Since I found little information in researching this combination of shotgun and gauge, I decided to share the post I made on the Marlinowners forum:
So Le Baron was advertising the SB1-028 for 184.99$ CDN and I went by there on Saturday to pick one up. When I got there, I had a nice suprise, they were having a sale on all firearms, with 15% off, so I paid 156$ CDN before taxes!
They had a few in stock so I really took my time looking them over because of what I have heard of the Remlins 336's. For those who are not aware, Remington purchased Marlin and H&R a few years back. The be honnest I took a very skeptical approach and I may have judged these harder than any single shot I have ever purchased. They are not made in Brazil or Russia after all!
The two first I looked over had poor fitment at the top and under points where the stock meets the receiver. Nothing crazy, but if you get to choose, might as well be picky. The third one had good fitment in those areas, but had a very small nick in the forend. The major issue with that one was that it had a broken or defective release lever. The spring did not return it to the upper position, so the dealer put it aside. The fourth one is the one I bought and I did not look over the fifth one they had in stock.
A negative point I have found on the shotgun I chose, was machining marks that were left on the top of the release lever. I noticed the same thing on at least one of the other guns, which was actually in worse condition. There are also minor issues with the furniture were there are inequalities. You can see a slight one where they mated the butt plate and their is a variation where the taper of the forend meets the receiver. Both sides do not match up identically.
The finish on the receiver and barrel is acceptable, but not a deep blue or case coloring. The hardwood of the stock is definitly an upgrade compared to the Rossi's I've owned. The hammer and tranfer bar work well and the trigger release is crisp. The chamber and barrel are nice. The head of the release lever is smooth, sadly no serrations or checkering.
This shotgun is built like a tank. The action is tight, the barrel around the chamber is thick like a Cooey and the stock is beefy. The barrel tab, where the forend screw attaches, is nicely fitted to the barrel. Not like the gross welding observed on my Rossi. The later, now have a redundant safety lever, as the H&R only uses the transfer bar.
The H&R comes with a locking device and a padlock. I doubt that many owners will be using it as it is necessary to keep the action partially open when it is used and the lock can rub on the receiver.
I knew that the big box stores would not have 28 gauge ammo on their shelves, but I was happy to see that the four gun stores I visited had some in stock. Prices for 2 3/4", 3/4oz. no.6 lead varied from 12$ to 30$ CDN depending on stores and brands. I bought Remington Express Long Range (1295FPS) and Challenger Sporting, 1330FPS.
I decided to test the Modified choke at 25 yards with a Turkey patterning target. To my suprise I got six clean hits in the vitals using the Challenger load. The pattern was more evenly spread than with the Remington ELR. The recoil seemed more like a shove than a kick. It's not bad, but a little more than anticipated. I guess if you added a good butt pad and a semi-auto action the 28 would be real smooth. I'll try to find lower velocity shells to see if it makes a noticible difference.
The Rossi's I've owned have really served me well and I'm not saying that this shotty is perfect in comparison. In the end, even with my skepticism, I am really happy with my purchase and it actually cost less than the last Brazilian I bought. Plus it's a 28ga, how cool is that!
So Le Baron was advertising the SB1-028 for 184.99$ CDN and I went by there on Saturday to pick one up. When I got there, I had a nice suprise, they were having a sale on all firearms, with 15% off, so I paid 156$ CDN before taxes!
They had a few in stock so I really took my time looking them over because of what I have heard of the Remlins 336's. For those who are not aware, Remington purchased Marlin and H&R a few years back. The be honnest I took a very skeptical approach and I may have judged these harder than any single shot I have ever purchased. They are not made in Brazil or Russia after all!
The two first I looked over had poor fitment at the top and under points where the stock meets the receiver. Nothing crazy, but if you get to choose, might as well be picky. The third one had good fitment in those areas, but had a very small nick in the forend. The major issue with that one was that it had a broken or defective release lever. The spring did not return it to the upper position, so the dealer put it aside. The fourth one is the one I bought and I did not look over the fifth one they had in stock.
A negative point I have found on the shotgun I chose, was machining marks that were left on the top of the release lever. I noticed the same thing on at least one of the other guns, which was actually in worse condition. There are also minor issues with the furniture were there are inequalities. You can see a slight one where they mated the butt plate and their is a variation where the taper of the forend meets the receiver. Both sides do not match up identically.
The finish on the receiver and barrel is acceptable, but not a deep blue or case coloring. The hardwood of the stock is definitly an upgrade compared to the Rossi's I've owned. The hammer and tranfer bar work well and the trigger release is crisp. The chamber and barrel are nice. The head of the release lever is smooth, sadly no serrations or checkering.
This shotgun is built like a tank. The action is tight, the barrel around the chamber is thick like a Cooey and the stock is beefy. The barrel tab, where the forend screw attaches, is nicely fitted to the barrel. Not like the gross welding observed on my Rossi. The later, now have a redundant safety lever, as the H&R only uses the transfer bar.
The H&R comes with a locking device and a padlock. I doubt that many owners will be using it as it is necessary to keep the action partially open when it is used and the lock can rub on the receiver.
I knew that the big box stores would not have 28 gauge ammo on their shelves, but I was happy to see that the four gun stores I visited had some in stock. Prices for 2 3/4", 3/4oz. no.6 lead varied from 12$ to 30$ CDN depending on stores and brands. I bought Remington Express Long Range (1295FPS) and Challenger Sporting, 1330FPS.
I decided to test the Modified choke at 25 yards with a Turkey patterning target. To my suprise I got six clean hits in the vitals using the Challenger load. The pattern was more evenly spread than with the Remington ELR. The recoil seemed more like a shove than a kick. It's not bad, but a little more than anticipated. I guess if you added a good butt pad and a semi-auto action the 28 would be real smooth. I'll try to find lower velocity shells to see if it makes a noticible difference.
The Rossi's I've owned have really served me well and I'm not saying that this shotty is perfect in comparison. In the end, even with my skepticism, I am really happy with my purchase and it actually cost less than the last Brazilian I bought. Plus it's a 28ga, how cool is that!
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