My new 20 gauge FAIR shotgun arrived,and after careful examination,I would give it a fair to good rating.Overall,the metal to metal fit,and wood to metal fit seems good,but there is a defect in the wood,and both the front and mid bead are off center of the rib.The mid bead is to the left of center,and the front bead is to the right of center,so lining them up,puts your aim off center.The metal finish is very good,and the wood finish is good.The recoil pad is too hard,and not shaped all that great.Compared to my Citori,the fit,and finish is not as good,and the recoil pad is inferior,but the off center beads clearly put the FAIR a grade below the Citori.On the plus side,the fair balances better,and has a better shaped fore end.It really is a shame that FAIR did not take more time with the beads,and install a better recoil pad,because the gun really does swing good and balance well.I will shoot the FAIR this weekend,and then I will likely keep the shotgun that I shoot best,and sell the other one.
New FAIR Shotgun
- Thread starter stubblejumper
- Start date
Why on earth would you keep and shoot a defective shotgun ?
I think you should reconsider, return the shotgun to the dealer and demand replacement. You should not accept mislocated beads on a new gun and take a bath on resale when you dump it because of the defect.
Tim
I think you should reconsider, return the shotgun to the dealer and demand replacement. You should not accept mislocated beads on a new gun and take a bath on resale when you dump it because of the defect.
Tim
- Location
- Ft. Mac. Alberta
Misaligned beads??!!
Didn't tell me THAT on the phone last night!!!
I am lost for words.....
Cat
fair
TO be FAIR!
I just don't understand why some good folks out there have to poo-poo on the net about a defictive product the received. Why not just simply call the seller and arrange a replacement. To be Fair, I ownn several of these shotguns and all have been very well made with no issues and a joy to shoot. I like them much better than Brownings for both fit and finish.
I'm fairlypositive that when contacted about the issues with your gun, Will would treat you very fairly.
TO be FAIR!
I just don't understand why some good folks out there have to poo-poo on the net about a defictive product the received. Why not just simply call the seller and arrange a replacement. To be Fair, I ownn several of these shotguns and all have been very well made with no issues and a joy to shoot. I like them much better than Brownings for both fit and finish.
I'm fairlypositive that when contacted about the issues with your gun, Will would treat you very fairly.
John is right about contacting the dealer and seeing if there is a reasonable solution before giving a bad review on these shotguns, I am certain that a dealer in fine arms would be more than willing to resolve the problem, Dale in T-Bay
Fair
"FAIR" Fabrica Armi Isidoro Rizzini -- very well respected Italian gun maker established in 1971 -- also make Cortona & Verona for the US market. They were the first Italian gun maker to get into CNC machines and hand finish their product. I like them better than the "B" guns.
"FAIR" Fabrica Armi Isidoro Rizzini -- very well respected Italian gun maker established in 1971 -- also make Cortona & Verona for the US market. They were the first Italian gun maker to get into CNC machines and hand finish their product. I like them better than the "B" guns.
- Location
- Ft. Mac. Alberta
My review was an honest review based on the gun that I received.If there were slight flaws,they should be revealed,and not covered up by the dealer.As to the the misaligned beads,I will point out that the misalignment was very slight.The front bead was very close to center,but the mid bead is about .020" closer to one side of the rib than the other.The reality is,that many people would never see the flaw,but I work in an industry where I deal with very close tolerances,so I did notice the misalignment.I have examined the gun very closely,and I can see no other flaws,other than a slight defect in the wood that you have to look for to find.The beads were an option in place of a single fluorescent front bead,so I believe they were installed after the gun left the assembly line.One person simply did not take enough time to precisely center the beads on the rib.
Do I believe that the FAIR is not a well made gun,not at all,as previously posted,the general fit and finish is good,but the Citori is perhaps just a little bit better in my opinion.For the $2500 price tag,I expected a gun at least on par with my Citori,and the slight bead misalignment place the FAIR slightly behind the Citori.
Do I believe that the FAIR is not a well made gun,not at all,as previously posted,the general fit and finish is good,but the Citori is perhaps just a little bit better in my opinion.For the $2500 price tag,I expected a gun at least on par with my Citori,and the slight bead misalignment place the FAIR slightly behind the Citori.
A twenty thou misalignment from center across an inch of width may be hardly noticeable, but not so across the much smaller width of a shotgun rib in my opinion. To me that would be extremely noticeable !!!
I too work every day with close tolerances in the .001 to .003 range and .020 is friggin huge error to me.
I still say send it back for replacement.
Tim
I too work every day with close tolerances in the .001 to .003 range and .020 is friggin huge error to me.
I still say send it back for replacement.
Tim
I am not being critical of you, but you did say the beads were an aftermarket installation, then you say the FAIR is behind the Browning because of the misaligned beads. It doesn't make sense to me.
I like the FAIR shotguns, and I am thinking of adding one to the herd shortly if finances allow. I wish the best of luck in resolving the issues with your gun.
I am not being critical of you, but you did say the beads were an aftermarket installation, then you say the FAIR is behind the Browning because of the misaligned beads. It doesn't make sense to me.
I like the FAIR shotguns, and I am thinking of adding one to the herd shortly if finances allow. I wish the best of luck in resolving the issues with your gun.
I don't read / interpert what he said as the mid bead being an aftermarket installation per se, but special order from the options list so it would have been installed by a F.A.I.R. gunsmith and not dealer / local gunsmith installed.
Perhaps the OP could clear that question up.
Tim
You have a point there, and I am not trying to start an arguement, I guess I assumed he meant it was aftermarket. It could be a factory installed option. Who knows?
Me neither,
I would like to know though.
But in the long run, it's his cash spent not mine.
I find it unacceptable and would miss the cash I'd lose getting rid of a defective shotgun down the line.
Tim
I don't think stubblejumper is slagging his new gun yet.
My take on it is he was describing first impressions.
Let him shoot it first , then see if he changes his mind
Now get out and Smoke Them Clays !
I will weight in with this though
btw I am interested in the looks of the gun, not the issue of the beads.
Would like to see the wood and metal work.
Good Shooting on the weekend.
Rob
My take on it is he was describing first impressions.
Let him shoot it first , then see if he changes his mind
Now get out and Smoke Them Clays !
I will weight in with this though
btw I am interested in the looks of the gun, not the issue of the beads.
Would like to see the wood and metal work.
Good Shooting on the weekend.
Rob
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Nowhere did I post anything about the beads being an aftermarket installation.They were an extra cost option that was installed by FAIR themselves.
Your take is 100% correct.I am going to shoot the gun this weekend at an Alberta Outdoorsman get together where a group of members will be shooting pheasant and chukar at a shooting preserve.
I did contact the dealer today,and I was a little disappointed in his lack of concern that there was a defect on the gun.I guess that I have been spoiled by dealing with Clay at Prophet River,since his customer service goes way beyond most dealers.
I just returned home from the AO pointer party,where I used the FAIR for all of my hunting.I had no issues at all with the gun,and I had no problem at all knocking down Chukars with the gun.The slightly off center bead appears to have no effect on my shooting,and the gun handles and swings great,so I am going to leave the gun as is,rather than chance trying to correct a very slight cosmetic issue that may result in a much more noticeable issue.Such things shouldn't happen on a gun in this price range,but the options offered by the dealer don't appear to be worth the effort or risk of making things worse.
