NRA Gun of the Week: Franchi Instinct SL

by
posted on October 2, 2020
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **

Franchi has served the shooting community since the mid-19th century and has been known for outside-the-box engineering since. The company’s Instinct line of over-under shotguns represents finely honed craftsmanship built over 150 years. Featuring high-quality walnut furniture and rich bluing, the Instinct SL is a combination of old-world thinking, modern technique and advanced engineering marketed for the upland hunter and sporting-arms enthusiast.

Franchi Instinct SL Shotgun right-side view on white background with text on image notaing make and model.


Franchi offers its SL series chambered for gauges 12, 16, 20, 28 and includes .410 Bore in the lineup. Chambers are cut for 2 3/4” and 3” shells across the range of bore dimensions, albeit 16 gauge, as it is limited to 2 3/4” only. Chrome-lined steel barrels are reserved for the Instinct SL and depending upon chambering, barrel lengths come 26” or 28”. A ventilated rib for sighting is paired with a red fiber-optic pipe fixed to the barrel’s muzzle end. Franchi threads its barrels for choke tubes and provides a set with each gun.

Man wearing protective gear and black shirt shooting a shotgun.


The SL subcategory is intended to be light weight, ranging from 5.2 to 6.3 lbs.. The Italian maker uses aluminum and titanium in the making of the SL receiver, and the barrel’s monobloc features an attractive, yet functional flair with jeweling near the sides of the automatic ejectors. Firing the shells is achieved by a recoil-operated trigger. A tang-mounted safety and barrel selector is housed on the receiver tang just rear of the gun’s top lever.

Silver receiver tang and top lever of shotgun with wood stock.


The Instinct SL’s barreled action comes fitted in satin-finished, A-grade walnut. The buttstock is cut and capped in a rubber recoil pad with a length of pull set for around 14 1/4”. A rounded pistol grip is provided, which allows for a shooter to call for the lightweight shotgun at a moments notice. The satin-finished walnut combined with rich bluing and bright aluminum receiver to be attractive. Size and weight of the gun combined with the recoil of the 16-gauge shotshell were noted by our testers to be a fine pairing.

Silver shotgun receiver with bird engraving and wood stock.


Watch our NRA Gun of the Week video to learn about the Franchi Instinct SL over-under shotgun chambered 16 ga.

Franchi Instinct SL Specifications
Manufacturer: Franchi
Importer: Franchi USA
Action Type: hinge-action, over-under shotgun
Chambering: 16 ga.; 2 3/4”
Barrels: 28” blued steel
Receiver: aluminum alloy with titanium insert
Trigger: inertia-operated, 4-lb., 6-oz. pull
Stock: A-grade walnut, satin finish
Sights: 1/4” ventilated rib; red-fiber optic pipe
Capacity: two rounds
MSRP: $1,729

Further Reading:
A Hunter's Guide to Trap & Skeet Shooting

A First for Franchi: Momentum Rifle

A Guide to Precision-Rifle Shooting on a Budget

Franchi Affinity 3 Shotgun Review

Five Tips To Improve Your Wingshooting ... On The Cheap


Extras:








Latest

smith and wesson mp 22 right-side view on table indoor shooting range
smith and wesson mp 22 right-side view on table indoor shooting range

Rifleman Review: Smith & Wesson M&P 22 Magnum

One of Smith & Wesson's recent additions to its M&P handgun line is the M&P 22 Magnum, and there's a lot more going on in this gun, technologically, than it appears at first glance.

New For 2025: Beretta BRX1 Ranch

Beretta has expanded its BRX1 straight-pull action into a "ranch rifle" configuration, providing a handy, lightweight platform that still includes some of the groundbreaking features of the original BRX1 rifle.

Ruger Buys Anderson Manufacturing

Ruger announced on July 1 it has acquired all assets of Anderson Manufacturing, a recent top 10 producer of firearms in the U.S.

Favorite Firearms: Anticipating Answers

Everyone has a favorite gun, but not many have a story quite like the one from NRA member Jim Schollhammer.

Rifleman Report: Safe Passage

While the phrase “tools of the trade” may refer to specific items that a worker uses to ply his or her vocation, it could just as easily be a reference to the firearms, knives and other everyday carry, or EDC, gear that the average citizen uses to ensure his or her safe passage through the course of an uncertain, sometimes dangerous, daily existence.

I Have This Old Gun: Star Model 1914 Auto Pistol

The Spanish/Basque city of Eibar is one of Europe’s great arms-manufacturing centers, with a history in gunmaking dating back to the 1500s.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.