For fans of cheap shotguns - Stoger STF 3000 OU

[hAkron]

Yesterday I was made aware of the Stoger STF 3000. This is an over under shotgun imported from Brazil by Benelli. It is similar to the Stoger Condor but with a few modifications. The receiver is silver with electric pencil 'engraved' embellishments, a vent rib between the two barrels, and knurled screw in type chokes. From what I've read, they are exclusive to Dick's Sproting Goods stores. I'm not sure if they are national, but they are pretty ubiquitous in Ohio. They retail for $500 but are commonly discounted to $399 or $349. There are reports of this discounting going all the way back to 2008 forum posts on Shotgunworld. The problems commonly reported with this gun are weak primer strikes, issues with the bottom ejector causing the bottom shell to 'drag' on the receiver. The single trigger is not directly selectable and relies on the inertia from the recoil to switch from barrel to barrel which is another area for potential failure. Also issues with the shells slipping past the ejector requiring a lengthy trip back to Stoger for repair. These guns carry a 1 year warranty and the reports are that customer service can be less than friendly. People also seem to dislike the 'automatic safety' that engages ever time the action is open. Ok, so now that we got all of the bad news out of the way - I find the fit and finish on this gun slightly superior to what one might expect for a <$500 new O/U. While you might be able to find a used better quality O/U for less, for a new gun, this is a value that is hard to beat (even if you get a bad one that needs a trip home for fixing). I've only put 30 or so rounds through mine, but it is a nice shooting gun. Obviously there are good and bad examples of any sort of gun, and inexpensive guns generally having less QC than much more expensive guns are more prone to letting a bad one get by. I purchased this gun because I wanted to have an O/U for Skeet and Trap, while I already have a Mossberg 500 and a CZ 912, I felt that I might enjoy skeet and trap with a more proper (to my mind) tool for the job. If I get more deeply involved then I will shell out some more cash and get a higher quality gun, but for now this gun should meet my needs. I will post a better range report once I've shot more than apples and pumpkins off of a stump with it.

The gun, with this case, + a 10% discount for signing up for a Dick's Sporting Goods mastercard charge card was $392 out the door...

 

[NCsmitty]

Congratulations on your purchase, and I hope that you have as much luck with yours as I have had with my Stoeger Condor 410.
Often the budget O/U's available are derided by those who consider them useless for trap and skeet because of their price. Granted, some budget shotguns have a higher incidence of failure than the higher priced major brands, but for my Stoeger, I have had zero issues over the several years that I've had it, and it performs very well with my reloads, and never a FTF. IMO, it's a great value for the money.


NCsmitty

 

[oneounceload]

If it FITS and it WORKS, good for you! Go enjoy it......

 

[lobo9er]

^^^^^^^^ +1

 

[sedona]

Certainly worth what you paid for it.Dicks just opened last week a few miles from me so this will give me a reason to go there.

 

[ants]

Very nice review. In terms of frequency...

...It makes all the difference knowing how often these things occur.

• weak primer strikes
• bottom ejector causing the bottom shell to 'drag' on the receiver
• single trigger is not directly selectable and relies on the inertia which is another area for potential failure
• shells slipping past the ejector requiring a lengthy trip back to Stoger for repair

Do you happen to know how often are these problems reported on the STF 3000 ?

I mean, order of magnitude 1%, or 5%, or 20% of the time?

If only a few percent, then it might be well worth it.

If a quarter of the guns have one or more of these problems, not so worthwhile.

 

[hAkron]

...It makes all the difference knowing how often these things occur.

• weak primer strikes
• bottom ejector causing the bottom shell to 'drag' on the receiver
• single trigger is not directly selectable and relies on the inertia which is another area for potential failure
• shells slipping past the ejector requiring a lengthy trip back to Stoger for repair

Do you happen to know how often are these problems reported on the STF 3000 ?

I mean, order of magnitude 1%, or 5%, or 20% of the time?

If only a few percent, then it might be well worth it.

If a quarter of the guns have one or more of these problems, not so worthwhile.

Well, that's just it; my only data set comes from the Internet. To tell you that it appears to be at least 5 to 1 people reporting problems to people posting just to say they have not had a problem. Most people are more likely to post only if they have a problem, so that information is anecdotal at best, or at worst it serves to overblow the issue.

My intention here was to lay out the pros and cons from my research of what for some may have been an uninformed impulse buy.

 

[Lord Palmerston]

A couple of years ago I bought one at Dick's, in Virginia. At the beginning I had problems with weak primer strikes. To my surprise, after 500 rounds or so, the problem disappeared. Now and then the ejectors, on either barrel, will not work. But I didn't have any problem with the inertial cocking system. The automatic safety is not an issue for me, once you get accustomed to it. In my opinion, the Stoeger STF 3000 could become a decent gun were it not for the extended choke tubes supplied. Patterning has been horrendous and erratic. So I spent 120 additional bucks and got a new set from Trulock, IMO the best chokes you can buy today. I am pretty satisfied with the gun, because after mail-in rebate, I just paid $330 for it, which I consider it is a fair deal for a lower tier O/U.

 

[vellocet]

Why do you guys buy those things? Is that really that good of a price for a south american o/u shotgun? Don't they make them in China and Russia,too?