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Old May 5, 2008, 09:19 AM   #1
Super-Dave
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Which shotgun companies have good customer service and which don't?

I was wondering when you shotgun breaks or needs new parts which companies have good customer service and which do not?

Post your opinion if you have experience in dealing with a repair or replacement for your shotgun.
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Old May 5, 2008, 09:31 AM   #2
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Ruger gave me great service for a lousy product....I must have gotten a 28 RL made on a holiday weekend or something, but they did fix it, and quickly....

My friends who shoot Krieghoffs swear by their customer service

Browning, OTOH, are more likely to get sworn at....same with Beretta the nice thing about these two is just about every gunsmith can fix them.

My SKB's?? couldn't tell you- haven't had anything go wrong with them
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Old May 5, 2008, 09:32 AM   #3
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A couple years ago it took Browning almost 9 months to repair my BT-99 trap gun. The forearm had split and I sent the gun back to their repair facility. They did an excellent job of matching the wood and finish and covered it under warranty. They were, however, a bit slowwwww.
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Old May 5, 2008, 11:06 AM   #4
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I've had excellent service from Perazzi.
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Old May 5, 2008, 08:19 PM   #5
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My Benneli and Stoeger people stink! your on hold for an hour each time and noone knows their butt from a hole in a fence. Remington and Mossberg +1
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Old May 5, 2008, 08:42 PM   #6
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Mossberg has always been great, IME.
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Old May 6, 2008, 12:16 AM   #7
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I guess for me the best is none at all I have over 12,000rds between my two Remingtons with no hicups
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Old May 6, 2008, 01:40 PM   #8
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I have received exceptional service both from Ruger and Krieghoff.
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Old May 7, 2008, 03:21 PM   #9
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The mass produced guns are all about the same - Remington, Browning or Winchester are the same corp now, Beretta, Benelli, etc in my experience. Even if you're talking about their mid level target guns in the $1,750 - 3,000 price ranges - it really isn't any different / its hard to get decent service out of any of them.

The more custom gun makers - Krieghoff, Kolar - are 2 of the best.

3rd party service - Briley is really busy, but does good work for barrels, tubes, etc.

There are good gunsmiths around - gun shops / dealers that have good gunsmiths for routine things ( springs, firing pins, etc ) locally and nationally - and many of them that specialize in certain guns. Big dealers like Pacific Sporting Arms in CA / Clay Target sports in NJ or Joel Etchen in PA are all good companies that can turn things around pretty quickly - especially if you bought the gun thru them - but its going to be a higher end gun that you would want to ship to them to have somelthing done before it would be worthwhile. For the average field gun ( under $1,000 ) you really need to find a local gunsmith - or be real patient if you want to send it back to the factory service center. Honestly, most of the guns from Browning - Winchester, Beretta, Benelli, Ruger or Remington .... have very few problems these days unless you're buying the entry level products - especially when you get to the guns over $ 500 or $1,000 .
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Old May 7, 2008, 05:11 PM   #10
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Quote:
Honestly, most of the guns from Browning - Winchester, Beretta, Benelli, Ruger or Remington .... have very few problems these days unless you're buying the entry level products - especially when you get to the guns over $ 500 or $1,000
agreed, UNLESS you start to get up there in the amount of shots....my GTI is needing service after 75,000 rounds.....a K-gun might go 250,000 before the same work, but it DOES cost 5-10 times more........
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Old May 7, 2008, 05:31 PM   #11
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For many of us that shoot a lot of targets like you do OneOunce - one of my Browning XS Skeet models in 12ga has at least 75,000 shells thru it as well ....... but honestly, I replace the firing pins and springs about every 2 years myself or whenever they show some deterioration ( its not that big a deal). Your Browning GTI is a good gun and I'm not surprised its gone a solid 75,000 rounds without a problem.

For most good O/U's - taking the stock off every time you shoot in the rain - and at least twice a year ( and clean and lube them ) makes the guns last a good 100,000 rounds with very few problems. The real trick on guns is storing them in a dry and heated environment so they don't get any condensation inside the actions where you can get some rust.

For readers that may not know - its easy to take the stock off an O/U "in general" - just take the recoil pad off the butt (couple of screws) - there are little slits in the recoil pad that will open up with pressure from a phillips head screw driver usually - remove adj comb if gun has one - there is a bolt inside the stock about 13" deep - some of them have a regular slotted screw head in them and some of them need a hex head or allen wrench. Loosen the stock bolt. Some mfg's ( like Browning ) give you a wrench if its an allen head - but not if its a slotted screw head ( but just go down to hardwear store and buy a long screw driver or put an extension on a ratchet. Once you loosen the bolt - ( carefully pull straight back - and remove the stock from the receiver.) Now you can clean and inspect firing pins, springs, etc inside. If you're only comfortable cleaning and inspecting - then do that - lube it lightly with something like Rig Spray Oil - and put it back together. If you find some rust - call you local gunsmith / Brownells, etc and get what you need or get some help. I talk to shooters all the time that have never taken the stocks off their O/U's - and some of them, when they do it, find a ton of rust ....... I think something to consider doing on a rainy day - lay out a towel - and take them apart .... I think it helps my guns stay in service longer.

I would use the same routine with a Krieghoff or a Kolar - but like you said, I would expect no problems well beyond 100,000 shells .
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Old May 7, 2008, 05:46 PM   #12
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Big Jim - trying to take the stock off is what caused me my only problem with my GTI...seems someone at the factory had used red loctite, so when I cranked down hard - I split the stock....3 months later Browning was nice enough to get it back to me, without a cast-neutral stock...it now had a cast-off, something I never really noticed for a few years and was wondering why certain targets gave me fits!.. all three B guns, K, and P guns will work as advertised for a loooooong time if you do your part....

but factory service from Browning and Beretta I tend to find less than customer-service friendly......

for those, unless under a warranty, find a local who can do it.....JM .02 worth
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Old May 7, 2008, 06:02 PM   #13
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sorry to hear about the stock on your GTI ( but yes, they do lock them down a little tight ) and maybe I've been lucky but I've always gotten them off without a problem. But I've always taken the stocks off a new gun - before I even take it to the range for the first time ......(I'm anal about it, can't help it , and I don't want to change ......)

We don't disagree. I've never sent a shotgun back to the mfg - but I've had no warranty problems at all on well over a couple dozen shotguns I've bought in the last 35 years ( mostly Brownings ).

I had a buddy that had one of his dad's old Browning Auto 5's - and he sent it to Browning to have the stock replaced and the metal re-blued - and he didn't get it back for almost a year .....it was sad.
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Old May 7, 2008, 06:05 PM   #14
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Just heard about a guy in MO, Art's Gun shop....Isaacson (sp?) from Bruce Buck...I guess Art is a former Browning repair expert and now on his own, comes highly recommended from Bruce....
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Old May 7, 2008, 06:12 PM   #15
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My only shotgun to ever give me trouble is a Ruger O/U , but they also provided excellent customer service.
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Old August 13, 2008, 07:39 AM   #16
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dealing with Mossberg over a marine coat finish on a new gun.
the gun was never fired and we had to send it back to Mossberg the first time it came back unchanged
so they FedEx us a shipping sticker
so we shipped it back
it was marred on both sides of the receiver
lets hope they get it taking care of
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Old August 14, 2008, 09:36 PM   #17
abs
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While choosing a new shotgun this spring, I contacted a few manufacturers via email with specific questions. Remington answered me (several times) within two days. Mossberg replied in 6 weeks - not answering my questions but offering to send me their catalog... For Beretta, it took even more time, but I got a qualified answer.
On the other hand, I could quickly resolve my questions by calling to Remington, Browning and Beretta.
The bottom line: call, don't write (unless it's Remington)...
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Old August 14, 2008, 10:19 PM   #18
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Dave, Where ya been?? Forget Remington customer service. Bunch of kids that are clueless.
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Old August 16, 2008, 12:48 PM   #19
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second that

I'll second MikeB there...Remington kids don't know Jack.

Never had a problem with Mossberg or Browning -quick turnaround for the most part and easy shipping.
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Old August 16, 2008, 02:12 PM   #20
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Love Mossberg for customer service... I needed a bolt for full stock since I only had the pg and after a phone call It was on the way... I asked if they would mind throwing in one of the decals they sell on the website and they sent 2.
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