Tristar Viper G2 or Weatherby Element - Back Up & Rainy Day Gun

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BirddogGSP

Active member
Looking for some feedback good or bad on either Tristar Viper G2 or Weatherby Element. Both seem to have decent reviews and positive customer support. Appreciate any feedback.
 
I have no experience with either gun and I'm sure either would serve you well as a backup. But I would probably lean towards the Weatherby only because it is an Inertia gun while the Tristar is gas operated. Hopefully others on this site that have had some personal experience with these two guns will help you out. Personally I've had a Stoeger Auto for many years as a backup and it's been flawless.
 
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I have a g2 as a backup as well. It seems to be a good gun, it has a 26 inch barrel.

Shot trap with it a couple of times and every one that has shot it seems to like it.

I bought it and unboxed it at the range put a little rem oil in the action never cleaned it and started shooting it it never missed a beat.

It is going to Kansas with me this year.
Ymmv
 
Won a Weatherby Element 12G camo at a banquet a couple years ago. They do have design defect where the internal stock bolt comes loose and the butt stock gets wobbly from recoil. No amount of Loctite or even replacement bolts from the manufacturer have resolved it. Maybe have to take off the recoil pad and use hex wrench 2-3 times in during a 5 day pheasant hunt to keep it from developing a gap. More annoying than anything else but gun does reliably cycle all shells without fail and not a lot of cleaning needed so the action is quality. I did online research again last year for permanent fixes and saw some other people with the same issue so I don't know if Weatherby has resolved it with new gun builds or not. Not sure if I would want to be in a situation where my auto went down and I pick up a gun with annoying defects that I just bought new. But it sure beats have to go to a cheap OU or pump and change my shooting actions.
 
Have the G2 in 20 gauge 26'' barrel. It is dirty but don't fire a lot of rds. The stock to receiver bolt did come loose on it but fixed with lock tite and Teflon tape. No problem since. Very reliable. No FTF or feed issues of any kind.
I think either will serve you well. Fit is the thing.
It is the best fitting 20 I have
 
Like I said in my above post. If you are looking for a less expensive back-up gun, don't overlook a Stoeger. Both my son-in-law and I bought a Stoeger Auto at least 15 years ago and neither of us has ever had one issue with our guns.
 
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I bought a G2 bronze in 20 guage in 2019???? I broke the main action spring after 500 rounds but the gun still functioned fine. Tristar had me a replacement in 2 days.

The trigger is horrible. 7.5 lbs. many say to put the mcarbo spring in it for the missives equivalent. I did. It shaved maybe 1/2 lb.

Probably 1000 rounds through it now. It doesn’t like promo light target loads. But quality AAs and such are fine. Pheasant loads are fine.

I’ve shot several limits of pheasants with it and several limits of dove.

I bought mine from Buds as an experiment of sort. For $25 I got the lifetime warranty from buds as an insurance policy.

I like it. I likely will buy a 28 gauge at some point.
 
"Won a Weatherby Element 12G camo at a banquet a couple years ago. They do have design defect where the internal stock bolt comes loose and the butt stock gets wobbly from recoil."

Is there a Nylock nut that will fit the internal stock bolt? Might be worth a try.
 
It's machined threads integrated into the butt stock (down inside the stock with the recoil pad removed). So no options for swapping out a nut for the stock bolt. It did seem like the threads may have been a little too loose so teflon tape in addition to the loctite might be the answer. I'll let you know in about a month after it goes through a SD pheasant hunt.
 
So, unlike Benellis that use a nut, the Element uses a bolt. This is the blow up of the parts diagram.

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S03 is the Buttstock Lock Washer and S04 is the Buttstock Bolt. Any chance of finding a stiffer/thicker lock washer? That and some blue or red Loctite might settle it down.
 
No experience with the Weatherby...but a guy I occasionally duck hunt with has the TriStar. He loves the gun and the way it points. He's not had issues with "reliability"...as such. That is to say, it chews up and spits out everything you feed it. That being said...he's changed out more than a few springs, lifters, arming bolts, two firing pins...just a bunch of stuff. It's easy enough to change out and Tri-Star seems to send him the parts quickly and without much complaint. For me...regardless how readily TriStar would pony-up parts, these failures would be too much for me to tolerate. Also...the couple of times I tried it out...the trigger pull is a PIG...and the reset is gawd-awful.

For what it's worth...if these two were my only choices I'd go Weatherby simply due to what I've seen with the TriStar.
 
I always grab my synthetic guns on rainy or snowy days, my Browning Maxus Wicked Wing or my new Benelli M2. If I were on a budget, I would consider a CZ over the ones mentioned. Personally, I own a lot of guns, and all are Benelli or Browning. I would not consider any of them back-ups.
 
I get some guys like guns. But a backup? Sure theirs a first time for everything & things break & some guys go a long ways to hunt. Fine take one just in case. But I hunted my hole life & never needed a backup & never seen anyone who needed a backup during a hunt. "Good gun but I always have to replace parts." "Good gun but it keeps coming apart." What??? On a new gun? If that's true then it was never a good gun in the first place.

And nasty what makes the trigger reset shitty? I never heard anyone worry about it on a shotgun especially during hunting. It should only be a problem if it don't reset at all I would think.
 
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hyresmack said:
I get some guys like guns. But a backup? Sure theirs a first time for everything & things break & some guys go a long ways to hunt. Fine take one just in case. But I hunted my hole life & never needed a backup & never seen anyone who needed a backup during a hunt. "Good gun but I always have to replace parts." "Good gun but it keeps coming apart." What??? On a new gun? If that's true then it was never a good gun in the first place.

And nasty what makes the trigger reset shitty? I never heard anyone worry about it on a shotgun especially during hunting. It should only be a problem if it don't reset at all I would think.
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I try and buy one new shotgun every year. Bought the M2 a week ago. Have a new Browning A5 20 on order. And I am on the hunt for a mint condition Ithaca Model 37 20 gauge with a 26 inch vent rib and Improved Cylinder.
 
hyresmack said:
I get some guys like guns. But a backup? Sure theirs a first time for everything & things break & some guys go a long ways to hunt. Fine take one just in case. But I hunted my hole life & never needed a backup & never seen anyone who needed a backup during a hunt. "Good gun but I always have to replace parts." "Good gun but it keeps coming apart." What??? On a new gun? If that's true then it was never a good gun in the first place.

And nasty what makes the trigger reset shitty? I never heard anyone worry about it on a shotgun especially during hunting. It should only be a problem if it don't reset at all I would think.
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When I used to shoot a lot of clays...my target gun trigger was set up WAY different than a field gun. It was day and night to me.

When you let go of the trigger after each shot you give up a 'bit' of control on your gun. The 'longer' your trigger reset the further you have to 'relax' your trigger finger. This can lead to a shooter tending to "slap" the trigger. This causes an increase in gun movement (however slight), causing gun shift and target tracking. Good (shorter/quicker) trigger resets makes it less likely to move the gun (again however slight) when repositioning your finger on the trigger. It also makes follow up shots better/quicker on pairs. When you let go of the trigger, it takes time (even just an eye blink) to get your finger back in the proper position back on the trigger. Being able to keep your finger in better contact on the trigger keeps finger placement more consistent.

For some (perhaps most) it may not be noticable. But after years of target shooting with good trigger jobs, I bought a Win. SX3 one year for a new duck/goose gun. This trigger was a 'pig'...and I probably just got a bad one. BUT...after missing several follow up shots on geese due to having to almost fully uncurl my finger from the trigger for it to reset, I made changes. Not wanting to spend the time and $$ to send out the assembly for a full trigger job, I sent off to 'Wolff' gunsprings for some components and with a few adjustments the gun was tolerable. This is about the best I can describe my issues with the 'reset'. Many people may not notice it...I do.
 
I definitely take a backup. I guess if I had a really expensive gun I’d take a rainy day gun too. But even if I was just going to Kansas which isn’t a long way for me, it’d still be terrible to waste that trip if I had gun issues. I’ve actually had a gun issue on a long trip. Thumb safety on an old shotgun broke. I was glad I brought a backup. Plus the first gun knows if it doesn’t hit birds it’s not the only game in town. Keeps it honest.
 
Westok said:
I definitely take a backup. I guess if I had a really expensive gun I’d take a rainy day gun too. But even if I was just going to Kansas which isn’t a long way for me, it’d still be terrible to waste that trip if I had gun issues. I’ve actually had a gun issue on a long trip. Thumb safety on an old shotgun broke. I was glad I brought a backup. Plus the first gun knows if it doesn’t hit birds it’s not the only game in town. Keeps it honest.
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I always take 2 guns on a trip. Both are very expensive. Life is too short to own a cheap gun. Actually I don't consider $1500 or $2000 expensive for a gun when you figure what you pay a year for gas, auto insurance, eating out, etc. At least with a gun, you can have them for a lifetime vs spending money on disposable things.
 
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