SHOTGUN REVIEW: SPECIAL EFFECTS

Created on 14th May 2009

The Yildiz Special's good looks, excellent features and impressive performance make it great value, says RICHARD ATKINS

THERE IS certainly no shortage of choice in today's over-and-under shotgun market, with a wide selection of models and types from both established makers and other firms newer to the UK scene. Despite the existing options, new makes continue to enter the fray, and guns from Turkey have recently been arriving here in increasing numbers. It's always been hard for any new makers to gain a foothold in the UK market however attractive their products may be, but that has not stopped them from trying. The big-name makes that have been here a long time have developed their products to suit the UK market and have built reputations to create massive brand loyalty. This is a club that no newcomer can easily aspire to join. However, although it may be a tricky market to enter, it's not impossible, as some have proved; both Blaser and Kemen have taken a small but significant slice of the mid-price gun sector, based on their having something special to offer and reinforced by having achieved success in competition. The task for Yildiz is a testing one, given that the company is aiming at the even more difficult area of the sub-£1,000 market.

This sector is very well-populated, with the widest choice in any category. This is not surprising as it is the typical entry-level area for many who seek to get into shotgun shooting, whether it's field shooting, casual clays or a mix of both. It's enough to buy a decent gun but won't break the bank. Given the state of the nation's finances, it could well be that more of those seeking to make a start will be tempted by what's on offer in this sector now, even if they'd originally thought of spending more.

With the market awash with options it is even more important to have an angle and Entwistle Guns, which imports the Yildiz shotgun on test, has selected models that do actually offer something that little bit different. When faced with such stiff opposition in a market where you are unlikely to set the world alight, this decision to fill niche needs certainly has merit. When one model is barely distinguishable from another price is likely to be the deciding factor, which can mean that no-one makes any money, there is no support for the brand and it ceases to be available here. Entwistle Guns has already established a solid market in the little .410 single selective side-by-side from Yildiz that has become a very good seller and delighted a large number of lads and dads in recent years. What we have here is aimed more at the dads and growing lads, as well as women and maybe also those older shooters who are starting to find heavier guns a bit too much to handle.

Yildiz Special

You may not immediately associate ‘deluxe' with guns in this price sector, so let's see what it offers.

The format is totally conventional, with typical side trunnion barrel hinges in either side of the receiver walls. It has a monobloc barrel construction and a Browning-style full-width locking wedge engaging with bifurcated underlumps in the breech block base that also engage into the action floor. It's a design seen in models from many Italian makers and others too. It gives a slightly shallower action than those with the barrel hinge point set into a forward lump under the barrels, but rather less so than those with their locking arrangement set between the upper and lower barrels, as on the Beretta or Boss style, and recently joined by others including the super-slim Blaser.

The action itself is a simple and robust one. It's again conventional with the hammers (tumblers) hinging from the action floor with sears mounted under the top strap. The sears lifters are raised by the action of pulling the trigger via sear lifters that engage the underside of the sears. The parts have sufficient clearance to ensure they all engage and reset readily, while not so much as to induce excess free play. A simple selector mechanism is fitted that allows the safety catch, also mounted in the top strap, to be moved left or right when the safety is in the applied condition, so that either the top or bottom barrel can be selected to fire first. The selector trips quite smoothly from one side to the other as the first barrel is fired and that tumbler falls, so there is no need of recoil to cause it to move (hence a second barrel will fire even if the first should misfire).

The coil spring-powered tumblers are quite compact and this requires the firing pins to be set obliquely, which will absorb some of the tumbler's striking energy when the pins are struck. However, there seems to be power in hand here as primers were all firmly and quite centrally struck with no hint of a misfire on test.

This is all very conventional in a modestly-priced gun so far, so what is different about this Yildiz? Something that will be immediately apparent to anyone picking the gun up is just how light it is. It's a full-size gun, and looks more so with its 30" barrels, yet it feels like a 20-bore! The answer is largely to be found in both the action body and receiver material. It is machined from a solid billet of Ergal aluminium alloy. This has been used for many years in lightweight models from some big names in gunmaking, but is rare for a gun in this price sector. Although it's stronger than steel weight for weight, it's ultimately not quite so strong when there is less weight, but has proven itself well up to the job of shotgun action use for many years. The main wearing areas, such as the hinge pin trunnions, action cocking lever and ejector arms are all made from steel as they must not only be strong but surface-hardened to resist abrasion and wear. So Yildiz has cleverly blended the properties of each material where it will achieve the best result for a lightweight shotgun. It has even gone to the trouble of inletting a hardened steel piece into the face of the standing breech so that ejecting fired cases will not scuff the breech face, as might occur if left as a plain alloy face. Even the trigger blade is made from aluminium to keep weight down.

The barrel side-ribs are ventilated along the majority of their length, which reduces weight, and internal screw-in choke tubes have been fitted (a full set of five are supplied). This helps lessen forward weight, especially with such long tubes.

The barrels have been accurately bored, straightened and polished before chrome-plating; the top rib is straight too, with a radially-milled top surface. It is ventilated, with a plain brass front bead. The external finish of the barrels is a decent black that looks as though it should prove hardwearing. The alloy action has been left bright but is profusely engraved. The engraving design is quite basic and obviously machine-applied, possibly by electro discharge, but the effect it gives is surprisingly good in a gun of this price. Indeed, it attracted positive comments during the test shoots.

Classy woodwork

The woodwork is all we have come to expect from some Turkish makers, and the review gun was a particularly fine example. The maker has exploited to the full the value of having great walnut available to it from home sources, and has made excellent use of it. It's no exaggeration that you could pay somewhere approaching the entire cost of this gun, maybe more, just to have a similar grade of wood on a model from one of the more established European makers. It has a nice amount of figure, with contrasting hues, running through it and the forend is well-matched to the stock. It's not the tightest grain or finest line chequering, but the overall effect is that it is not just efficient in use - it looks good too. The Special is certainly attractive and would give the owner on a budget a feeling of having a gun well beyond the actual price bracket. It would not look out of place at any shoot.

Of course, looks mean nothing if it doesn't shoot well - but it does. I tried it out on a blustery day which became very wet as it progressed, and shot an enjoyable round of Sporting clays at a friendly club shoot, managing second spot just a couple of targets away from the leader. It's not a pure clay gun - it's no doubt aimed more directly at the game/field/all-rounder market. I expected it to recoil uncomfortably as it's rather light, but found that was not a problem with 28g clay loads. The balance point is well over an inch ahead of the hinge pin, which makes it a little forward-heavy, but this is not a serious handicap given the low overall weight and it helped keep the swing smooth.

This is a neat little gun that looks good and performs well above its price band. Lightweight is not everyone's choice, but if you are thinking of buying a 20-bore to save carrying a heavier gun then the Yildiz Special may well be an option to consider. It's chambered for heavy loads too, though these will recoil more. The Yildiz Special offers a rare combination of features, so it also has that ‘niche appeal' too.

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