Any one handle the new Blaser F3s yet?

H

hr

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seems FN Sports/R Nichol's shipment of Blaser F3s are finally in the country, i see that a few dealers across the country has them now.... i was able to pop by my local dealer in Burnaby,BC and got to handle it... its a very nice and easy to point gun considering its a 32". both my guns are 28" so i was expecting to have a bit of problems pointing a 32" but that wasn't the case. had nice colour coded Briley chokes and a small red fibre optic front sight.

ejectors look very strong and agressive, metal and wood mates up really well....
i'm quite impressed /w the gun, i just wished it was a lil cheaper =)
 
Hr, I have not handled the F3 but I am interested in it. I like the concept of adjustable shotguns, and the Blaser is certainly that. I am pleased to hear that the fit & finish is acceptable. There is a good review of the gun here:

http://www.clay-shooting.com/guntests/blaserF3.pdf

Originally these guns were meant to be just a little more expensive than the Beretta 682 series of guns, can you tell us what price range they fall into now that they have hit Canadian shores?

Sharptail
 
I handled one in the UK last January and was positively impressed but not entirely sold. The one I played with seemed a touch heavy in the barrels and a little sluggish. I prefer a gun that is a little more lively but as it was explained to me the Blaser system permits one to change the balance point on the gun.

The ejector system seemed excellent and the triggers were superb. For the a price that falls in between a Beretta 682 and a Perazzi these are definitely guns worth looking at and are about the only o/u on the market these days that I might be tempted by.

I'm always skeptical of new o/us on the market and prefer that someone else buys the gun and gives it the initial trials but I remain very impressed with the Blaser.
 
i didn't get the price of the f3 that i was playing /w as the store owner was in a hurry to run to the Trap fields, will go back and chat /w him about it soon, as i'm quite interested in it.... but i do see that ellwoodepps has it listed on their site, its around 4800.

unfortuantely the batch that nichols brought in is in the luxus receiver and not the plain standard reciver, which i'm sure adds a few hundreds to the price... personally i prefer the plain reciver /w the "F3" marking than the pattern on the Luxus..

oh yeah its also quite light(typo) for a 32".. i'm a little surprised claybuster thought it was barrel heavy, i didn't get a chance to take apart the forarm, but from what i've read there are wieghts that can be adjusted to correct the balance of the gun....

i found a pic of the agressive looking ejectors here
F3123.jpg
 
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hr said:
oh yeah its also quite like for a 32".. i'm a little surprised claybuster thought it was barrel heavy,
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My reaction could have just been perspective. I shoot a relatively light barreled gun for clays and before I got to the Blaser had been handling a variety of English sxs, a breathtaking FAMARS o/u and various Perazzis. To me the Blaser felt like a German gun and had the handling I associate more with a Krieghoff. A lot of shooters like more weight in the barrels (Brownings, Krieghoffs) and others like the more nimble feel of a Beretta or Perazzi.

At a price of $4,800 the Blaser is a very attractive gun from what I saw.

Do you recall whether the triggers were inertia or mechanical?
 
i saw the trigger, dealer mentioned it was mechanical, but i really couldn't tell ya... as all i saw was a trigger. though i noticed it was adjustable for length and cant

i've not really had a chance to handle many english SxS... sounds like something i should try....

one neat thing about it unlike any O/Us i;ve seen was the breech face had screws on it that looked like you can unscrew it and get at the firing pins (COOL, you can kind of see that in the pices above)
 
Shot a 32-incher a couple of weeks back at 5 Stand and Skeet. It is decidedly NOT a muzzle heavy gun. The balance point is adjustable, within reason, the one I shot balanced right at the hinge pin. It's got all the bells and whistles and great triggers. A very well made sporting gun, and at a little under the price of a new 682 Gold E. IMHO a very good deal ! I wouldn't hesitate to take one over a new B525 or a 682Gold E. Very definitely mechanical triggers - saw one totally taken apart in February by a Blaser factory rep for demonstration purposes. Impressed to say the least. Won't trade my DT10 for one, but if I was in the market for a new Sporter, this would be it.
 
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beretta boy, where are you seeing them as being less than the 682GoldE????

from what i've been able to see on the web, the F3s are at least several hundred bucks more than the most expensive 682GoldE i've seen (not to mention that the 682GE in the 4K+ price range has the adj combs, where as the F3s i've seen doesn't)....
 
Regrets if I led you astray. You are quite correct !

... sorry, should have typed a little "OVER" the price of a 682 GoldE, but very good value nonetheless in a serious target gun (the "demo" F3 I was offered was less $ than a new Gold E at retail ) IMHO the Blaser is a lot better looking than the crap "checkering" and mickey mouse receiver decoration on current GoldE's and considerably less than a new Kolar, Krieghof, Perazzi or DT10.
 
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thanks Beretta Boy, you got my hopes up there for a sec =) *btw i like your DT10 too

but yes i agree, that the F3 is very good bang for the buck, and the cdn prices seem almost as good as if not better than the US prices....

saw the new checkering on the 682GE, i actually don't mind it.. the receiver design defiantely needs some work, though the new F3 is still a fair bit cheaper than the used Lutjic i saw at Kesselrings... =(
 
hr :

It occurred to me that when someone was ready to step-up to a serious target gun, the F3 was a valid option... and a reasonably economical way to go.

I've owned amongst others, a Winchester Live Bird, a Browning 325, two 425's, and an older 682 Gold. Was about to pop for an ASE 90 Gold when the DT10's came out, ( saw the first, I think, a proto-type at the '99 Grand) so bided my time until I could get my hands on one early in 2000. Had tried Krieghoffs, Kemens, Perazzi's and a Kolar, but opted for the Beretta. Had the F3's been available at the time, I think I would have gone that way. Yes, I'm very impressed with them. Also think the Caesar Guerini 32" "Summit Sporting" is good value as a Sporter, but not quite in the same class as the F3.
 
hr:

Checked in yesterday with a bud that's been shooting his F3 (a lot ) over the past couple of months. Probably 10-15 flats through it without a "hiccup" of any kind. ... and his scores have been inching-up steadily - go figure !!!
Another sporting bud from Quebec has been shooting one sionce late last fall.
Nothing but positive reviews.
 
beretta boy said:
Nothing but positive reviews.
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This is the stuff that really counts. Reports from the field.

Only problem is that now I'm getting that all too familiar itch....

Repeat to myself again, I have enough guns. I will shoot better if I stick with what I've got. Why transition to something new when what you have is working for you? No, going to a new gun will not help you break more targets

Note, this mantra has failed repeatedly in the past. :D
 
beretta boy said:
" Keep talking to yourself" Claybuster

... the best $$$$ I ever spent on a gun was for a DT10 & don't regret it for one second. And yes, the scores did go up.
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I feel exactly the same way about my MX8 but that doesn't stop me from wanting an F3. ;)
 
For the record:
FN Sport has imported both both models, Std models with upgraded Luxus wood and the Luxus models.
They do not feel anything like a K80, 682G or any of the Brownings made for the American market. The Blaser is priced above the 682G & well below the DT10.
 
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