How long will a Stoeger hold up?

[Mn Fats]

Stoger coach gun. I've asked a similar question here before. I'm not trying to ask it differently to get the answer I want. I understand a low cost double comes at a cost.

My question is how long will one hold up? I had a Baikal double barrel I paid $300 for new and I shot the snot out of that gun. I put more high brass through that shotgun than any shotgun I've owned. Still locked up tight and operated fine in the end. Is Baikal just better than, say, a Stoeger?

Also what malfunctions on a cheap double? Does it just shoot itself apart like people claim? I know the shelf life is short compared to a Fox but what really fails on these Stoeger doubles? I want to replace my coach gun for some reason. Stoeger looks like the only option.

All thoughts, replies are appreciated.

 

[Virginian]

The ones with double triggers and extractors are pretty good. They don't handle or cost like a Purdey. The single trigger and ejector models have had lots of issues. They have been widely used in CASS and get pretty abused and hold up well. I know people with 10 to 15 year old models that have been used in CASS the whole time.
I have owned a couple, and have also owned SxSs that cost in five figures, so I am not just an internet expert.

 

[Crunchy Frog]

I agree with the prior post: the Stoeger Coach Gun is very common in cowboy Action Shooting circles. I’ve been shooting nine years and some folks have been shooting the same Stoeger the whole time. I found a decent deal on an SKB which are popular but pricey.

I think the Baikal is a better made gun but they have not been imported for several years now.

I have heard some folks describe the Stoeger as a disposable item, like a BIC lighter: buy it, have it slicked up, run it hard in competition and when it eventually breaks, throw it away and buy another.

 

[cdb1]

I believe the Baikal is better quality also.

 

[George P]

Maybe you need to define what shot the snot out of it means; I have a Browning O/U with close to 300,000 rounds through it; needed new springs at 90K.
Otherwise, cheap doubles can have several issues, the worst being poorly regulated barrels that do not shoot to POA/POI. Secondly, many have poorly heat treated steel and a heavy dose of heavy loads will accelerate the wear on the faster. Third, many have poorly machined/finished pieces so the gun shoot loose sooner than a quality gun.

That said, if you're talking about shooting a few hundred a year, that is one thing. If you are talking about shooting a few hundred a week, that is altogether different

 

[Mn Fats]

Maybe you need to define what shot the snot out of it means; I have a Browning O/U with close to 300,000 rounds through it

Oooh yeah I never hit near that. It was my first gun I was legally able to buy when I hit 18 years old. I'd suppose 10,000 rounds max. Check that. Adding up all the summers id put it at 5k. I forget I'm in the company of real shooters.

Edit: also by "snot" I meant I ran it hard with high brass. I also did many double trigger pulls to hear the echo across the field and to "cheat" on clays for laughs.

 

[kudu]

They might hold up for many thousands of rounds,or you may get a lemon. For the price of one for informal shooting they are just fine, no beauty queens, but more a rough work horse for entry level double.

I wore out a Ruger Red Label at 50,000 rounds, had sent it back to Ruger for repairs. Went another 8000-10,000 rounds and started having more problems, fixed again and sold it. My only 'cheap' double is a Huglu/CZ SxS .410 that has about 5000 rounds through it. Still very tight. Have a Rem 11-87 with probably 75,000 rounds and have only replaced about 4 o-rings and some 870's with 20+k through them with no wear.

 

[rpenmanparker]

I think inexpensive o/u shotguns are highly underrated. Most people would never see any but aesthetic differences between cheap and expensive o/u shotguns. Cheap won’t be as pretty, but for several thousand rounds a year, that will be the whole difference. I have a Yildiz and also shoot my friend’s Brownings and Benellis. As they used to say in the Parkay commercials, “no difference” on a shot-to-shot basis. You shoot, bang, the clay breaks or not. Same, same.

 

[Mn Fats]

I think inexpensive o/u shotguns are highly underrated. Most people would never see any but aesthetic differences between cheap and expensive o/u shotguns. Cheap won’t be as pretty, but for several thousand rounds a year, that will be the whole difference. I have a Yildiz and also shoot my friend’s Brownings and Benellis. As they used to say in the Parkay commercials, “no difference” on a shot-to-shot basis. You shoot, bang, the clay breaks or not. Same, same.

Yildiz? I thought I've heard of just about every shotgun import. I'll have to Google that one.

 

[milemaker13]

I had a stoger sxs years ago... before I knew very much.. but one of the firing pins seemed to have mushroomed pretty bad to the point it wouldnt fire. I probably coulda changed that out i guess. Ehh, hindsight. Also remember the stock bolt getting stripped threads...
Otherwise I loved that gun. Was great for informal clay birds.

 

[rpenmanparker]

Yildiz? I thought I've heard of just about every shotgun import. I'll have to Google that one.

Turkish guns that Academy (sporting goods store) has the exclusive US import and distribution rights to. They use Briley as their warranty service provider which convinced me to buy the gun. Briley is a legendary resource in the shotgun market. Living in Houston where Briley is located, I know I would be well taken care of.

 

[entropy]

I think inexpensive o/u shotguns are highly underrated. Most people would never see any but aesthetic differences between cheap and expensive o/u shotguns. Cheap won’t be as pretty, but for several thousand rounds a year, that will be the whole difference. I have a Yildiz and also shoot my friend’s Brownings and Benellis. As they used to say in the Parkay commercials, “no difference” on a shot-to-shot basis. You shoot, bang, the clay breaks or not. Same, same.

Yeah, for 15,000. That's a couple years for a serious clays game shooter. A lifetime for a dabbler.

 

[rpenmanparker]

Yeah, for 15,000. That's a couple years for a serious clays game shooter. A lifetime for a dabbler.

No argument there. I agree. But that’s what I am. No sense pretending otherwise. Besides I could buy four of what I have for the price of the bottom grade of a popular Italian brand. That should get me through.

 

[entropy]

Then, they will work for what you want.

 

[Milkmaster]

Having owned two of the single trigger Stoeger Coach Guns and having difficulties with both of them, I will not be caught using a third. I am told the double trigger models are better. Eventually I bought the Baikal SXS and never looked back. The Baikal has never failed me yet at least. Here is a video I took of the Stoeger when I was sending it back for warranty issues. It took three times before they eventually sent me a new SXS with double triggers. I promptly gave it away.

 

[George P]

I think inexpensive o/u shotguns are highly underrated. Most people would never see any but aesthetic differences between cheap and expensive o/u shotguns. Cheap won’t be as pretty, but for several thousand rounds a year, that will be the whole difference. I have a Yildiz and also shoot my friend’s Brownings and Benellis. As they used to say in the Parkay commercials, “no difference” on a shot-to-shot basis. You shoot, bang, the clay breaks or not. Same, same.

When you compare inexpensive doubles to the better ones, and Browning and Beretta are the bottom base line in that regard, you will see the differences in better materials, better manufacturing, better reliability. When you start getting to the mid-tier of better guns like Blaser and Zoli, the reliability factor increases. When you get to the top tier of Perazzi, Kreighoff and Kolar you are into guns that will go over 1,000,000 rounds, which for a serious competitor is normal over time. Those guns can also be easily repaired for items that wear, they will have custom features (especially Perazzi, as you can order it however you want).

Whether those aspects and features work for you is only something you can decide.

 

[George P]

Yeah, for 15,000. That's a couple years for a serious clays game shooter. A lifetime for a dabbler.

15,000 is 6 months to 1 year for anyone who shoots regularly. I am not a serious competitor, but my browning mentioned above acquired those 300K over a ~20 year time frame.

 

[George P]

Having owned two of the single trigger Stoeger Coach Guns and having difficulties with both of them, I will not be caught using a third. I am told the double trigger models are better. Eventually I bought the Baikal SXS and never looked back. The Baikal has never failed me yet at least. Here is a video I took of the Stoeger when I was sending it back for warranty issues. It took three times before they eventually sent me a new SXS with double triggers. I promptly gave it away.

Did you ever pull the stock off to see if there were any burrs or gunk preventing the right barrel from firing regularly?

 

[Milkmaster]

I did several things like that George P including pulling the stock, cleaning, and lubrication. I sent it back to the service center three times. Each time I sent a letter and finally a video on a memory stick the third trip to show them what it was doing. The problem would get worse the hotter then gun became when using it. In the end they replaced it with a double trigger model. I took the double trigger model out one time without issues to make sure before cleaning it and giving it to a friend of mine as a gift for surviving chemo treatments for throat cancer. By that time I had already found and bought the Baikal (SPR220) shown here.

 

[rpenmanparker]

When you compare inexpensive doubles to the better ones, and Browning and Beretta are the bottom base line in that regard, you will see the differences in better materials, better manufacturing, better reliability. When you start getting to the mid-tier of better guns like Blaser and Zoli, the reliability factor increases. When you get to the top tier of Perazzi, Kreighoff and Kolar you are into guns that will go over 1,000,000 rounds, which for a serious competitor is normal over time. Those guns can also be easily repaired for items that wear, they will have custom features (especially Perazzi, as you can order it however you want).

Whether those aspects and features work for you is only something you can decide.

That’s all true but without functional meaning for, as i said, most shooters. How many casual sporting clay shooters run through more than 3-4,000 rounds a year? A $450 gun will last me a lifetime and work just fine that whole time...especially since I bought it at age 70. Higher end is wonderful for those that want or need it, but not me. And remember the subject of this thread. Will a Stoeger serve the OP well? I don’t see how it couldn’t.

 

[George P]

That’s all true but without functional meaning for, as i said, most shooters. How many casual sporting clay shooters run through more than 3-4,000 rounds a year? A $450 gun will last me a lifetime and work just fine that whole time...especially since I bought it at age 70. Higher end is wonderful for those that want or need it, but not me. And remember the subject of this thread. Will a Stoeger serve the OP well? I don’t see how it couldn’t.

All depends on how often you shoot. Even casually shooting 5-stand at the local club, I'll go through 6 boxes 2-3X/week; add in one tournament for another 125 and you're at 500 rounds per week. Even if only over 6 months, you're over 12K

Look at guys who compete with handguns and how many rounds they fire for practice and matches.

 

[George P]

I did several things like that George P including pulling the stock, cleaning, and lubrication. I sent it back to the service center three times. Each time I sent a letter

That sounds like my experience with my Ruger Red Label 28 gauge. It was before the Net and camera phones to records the issues.

 

[eastbank]

if you shoot a lot the cost of ammo and range fees with very soon over take what you would have paid for a good shotgun. my main singles trap shotgun( browning BT-100) has over 50,000 shells thru it and has had no repairs at all, only cleaning.

 

[George P]

if you shoot a lot the cost of ammo and range fees with very soon over take what you would have paid for a good shotgun. my main singles trap shotgun( browning BT-100) has over 50,000 shells thru it and has had no repairs at all, only cleaning.

EXACTLY; at least with rifles and pistols, you aren't having to pay for all of the targets. Some tournaments' target costs can be from $1 to $1.50 each. Shoot several events at a major 4 day shoot and you're dropping $500 just for the targets, plus the ammo (and most likely a cart rental, hotel, gas and meals). While expensive, sporting clays is still a lot cheaper than race cars, yachting, or owning horses.

 

[Milkmaster]

While expensive, sporting clays is still a lot cheaper than race cars, yachting, or owning horses.

Or drinking, or women, or ...