WEIGHT, AS MEASURED

• Vinci, MAX-4 Camo, 26 inch: 7 lbs., 1 oz.
• A5 Hunter, 26 inch: 6 lbs., 8 oz.

TRIGGER BREAK, AS SUPPLIED

• Vinci: 5 lbs.
• A5: 6-3/4 lbs.

WARRANTY

• Vinci: Five years
• A5: Five years, 100,000 rounds

CHOKE TUBES SUPPLIED

• Vinci: Five Crio Plus
• A5: Three, Invector DS

SHELL HANDLING

• Vinci: Speed Unloading
• A5: Speed Loading and Unloading + Magazine Cut-off

VENT RIB TYPE

• Vinci: raised rib, red front and small silver center bead
• A5: flat rib, red front bead and large white center bead

ACTION

• Vinci: In-line Inertia
• A5: Inertia

SHELL INTENSITY CAPABILITY W/O ADJUSTMENTS

• Vinci: 1 oz. and up, 3 inch chamber
• A5: 1 oz. and up, 3 inch chamber
  
  

Note: Both cycled 7/8 oz. Winchester white box �Super-Speed Loads� as tested.

PATTERNING NOTES

• Both printed well-centered patterns at 40 yards with B&P USA F2 Legend 1-1/8 oz. loads. Both shot a couple of inches high at forty yards. The Browning needs replacement chokes right away, the Trulock Precision Hunter chokes on my A5's perform as marked, while the factory choke tubes do not.

FELT RECOIL

• The Vinci is substantially softer shooting.

SAFETY PLACEMENT

• Vinci: front of the trigger guard
• A5: back of the trigger guard

RECOIL PAD

• Vinci: ComforTech stock system
• A5: Inflex Pad

BARRELS

• Vinci: Standard bore, chrome-lined, cryogenically treated
• A5: Browning oversized bore �Invector DS,� lengthened forcing cones

CUSTOMER SERVICE (Based on my own experiences)

• Vinci (Benelli): Excellent
• A5 (Browning): Excellent

LOWEST PRICE TO HIGHEST PRICE

• The lowest-price configuration available for any of these two shotguns would be the three-inch chambered version Vinci black synthetic at $1359 MSRP vs. the A5 Stalker at $1399 MSRP. Vinci Supersport models retail at $2199, the A5 Ultimate retails for $1909.99.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS

• Weighing nine ounces less and lacking anything but a very good recoil pad to attenuate recoil, the Browning A5 is a harsh shooting gun compared to the Vinci. As load intensity goes up, the differences get bigger and bigger.
• The Vinci's Comfortech stock scales quite well with recoil, the A5's stock is conventional.
• The Browning A5 Hunter is a far more attractive gun, with better shell-handling (speed-loading), far better safety design and placement and also appeals to those who prefer a flat rib versus the elevated rib of the Vinci.
• The Vinci has a better trigger as supplied, better choke tubes (plus more of them) and, although it has an obnoxious center bead, it isn't nearly as over-sized as what comes on the A5.

VERDICT

• Both are in the same price category, that isn't much of a factor. A new A5 will quickly set you back the cost of a trigger job, however, and some aftermarket chokes to make it usable. It is more fun to carry than a Vinci, but a lot less fun to shoot. The A5 has a better magazine capacity, 4+1 vs. the 3+1 of the Vinci. The A5 Hunter, in my view, is a softer-shooting and more versatile alternative not to the Vinci, but to the Benelli Ultralight (6 lbs., 3 oz. as tested with a 24 inch barrel). The Benelli Ultralight has a MSRP of $1669. A way to explain it is by personal preference. If I was going pheasant hunting tomorrow, I'd grab the A5. For a busy afternoon on the dove field or a run through the closest sporting clays course, the Vinci would get the nod.