:35 PM

The receivers are the difference. You pretty much hit the nail on the head from start to finish.

Both are great guns and you should have no problems with either. Gold engraving wear is a question...not sure how it would hold up. I'd say it should be fine.

It's really up to you. IMHO the Monty dosent feel as good as the Legacy...but thats me. The Legacy is sweet!

The Legacy sport has the 30" barrel. It is ported and comes with extended sporting clay tubes instead of flush fits.

It also comes with the gel recoil pad that the standard Legacy dosent have.

Don't go by the MSRP prices. The guns are not $600 difference in most shops.

I think of the Legacy as a clay gun. I like to use ugly synthetic guns to hunt with. I would go with the Legacy sport for clay shooting.

The standard Legacy is a awesome hunting gun...but I'd hate to beat one up!

You will love any Benelli you buy.

**87th PVI** · January 10th, 2009, 06:37 PM

Thanks for the input.
I'd be using it for clays. I don't currently hunt but I'm open to trying some bird hunting at least one season just to find out if it's for me.
I have been looking at mossberg, H&R, Baretta, Stoeger, Remington and others. I looked at price ranges from $299-2000. None but the Baretta came close to the Benelli guns and I was not impressed with anything I found priced under 1000. The Baretta I liked was 1100 new and 999 used and was not as pretty as the Benellis. The Benellis also seem to have the best quality of anything I looked at.
I used the MSRP for comparison in my earlier post to have everything on an even keel but I've found the Legacy new from 1529 to 1549. I have found two Legacy models on the used market for 1200 each, but they both had the 26' bbl. I'm looking for the 28.

**BUCKMARK** · January 10th, 2009, 10:25 PM

The Legacy Sport is a top of the line clay gun. You will love one!

Buy the 30" barrel for clays.

A semi auto with a 30" barrel is like a O/U with 32" barrels. It might seem a tad long at first, but it will be smooth to swing and you will get used to it quickly.

A lot of guys buy 26" or 28" and then wish they would have gone with the 30".

**87th PVI** · January 11th, 2009, 10:36 PM

I actually think I have my mind made up on the Legacy with the 28 inch bbl. The Legacy is at the top of the price range I wanted to spend and I actually like the engraving on the Legacy better than the Sport other than the fact that the Sport's engraving wraps up around to the top on the back of the reciever. I do like the engraving on the Sport, I'm just not a fan of those titanium inserts. I like the engraved mallards & ringnecks on the Legacy better. I still like the look of the Mont but I haven't had an opportunity to handle one for comparison and I just think the stainless steel would be better than the nickel plated annodized aluminum. Also I plan to use it & I'd really be miffed if the gold part of the engraving wore off or if the nickel discolored.
As for the bbl length, If I'm not mistaken, I could get a 30 inch bbl at a later time and swap it out / have a spare second bbl option for the future if I decided I wanted the longer bbl.

As a side note, it's funny that you have been helping me with my decision... guess what my very first firearm ever purchased was?
A Browning Buckmark! I've had it for about 20 years and & I still have it and a second one I bought later on.

It's worked great until the last time I took it out to shoot about a week ago, it didn't want to feed right & when I took it apart to clean it, I found that the buffer plate was broken. It's just a little piece of plastic so I think 20 years was a good run. Good news is it's only a $1.25 part but bad news is that Browning charges a minimum of $8 shipping. I guess I'll get a few for spares & also a couple other parts that might be good to have on hand. What I really would like are the rosewood grips but they want over $100 for a pair! I only paid around $200 for the gun brand new! (20 years ago though)

Anyway, Thanks for the input!