Reader Test
Readers test the new ATA Venza semi-auto 12-bore. Here’s what they think
his month we met some younger gun testers, but they have a lot of shooting experience behind them. Tom shot in The Schools Challenge and has a lot of game and pest control experience. His friend Chris got into shooting through Tom and the pair often shoot together.
Tom is first to get his hands on the
Venza and likes the tactile feel of the stock. “The rubberised, grippy feel would give you good grip in dusty and wet conditions, which is ideal for a gun like this that will be used in the field.”
TStock answer
Chris also likes the rubberised stock saying that it would give good control over the gun. However, the stock’s length of pull, at just over 14 inches, is short for him as well as Tom. Doug comes to the rescue with a stock extension that comes with the gun. It can be easily screwed onto the butt of the gun, increasing the length of pull by a quarter of an inch. After that the Venza fits Tom and Chris, who are of average height and build. The gun also comes with shims to adjust the cast of the stock. Tom says: “That’s such a good idea because you can then set the gun up to suit you.”
The only thing that both Tom and Chris are a bit unsure about is the holding open mechanism just above the trigger guard that has to be pushed down before the cocking handle is pulled back. “That would take a bit of getting used to,” says Tom. Doug interjects: “The gun breech will remain open after the last shot is fired, so it won’t be much of a hindrance in the field.”
Tom also would like the red paint on the safety to be more obvious and felt the safety button might become fiddly when handling the gun with gloves.