Gun

Franchi 612 VS

Franchi's new semi-auto fills a niche for a solid and affordable all-rounder as Richard Rawlingson discovered.

Ten years or so ago if you wanted a rugged and reliable semi-automatic then the trusty old Beretta A303 would have been high on your list. It was solidly built, handled well and didn't cost the earth. It was the model that really gave Beretta a grip on this sector of the market. Since then the Italian giant has moved onwards and upwards. Today's Beretta autos are high tech, high fashion items and the prices have moved up too. That leaves a gap at the bottom end for a gun to do the old A303's job and Beretta's sister company Franchi think they have the product to do it.

GMK are selling the 612VS model auto alongside the Alcione over-and-under we reviewed recently. Its list price of £600 makes it 40% cheaper than the base model Beretta Urika and a seemingly attractive proposition for the shooter on a budget. What does your money buy?

Nothing fancy in the decoration department for a start. Not for Franchi the bold and racy styling that Fabarm gave us last year, but instead an altogether more restrained and conventional look. Not that this is any bad thing. I happen to like understated looks and the Franchi is smart and well finished. The woodwork is fairly plain, with a lacquered finish but the lines are trim and neat. At a fraction under 7lbs it is also one of the lightest autos around.

The Franchi is a gas-operated gun and some models in their range have a variable valve sytem. The VS guns however are designed for lightness and dispense with the added weight penalty in favour of what the company call the 'Reverpress' system. This is a reversible piston that, in the normal position, can cope comfortably with most loads within the 24-36 gram range. Should you wish to consistently use heavier loads (unlikely if the gun is to be used mainly for clay shooting) then the piston is reversed to minimise strain on the bolt mechanism. In practice I found the gun handled a wide range of normal clay loads admirably and the lack of a variable gas valve only starts to become noticeable with some heavy 36 gram FITASC loads. Everything I threw at it was cycled without fault and I failed to induce a jam whatever combination of cartridges I tried through the gun.

There are some interesting technical features in the design. The bolt is a rotating type, which is claimed to give a stronger lock-up than conventional tilting mechanisms and the trigger incorporates a clever extra safety feature that should prevent accidental discharge if the gun is dropped. Otherwise the operation will be straightforward for anyone familiar with semi-autos, with the bolt release catch and safety in the conventional positions.

Adjustment of the stock is simple thanks to the kit of four spacers supplied with the gun that allows a range of comb heights to be set, as well as left-handed cast. Most people should be able to get a reasonable fit from the options available.

The gun is a multichoke, although I thought it was a bit mean to supply just three chokes with the gun. Because it is intended as an 'all round' gun, the rib is a narrow (7mm) game type and I would have preferred something a bit wider for clay use, tapered for preference.

Out on the range I was struck by how well balanced the gun is - something that is often not the case with autos - and this coupled with the light weight makes it a very easy gun to get to grips with straight out of the box. It would make an excellent starter gun for a young shooter or recoil-sensitive lady because it has all the usual recoil masking attributes of gas operation. Rather draggy and heavy trigger pulls were a minus mark on an otherwise impressive performance.

I think GMK will do well with this gun. It handles much better than I expected and seems very well screwed together. The price makes it an attractive buy and the back up from such a respected importer will also add confidence. It offers good honest value and could indeed be considered a successor to the Beretta A303.