Welcome! Today we have one of the highest requested showdowns asked for by viewers - the SX4 vs. the Affinity 3. This isn't going to be a normal showdown. We've come up with something totally new to TFL. For this new style of showdowns, we've created something called the "SOSA TEST" which gives us five different categories to rate each gun from 1-10. If you didn't know, "SOSA TEST" stands for "Steve's Official Shotgun Analysis To Effectively Save Time." The beauty of the SOSA TEST is that we can now compare guns with varying price ranges because there is a handicap. Negative points are applied right off the bat based on the price of the shotgun. Below is what the scorecard looks like. The guns go in the left column and are ranked in each category 1-1-10 to accumulate a final score. The

                                                 TFL SOSA SCORECARD:                                                                                                                             HANDICAPS BASED ON PRICE:

WINCHESTER SX4 VS AFFINITY 3 SOSA TEST LINEUP:

FRANCHI AFFINITY 3 WATERFOWL ELITE: $1,249 (-3 HANDICAP)

WINCHESTER SX4: $1,149 (-3 HANDICAP) 

Category #1: LOOKS

• SX4: This is a solid-looking gun. I'll just say 8/10

• AFFINITY 3: This gun stood out to me. That may be because I'm so used to the SX4 but the paint has this sort of glimmer to it that's very nice. 9/10

Category #2: RECOIL/RELIABILITY

• SX4: Hands down the Winchester sx4 is one of the lightest recoiling shotguns on the market. I will say that forever. The SX4 has also been incredibly reliable throughout my career. 9/10

• AFFINITY 3: These are both super reliable - I'm going to go 8.5/10 here simply because of the recoil

Category #3: ERGONOMICS/FEEL

• SX4: I am so used to this gun. It is basically form fit to my hands. If I put it in the scope relative to all other guns though... I'd call it above average. 8.5/10

• AFFINITY 3: These ergonomics stand out. I really really appreciate the milled-out loading port and the ease of its functions. Safety could be bigger though 9/10

Category #4: BREAKDOWN

• SX4: This is a fairly easy gun to take apart for a gas gun. I've been taking apart the SX4 for a very long time - it seems to run a bit dirtier than other guns. 7.5/10

• AFFINITY 3: When it comes to ease of breakdown/maintenance, you can never go wrong with an inertia gun 8.5/10

Category #5 VIBES

• SX4: I know I can shoot this gun well. Very second nature. Vibes are high!

• AFFINITY 3: Speaking of high vibes... This gun was pointing so so naturally and felt right. That's all I have to say. AND I shot it super fast

BONUS ROUND

• SX4: I gave the sx4 2 bonus points for being an absolute workhorse and serving me well for my career as a professional shooter

• AFFINITY 3: I gave the Affinity 1 bonus point because the loading port is significantly better than the sx4 and the attention to detail was appreciated

FINAL SCORECARD

And just like that, we have a surprising winner from this long-awaited showdown! Don't get me wrong. The SX4 is a workhorse, life-long showgun, and super light and reliable. But numbers can't lie and this affinity 3 really came to play with our highest score yet on the SOSA TEST!

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