Stoeger 3500 Report (not good so far)

U T

I bought a new Camo 26" Stoeger 3500 3 1/2" autoloader based on good reviews on it and on the 2000 3" autoloader. (Ok, no photo, so I gues I didn't really get one!) But seriously, I would have done the photo, but it's already back at Stoeger (Benelli) for warranty work. My main concern was that it would shoot 2 3/4" shells, 1 1/8 oz loads, and it did that flawlessly. After about 70 of those loads, I decided to try some 3" and 3 1/2" steel shot loads, and it ejected them fine, but the second shot would drop onto the carrier, and not feed, probably 75% of the time, until I bumped the bolt handle forward. Yeah, there's plenty here, that think there's no reason to ever need 3 1/2", so those of you that think that, please keep the snickering to yourselves. I'm guessing that either the carrier spring wasn't strong enough to lift the 3 1/2" shell or the return spring wasn't strong enough to force it up and forward. Either way it sucks.

This is my second Stoeger, and the first was a 3000 20 ga. over/under that I hated. The safety was very difficult to push to off position, 1 choke tube was either cross threaded or seized onto the threads and had to be forced out with choke tube wrench, and 2 other choke tubes were dented, only to be replaced under warranty, with more dented choke tubes. Not having real good luck with Stoeger, but feel that the 3500 will be good, once it is fixed, I HOPE!

I'll follow up with further review, when I get it back, and that review will be expensive, shooting 3 1/2" shells. Stoeger should provide the test shells, since I wasted all of mine!

NN

You never know with a shotgun, I had a rem 11-87 that did similar stuff. Rem could not fix it, so they replaced it.

All ended well and it was to be a spare gun so I was never without a hunting shotgun.

TSchub

Stuff like this happens, especially with the lower price point lines. Hopefully all will be well once you get it back. a buddy has a Storger auto shotgun and like it a lot. It has ran fine the times we had it out.

jbohio

That sucks UT, nothing worse than a brand new gun that doesn't work.
I have some buddies that similar issues with Charles Daly auto loaders. They bought 4 between them, none of them would cycle the second shell. They got stuck with them when CD went out of business.
I'm kinda surprised, after your bad experience with Stoeger, that you bought another one.

Time for a VersaMax?

U T

jbohio wrote: »

That sucks UT, nothing worse than a brand new gun that doesn't work.
I have some buddies that similar issues with Charles Daly auto loaders. They bought 4 between them, none of them would cycle the second shell. They got stuck with them when CD went out of business.
I'm kinda surprised, after your bad experience with Stoeger, that you bought another one.

Time for a VersaMax?

I llike the inertia action, and have a super black eagle, and a montifeltro 20 ga. and they are great. This is just a spare gun, and one for my son to use, hopefully once it gets reliable. I don't know if this makes much difference, but the over under I think is made in Brazil, and the 3500 is made in Turkey? Who knows?
Right now, my spare is a 11-87 Rem supermag, that works pretty good, but I don't like having to add or remove the spacer ring, or whatever they call it to swith to and from 3 1/2" shells.

jbohio

U T wrote: »

I llike the inertia action, and have a super black eagle, and a montifeltro 20 ga. and they are great. This is just a spare gun, and one for my son to use, hopefully once it gets reliable. I don't know if this makes much difference, but the over under I think is made in Brazil, and the 3500 is made in Turkey? Who knows?
Right now, my spare is a 11-87 Rem supermag, that works pretty good, but I don't like having to add or remove the spacer ring, or whatever they call it to swith to and from 3 1/2" shells.

Gotcha. You were hoping for SBE light, or inexpensive. Stands to reason that if its the same basic action, should work the same.

Hopefully they get it straightened out for you.

U T

The biggest difference between the Stoeger and the Benelli is the return spring. The Benelli return spring is in located in the stock, and pushes the bolt forward, and the Stoeger return spring is located around the magazine tube. So it figures that seems to be the area of my problem. Maybe Stoeger shouldn't have changed that part of the design!

temmi

We have a 2000 also and it is a perfect gun.

I was hoping to get a 3500... so please keep us posted.

U T

update: I got the gun back and it worked fine for turkey season, but now the bolt is staying open again and not feeding shells, but I figured it out. The return spring has gotten kind of unsprung, and out of round, and the bolt is getting caught against it when the bolt travels all the way back. I took it off and retensioned it, and turned it end for end, and now it's functioning fine. I have contacted Stoeger to see if they will send me a new one under warranty, and if not, asked for them to price me a new one. Simple fix, but frustrating. As I mentioned earlier, the return spring on the stoeger is around the magazine tube, and my benellis are in the stock. Wish they had coppied that aspect of the gun, and there wouldn't have been any issues.

DanChamberlain

The only and I mean "only" weapon I've ever purchased that I was 100% happy with from the get-go was a Benelli semi-auto law enforcement shotgun. We never got it working correctly and it went back to the factory twice. Double feeds, dropping live rounds out the bottom during recoil. It was a mess. It can happen.

Dan

bisley

Keep us posted on the factory service. I have a 2000 that has been flawless for dove hunting, but I've wondered what I might run into if it should ever need service.

The Stoegers are actually built more on the Franchi design, with regard to the recoil spring setup. Mine has had a lot of rounds go through it in the last couple of years, and is still going strong. Unlike most folks I know, though, I actually take it down and give it a really good cleaning after each use. I have hunting partners who use Benelli's and Franchi's that they never clean, but I just can't do that.

U T

DanChamberlain wrote: »

The only and I mean "only" weapon I've ever purchased that I was 100% happy with from the get-go was a Benelli semi-auto law enforcement shotgun. We never got it working correctly and it went back to the factory twice. Double feeds, dropping live rounds out the bottom during recoil. It was a mess. It can happen.

Dan

Dan,
I've don't think I've ever mentioned this, but my first Benelli SBE had issues feeding, which the end of the shotshell wouldn't hit the entry hole of the chamber, and just jam. It would actually cut the edge of the shell. I had to send it back at least twice, called Italy, sent a video of it happening, and finally told them that I didn't want that gun back, and finally I got them to send me brand new one, which they did very reluctantly, and it has been a great gun. This is when HK was importing them. What a pain, and I think, at that time was the most expensive autoloading shot gun!

snake284

U T wrote: »

I bought a new Camo 26" Stoeger 3500 3 1/2" autoloader based on good reviews on it and on the 2000 3" autoloader. (Ok, no photo, so I gues I didn't really get one!) But seriously, I would have done the photo, but it's already back at Stoeger (Benelli) for warranty work. My main concern was that it would shoot 2 3/4" shells, 1 1/8 oz loads, and it did that flawlessly. After about 70 of those loads, I decided to try some 3" and 3 1/2" steel shot loads, and it ejected them fine, but the second shot would drop onto the carrier, and not feed, probably 75% of the time, until I bumped the bolt handle forward. Yeah, there's plenty here, that think there's no reason to ever need 3 1/2", so those of you that think that, please keep the snickering to yourselves. I'm guessing that either the carrier spring wasn't strong enough to lift the 3 1/2" shell or the return spring wasn't strong enough to force it up and forward. Either way it sucks.

This is my second Stoeger, and the first was a 3000 20 ga. over/under that I hated. The safety was very difficult to push to off position, 1 choke tube was either cross threaded or seized onto the threads and had to be forced out with choke tube wrench, and 2 other choke tubes were dented, only to be replaced under warranty, with more dented choke tubes. Not having real good luck with Stoeger, but feel that the 3500 will be good, once it is fixed, I HOPE!

I'll follow up with further review, when I get it back, and that review will be expensive, shooting 3 1/2" shells. Stoeger should provide the test shells, since I wasted all of mine!

I agree with TSchub below here. Hopefully it will be fine when they finish the warranty work. No reason for it not to be a good gun. Just make sure that if they get it lined out with 3"-3 1/2" shells that it will still function with 2 3/4" ones.

U T

I received the new spring a couple of days ago, no charge.

Great customer service/warranty!!!!!

gamekillin

This happens some times.i bought a brand new winchester sx3 and when i got home put it together inoticed the triger was messed up.so i took it apart and it had the trigger return spring wasent hooked up. Also my sx3 does not like low base jams alot. But my 3500 is flawless.

wizard78

U T wrote: »

.......

I'll follow up with further review, when I get it back, and that review will be expensive, shooting 3 1/2" shells. Stoeger should provide the test shells, since I wasted all of mine!

Wally World has the best price on 3 and 3&1/2 inch Turkey shells, hands down. I try to support a couple of the LGS but we're talking half price! Makes a big difference when you shoot up 50 or 60 shells to test out.