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joshs
03-30-2014, 02:16 PM
I gave up 3 gun just before my daughter was born almost two years ago. I also sold off a bunch of my gear and guns. I decided to get back into 3 gun this year and hopefully shoot at least a few major matches.

I thought I'd document my 3 gun specific gear decisions in this thread to help any members who are thinking about getting started in 3 gun.

Shotgun: Stoeger M3000

http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/josh_savani/Sale/photo1.jpg

I picked the M3000 based on the number of features it has for the price and an article that Patrick Kelley wrote in the January issue of Shooting Illustrated. The M3000 uses a variant of Benelli's inertia operating system (Stoeger is owned by Benelli), which I've had very good luck with in the past. Gas guns have gotten a lot better in the last few years with the introduction of the Remington VersaMax and the Benelli 1301, but I still have purely subjective preference for inertia guns.

In addition to the operating system, the M3000 has the following features that I think make for a good 3 gun shotgun:

Lifter:

Most semi-auto shotgun lifters are not suitable for the loading methods used in 3 gun. The prominent fork used for most lifters can lead to a very ouch thumb when loading at full speed. To fix this, most 3 gunners have welded up their lifters to prevent lifter "bite," but the fork actually serves a purpose in keeping the shell centered during loading, so welded lifters often have to be tuned to a specific gun and the chamber mouth has to be modified to keep shells from getting stuck when the lifter doesn't feed them straight into the chamber. The M3000 has a lifter that is both long enough and a pleasant enough shape to avoid lifter bite without modification. The only other semi-auto that has a suitable factory lifter is the Benelli Vinci.

Stock/Recoil System:

Unlike other inertia guns (with the exception of the Benelli M3), the return/recoil spring in the M3000 is located under the forend as opposed to in the stock. This allows the stock to be shortened, which is great for small people like me. Like most other shotguns, the M3000 also comes with spacers to adjust drop and cast.

Foreend:

I really like the shape of the M3000 forend. It is very thin and is long enough to allow an extended reach with the support hand. It also fits completely flush with the receiver, so it requires no modification for load-two or quadloading.

Control Placement:

I really prefer having the safety behind the trigger because it makes it much easier for me to put the safety on quickly when transitioning guns. The control positions are essentially identical to the Benelli M2, which is the gun I have to most experience shooting in 3 gun.

I made the following modifications to my M3000 to get it ready for 3 gun:


cut the stock 3/4" and added Kickeez recoil and cheek pads
Added a Nordic +6 extension with MOA Precision magazine tube nut
added MOA Precision extended safety button
added HiViz TriComp front sight
added MOA Precision USA made follower and disco
added Carlson's extended chokes in C, LM, and F
cut the loading port to allow for easier loading.


The only thing technically needed was the magazine extension. The stock bead is adequate and the M3000 comes with 3 chokes (flush fit IC and M and an extended EFT). I just added everything else based on personal preference, and I'm still under the base cost of any other shotgun I would consider for 3 gun.

Here you can see the modifications I made to the loading port and how well the forend meets with the receiver. The loading port can be cut much lower on one side, lucky for me that is the side that matters because I load either strong-hand quadload/load two or weak-hand from caddies.

http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac338/josh_savani/Sale/photo2.jpg

I've only shot slugs through my M3000 so far due to range limitations. Unsurprisingly, it cycled 1oz. Brennekes as 1600 fps really well. I tried to break-in the gun by shooting the Brennekes, but after 10 shells decided to give up on that idea because of how unfun that load is to shoot. I then shot some Fiocchi Aero 1oz. 1150 fps slugs, but they wouldn't cycled with a full magazine tube or when I had anything but the loosest grip on the gun. I'm going to order a bunch of slugs to see what shoots the most accurately, but I'll probably stick with 1 1/8oz. at 1200 fps or 1 oz. at 1250 fps or more to ensure reliable cycling.

After modifiying the loading port the M3000 loads really well. I'm using a combination of Invictus Practical quad load carriers, a Chameleon Load-Two belt, and AP Custom Classic caddies for holding shells. I'm still not very good at quad loading, but here's a short video of loading eight shells with a five second par using the M3000 and Invictus Practical 4our sQuare carriers.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLd1nTjRo9g&feature=youtu.be

Spr1
03-30-2014, 03:25 PM
Any 922r concerns?

joshs
03-30-2014, 03:32 PM
Any 922r concerns?

That's why I added the MOA Precision follower and disco. They're purely compliance parts. There are a lot of problems with BATFE pursuing a 922(r) violation for a shotgun that doesn't meet the federal definition of a "Semiautomatic Assault Weapon," and I have no idea if my gun is really in an "unimportable configuration" since import determinations are not public, but the compliance parts are cheap compared to even one hour of attorney's fees.

GJM
03-30-2014, 03:56 PM
Let's see a picture of the cart you use to wheel your 3 gun stuff around and the mods you did to it.

joshs
03-30-2014, 04:02 PM
Let's see a picture of the cart you use to wheel your 3 gun stuff around and the mods you did to it.

I don't use a cart. I use a two gun long gun bag, a backpack for all my gear, and leave my pistol in my holster since I don't have to worry about retention (it's an ALS holster). I don't really like the carts because people invariably muzzle others when putting the guns on the cart.

justintime
03-31-2014, 12:01 AM
I think we were talking about how the cart guys seem to muzzle everyone today