why always Briley, not any mention of Kolar

[mwar410]

seems like everyone always recommends Briley over anyone else. Granted I have had bought alot of Briley products, and used them in the past, But Do you really think there chokes are any better than Angleporting? or their tubes are better than Kolar? Colonial arms does choke installation at alot less $$ than Briley, is there much difference in the quality?
Just wanted a non rem/mossy thread.

[BigJimP]

I like the Kolar products ....and their guns as well, I think are comparable to Krieghoff in terms of quality / and craftmanship - and they're less expensive right now with the Euro being so high against the US dollar.

http://www.kolararms.com/

I will admit, I haven't done a real comparison on item to item what Kolar will do vs Briley for the money ...but they are both very good shops based on what I hear from their customers. I have a friend that is shooting Kolar tubes in his Krieghoff / for the last 15 yrs ?? probably ...and he's never had an issue.

I tend to think of Kolar as a gun mfg / not a source for choke tubes --- but certainly comparable to Briley on full length tubes.

If I was going to order a "Carrier Barrel" for an O/U ...and a set of full length tubes I would at least talk to Kolar as well as Briley before I made a decison on where to send my extra barrel / and gun for the work.

In terms of choke tubes / I think most of the better mfg's are doing a good job ... Briley, Seminole, etc .... Most of my O/U's are Brownings and I'm shooting Midas grade or Diana grade Browning choke tubes - but I think they're probably made by Briley ....not that it matters.

[oneounceload]

Kolar's AAA sub-gauge tube set are some of the best around; however, many folks here and elsewhere who are not skeet shooters typically have more exposure to Briley through their choke tubes.

Kolar makes a GREAT gun, and with the 12 barrel and its carrier barrel and sub-gauge tubes makes a great skeeter or sporting gun

[zippy13]

I've had great after sales customer service from Briley and Kolar. All of my Skeet guns have Briley tube sets. But, if I were in the market for a new Skeet gun, I'd have to give the Kolar line a lot of consideration -- their Max Skt is intriguing. In my area, SoCal, I think some folks favor Brileys simply because Texas is closer than Wisconsin.

[RoscoeC]

Most of my O/U's are Brownings and I'm shooting Midas grade or Diana grade Browning choke tubes - but I think they're probably made by Briley

When I got my Cynergy a couple of months ago, I immediately ordered a full set of Midas grade choke tubes from MGW. They came in the Browning blister packs, and were very clearly marked "Made by Briley".

I have 2 sets of Angleport chokes for my Berettas, and I really like them. They are well finished, and I really like the fact that they are marked with the nominal bore diameter on one side and the constriction in thousandths of an inch on the other. And, it's not paint or light hen scratching, these things are deeply etched. They were, however a bit more expensive than the Browning Midas', so I went with the Brownings. They're working for me.

[olddrum1]

I looked into purchasing a specific set of tubes last year. I spoke with Kolar and Brilley. Of the two, Brilley contacted me with a cost and time frame. Never heard back from Kolar.

[zippy13]

olddrum1, my friend, hopefully your experience with Kolar was an isolated incident. Of course, it may have been a problem contacting you in the wilds of mid-MO -- a lot of folks don't know how to call when your phone number is two long rings and a short! ;)

-------------------
When talking about screw-in chokes, we need to be sure we're all on the same page. There are generic screw-ins that will replace factory units in a vast variety of guns and there are custom chokes where the screw-in is sized precisely to you barrel (or tube). Obviously these chokes can't be compared side-by-side by price or performance. I have screw-in chokes for my .410 tubes that differ by 15 ten-thousands for the days when I need to give the pattern just a little tweaking. Obviously, these aren't off the rack from Cabelas.

[Smitty in CT]

I have a Pedersen Model 1000 (Beretta BL-4), I wanted choke tubes installed and because the Beretta BL-4 had thin walled barrels to begin with Briley was the only company that would touch it.... Of course, now I have to buy Briley thin walled choke tubes, but they have been quick to ship me what I needed.

Great results and great folks to deal with...

[BigJimP]

Just so we're all clear --- and talking about the same thing ....

Choke Tubes ....screw into the end of your barrel ( change the choke ) ..

Full Length Tube Sets - change the gague of the gun. You put a full length Tube into the barrel to convert a 12ga to a 20ga / and another set of tubes to convert it from a 12ga to a 28ga / and a 3rd set of tubes to convert it from a 12ga to a .410. On the end of the Tube Set -- you still need a screw in Choke Tube as well ...so you, or at least I, still need 8 or 10 chokes tubes per gague ....

The best solution is to have a "bored out" 12ga barrel - that now is not safe to shoot as a 12ga ...it is now a "Carrier Barrel" ...for the full length Tube Sets. The idea is the Carrier Barrel plus the Tube Set now weighs exactly the same as the normal 12ga barrel ( and swings the same ). So you end up with one receiver, identical ribs, identical feel in a 12ga, 20ga, 28ga or a .410 .....

[mwar410]

If I were still shooting competition, my next gun would have been a Kolar. I think their service is great. I had a 20 gauge chamber burst on my sub-guage tube called them up, I think I actually talked with the man himself, sent the barrels and tubes in. I didn't hear anything for a week, so I got concerned and was going to call them when a UPS truck pulled in with the barrels and tubes on it.
I agree with oneounce, that Briley does have much better publicity outside the skeet field.
Seems to me that Briley might be a little overkill to send a "stock" gun to. Like sending your Ford to a Ferrari mechanic.

[BigJimP]

I don't think Briley is overkill ...depending on what you want done to a gun. I think Briley's prices are reasonable / taking into account their level of expertise, etc. .... if you need extensive work done that a local gunsmith can't really do -- or even have screw in chokes added to a fixed choke barrel.

But I wouldn't send a gun to Briley ...to just replace routine parts that wear out or break either ...

[mwar410]

by stock, I meant to say low end, but not offending anyone. It seems overkill to me to recommend Briley to put screw in chokes in a mossberg.

[BigJimP]

I'm not offended ...we're just discussing this issue ...

I think I agree with you on a Mossberg / or a Rem 870 for that matter ...:D

but I guess I was thinking about ...say I had an older 1100, 28ga -- with fixed chokes ....it might be a gun that was in my family for a long time ...and I'd want someone to treat it well - and do a nice job on the screw in chokes ..so I might send a gun like that to Briley vs a local guy that might screw it up. An extra $100 to have it done right ....for a gun I really wanted to keep a long time ...isn't much over time.

Honestly if I had an old plain jane ... Mossberg, Rem 870 or even a BPS without screw in chokes ... I would probably sell it / but a new gun with screw in chokes vs going thru shipping it to Texas, etc ....and paying to have screw in chokes put in. I have an old Westernfield 16ga / bolt action / with a fixed Mod choke ....and I'd never send it to Briley.

[zippy13]

Big Jim, my friend, using your logic, when I wanted a spare R-1100 Trap barrel shortened and screw-ins installed, I took it to my LGS. In the past all of my comp guns tube sets and choke work had been done by Briley. But, I though, how can the LGS mess up an 1100 barrel?… I can save some $$$, get a quicker turn-around, and get the same quality. WRONG!

The smith at the LGS didn't realize the 1100 Trap barrel was factory overbored and he installed standard chokes! Obviously, he hadn't taken the time to measure the bore after he shortened the barrel. Consequently, the supposed Skeet choke shot like a mod and the mod shot like a full. I don't think Briley would have made that mistake.

[olddrum1]

Z13, when I made contact with Kolar I'm sure that I informed them it was two longs and three shorts. I think that Brilley may carry a little more brand recoginition with it.

[BigJimP]

Sorry Zippy, I obviously didn't make my point clearly ... I agree with you / most local gunsmiths have very little formal training and no where near the capability of some of the better shops like Briley, Kolar, Wilson Combat, etc ...

I was trying to say -- even for an older 1100 that I wanted to keep for a long time and especially if it was a gun I really valued ... I'd send it to Briley as well ...vs a local gun butcher ....precisely because I've heard too many horror stories from local shops.

By the same token ...I'm trying to improve my own gunsmithing skills ...on my own shotguns ...so I can competently replace firing pins, and common issues on all of my Browning O/U's, my Benelli's - and my handguns ( at least 1911's, Sig Sauer's and S&W revolvers ). I have no intention of hanging out a shingle to work as a gunsmith ( I don't need the liability :eek:) ....but completely stripping a trigger mechanism from a semi-auto shotgun shouldn't terrify any of us either ....if we take our time / get a little knowledge ... and use Briley and Wilson Combat as our "backups" when we screw it up ...

I'm actually having fun working on my own guns ...even though, like I shared recently, a wayward spring has a tendancy to end up bouncing off the walls ...and living in spring heaven ...under my table saw or behind my bandsaw or something ( and that's when 1 - 800 - Brownells comes in handy ) ...

[zippy13]

I'm actually having fun working on my own guns ...even though, like I shared recently, a wayward spring has a tendancy to end up bouncing off the walls ...and living in spring heaven ...under my table saw or behind my bandsaw or something ( and that's when 1 - 800 - Brownells comes in handy ) ...
Big Jim, don't feel bad about that wayward spring, it happens to the best of us. One of my shooting buddies just got his first 1911-type pistol. With his initial take-down, he was following the instructions: Depress plug, Rotate barrel bushing, oops.. ka-zing, the plug got away from him and took flight across his garage. After searching high and low for what seemed like forever, he finally gave up and ordered two additional plugs.
I wanted to return one of my Ruger SA's to the OEM grips. I'd put them in the Pachmayr box when I swapped grips several years ago. Guess what?... the box isn't where I thought I'd left it! I wonder how much of Brownell's business is for lost/misplaced parts.

[BigJimP]

Someday I'm going to open up the big 50 gallon dust collector bag in my shop ....and a dozen springs and little parts will just drop out ....like gifts from heaven.

If he thinks the recoil spring plug is a problem / wait until he takes the firing pin out / or tries to put it back in .....its more fun yet.

However, in terms of shotguns ...Inside the Benelli trigger system ---there is an interesting spring that holds the safety in place ( under a pin ). I learned the hard way on that one too ( and one of those was in my latest Brownells order too ). Stay well my friend.