Some questions and comments about Pardner shotguns.

[JimG]

I've never paid NEF/H-R much attention because of the plastic trigger guards and the fact that I just could'nt see how a $99 (paid far less for mine :grin: ) shotgun could be worth a darn. Well I went ahead and bought one last week when a local dealer caught me eyeing one and shot me a deal I could not refuse on a new 26" barrel, 20 gauge w/modified choke. The wood seems to be very decent as well as the fit/finish. I took some #6's and #7.5's to the range and patterned the gun. I took a few shots at some clays. Well all I can say is that I'm impressed! The gun shot a very nice and basically even (no holes or gaps in the pattern)pattern on cardboard. I was also surprised to see that the pattern was perfectly centered left to right and that the gun shot nicely vertically(not high or low!!). I used a 6 o'clock hold and the clays shattered every time! The lockup seems nice and tight also. So far I'm very impressed and can see where you guys really like your NEF/H-R rifles and shotguns. However I have two questions. I did not notice at the dealers shop that right behind the wood forearm is a piece of plastic that appears to act as part of the hinge. I have not disassembled the gun to verify this, but it does appear as though it's not a 'cover' or the like. Is this plastic?!? The other question is do you guys have any issues with barrels not taking touch up blue? The muzzle had a very small nick in the metal. Hence the good price he shot me. I used a fine ignition file and 1000 grit wet/dry paper and then #0000 steel wool to make that nick literally dissapear. However even after degreasing the area with alcohol it will not take touch up type blueing. Wipes right off with your finger. I've got a very small area to do but it won't blue non the less. You all may have another 'convert' to add to your ranks. I'm going to try some foster type slugs this week. From what I can see the guns value far outways it's cost.

[JimG]

Well I solved the blueing issue with many, many applications of the blueing. Each application would gradually make the steel darker. Took far more than the typical 3-4 applications most guns need to make the repair blend in. However I'm still curious as to the plastic at the hinge.

[Paul Mohr]

Here are a few pics for you.



In this pic you can see what the barrel actually pivots on and is held in place by. The grove in the barrel lug rides on the large pin in the reciever. Indicated by the letter A in the picture.

It is held and locked into place by the lever in the back of the reciever and the notch in the back of barrel lug. Indicated by the letter B in the picture. This is what moves when you press the button to open the barrel. It's sort of like a simple trigger really. This is actually a pretty strong, simple and solid design.

In the next picture you can see that the plastic peice on the grip really just helps guide the barrel and fore arm around the reciever and helps hold the barrel in place when the breach is open. When the gun is closed and locked it really just serves as a piece of trim to fill the gap for looks.


These guns do use plastic on them and the fit and finnish leaves much to be desired. However they are plenty functional and priced very well for what they are. If they had all metal trim and smooth polished surfaces they would cost much more to make and in turn would cost more to sell.

This would make it hard for them to compete with Mossberg and Rossi. I do wish they made a Premium series or something that had nicer trim and finnish. I think many second time buyers would pay the extra money for it now that they know how well they perform.

Paul

[JimG]

Has this 'trim' piece been known to break? I know you can break anything you want, but how likely is it to break under normal to extensive use?

[WNY_Whitetailer]

I've never heard a report of one breaking...Anyone else?

[MSP Ret]

I have never heard of any breaking or of any problem(s) with them either....<><.... :grin:

[Paul Mohr]

Under normal use I don't see it happening. I have never seen a broken one. I would talk to a gun store and see if they have ever had to replace one. It is held on by two screws so it would be easy to replace and I doubt would cost too much.

If you were to break one my guess is it would by dropping the fore arm after you took it off. I suppose you could drop it and it might land on the end breaking the plastic peice.

I have owned plenty of guns with plastics trigger gaurds and the such, I have never broken one yet. Heck I have owned pellet guns comprised mostly of plastic and never broke one. Some of this plastic is waay stronger than people give it credit for. They are making engine blocks and headers out of plastic now. Heck most combat hand guns and assult rifles are made out of plastic. I would not be overly concerned about it.

Paul

[JimG]

Good to hear that it is not an issue with breakage. I may look at one the NEF rifles soon.

[DaveH]

I have not hear of any of the oh what to call it .... the Fore arm spacer breaking.  I checked with one of the local gun shop owners that I know sells a bunch of these guns and he says he has ever had one tuned in borke.  If it never did break knowing NEF/H&R they would send you a replacement free.  By the way I have a 26 in .20 ga mod choke its a nice little gun to shoot.  That is when I get a chance to shoot it. The GF has taken a liking to it.

[snakeman]

I bought a 12 gauge when I turned 18. That was 11 years ago. I have put close to 10,000 rounds thru this gun. The only thing that has broken is the ejector. It is now an extractor. I need to send it in and have it fixed but I can't part with the gun for that long.  It has been thru the ringer. I even dropped it in the water out duck hunting and it was lost for a couple of hours. I also have one in 20 gauge. I live on a 40 acre ranch and one of these two guns is never far from hand. They are great guns for the money and very addictive.  
 
 
snakeman

[Markus]

I got my 1st in 1974 and have used and abused these gun ever since and have never broken anything ...yet. I probably just jinxed myself but they do offer a metal trigger guard and foramr spacer if you want one bad enough. I seem to recall it is rather pricey though $65.00? or something like that. I'm sure you can find the part number and actual cost if you do a search. I'm sure CS would be glad to hook you up with it as well.