If it walks like a duck...

Bottom line-- there are probably more people who are UNHAPPY with their Stoeger Condors than those who are happy with them. Seems to be a lot less complaints about the other models.

 

Bulloney!

Most folks who post their opinion on Stoeger don't own one, never owned one, and will never have anything good to say about them, or any other inexpensive shotgun for that matter. There is an "elitism" among some shooters which causes them to forget that many of us cannot afford to buy a Mercedes (Beretta) and must be content to drive (shoot) something far less expensive. Stoeger shotguns are designed to fill that niche, and, IMHO, do it quite well.

I recently purchased a NIB Condor 1 combo set to shoot skeet with. I paid $450 for it on an on-line auction and basically got 2 skeet guns for the price of 1. Before buying it, I read every review ever published (or so it seemed). After a while, I found myself focusing my attention on the Brazilian-made Stoeger whose reviews were generally good. When I actually got to pick one up and shoulder it, my decision was made. It was good-looking, felt sturdy, and fit me well. So, I started shopping. I've owned mine for about a month, shot skeet and trap with it (400 rnds.), and it breaks birds with the best of them. I think I made a good purchase decision.

I've read some good reviews on the Competition. Frankly, if I didn't already own a Weatherby trap combo, I probably would have bought one. It is not a "cheap" gun, merely inexpensive. Buy it, use the heck out of it, and when you hit the lottery, go out and buy something "better".

This 43-year shooter, says buy it.

 

I used to own a Condor Comp. Glad you're happy {hs# ,you might be one of the lucky ones whose "MAY" last a while.Get back to us when you get several 1000 thru it if it makes it that long.

I sold mine with only about a flat through it,got a used Beretta O'/U couldn't be happier YMMV.

I got my Comp for 600 at a local store,I paid 750 for my "Mercedes" 100 times better gun,good deals are out their you just have to look for them.

 

Jerry,

Did you have any problems with your Stoeger that prompted you to sell it? You don't mention any.

If you only fired 250 rounds though your gun and apparently had no problems with it, why make statements like, "you might be one of the lucky ones whose "MAY" last a while.Get back to us when you get several 1000 thru it if it makes it that long."? What do you base these comments on?

If you now have such a low opinion of Stoegers, why did you buy one in the first place? What happened to make you change you mind about them?

I know I'm probably coming across as a hard ***, but Snaketail's original post sought useful information about Stoeger shotguns, the Competition model in particular. Other than learning that your Beretta is "a 100 times better gun" what useful information about Stoeger shotguns have you provided him?

Read more: viewtopic.php?f=98&t=256397#ixzz1Kv7GH1fF

 

Two things from a non- Stoeger owner. A very good friend of mine had a condor and felt much like Grizzly does. He had the gun for a few hunting seasons and it never let him down. Then he started shooting skeet - a few leagues, a couple tournaments (12 gauge only) and the gun started having problems. I do not recall what they were specifically, but it was internal to the action. It got to the point that it was unlikely to make it through a 12 gauge 100 bird event. The gun would probably last a lifetime in the field. That individual gun didn't make it through a year of skeet leagues and tournaments.

DRSFMD can be a bit blunt - but I believe he works in a gun store and knows more than a little about guns. If he says he hears a lot of complaints about something then you maybe ought to listen to him.

One gun with less than 2 flats of ammo through it doesn't say anything about the quality of build or the quality of design of a gun, good or bad.

John

 

Jerry,

Did you have any problems with your Stoeger that prompted you to sell it? You don't mention any.

If you only fired 250 rounds though your gun and apparently had no problems with it, why make statements like, "you might be one of the lucky ones whose "MAY" last a while.Get back to us when you get several 1000 thru it if it makes it that long."? What do you base these comments on?

If you now have such a low opinion of Stoegers, why did you buy one in the first place? What happened to make you change you mind about them?

I know I'm probably coming across as a hard ***, but Snaketail's original post sought useful information about Stoeger shotguns, the Competition model in particular. Other than learning that your Beretta is "a 100 times better gun" what useful information about Stoeger shotguns have you provided him?

Read more: viewtopic.php?f=98&t=256397#ixzz1Kv7GH1fF

I got in a hurray and didn't want to wait for the O/U i wanted, a Beretta, so I settled for a Stoeger :? It was ok but I knew going in it was a crap shoot if I got a good one or not I did my research,I don't hunt anymore just a clays shooter so it was always in my mind will this thing last or not. Plus for me I didn't like the way it handled,for me it handles like a Browning. Repeat handles like a Browning not as good as a Browning.

So like I tell others if your heart is set for a certain brand or model of gun get it don't settle for something else.So the search began again and I got what I wanted to start with a Beretta O/U

DRSFMD can be a bit blunt - but I believe he works in a gun store and knows more than a little about guns. If he says he hears a lot of complaints about something then you maybe ought to listen to him

i agree with John,at first Doc rubber me the wrong way.Not anymore he's a good one to at least consider his advice. He has a lot of knowledge to share.

what useful information about Stoeger shotguns have you provided him?

If he want's a good gun that will last DON'T buy a Stoeger.there ya go.We each have our own opinions,we express them either honor it or disregard it.No real need to say someone if full of it because they don't agree with you

Take care and break um all {hs#

 

Not to beat a dead horse any longer, but here's what I've gleaned so far.

Hopper actually owned a Stoeger for a very short time. Apparently he didn't like the way it felt (like a Browning) so traded up for a Beretta, which is really what he wanted all along. He reported no problems with his Stoeger while he owned it.

John once knew someone who owned a Condor. He doesn't mention if it was a Competition or a field gun. Apparently his friend's gun developed some problems after being used hard in competition. What problems, he doesn't know.

Drsjmd dumps all over Stoegers in his post, but does not seem to have ever owned one and provides no anecdotal evidence to support his negative comments.

One thing that you all seem to have in common is a dislike of Stoegers, yet none of you can offer any firsthand experience to support your negative comments.

Once again, how is Snaketail going to gather any useful information from any of your posts?

 

He got 4 different perspective's,if none of these helped any he's more than capable enough to do his own research(call gun smith's ask folks he shoots with)make his own mind up.

I'm outta here.

 

Drsjmd dumps all over Stoegers in his post, but does not seem to have ever owned one and provides no anecdotal evidence to support his negative comments.

Yes, I did once have one in my safe. It was garbage and didn't last long. I've sold at least a hundred of them through the gun shop, and dealt with warranty issues on probably half of those. That's far too high a failure rate.

Is that firsthand enough? Bottom line... there's no free lunch.

 

drsfmd,

That's exactly the information that any reader of this thread would find usefull. Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

BTW, I used to shoot skeet at Pine Tree in Gloversville and trap at Clifton Park.

 

I have a Stoeger Condor. Bought it in January 2001 and STILL HAVE IT.

If I knew then what I know now, would I still have bought it? Dunno. Tough call.

Mine has had a couple of problems, but unlike many folks, I am not afraid of taking something apart and figuring out how it works (or accepting that I'm over my head.)

The Condor is an entry-level field gun, and is just not made all that well. Its machining and fitting is poor, and it uses materials that are not as good as the "big boys."

If you accept that, you may be OK.

On the Benelli website, I have helped lots of others with Condor issues solve them, and have helped probably nearly a thousand people convert the auto-safety to a manual safety (its really easy.) I have disassembled my Condor to component parts(on more than one occasion), and polished the component parts to make them "fit" better. But in the end, it is still not a Browning Citori and never will be.

Yep, even the Competition model. OK if you are shooting in a club league, maybe 50 targets a week, but if you're really going to shoot competitively and put thousands of rounds through it each year, save up and get a better gun.

Here's the list of things I am aware of that this gun has problems with:

-Come from the factory packed with cosmoline or something and MUST be disassembled and thorough cleaned before you ever shoot it. A lot of problems may be avoided by doing this.
-Safety re-engaging after first shot.
-Safety really stiff.
-Stock wood cracking on either side of the top lever (mine did this. but I glued them back on.)
-Trigger like a Daisy Red Rider (worst trigger on a gun I've ever shot.)
-Machined parts with "flashing" still attached getting in the way and preventing firing (mine did this, but I took it apart, diagnosed it, and filed off the offending material.)
-Barrel regulation (both barrels not shooting to the same POI, and this is a really bad problem, because you basically can't fix it.)
-Receiver cracking (evidence of poor materials.)

You can have these problems with any gun. It just seems Stoegers have them far more often than other guns.

Its really not a bad design. Its just not very well executed.

I have put thousands of rounds through mine, killed many pheasants and clay targets alike, and still get it out every once in a while when I pheasant hunt.

I cringe when I hear folks say, "my son/daughter is getting into target shooting and I got him/her one."

Really, get a used Remington 1100 or a Beretta 390/391/3901, Browning BT-99, or Citori, SKB 85TSS, Winchester Select Energy...more money but you/they will be far better off in the long run.

If you accept it is a cut-rate gun, and plan to use it once or twice a year on a pheasant hunt (and you get one without any of the problems noted above) it'll probably last you a long time.

Tim

 

Tim,

Thank you for another review based upon personal experiences. That's all Snaketail and I were looking for.

 

OK, I think I'll need to shop around more. Just looking to have fun without breaking the bank (which is pretty tender right now.)
Snaketail

 

I read a lot of post to stay away from these guns and get a "B" gun. You can find used ones for $800 or so. Realy? I've never seen a Citori for under $1000, and I've seen some pretty beat up ones for more.

If a person could afford a Browning or Berretta they would gotten one in the first place! For the working person $500 for a gun is a BIG investment. I would love to buy a BT-99 for trap but cant afford it. If I were to find a Condor Comp. in a store so I could look and shoulder it I would consider buying it if I had the money at that time.

 

For the working person $500 for a gun is a BIG investment. I would love to buy a BT-99 for trap but cant afford it.

1) Unless you are retired or independently wealthy, we're all "working people". I hate that expression, which evidences nothing more than class envy. If all someone can afford is a $500 gun, perhaps the shooting sports aren't for them, as the gun is by far the cheapest part of the equasion.

2) Brownings change hands on this site all the time for less than $1000. Berettas less often, but still on occasion. You just have to be ready when you see someone post a deal... don't think it's still going to be there next week, tomorrow, or even an hour from now. Anything that's in the classifieds here more than a day or two is either a real dog or way overpriced.

3) BT-99s... if you can afford a Stoeger competition, you can afford a used BT-99. Most of the used ones that come through our shop sell between $600 - $800.

4) Why is it that so many guys who cry poor mouth and "working man" are driving $50,000 pickups? I'm not saying that applies to you, but it's a phenomenon I've noticed.

 

If $500.00 is your level of pain - why would you buy a low end o/u? Why wouldn't you find the best gun for the job that could be had for $500.00?

I can understand a guy that wants an o/u for the field and doesn't want to beat up a more expensive gun. But I don't get why a guy would buy a $500 O/U that just is not built to last for target shooting. Take your $500.00 and go get something that will last.

Someone over on trapshooters said it pretty well. Money does not gaurantee quality, but quality costs money.

john

 

I never said "don't buy a Stoeger." I just said be aware of the facts before you do.

And in that price range, a used Remington 1100 or a used Beretta 390 can be had, and they're a better gun.

If you're stuck on an over-under, well, you're going to have to ante up a little more to get quality.

I actually like my Stoeger. Its been a workhorse. It fits me well. But make no mistake, when I take it out in the field, I always bring a back-up gun...just in case.

 

I've run over 5k rounds thru mine. not one problem. I know some of you think that anit sh*t when it comes to shootin clays. But not all of us are lucky enough to spend every waking moment shooting clays. I know that 200 boxes of shells anit many, but most of us get out maybe once a month and shoot 4 rounds if we're lucky. And subtract out the winter months for snow and cold. I like mine Competition. I'll save my money and send my boys to college before i buy a K, P, or whatever letter gun is hot at the time. To some this is the "I Love to Hate Stoeger" site.

 

I'll save my money and send my boys to college before i buy a K, P, or whatever letter gun is hot at the time.

Now there's a man who has his priorities straight.

 

I really do love my Stoeger Condor 20. I like the way it looks and I like the way it shoots and I just love an O/U. Having said that I can afford to buy the best gun made but I live in the country and just wanted a shotgun to fool with, shoot the occasional turkey that wanders accross my path and otherwise just plink around. Dont shoot skeet or clays and probably never will unless I get an automatic contraption and use it myself on my property. I have not had it too long but I had none of the initial problems that some of the people have alluded to. It suits what I want to a tee.

 

Have no experience with this gun, I however shoot a fair amount of skeet. Never seen one there. I have used and still use a couple less inexpensive shotguns for hunting, but the clay games are different. All of my "B" guns cost me less than $1000, new. All on sale, or rebates on some made it less than $900. Just keep looking or get a good Remington 870, Walmart Beretta, should be able to find used for about same price, about $500. I like the coach gun for cowboy action.

 

qcmetman, you are definitely one of a kind. My hat is off to you.

 

To quite honest, the first shooting session I had I hated it thru and thru. Mechanicallythe M2000 is a well built gun for the money and I go two barrels, the short 18.5 barrel was choked which was what I wanted and the 26 inch barrel standard choke. The gun kicked like two mules who didn't want to work on Sunday. The drop of the stock was too much for my likeing and my cheekbone was nearly broken after just two 2 3/4 win 00 buck rounds and two three inch heavyshot #2 rounds plus about 8 or ten # 8 shot low brass rounds. I wanted to trade that gun off. The buttstock was synthetic, a hollow plastic shell. I fixed the gun following he suggestion a member who advised other members in 2007. It now shoots very nicely, patterns well, and I am glad I couldn't trade it. it kicks but only 50 % what it used to. I guess you can say I am satisfied with price I paid and the gun itself. Olnly real cost was for a Limbsaver slip on buttpad. I stuffed plastic bags tightly in the hollow buttstock leaving a space for a roll of lead weights (I used 14 oz of .45 cal lead bullets packed in sandwich bags in a nice neat roll taped at each end with duct tape and added more plastic bags over it then replaced butt pad and slipped on the Limbsaver. Worked like a charm---poor man's recoil reducer!)

 

Wow... I haven't logged in here in so long that my user name and password was deleted at some point in the past during a board upgrade so I had to re-register.

Anyway, back in the mid 90s my wife decided she wanted to get back into shooting some skeet as I had returned to the game after about a 10yr lay off. I still had my 525 but had long since sold the B80 that she had used for years. I didn't want to spend a chunk of change on a new gun for her as I didn't know if she'd stick with it more than a few weeks so I bought a 20GA condor from a friend that had bought it new and never shot it.

This was around 1995 or 6... we've shot at least 40 weeks a year since, with a average 100 targets a week. So doing the math conservatively she's put at least 60K shells through that piece of crap. She's run many 100 straight with it and 25s are the norm for her.

The gun is loose as a goose... in fact it's been totally worn out for at least a couple years but she had refused to part with it because she was so "used to it".

I never liked the gun, can't count how many firing pins and springs I've replaced in it, front sight fell out of it once, replaced the butt stock twice.

I shot the gun on numerous occasions and never liked the way it felt, or shot for that matter. I patterned it right after buying it and the barrels WERE well regulated on this one... now, who knows... I'm sure it's shooting all over the place but her scores didn't seem to suffer.

In any event, I've declared the thing unsafe for further use in order to force her into a new gun. She seems to like the Beretta's and after 15yrs I guess she's gonna stick with it, so which ever one she picks out this weekend is hers.

Would I buy one again? Not for weekly use, no. Obviously these guns would last a hunter several life times.

Oh and they're butt ugly in my opinion.

We certainly got our $300 worth of use out of it though.

 

Just an update. Both boys are grown an gone now. One is a engineer and the other is in the USAF. Moved to KC and now I have time for skeet and clays. As for my stoger, its still running strong.