That is why I stick to the 391’s. It’s the best semi auto ever made. I’ve owned the A400 in both 20 and 28 gauge and sold them both after about 6 months of use. I didn’t have any major issues or complaints. If the A400 shot better than the 391 then I would put up with the plastic parts and fake wood grain. But it doesn’t shoot or cycle anything like the 391 does and that is why I try to buy them when I see them for a good price. Unfortunately, for you they never made the 391 in 28 gauge.

 

I guess I got lucky on how it functions, It cycled flawlessly with first 150 Winchester AA’s at my local sporting clays course. Like you, I’ve also had a good experience with my two 390’s and 391 sporting. And to be fair, I’ve had a good experience with my A400 Xcel and A400 Xplor Action. I also have three Silver Pigeons that have provided great service. But, to accuse me of abusing this gun, and causing this obvious manufacturing flaw, then for them to not communicate with me until they sent me the return tracking number is the ultimate lack of customer service.

 

N-H, many folks here complain about Berettas‘ service. Of course , here they complain about everything. Best bet for a Beretta owner is to contact Coles.

 

The A400 is over priced to begin with. If they had to make them perfect the price would compete with the 686s

 

The A400 is over priced to begin with. If they had to make them perfect the price would
compete with the 686s

Over seas makers, like the company that makes my Mossberg SA-28 is a serious A400 competitor at one third the price of the Beretta. If the Mossberg had a 28” barrel l might have never considered the A400 Upland 28 gauge. And the Mossberg comes in hard case with 5 chokes and socks to put the barrel and stock sections in.

 

Thanks for the advice. Over all, I have had a very positive experience with the nine other Berettas I have owned since 1996. In all that time I have never felt the need to involve customer service in resolving a problem. My complaints about this particular gun have certainly fallen on deaf ears at Beretta. I’ll wait a few days to calm down and gather my wits before contacting Coles.

 

Got rid of my a400 upland 28ga, tired of the bolt not going completely in battery, bolt head was rough to rotate into place. Tried getting the burs out myself, after 3 attempts I traded it in. Saw the same issue on another brand new on the rack, owner didn't believe me until I showed them how it happens.

 

I’ve said it over and over again, they crank out 1500 guns a day just in the Italian factory. They turn and burn em so fast, if one or two people complain they probably don’t even care. They know if they send out some bad guns, there’s odds that they’ll never hear about it. They probably know exactly how much qc they need to do to keep profits and returns on a certain margin. I couldn’t even imagine how many brand new or almost brand new guns get shipped to Cole’s for repair.

 

LDP
new to shotgun news
lots of good info posted here. Like some others I’m very partial to the 391’s having had nine. Never had any problems with any until this year, I purchased a used one with a 28” Optima barrel. Unknown to me, the barrel had been back bored, and forcing cone lengthened. It also had 11 angleports on each side at the muzzle! This gun would not function any loads except 1oz 1400 fps! Super Crushers! And that wasn’t 100%. Finally, after two or three trips to range, I ordered a ”red“ gas valve spring from Cole’s which is for light and heavier loads. Gun has worked 100% ever since.
Also shoot an A400 multitarget for the past year. It’s a first year production and has been flawless for several thousand rounds. Still favor the 390 series though because the multitarget is a bigger heavier gun.
i do have an unfired 391 still in the case that I’m saving for the future!. It’s a 1991 mobile choke mo….
Thanks for the great forum
Happy Shooting

 

My A400 28ga has been flawless. Well maybe except for the butt ugly "enhanced" wood finish. I had that refinished. Turns out the wood underneath the fake finish was actually quite nice. I have 5 Beretta autos going back to a 303. They all have performed great with no defects. I am lucky I guess as there are posters that complain about their A400's.

 

Mine ran flawlessly too in the hundred or so rounds I put through it before selling it last week. I just couldn’t live with the factory flaw on the receiver and the terrible customer service I received from Beretta. I love the five Berettas I still have including my a400 xcel.

 

The best advantage of an auto is reduced recoil, but 28 gauge has very little recoil. Why bother?

 

Because it’s even less recoil! A ton of fun to shoot, I love taking mine to the dove field and the skeet field equally. I tend to have a problem after shooting it though where I will be a little too sloppy holding other guns due to the nonexistent recoil of my little a400

 

The 28 gauge does surprisingly well for me on sporting clays presentations under 40 yards. Over that distance lots of holes in my 28 gauge patterns.