The Economical Over/Under - Yildiz SPZ ME/20

After a few stress-filled months and a severe lack of free time/range time, it felt really good to shatter some clay pigeons and knock down a few quail...and have a beautiful new tool for the job, the Yildiz SPZ ME/20. Yildiz is a Turkish shotgun manufacturer that is more widely known in Europe than in the United States. Luckily, the nationwide sporting goods store, Academy, is where you can find an assortment of Yildiz products.

While I'm usually the first to tell you, "you get what you pay for," I can happily say that the SPZ ME line of shotguns is quite a value. The gun weighs a mere 5.8 lbs. and has excellent fit and finish. I'm especially impressed with the detailed engraving on the receiver. Usually when you spend around $600 on a double barrel, you get a blank, blued-steel receiver, but that's not the case here. While the engravings are machined, it's still a nice touch and allows your shotgun to sit on the rack with other, higher-cost firearms without yours standing out as the "lower-cost" item.

When I first took the Yildiz out, I was immediately impressed by how little time it took to "learn" the gun. Unlike rifles, it usually takes quite some time for me to get used to the feel of shotguns. My first round of sporting clays is quite embarrassing if I'm shooting a new gun or using someone else's. That's why I was stunned when I had the chance to fire a few dozen round from the Yildiz one day at the range and hit around 90% the first outing. This almost never happens.

If I had to give one criticism, it would be that the action is very stiff out-of-the-box. It took me several hundred rounds to loosen up, but now it opens up flawlessly. I also want to point out something else - the ejectors are INSANE. First off, I was a little surprised that a gun at this price point even had automatic casing ejectors, but the ones on the SPZ/ME 20 must've been pulled from a switchblade. When you break open the gun after firing, be careful because the casings will often launch about 6-8 feet behind you. Not sure if this is a complaint, but it can make it difficult to retrieve your casings if you need to clean up after yourself. Other than that, I have not yet encountered any issues with the shotgun.

After the discovery of the SPZ ME/20, it didn't take long for three other friends to pick up a Yildiz shotgun. So far, everyone's experience has been the same as mine. It has become everyone's go-to shotgun for quail, dove, and the occasional sporting clays match. It truly is a diamond in the rough.