FRANCHI FUCILI: The Name Affinity is an English word that literally translates as “affinity”, which is a term used on many occasions and situations to indicate a form of preference, a “relationship” or a potential or existing closeness between two entities.
In the renewal of its range of semiautomatics, Franchi chose the name “Affinity” when he laid the first stone of the new construction. He did it because Franchi feels "akin" to the hunter and because hunting is inextricably linked to the Franchi brand. Franchi is a proudly Italian brand and it is legitimate to ask why an Anglo-Saxon name was chosen for the first semiautomatic of the new course.
The answer is simple: Franchi wants to be a global player and the choice of the name therefore fell on a word of the language that constitutes the Esperanto of today and of the future. The choice of Affinity was therefore also dictated by the desire to reaffirm the fact that Franchi looks to the future, not only in terms of technology, but also thinking about communication and, obviously, market successes. And then Affinity is in any case a term that an Italian, a German, a French or a Spanish have no difficulty in translating, even if they are unfamiliar with that increasingly well-known language in all latitudes.
The Affinity 12 is a semiautomatic with inertial release stable closure that can fire all 12 and 12 magnum cartridges with lead loads between 28 and 56 grams. It is a shotgun optimized for normal and heavy loads in order to obtain the best compromise between dynamic characteristics, recoil containment and wheelie, all keeping in mind the interface between hunter and shotgun, that is the ease and naturalness of the use, which combine to make the use of the shotgun as "productive" as possible, which also translates into the rapidity of holding it, the naturalness of aiming, the ease with which one follows a moving target and the rapidity with which you can fire more shots while remaining in aim. Those who have the opportunity to try the Affinity 12 immediately realize how high dynamic characteristics have been combined with the ballistic performance, how easy it is to fire more shots while maintaining the aim and also all the interventions made to make the shotgun more enjoyable. , not only "working" on recoil and detection, but also damping and eliminating vibrations and shocks.
The Affinity 12 is a lightweight shotgun. It could also have dropped further in weight, but it was not done because it is still a magnum chambered rifle and in the design in addition to the ballistic performance and handling, controllability, the pleasure of use of the weapon and the possibility that the same is used profitably by anyone. It is therefore a shotgun for everyone which, “specialized” for the most popular cartridges, can give excellent results even when used with the most robust magnum loads. All semiautomatic shotguns that do not have the barrel stably fixed to the receiver or to the shutter box may have a more or less marked tendency to shift the center of sight by disassembling and reassembling the barrel as well as firing many shots in a row, displacement which, in the case of continuous shots that overheat the barrel, can add up with the displacement deriving from the interference of the rib with the expansion of the barrel following heating.
The Affinity has been operated in such a way as to counteract to the maximum degree the possible displacements of the center of sight (and therefore the variations in accuracy) by equipping the barrels with a rear extension (culattina), 130 mm, particularly developed which, in conjunction with the support flange on the receiver (the contact surfaces are ground) helps to ensure that the barrel does not "move" firing a lot, and to give it exactly the same position with respect to the receiver each time it is reassembled on the shotgun. The mechanical organization of the Affinity 12 is identical to that of the Affinity 20 and could not be otherwise because they are rifles designed from the beginning as members of the same family. Of course, all the differences deriving from the fact that one has been designed around the cartridge of the 20 and the other around that of the 12 are reserved. shutter holder, cavity on the bottom of which we find a sturdy spring interposed between the tang and the cavity wall. The shutter holder, which acts as an inertial mass, is connected, through a transmission unit with double connection rod, to a sleeve invested on the magazine tube and elastically loaded by a spring which is also coaxial with the magazine tube.
As on the younger brother, the recoil spring housed in the stock is therefore missing and a solution that is typically Franchi has been chosen: Front Inertia.
As for the operating cycle, this is typical of inertial release and rotary shutter closures. When the gun is at rest, the bolt engages with its wings the relative seats in the barrel extension and the bolt carrier (not geometrically constrained to the weapon) is held in position by the contrast of the spring (the one in the bolt carrier cavity) and of the bolt carrier). recovery. When fired, the rifle begins to recoil but the bolt carrier, which is not constrained, tends to remain at rest and therefore assumes a relative forward motion with respect to the weapon. The advancement of the bolt carrier causes compression of the spring which, when the rifle is almost at the end of the recoil, extends violently "firing" the bolt carrier backwards which, by receding beyond its rest position, causes the bolt to rotate since the its tang is crossed by a peg whose head slides inside a cam track on the top of the bolt carrier. The retraction of the bolt carrier leads to the interaction between the pin and the cam track and therefore to the rotation with consequent release of the bolt.
Once the mechanical constraint has been interrupted, the shutter unit continues its retrograde stroke by extracting and ejecting the case and compressing the recovery spring coaxial to the magazine tube. When the shutter assembly reaches the rear dead center the recoil spring begins to relax and brings it back forwards. With the forward movement of the bolt carrier, the first cartridge is released in the magazine tube and its passage on the feeding bucket which, after receiving the cartridge, is raised and positioned so that the bolt can engage the bottom and push the ammunition into the cartridge chamber. Once the cartridge is fully chambered, the bolt, under the thrust of the bolt carrier, closes and the weapon, having the hammer cocked, is ready for firing the next shot. It should be noted that until the bolt carrier is fully advanced to the rest position (which coincides with the bolt in complete closure), even if the hammer is released, the shot cannot start because the firing pin head remains shielded with respect to the bolt. face of the dog and can be reached by it only and only with the weapon completely closed. It should also be remembered that only manual operation of the bolt does not cause the cartridge to pass from the magazine to the feeding bucket, this always occurs by firing but with "blank" maneuvers it can only occur if, before moving the bolt back, we press the lever cartridge drop located on the right side above the front root of the trigger guard. This lever also acts as a cocked hammer warning, allows you to quickly and easily replace the cartridge in the barrel, allows you to extract the chambered cartridge without "interfering" with those in the magazine and ensures that even after falls or strong impacts the cartridge in the tank cannot end up on the spoon.
Ultimately, this mechanism increases the safety of the rifle. The "safety" parameter is precisely one of those that has received the most attention, both for what concerns the prevention of accidental firing, and for what concerns "situations" in which "unexpected" and high levels of fire can occur inside the barrel. overpressures, such as in the case of firing with a partially obstructed barrel or pulling a cartridge that develops pressures higher than those allowed for the caliber.
By eliminating the recoil spring in the stock and the relative connecting rod, a vertical force is eliminated which increases the wheelie and which derives from the action of the connecting rod on the recoil spring. Furthermore, with the recoil spring struck on the magazine tube, the center of gravity of the entire shutter assembly (shutter, bolt holder, return rods) is moved forward and slightly lowered, while the displacements of the center of gravity consequent to the movement of the shutter group occurs on a shorter excursion. This results in less wheelie and increased shotgun stability during the firing cycle. The recoil spring struck on the magazine tube leads to a greater encumbrance of the rod which therefore becomes worse manageable by the hand that supports and holds it. Furthermore, not only the thickness of the rod but also the dimensions of the rods of the transmission system, their coupling to the bolt holder and to the front cylinder connecting the rods themselves invested on the magazine tube become critical. Using the appropriate materials, the thickness of the rods has been reduced, which in practice consist of a single "U" -shaped element welded to the front of the ring that slides on the magazine tube. This configuration holds up very well, without problems and without interfering with the shaft even with heavy and prolonged use. As for the shaft, it was not possible to make it very thin but it is still equipped with reduced dimensions that facilitate the grip and, contrary to what happens even on big-name rifles, it does not move and does not vibrate when fired, which remains unchanged even over time and with heavy use.
The fore-end and the stock are made of European grade 2 walnut and have a new design checkering, designed not only to be more beautiful but also to facilitate the rearrangement of the hand while remaining adequately gripping in all situations. The stock and fore-end are oil finished and the stock is completed with a polyurethane foam TSA recoil pad which reduces recoil and at the same time does not stick to clothing when the shotgun is picked up quickly. On the stock of the Affinity it is obviously possible to vary the fold and the edge, with plating values equal to 45, 50, 55, 60, 65. Also as optionals, pads of different lengths are available in order to allow customization not only of the fold but also of the stock length.
The family feeling between the Affinity 12 and its younger brother is evident and even the "12" can be recognized at a glance as a Franchi: quick and light lines, with the carcass "marked" by two lines that join barrel and stock exactly as on the model chambered for the cadet caliber. The shotgun is offered with 66, 71 and 76 cm barrels, with matte finish, rib with or without 7 mm ramp and front sight with fiber optic insert, the chokes are 7 cm to reduce the deformation of the peripheral shot and in this way to have thicker, more garnished and regular rosettes. The rifle is delivered with three chokes: *, *** and Cyl; chokes *** or wider are steel shot enabled.