Franchi Renaissance Elite mechanics

[hattles]

Guys, Any help with the questions below would be helpful. Don't want to mess up the new gun!! Thanks, Joe I am new to this site and the U/O world. I recently purchased a Franchi Diamond O/U in 12 gauge from Dick's Sporting Goods for my son's graduation. It is a great looking gun,and he seems very happy. The action (breaking it open to load / unload) is very stiff, any suggestions? Any advice on breaking in the gun? Thanks for the input, Joe

My Renaissance Classic is still tight and it's been 2 years. They're built tight which is a good thing. Shoot a lot and shoot often and enjoy a well made shotgun.

[jamica joe]

My Renaissance Classic is still tight and it's been 2 years. They're built tight which is a good thing. Shoot a lot and shoot often and enjoy a well made shotgun.

Thanks for the reply!

This gun is very very tight... You have to gorilla grip to get into position to load bottom barrel. There's no way that you could work a dove shoot!

There are a couple of small "scratches" through the bluing(can see bright steel), and we have not even shot the gun. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Should I return to Dick's and see what they will / can do?

Joe

[DumbDuck]

27 Dec. 10

Joe,

Your description of the scratches sounds like you may have some debris in the action.

I'd take the gun apart and clean off all grease or surface treatment with a good bore cleaner or similar solvent. Then I'd look for burs on the barrel or inside the receiver. If you find any, you might remove them with fine sand paper or steel wool. If there are major burs, take it back to Dicks.

I'd suggest a heavy application of Rig to the bearing surfaces. Any where steel rubs against steel. (the trunnions and sides of the receiver). The heavy grease will stay in place and my aid in opening the piece.

The gun should eventually "wear in" but if it takes a ridiculous amount of effort to open and close it after cleaning, something may be wrong and I'd again take it back to Dicks or sent it back to Franchi.

Merry Christmas,

Bill

[jamica joe]

27 Dec. 10

Joe,

Your description of the scratches sounds like you may have some debris in the action.

I'd take the gun apart and clean off all grease or surface treatment with a good bore cleaner or similar solvent. Then I'd look for burs on the barrel or inside the receiver. If you find any, you might remove them with fine sand paper or steel wool. If there are major burs, take it back to Dicks.

I'd suggest a heavy application of Rig to the bearing surfaces. Any where steel rubs against steel. (the trunnions and sides of the receiver). The heavy grease will stay in place and my aid in opening the piece.

The gun should eventually "wear in" but if it takes a ridiculous amount of effort to open and close it after cleaning, something may be wrong and I'd again take it back to Dicks or sent it back to Franchi.

Merry Christmas,

Bill

Thanks for the reply... I have not had the time to get back to Dicks. There does not seem to be any debris or burrs.

What is Rig?

Thanks,

Joe

[DumbDuck]

7 Jan. 11

"Rig" is a Birchwood Casey product. It is a heavy grease/lubricant/preservative. It is employed at areas that rub or where actions pivot. It can also be spread over the surface of the gun as a rust preventative.

I use it mainly as a rust preventative on my blued guns. However I also use to lube the bearing surfaces of my o/u and SxS shotguns.

Because of its high viscosity, it stays where you put it and provides long lasting lubrication.

DumbDuck (Bill)

[hotshot142]

This can be an easy answer.... just shoot it!

or a little more complex....

If you want to hasten the stiffness, my gunsmith suggested the following:

Clean the action (receiver and barrel pivot/locking mechanism) thoroughtly
Lubricate with good gun oil per the owners manual.
Work the action a few hundred times with snapcaps.
Clean and re-lube with good gun grease or oil. Whatever you prefer.

I've done this and it works fine. The Franchi shotguns are usually stiff when new. I have a couple, and they breakin nicely using this process.

Good luck, and enjoy that gorgeous shotgun.

Jeff

[TMAC]

Joe, its like a new gf.......dont worry it will be ok just keep shooting.