Today, we're looking at the cheapest semi-auto shotgun we've ever reviewed - The Pointer Field Tek 4. This is a sub $400 semi-auto shotgun in 12 gauge. Is this a valid shotgun for someone looking to get into the sport without spending an arm and a leg? We will be taking an in-depth look at this pointer shotgun and determining if it still operates at a usable level considering its cheap price point. Ready?  Let's go! If you have experience with the Field Tek 4, please let us know on the TFL COMMUNITY!      

Pointer Field TEK 4:

• At the time of this review, the MSRP of this Pointer was $499, but we picked it up from REEDS SPORTS for less than that. It is currently less than $400
• Designed for general hunting 
• There are a couple of standard and camo options available. This one is in Max5
• Get a FREE case of Federal Ammo with a purchase of a new shotgun from Reeds priced at $500 or above!  

QUICK SPECS

• 12 gauge semi-auto gas (available in 20 and 28 gauge)
• Imported by Legacy Sports International
• This Pointer comes with five extended chokes, But of course, we'd swap that out with a Carlson's Choke Tube
• 3.5-inch chamber
• 28" single Barrell
• Shotgun Weight is 7lbs 3oz 
• Length of pull is 14 1/8" and is not adjustable.
• The manufacturer's website did not offer much information regarding measurements. We'd guess the drop is around 3/4 - 1 inch.
• No shims or spacers

TRIGGER

• Our first impression of this trigger is that it is super tough. Curious to see how this treats us during speed shooting
• After some practice shots, we found that this trigger is quite awkward and requires a bit of a punch
• 9lbs 3.2oz (Average pull weight)  

ERGONOMICS

• This sub $400 shotgun is Cerekoated?! Got to love a Turkish import
• All the furniture is a standard composite with camo dip
• None of the controls are oversized, unfortunately. This bolt release is incredibly hard to push as well
• Not that we'd expect it at this price, but the loading port is quite sharp if you don't lead carefully
• Very basic hard rubber recoil pad that we'd replace with a  FalconStrike
• Bronze barrel with a flat vented rib and a fiber on the front
• The grip radius is too wide for my hand, causing an uncomfortable fit
• The forend grip was kind of lacking but not terrible for the price point
• Basic cross bolt safety behind the trigger
• The balance is definitely forward on this shotgun 
• The shell stop release is inconveniently located and also hard to opperate.
• All things considered, it's a pretty good-looking shotgun!

RECOIL/RELIABILITY

• If anything, this is the category that this Pointer shotgun shined.
• The only headache was loading - this was not a smooth function
• Through a full box of Federal Top Gun target loads and another box of Feder Black Cloud waterfowl loads, this shotgun did not have a single hiccup, and the recoil was not bad at all
• A more serious but fairly common issue we had after a bunch of shooting was that the stock eventually became loose from the receiver. We had to remove the recoil pad and use a long socket to tighten it back up. This doesn't really surprise us, as it happened with other guns of ours, such as the SX4. On the bright side, accessing the stock bolt was really easy.
• Overall, everything worked fine for us - If you have experience with this gun, we're relying on you to share how reliable it's been! Chime in on the  TFL COMMUNITY!    

BREAKDOWN/QUALITY OF BUILD

• And just as we got our hopes up with recoil and reliability, our momentum was lost as soon as we tried to disassemble this gun.
• For such a cheap gun, they sure fit a lot of moving pieces into the internals of this shotgun.
• Notably, the overall build is quite confusing, the bolt handle requires the jaws of life to remove, and you have to put it back together just right, or the whole gas system will fly off under the spring pressure.

SPEED SHOOTING THE POINTER FIELD TEK 4

• As we predicted, the trigger was super tough. We could not get into a good rhythm with this gun.
• The fastest time we got trying to crush three hand-thrown clays was 1.44 - not our best time...
• Regardless, through this process, we didn't experience any hiccups!
• When we did a plain speed test without clays in the air, we got .20 splits. We believe the trigger is really holding this gun back from shooting better.

So to summarize: This is a cheap shotgun. It has decent furniture and is Cerekoted. That alone is almost a reason to consider this $400 shotgun. The recoil and reliability were definitely the highlight of this Pointer Field Tek 4. No ejection issues and the recoil didn't kill. If you're looking to get out a couple times a year and want a gun that you can push through the brush with and abuse a little bit, this Pointer may be a good option. I'd definitely suggest you allocate more than enough time to disassemble and clean this shotgun. There are a lot of moving parts. Some of which can be a challenge to manipulate. But all things considered, this is definitely not a bad started gun or beater gun for the money!

Whether our targets in the field or our targets in life, we will only hit what we are focused on, so live the #targetfocusedlife 

Stay Target Focused,

Steve