I did some research on this gun before finally buying it. This video was very helpful for me and I believe it has served many other potential buyers in the past and will keep serving people in the future. Therefore, I would like to share my two cents here. This gun shoots very well in the clay range. Recoil is definitely lighter than my two semi autos (one gas, one inertia.) Since I had got used to the front-heavy semi autos, some practice was needed for me to adjust swing smoothness. For single trap, I took turn to shoot upper and lower barrel. Neither ever gave me any problem of breaking, as some other people reported. Also, my barrel selection button is not that loose at all. Although I have to say it's not a very solid snap-in either, it would definitely not be switched by a careless touch or whisk. During the cleaning after the first clay shooting day, I did the "once-a-year maintenance" by taking the receiver and stock apart, and found that there was some half-dried dark brown axial grease on the trigger-receiver system. The grease is the best solution for the manufacturer to protect the parts from rust during who-knows-how-many-years' storage in all possible climates. However, it is not good for regular operation and may cause issues. especially in very dusty or cold environments. I cleaned all the grease and applied very lightly some gun oil. In the process, I also found that the main bolt holding the receiver to the stock was very loosely tightened. If not corrected, this will also give problems in the long run. So, my suggestion to every owner is that you should take apart the stock and receiver and do a thorough cleaning. Some previous comments mentioned that the gun was $750 at Scheels only 3 years ago. Now it's $1,099 listed there. I bought it around the same price range. It seems firearms have much higher price increases than the average post-pandemic inflation rate. There is one article on the internet (shootingsportsman.com/weatherby-orion-sporting/) saying that ATA (the Turkish company that actually builds this gun for Weatherby) takes pride in its “unconditional service” even in the case of the “slightest problem including exported products.” I don't know how to proceed should any problem show up. Some other people on the internet mentioned that Weatherby's customer service leaves much to be desired. As time goes by, we will have a better idea on this when more and more guns need new parts and services.
Orion is a great gun for the money; retailing locally for $750 for the Orion I, $799 for the not so pretty matte finish, and $899 for the sporting. For me it points better than my Browning. I do agree the safety/barrel selector needs to be tightened up as it is sloppy and could easily be bumped to change which barrel shoots first.
I bought a Silver Pigeon in 20 ga - also on clearance for $1499 from the original $2450 price tag. About 6 months later, I bought a Weatherby Orion in matte blue, as I wanted a 12 ga too. Happy with both guns, but I almost wish I had an Orion in 20 ga instead of the Beretta. It feels or fits me just slightly better.
I own 2 Browning's one being a 725. Had the opportunity to shoot a friends Orion and was totally impressed. I agree and don't know why but it did have less recoil than my 725. It felt just right I would not hesitate buying one at the price point.
I have the Orion in the non sporting and agree with everything you said. Mine isn’t as soft shooting as yours because it isn’t back bored and I mine is lighter, but it isn’t bad. I paid, shipped thru an ffa around $550. Wish it opened a little easier but I’m use to it now and honestly, couldn’t be happier. Good job on the review.
Thanks for the video, I really like listening to your review on both guns. I decided on the silver pigeon myself but the weatherby I’m sure is also pretty good. Thanks again!
There is absolutely nothing wrong with the Turkish Orion. I had a matching set of the Weatherby Orion 2 Italian 20 O/U and the Italian 12 O/U. I stupidly traded in the 12 for a DPMS AR -15. I will never trade in a gun to get another gun again. I happened to buy my son a lefty model Franchi Affinity 3 and low and behold I saw a Weatherby 12 gauge Orion on display. I bought it as well and I am very pleased. It is very similar to the Weatherby / Italian 20 O/U. For the price it cannot be beat. $800 compared to the original 1300 that I paid over 15 years ago.
It might break in, but the barrel select on my Weatherby isn't loose at all. I don't bird hunt much, so was more than happy to pay $850 for an O/U with decent reviews.
I have an older Weatherby from what seems to be the late 80’s early 90’s, it’s Japanese made and it’s a much higher quality in my opinion, it has the name on the chamber instead of the side of the action and has the traditional latch on the bottom of the forend which is much slimmer and less “pregnant”. Overall it is just better than their modern counterparts in looks and functionality.
What an internal debate I had with myself over purchasing this gun (Orion sporter) vs. the 686 sporter vs. the Browning CXS. I happened to be at the range one day when a guy showed up with one of these weatherbys and we got to talking about it, he let me shoot a round of skeet with it. The thing functioned, handled, and was put together seemingly flawlessly. My local sportsmans had it listed for $989.99. It really did seem like a bargain. Before buying I went to a local clays field that offers many of their for sale guns, for rent to people who want to try before they buy. I shot both the 686 sporter and the Browning CXS. After a little over 100 clays the Beretta was calling to me. I have to admit that out of all them, they all fit and shot very well for me. The Browning rental was VERY stiff. Granted these guns are obviously used and abused but for a rental this thing required some force to break open after presumably thousands of rounds through it. It also felt slightly heavier which I wasn't a fan of. The browning definitely had the superior trigger, however. The Beretta was smooth, sleek, elegant, and fit me like a glove when mounting. Not to mention that action was slick when opening and operation of the gun was effortless. The person told me that gun had at least 20,000 cartridges through it and the lock up was still tight as when it was new. All in all the Beretta just had the styling that appealed to me more than the others. There is also the fact that Berettas have been in the business for literally longer than anyone and their products are tried and true work horses. As someone who plans on keeping this gun for many years to come, I didn't want to risk dumping $1000 into a gun that may or may not fail on me before I was ready for it to. I realize that the Orion brand has been around for a long time but this particular gun has not as far as I know. I ponied up the extra grand and left with a beautiful 686 sporter that I hope to shoot thousands of rounds through over the next couple of decades or more. This was a good review so thanks for that.
Thank you for this great review!! I have the Weatherby Element and prefer the feel of my mother's Beretta's Silver Pigeon. I'm only a college student so I can't quite afford the pigeon but wanted a similar action. I'm looking to trade my Element for an O/U and I believe I found the one I will opt for
i dont mean to be offtopic but does any of you know a way to log back into an Instagram account..? I was dumb forgot my login password. I love any help you can give me!
@Anson Zakai i really appreciate your reply. I got to the site through google and I'm trying it out atm. Takes quite some time so I will get back to you later with my results.
Hi there, how has the Orion faired since this video? I have been scared off by forums about buying anything made in Turkey, but it seems you got it good one.
Great vid. I just ordered a Weatherby Orion online, which brought me here. One observation, the fit between stock and receiver on the Beretta looks questionable. Around the 4 minute mark, your video shows a good deal of diversion between the wood and metal at the stock and receiver union. I would expect better from a Silver Pigeon, especially for the price.
Me too. People complain about cheaper o/u, but when I’ve handled the silver pigeon, the wood is proud, too. The forearm up next to the joint looks VERY proud in pictures, but I didn’t check that in person on the Beretta
It's not too bad. Never notice it on mine myself. The parts are built oversized for ease of exchangeability. You can buy pretty much any part of the gun from Beretta and swap it out yourself with little to no hand fitting. If the stocks were all hand fit to the gun exchanging parts like the stock and fore end would require more hand fitting to account for differences in stock dimensions.
sir can you tell the difference when shooting the upper and lower barrel on the orion ? my when i fired the lower barrel is hard to open the action the top is fine and the you ever look the front of the reciver of the orion?
SnowLothar would you recommend the Orion as a good alternative to the Berretta? I’d love to get the Silver Pigeon but can’t afford it. I’m considering the standard Orion over the sporting model. Seems like the best over under shotgun for under $1000.
sir in my opinion the orion as a disign and manufactures difect if you look the face of the receiver the lower shell does not sit 100 per cent on the face of the receiver but only 40 per cent because of the recess angle on the face of the receiver that is wrong the marking of the shells as to be the same on the face of the receiver
I’ll take the weatherby I’m not a fan of Beretta at all I’ve owned 3 all of them were new warranty is non existent one was a silver pigeon ejectors were terrible the safety was super stiff better yet get a browning
Beautiful clean organized shop. Impressive sir.
I did some research on this gun before finally buying it. This video was very helpful for me and I believe it has served many other potential buyers in the past and will keep serving people in the future. Therefore, I would like to share my two cents here.
This gun shoots very well in the clay range. Recoil is definitely lighter than my two semi autos (one gas, one inertia.) Since I had got used to the front-heavy semi autos, some practice was needed for me to adjust swing smoothness. For single trap, I took turn to shoot upper and lower barrel. Neither ever gave me any problem of breaking, as some other people reported. Also, my barrel selection button is not that loose at all. Although I have to say it's not a very solid snap-in either, it would definitely not be switched by a careless touch or whisk.
During the cleaning after the first clay shooting day, I did the "once-a-year maintenance" by taking the receiver and stock apart, and found that there was some half-dried dark brown axial grease on the trigger-receiver system. The grease is the best solution for the manufacturer to protect the parts from rust during who-knows-how-many-years' storage in all possible climates. However, it is not good for regular operation and may cause issues. especially in very dusty or cold environments. I cleaned all the grease and applied very lightly some gun oil. In the process, I also found that the main bolt holding the receiver to the stock was very loosely tightened. If not corrected, this will also give problems in the long run. So, my suggestion to every owner is that you should take apart the stock and receiver and do a thorough cleaning.
Some previous comments mentioned that the gun was $750 at Scheels only 3 years ago. Now it's $1,099 listed there. I bought it around the same price range. It seems firearms have much higher price increases than the average post-pandemic inflation rate.
There is one article on the internet (shootingsportsman.com/weatherby-orion-sporting/) saying that ATA (the Turkish company that actually builds this gun for Weatherby) takes pride in its “unconditional service” even in the case of the “slightest problem including exported products.” I don't know how to proceed should any problem show up. Some other people on the internet mentioned that Weatherby's customer service leaves much to be desired. As time goes by, we will have a better idea on this when more and more guns need new parts and services.
This is exactly the type of info I was looking for. Thanks for taking the time to make this comparison video.
Very unbiased review. Thank you for putting the video together. Great job!
Outstanding comparison and review. Thank you!
Orion is a great gun for the money; retailing locally for $750 for the Orion I, $799 for the not so pretty matte finish, and $899 for the sporting. For me it points better than my Browning. I do agree the safety/barrel selector needs to be tightened up as it is sloppy and could easily be bumped to change which barrel shoots first.
Thank you for your brilliant insight into how important the location of a company is in regards to the quality of a gun
I bought a Silver Pigeon in 20 ga - also on clearance for $1499 from the original $2450 price tag. About 6 months later, I bought a Weatherby Orion in matte blue, as I wanted a 12 ga too. Happy with both guns, but I almost wish I had an Orion in 20 ga instead of the Beretta. It feels or fits me just slightly better.
That Weatherby is beautiful.
I own 2 Browning's one being a 725. Had the opportunity to shoot a friends Orion and was totally impressed. I agree and don't know why but it did have less recoil than my 725. It felt just right I would not hesitate buying one at the price point.
I have the Orion in the non sporting and agree with everything you said. Mine isn’t as soft shooting as yours because it isn’t back bored and I mine is lighter, but it isn’t bad. I paid, shipped thru an ffa around $550. Wish it opened a little easier but I’m use to it now and honestly, couldn’t be happier. Good job on the review.
Thanks for the video, I really like listening to your review on both guns. I decided on the silver pigeon myself but the weatherby I’m sure is also pretty good. Thanks again!
Thanks so much for the video. Just ordered the Orion Sporting myself. I appreciate your take on its features.
You can move the trigger pin to lighten trigger pull.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with the Turkish Orion. I had a matching set of the Weatherby Orion 2 Italian 20 O/U and the Italian 12 O/U. I stupidly traded in the 12 for a DPMS AR -15. I will never trade in a gun to get another gun again. I happened to buy my son a lefty model Franchi Affinity 3 and low and behold I saw a Weatherby 12 gauge Orion on display. I bought it as well and I am very pleased. It is very similar to the Weatherby / Italian 20 O/U. For the price it cannot be beat. $800 compared to the original 1300 that I paid over 15 years ago.
Have you owned the Turkish? Night and day with the Italian made far superior to the turkish.
For the price, the Orion looks like a good bang for the buck weapon.
Beretta wood was more proud. Schnabel fore end is the word you were looking for. Just ordered a Weatherby.
It might break in, but the barrel select on my Weatherby isn't loose at all. I don't bird hunt much, so was more than happy to pay $850 for an O/U with decent reviews.
I have an older Weatherby from what seems to be the late 80’s early 90’s, it’s Japanese made and it’s a much higher quality in my opinion, it has the name on the chamber instead of the side of the action and has the traditional latch on the bottom of the forend which is much slimmer and less “pregnant”. Overall it is just better than their modern counterparts in looks and functionality.
The older guns were made by SKB in Japan and were fine shotguns, Time will tell how well the Turkish Wetherby's will hold up.
I also was told that the earlier weatherbys were better guns but you’re right though, time will tell.
What an internal debate I had with myself over purchasing this gun (Orion sporter) vs. the 686 sporter vs. the Browning CXS. I happened to be at the range one day when a guy showed up with one of these weatherbys and we got to talking about it, he let me shoot a round of skeet with it. The thing functioned, handled, and was put together seemingly flawlessly. My local sportsmans had it listed for $989.99. It really did seem like a bargain. Before buying I went to a local clays field that offers many of their for sale guns, for rent to people who want to try before they buy. I shot both the 686 sporter and the Browning CXS. After a little over 100 clays the Beretta was calling to me. I have to admit that out of all them, they all fit and shot very well for me. The Browning rental was VERY stiff. Granted these guns are obviously used and abused but for a rental this thing required some force to break open after presumably thousands of rounds through it. It also felt slightly heavier which I wasn't a fan of. The browning definitely had the superior trigger, however. The Beretta was smooth, sleek, elegant, and fit me like a glove when mounting. Not to mention that action was slick when opening and operation of the gun was effortless. The person told me that gun had at least 20,000 cartridges through it and the lock up was still tight as when it was new.
All in all the Beretta just had the styling that appealed to me more than the others. There is also the fact that Berettas have been in the business for literally longer than anyone and their products are tried and true work horses. As someone who plans on keeping this gun for many years to come, I didn't want to risk dumping $1000 into a gun that may or may not fail on me before I was ready for it to. I realize that the Orion brand has been around for a long time but this particular gun has not as far as I know.
I ponied up the extra grand and left with a beautiful 686 sporter that I hope to shoot thousands of rounds through over the next couple of decades or more.
This was a good review so thanks for that.
Great video!
Nice review, thanks
2 big guns 👍👍🇵🇹
Thank you for this great review!! I have the Weatherby Element and prefer the feel of my mother's Beretta's Silver Pigeon. I'm only a college student so I can't quite afford the pigeon but wanted a similar action. I'm looking to trade my Element for an O/U and I believe I found the one I will opt for
i dont mean to be offtopic but does any of you know a way to log back into an Instagram account..?
I was dumb forgot my login password. I love any help you can give me!
@Vicente Bobby instablaster =)
@Anson Zakai i really appreciate your reply. I got to the site through google and I'm trying it out atm.
Takes quite some time so I will get back to you later with my results.
@Anson Zakai it worked and I now got access to my account again. Im so happy:D
Thank you so much you saved my account!
@Vicente Bobby You are welcome =)
Hi there, how has the Orion faired since this video? I have been scared off by forums about buying anything made in Turkey, but it seems you got it good one.
The Orion is a copy of the SKB or are they the same as a beretta?
Great vid. I just ordered a Weatherby Orion online, which brought me here. One observation, the fit between stock and receiver on the Beretta looks questionable. Around the 4 minute mark, your video shows a good deal of diversion between the wood and metal at the stock and receiver union. I would expect better from a Silver Pigeon, especially for the price.
Me too. People complain about cheaper o/u, but when I’ve handled the silver pigeon, the wood is proud, too. The forearm up next to the joint looks VERY proud in pictures, but I didn’t check that in person on the Beretta
It's not too bad. Never notice it on mine myself. The parts are built oversized for ease of exchangeability. You can buy pretty much any part of the gun from Beretta and swap it out yourself with little to no hand fitting. If the stocks were all hand fit to the gun exchanging parts like the stock and fore end would require more hand fitting to account for differences in stock dimensions.
sir can you tell the difference when shooting the upper and lower barrel on the orion ? my when i fired the lower barrel is hard to open the action the top is fine and the you ever look the front of the reciver of the orion?
I am a lefty...does the orion have a neutral cast? thanks for the video
Called today, they said it is neutral
Great review. Thank You.
thanks for the orion info. ordered orion sport last week for 733$ anxious for it to arrive
where did u buy it for $733? thanks
@@mainemonty i just bought one today for $750 at Scheels
SnowLothar would you recommend the Orion as a good alternative to the Berretta? I’d love to get the Silver Pigeon but can’t afford it. I’m considering the standard Orion over the sporting model. Seems like the best over under shotgun for under $1000.
I have the Orion sporting and prefer it over my buddies Beretta for shooting trap.
sir in my opinion the orion as a disign and manufactures difect if you look the face of the receiver the lower shell does not sit 100 per cent on the face of the receiver but only 40 per cent because of the recess angle on the face of the receiver that is wrong the marking of the shells as to be the same on the face of the receiver
Hi, How heavy trigger pull from Weatherby orion sporting?
He said 6 on the bottom and 5 for top barrel
to me i ask myself why is the beretta worth another 2500? the wood is not that nice and I really dont care about ingraving.
I’ll take the weatherby I’m not a fan of Beretta at all I’ve owned 3 all of them were new warranty is non existent one was a silver pigeon ejectors were terrible the safety was super stiff better yet get a browning