stoneyhu717
Elite Refuge Member
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- Feb 21, 2021
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My 12 year old has decided she’s ready to step up to a 12 gauge. She doesn’t want her older sister to have a competitive edge when they are shooting together. She shot her sister’s A300 Outlander well earlier this year, but she said the safety was in the wrong place. She’s a Winchester girl lol.
I was at a local gun store last month and stumbled across a 3” SX4. I didn’t even ask to inspect it. I just put some money down and said I’d be back to pick it up as soon as Uncle Sam sends my return. I picked it up today, brought it home, cleaned it, and took it out to put a few rounds through it.
I’ve put a lot of rounds through the 3.5” SX series line and think they are very good autoloaders. I’m just as impressed with the 3” SX4. I did discover a couple of things I found interesting.
I own a youth 20 gauge SX4, and I’ve also got access to a 3.5” SX4 that I’ve reviewed. I’ve weighed both and discovered that the youth 20 gauge SX4 with a 24” barrel (weighing 6lbs 14oz) is only 4oz lighter than a 3.5” SX4 with a 28” barrel (weighing 7lbs 2oz). When I put the 3” 12 gauge SX 4 with a 26” barrel on my Lyman trigger scale today, it weighed 6lbs 15.5oz. The stock is 1 1/4” longer, and the barrel is 2” longer than the youth model, but only weighs 1.5oz more.
Speaking of stocks, the youth stock on the 20 gauge SX4 will also fit both the 3” and 3.5” 12 gauge models as well. The SX4 stock may not have the adjustability rhe A300 has, but seeing as how I have a youth stock and a regular stock, I can adjust it almost as easily by swapping the stocks out.
I checked the trigger pull on the 3” SX4 and the weight averaged to 5lbs 6oz. This is the 4th SX4 I’ve checked the trigger pull weight on, and it is lighter than 2 of the others. It’s on par with the 3.5” model I tested a couple of years ago.
I took it out this afternoon to put rounds through it for a function test. I was shooting Winchester expert light target loads. I believe they were 1 1/8oz 1175fps 8shot. It failed to cycle the first three shots, but cycled the next several rounds without any more failures.
The magazine on the 3” 12 gauge SX4 is much easier to load than the 20 gauge model. I believe the reason for that is the lack of the speed load feature in 12 gauge model Winchesters. My daughter likes the feature on her 20 gauge, but she does struggle to load the magazine when it’s cold out. I don’t foresee her having any such trouble with the 12 gauge.
My final thoughts:
Although I do think the 3” SX4 is a quality autoloader and a good value, I’d still choose an A300 if I were purchasing one for myself. Both models are priced in the same ballpark, but the Beretta comes with oversized controls and can be easily adjusted. The Beretta also loads smoother than the SX4. I believe the aluminum shell follower in the Beretta is the reason behind that. I purchased the Sx4 for my daughter, and I know she will be excited when I finally give it to her.
I was at a local gun store last month and stumbled across a 3” SX4. I didn’t even ask to inspect it. I just put some money down and said I’d be back to pick it up as soon as Uncle Sam sends my return. I picked it up today, brought it home, cleaned it, and took it out to put a few rounds through it.
I’ve put a lot of rounds through the 3.5” SX series line and think they are very good autoloaders. I’m just as impressed with the 3” SX4. I did discover a couple of things I found interesting.
I own a youth 20 gauge SX4, and I’ve also got access to a 3.5” SX4 that I’ve reviewed. I’ve weighed both and discovered that the youth 20 gauge SX4 with a 24” barrel (weighing 6lbs 14oz) is only 4oz lighter than a 3.5” SX4 with a 28” barrel (weighing 7lbs 2oz). When I put the 3” 12 gauge SX 4 with a 26” barrel on my Lyman trigger scale today, it weighed 6lbs 15.5oz. The stock is 1 1/4” longer, and the barrel is 2” longer than the youth model, but only weighs 1.5oz more.
Speaking of stocks, the youth stock on the 20 gauge SX4 will also fit both the 3” and 3.5” 12 gauge models as well. The SX4 stock may not have the adjustability rhe A300 has, but seeing as how I have a youth stock and a regular stock, I can adjust it almost as easily by swapping the stocks out.
I checked the trigger pull on the 3” SX4 and the weight averaged to 5lbs 6oz. This is the 4th SX4 I’ve checked the trigger pull weight on, and it is lighter than 2 of the others. It’s on par with the 3.5” model I tested a couple of years ago.
I took it out this afternoon to put rounds through it for a function test. I was shooting Winchester expert light target loads. I believe they were 1 1/8oz 1175fps 8shot. It failed to cycle the first three shots, but cycled the next several rounds without any more failures.
The magazine on the 3” 12 gauge SX4 is much easier to load than the 20 gauge model. I believe the reason for that is the lack of the speed load feature in 12 gauge model Winchesters. My daughter likes the feature on her 20 gauge, but she does struggle to load the magazine when it’s cold out. I don’t foresee her having any such trouble with the 12 gauge.
My final thoughts:
Although I do think the 3” SX4 is a quality autoloader and a good value, I’d still choose an A300 if I were purchasing one for myself. Both models are priced in the same ballpark, but the Beretta comes with oversized controls and can be easily adjusted. The Beretta also loads smoother than the SX4. I believe the aluminum shell follower in the Beretta is the reason behind that. I purchased the Sx4 for my daughter, and I know she will be excited when I finally give it to her.
