Baikal O/U's - looking for some info...

S

Skans

New member
I want a cheap used knock-a-round over under 12 gauge that has some toughness to it. I've done a little research and it sounds like the Baikal single trigger O/U's work ok. I would like to hear other's experience with the Baikal O/U's on durability and the ability to hit what you point it at.

I already have a higher end Beretta o/u which fits me well. However, it's too nice for some occasions when I don't want to worry about dings and scratches. Anything that costs me over $500 is going to be something that I will care too much about. I also want the ability to cut the stock down, if necessary, to mach the lop of my Beretta. Basically, I want an ugly, dirt cheap version of my Beretta in close to the same dimensions and function.

Just wondering what can and does break on the Baikal o/u's.
 
Just wondering what can and does break on the Baikal o/u's.
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Everything... ;)

What happens when your $500 gun breaks several times and the cost of the gunsmith starts to exceed the price of a used Beretta?

CDNN has Lanbers starting under $500 new
 
Almost all of the Baikal's I've seen were junk....

About 6 or 7 yrs ago...we saw a lot of them show up at ranges in my area.../ some gun store in the area brought in a bunch of them and was selling them pretty cheap guns for kids, whatever....and within a yr or so, with very little use...they were all having problems.../ trigger issues, parts breaking internally, some of them were doubling... / there were some barrel "regulation issues" ...where barrels were not hitting the same point of impact..../ one in particular I remember had one barrel 6" high right and other 4" or so low and left...

At the same time is wasn't 100% either...but you can't look at them and tell if they'll be ok or not..
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If I wanted a "knock around" gun.....I'd try and find a synthetic stocked gun / or an older Browning or Beretta field grade gun..../ they aren't necessarily cheap but then again, they will stand up to heavy use.
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My gun club bought some Mossberg, some Remington and some TriStars....for the "rental" guns...and none of them held up ...and they dumped them all and have gone back to buying used Beretta and Browning O/U's ( field grades) - when they can find them / even broken ...fix them up a little ...and most of them have run without any issues for last 2 or 3 years.
 
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I've said it before and I'll say it again - if you want a good "field" gun o/u and don't mind being patient to get the right used one look for a Marlin 90 (Aka Sears Ranger). They were extremely well made. The only downside is that they will have fixed chokes.
 
And you'll have a harder time getting parts as well........
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Maybe. Over the last year or so I've seen several sold as parts guns (cheap too). Then again, a well built gun that is ony used as a field gun (i.e. low round count) could go a lifetime without ever needing a part replaced.
 
Not a lot of love out there for the Baikal. How about the Stoeger Condor?

For occasional skeet; can be a loaner for friends and don't want to have to worry about it when tent camping! I'm tempted to get one or the other for $300. About the worst that could happen is it breaks and I have to sell it for parts and lose $150 or learn to do a little shotgun smithing - could be fun.:)

Now, if I buy a knock-a-round o/u for $700, and the wood gets scratched/dinged or the metal parts start to rust from being in a humid or wet tent for several days, I'm out $300 in value after sanding down the metal and using cold blue to cover up the shiny parts.

Or, I could take my Beretta out, baby it for 3 days and have a really crappy time worrying about my shotgun the entire time.
 
If you look at those Lanbers I mentioned, they start under $500, one is close to $400, and it should handle better and still be a good loaner/backup
 
I did see a Lanber 12 Gauge Model 1212 with a $200 bid on gunbroker, but no telling what the reserve is. $300 is about what I have to spend on a used o/u right now. Wouldn't mind one of those Lanbers if I could find a dinged up one for about that price.
 
Stoeger might be a little better than Baikal....but not a lot...based on what I've seen ...they have similar issues.

I have not seen any of the Lanbers...so I'll defer to A400's experience...on those.
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How about an old Ruger maybe...used they don't hold their value as well as Browning or Beretta.....you might find some around...
 
i would go to gun shows,swap meets and flea markets and look for a used o/u, one that already has the abuse you want it inflect on it. i saw a used browning o/u with bangs and dings along with a rotten paint job for 400.00, i looked it over and the bores were ex and the selective trigger worked along with the ejectors and may have bought it, but it had fixed choked and i like being able to change chokes. i,m not pushing brownings as there are many other fine o/u,s to pick from, find one you like and buy it. but if a person tells you he has fired fifty thousand rounds thru a certain shotgun in the clays games, it will most likely last for several peoples life times in the field. you have been given good advice here, i know as i have used the advice given here and have found 99 pecent of it good. eastbank.
 
I've got a baikal break barrel rifle made off the shot gun stock/action, shootable rubbish is the best description, but it's as you want cheap flog it don't care firearm. My self I'd recommend looking at Boito o/u comes with two barrel sets 30" with chokes and a 20" set with rifle sites. Cost you probably a hundred more but extra barrels well worth it. Happy with mine 20" fun on hogs with rifled slugs, 30" as good as any popping clays. Better finished gun allround
 
I have a pair of th Baikal O/U shotguns, a 12 and a 20 GA, they've been fine. They were real tight, I went in and loosened and lightened them up a bit.
Don't know about the Stoeger O/Us, but the Sxs I've seen lately are crap. I've seen several with broken lower barrel lugs in the last few years. The older ones are better.
My Baikals are older as well.
 
They were real tight, I went in and loosened and lightened them up a bit
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Why would you deliberately accelerate the wear and tear without shooting it? A tight shotgun, when new, is a GOOD thing; it means the parts were actually mated together well. The LAST thing you want in a break open shotgun is something that is loose. Even as crappy as they are, they aren't supposed to be loose like a Mossberg pump.......:p
 
Why would you deliberately accelerate the wear and tear without shooting it?
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In trying to do some research on the Baikal's I understand that part of the reason they are hard to close is there is too much tension on the ejector springs. Some folks bought some spares and then cut the springs down a bit to make a more user-friendly shotgun. Perhaps that's what he was talking about.
 
I said loosened it up some. That was not to mean I made it loose, only easier to open.
Actually, a lot of the opening and closing pressure is how tight the forearm presses against the receiver. As well, cooking the hammers affects opening pressure, as the ejectors affect closing pressures.
Russian guns have notoriously strong springs in them. They can be lightened a fair bit without sacrificing reliability.
I lightened the hammer springs, the ejector springs, and relieved the forearm fit a bit. Closed tightness is totally unaffected. However, it opens and closes noticeably easier.
 
Mossberg maverick hunter is worth a look. $500 new where I live, changeable chokes, mine has given me no problem so far (700 rounds over a year) and the furniture is polymer. Not a gun I'm afraid to treat rough, and IMHO does not handle badly. A good O/U loaner or hunting backup for someone with a better gun they want treated gently.
 
Buddy of mine took a new Stoeger OU .20 ga. to the dove field on opening day. He did shoot some clays with it first, but simply couldn't hit real birds with it. At end of day I looked at it a little, stock had loosened and had a noticible wobble, no big deal but would have upset me quite a bit, also it doesn't fit the same as his old pumpgun, straighter stock thus I suspect he was shooting over birds. Personally I am wanting to buy a used Browning Citori or Beretta OU, and use it like my Rem 11-87. Seems to me that if I buy a $1,000 shotgun and use it hard, losing say $500 in value, then I still have a $500 shotgun (would sell super easy at that price), same price as a budget OU. Don't know what it takes to wear out a Browning or Beretta OU but probably more that an field shooter would ever do.
 
I have a number of Browning O/U's ...Lightning and XS Skeet models...with well over 500,000 shells thru them ...and I have not even replaced firing pins or springs yet..../ ...... "wear them out" , I don't know ...a million shells, or more...if you take care of them.
 
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