Fresh member, first post. Big time waterfowler.

I have read this forum for a long time but as a Canadian I am active on CanadianGunNutz; The answers and info I seek are not available within my firearm community.

Retay Masai Mara's are not readily available in USA's little northern brother. I happened across a rare opportunity to buy one at a reasonable price; I'm a cheap S.O.B. and just cant bring myself to pull the trigger on something fairly untested and reviewed- and yes I have explored all of Randy Wakeman's content. He obviously knows his stuff and he is definitely a highly respected expert but if he's getting any compensation from Retay (and there is no way he is not) I can not trust his biased opinion because there are financial incentives.

So...
Have any of you actually shot these things frequently or took them for a spin in the marsh? How have they held up over two years of hard use? I'd appreciate the feedback.

Thanks.

Check out the following thread.

https://www.shotgunworld.com/bbs/viewto ... y#p4484596

Thanks for the share. While it was an interesting read it was still Mr. Wakeman giving everyone a sales pitch on Retay’s dime. It’s also about the new 20ga.

I was really hoping for some real world data from normal hunters/shot gunners that have been useing this shotgun extensively on the range and in the field.

If anyone has hunted geese in Labrador or northern Quebec then you know my concerns. Looks like Retay loses to a Franchi or V3. I want to give the Retay a shot but without reliable info...... it’s not like I can go to a dealer here and try it out. I’ve never even seen one at any range or camp in Canada.

Retay models have been heavily reviewed in the United States for the last three years by Phil at Field & Stream and others. https://www.fieldandstream.com/retay-ma ... un-review/ . There are dozens of reviews, dozens of videos by a younger shooters, old guys like me, and many in-between. It has also been covered by may personal favorite shotgun reviewer, Bruce Buck. https://shootingsportsman.com/retay-masai-mara/ . Larry Case has also reviewed it: https://www.gundogmag.com/editorial/sho ... owl/369560 .

I have no idea who the Canadian importer is or who Canadian dealers are. The latest SA release was the MM 20 gauge, prior to that was the Gordion 12 gauge. I haven't spoken with Chris at Retay USA since last fall.

Thank you for your response Mr. Wakeman. I have never heard of Bruce Buck but I will google it.
Have you put 5k-10k rounds through any of those Retays? If you were going out to the marsh in 0 degrees Fahrenheit would the Retay honestly be your first choice out of the cabinet? I’m sure you have some really nice shotguns........

My highest-mileage shotguns are old Automatic-Fives and Browning B-80s... as in over 200K rounds without breakage. The "first choice" for anyone should likely be based on personal gun fit, how you personally like the controls, and so forth. I have put more rounds through Fabarm L4S's and Remington V3's than Retays . . . but Remington is out of business at the moment, no warranty, and no parts.



For the reason quoted above from the as yet non-functional RemArms, I cannot recommend them at the moment, no matter how much I personally enjoy my V3's.

CDD, just out of curiosity, what are you currently shooting?

I'm currently shooting an Xtrema 2. I like it, dont love it. I find myself grabbing a bps more and more. I want a new semi to try.
I have shouldered most of the modern guns out there except a Retay. I happened across a killer deal from a guy who only had the Retay for a test shoot and pictures. Its 2 or 3 years old and has had 10 boxes of promo rounds through it.
It looks nifty but I have owned Turkish shotguns in the past : Stoeger, Weatherby, and Tristar.
They were kind of blah. I had a Stoeger M3500 that was a sissy and forgot how to cycle when the conditions were not nice.....no mater how much I oiled it.
In the end are Retays absolutely worth the money because they truly are a quality product made with quality materials or are they another Stoeger type shotgun with a great marketing strategy?

Well one of the biggest attributes of the Retay is they have a great warranty, but I don't know who handles it for them in Canada. I have handled a 20 gauge variant plus an Air King 3.5 inch one and to me they were clearly a quality gun but I simply don't have the long term extensive trigger time you want.

I don't think they are a fly-by-night outfit and from what I have researched, one of the few that makes ALL parts of their guns. I think that Air King would make a great goose buster for you but that is just my opinion.

Have you looked at the Fabarm guns?

If you’re hunting it hard up there, I would use parts availability as the guiding light.

Your comments are rude, ignorant, and just plain wrong. Anyone who has bothered to actually read my reviews knows that I've griped about the recoil pad and trigger on the Gordion models, and also complained loudly about the dinky safety on the MM 20 gauge. Is that the Canuck Duck idea of a sales pitch?

Here's my recommendation for you: don't buy a Retay, much less a used Retay, in Canada. It is up to the Canadian importer and Canadian gun dealers to offer support and service. Based on your comments, they aren't remotely there yet.

Canuckduckduster wrote :I'm a cheap S.O.B. and just cant bring myself to pull the trigger on something fairly untested and reviewed- and yes I have explored all of Randy Wakeman's content.........................
All I can offer is if You want a shotgun that is tested and reviewed for 100 years get an old school Recoil Auto 5 3" mag....made in Japan with the screw in chokes.
It's not like Your getting a double lung transplant................................ .

You should get the Retay. If it’s really better than a Benelli, what’s the worst that can happen? The price of the gun isn’t that big in the scheme of things, after all. If you’re seriously considering that brand of course.

I apologize sir. I had no intention of being rude and I’m sorry you took offence. My mother would be ashamed. I was truly under the impression you get paid by Retay to promote the brand. I did not mean to come across as ignorant.

Thank you for the advice Randy. It is very sound reasoning and feel a sudden lack of intelligence for not considering that myself. Hopefully one day Retay sets up with some dealers in Canada.

A lot of my hunting partners carry the older Auto 5’s and I’ve handled some newer models on the trap range. They are great firearms but they don’t feel right in my hands.

I’m on the made in Miroku bandwagon though. I’m a lefty and the best shotgun I own is a BPS I bought 15 years ago that was already 10 years old.

Thank you for lighting my lantern. This is the question I should have been asking myself long before I even came on here asking about quality.

Many, many, many duck / waterfowl hunters use Remington 870's, Browning Maxus models, Beretta A400's, and a long list of inertia guns by Benelli and others. I've shot more teal, black duck, and snow geese in Canada with Browning B-80's and Beretta A390's than anything else.

For a new gun, now that Remington is out of business with no service, Fabarm USA product and, yes, Retay, are both quite worthy of consideration in the U.S. Beretta has very poor customer service in the U.S., but Cole Gunsmithing (in the U.S.) helps bridge the gap. Fabarm / Caesar Guerini has world class customer service in the U.S.

I don't have a Maxus II to test yet, nor a Fabarm Chesapeake . . . those are two notable new for 2021 models. As for what the service spectrum is in Canada today, I have no idea. The gun that fits you the best is as good a place to start as any, assuming reasonable dealer / manufacturer support.

I have been wondering about this as well. All I seem to be able to find is stuff writers put out about them. You are right not to trust what they print as gospel. They do, in fact show bias when writing reviews. They often get guns gifted to them for their “tests” as well. Firing a few rounds at clays going away from someone isn’t what I’d call a torture test. I want to hear from men who’ve hinted this fun hard. I did see a review from the guy who is affiliated with DUX. He was shooting it along with an SBE3 while shooting on what he called a “farm hunt”. The Retay has cycling issues. The SBE3 didn’t.

CanuckDuckDuster, I didn’t think your comments were ignorant or rude at all. Some people have no concept of what is and isn’t rude. A certain person on this forum actually tried to shake me for being concerned about what he called an “inexpensive shotgun”. Once called out about it, I was actually accused of misunderstanding him. Check out the DUX farm hunt video if you want an unbiased review. Retay did give him a gun as well, but he didn’t automatically praise the gun. He let it speak for itself.

Ive seen the video you are talking about and the Retay having problems cycling light loads. With a new gun like his Retay it’s hard to know if it won’t cycle light loads or just needs to be broken in a little more. I will say the guy in the video seemed awfully hesitant and a little nervous to bad mouth Retay......