Weatherby surprised a lot of folks with their March 5 announcement of the Weatherby Sorix waterfowl-focused semi-auto. It has been seventy-nine years since Roy Weatherby founded Weatherby. Current CEO Adam Weatherby is the third generation to lead the Weatherby family business. In 2018, Weatherby announced their move to Sheridan, Wyoming. Weatherby moved into their new facility March 1, 2019.

Over the last several years Weatherby has developed and strengthened their partnerships with Italian shotgun manufacturers. The starting point for the Sorix was Weatherby's 18i series. The 18i is made by Marocchi, now known as CD Europe, so it appears that the Sorix is also made by CD Europe / Marocchi in Italy.

The Sorix answers many of the questions and concerns I've heard constantly from readers over the years. The safety is easily changed to left hand operation, where several shotguns either do not allow for it, require you to orders parts kits, or to find a gunsmith. The charging bolt handle is instantly changed to left hand operation, These two features combined are the “Weatherby Shift System.” It is a clever idea, for left-handed shooters will pay no premium and there is no hit to resale value. Adjustment shims are also included to complete the picture.

Rather than just three choke tubes supplied by some brands, Weatherby provides five choke tubes of the Crio Plus style. Too many semi-auto shotguns have dinky cross-bolt safeties, but Weatherby has addressed this as well. Weatherby has increased their manufacturing and finishing capabilities in Wyoming. To that end, Weatherby does their own Cerakote and stock finishing in house. It sounds like the Weatherby warranty on the Sorix is a generous ten years. There are over twenty reviews of Weatherby rifles and shotguns by Chuck Hawks, myself, or both of us. Weatherby has always had both excellent customer service and widespread distribution.

The MSRP for the Sorix is $1499, very competitive for a CIP-proofed semi-auto. Some competitors include the Browning A5 Wicked Wing from Portugal at $2,279.99 MSRP. Naturally, sticker prices and street prices are two different things. A quick look at Gunbroker shows the Weatherby Sorix at $1275. a Benelli SBE3 at $1750, and the Browning A5 Wicked Wing at $2109. By any reasonable metric, the Weatherby Sorix is a bargain for a high quality full-featured Italian inertia autoloader.

I've ordered a 3 inch 12 gauge Sorix Storm for review. Weatherby advises me that they have already processed the order and the Storm will be shipped out as soon as it is finished. A 20 gauge Sorix is listed as well. It isn't much of a stretch to believe that various barrel lengths and other configurations such as turkey models will be available down the road. It is only natural, as the Sorix is already drilled and tapped for optics More info is at https://weatherby.com/ .