Gun

Fabarm's Max Luxus

TO THE MAX

Fabarm's new Max Luxus over-and-under joins the company's already well received semi-auto in a two pronged attack on the established brands. We liked the auto a lot but will this model cut it against fierce opposition? Richard Rawlingson investigates.

In this ever more competitive world manufacturers of everything from widgets to motor cars are having to work much harder to find a competitive edge. Everything has to be right these days and the little details count. Realisation of this was a long time coming to the gun trade, especially down at the cheaper end of the market, but it is here now. Remember the days when you bought a gun and it came in a tacky cardboard box, with choke tubes that looked like plumber's off cuts and a key to change them pressed out of a sheet of steel? There are still some like that about but they look increasingly off the pace.

First impressions count, something that Fabarm, the makers of this month's test gun, have taken to heart. Realising that there is more to taking on the likes of Beretta and Browning than a cheaper price, the company has invested heavily in its range and the way it is presented. So goodbye cardboard box, hello handsome fitted case that would not look out of place housing a £3,000 gun, let alone one costing just £895. In reality the extra cost of the case to the maker is fairly small, but the prospective customer is half way to liking the gun before it comes out of the box. Does the product inside live up to the promise?

Technical Overview

The gun itself bristles with bold detailing, all designed to support the value for money positioning and keep it competitive with the latest styling from the market leaders. Some of it is just cosmetic, but there is some real value in there too. Take the chokes for example. Fabarm have looked at what is happening in the replacement choke market and seen that customers are buying £1,000 guns and then spending perhaps £100 or more buying aftermarket chokes. The Max Luxus as a result comes with the Fabarm extended choke system and no fewer than eight different chokes, the most I think I have ever seen supplied as standard with a new gun. Confirmed tube twiddlers will be in seventh heaven working out whether Light Full is more appropriate than Improved Modified for that 40 yard crosser. (If you are curious it measures approx 4 thou tighter than IM and 5 thou less than Full.)

Then there is the optional adjustable comb, as featured on our test gun. This adds just £65 to the cost compared with about £150 on those Beretta models that offer it. It looks - and is - remarkable value for money and I would class it as a genuinely useful feature. It offers a full range of both height and cast adjustment and works - what more could you ask for? The standard stock drop has been set rather lower than is normal on sporters these days, sensibly so for it means that just about all but the most extreme needs should be covered. I needed to raise it about 6mm to get the sight picture I prefer and it took just a couple of minutes to set up.

The other big marketing push on all new Fabarm guns is the 'Tribore' barrel system, described with no lack of confidence as 'the best barrel in the world'. Hyperbole aside, it is an interesting concept and one we looked at in some detail when testing the Fabarm auto last year.

To reprise, the bore profile consists of three distinct sections: first there is a long section over 'overbored' dimension (.740"/18.8mm), this then tapers down to a short section at 18.4mm (.725") before entering the chokes. The claims made include higher velocity (true but unlikely to be significant), better patterns (quite possible) and lower recoil (maybe but unproven).

You can look at the Tribore system in one of two ways I guess. It is either just a marketing gimmick that allows Fabarm owners to counter claims from Beretta or Browning owners that their 'special' boring is superior, or it is unlikely to be harmful and may just be a percentage point of two better than a plain barrel. Old cynic that I am I fall more into the former camp. That said the gun does throw some very impressive patterns and does not kick unduly and that is enough for most people.

The barrels are chambered for 3" cartridges and have ventilated mid and top ribs. The top rib is a sensible 10mm parallel with a centre channel. This configuration, or perhaps a mild amount of taper, is my favourite. Another small but thoughtful touch is the provision of two front beads, pink or white whichever you prefer.

The Fabarm action is typical of the type made by countless Brescia firms at the lower end of the market, with the barrels hinging on trunnions in the wall of the receiver and locking by means of a full-width bite below the bottom barrel. It is simple, reliable and proven. Barrel selection follows Beretta practice, using a rocker within the body of the safety catch. Engagement is positive and I could not find a central position in which neither barrel was selected. The trigger blade is adjustable, sliding along a rail and locking with a hex key.

Sporters get the expected schnabel fore end, with an unusual recessed latch that I found clumsy to use. The stock length is a fairly generous 375mm (14 ¾"), of which the final 20mm is made up of a ventilated recoil pad. This is given a smooth finish and should cause no problems with gun mount. The grip has quite a tight radius and, sadly, a palm swell - something that I feel has no place on a sporting gun.

Cosmetics

We have seen a veritable outbreak of 'styling' on competition guns of late, stripes, squirls and fake carbon finishes among them. The Max Luxus gets some of this treatment with a panel on the action sides edged in black and containing gold inlaid clays. I am not the best one to judge the aesthetics because all these attempts to 'modernise' guns leave me cold, this one included. Call me an old fogey, but I believe the best decoration for a low price gun is plain and simple, exemplified by the new Winchester we reviewed last month.

One or two other minor details also jar, such as the rather coarse castings of the top lever (again more complicated than it needs to be), safety catch and that fore end latch. This is a shame because the overall build quality is good. The barrels are very well finished for a gun in this price range and the quality of the machining of the action is good. Advances in CNC technology really are bringing up the standards of finish on lower priced guns compared to even just a few years ago. Both stock and fore end have some character and a pleasant semi-matt finish and there is little to fault in the general level of finish and fit.

On Test

With a pair of those extended chokes weighing around 50g there is some weight up the front end and at around 1700g the 30" barrels themselves could not be called svelte (28" also available). This could have been a recipe for the same kind of excessive front end heaviness that plagued last month's Winchester, but it is compensated to some degree by the extra weight of the adjustable comb mechanism. The balance is still forward but tolerably so. The overall weight is 3.77kg (over 8 ¼ lbs), on the high side by current standards but not a problem for most people and a positive help in keeping recoil under control.

The handling as a result is steady, more Browning than typically Italian, and I adjusted to it very quickly. The inertia meant that it was easy to keep swinging once on the move and I would rate it well suited to the type of sporting targets we see these days. I did find the grip as uncomfortable as I expected - I could live with the tight radius and possibly with the palm swell, but certainly not both.

As I noted earlier I was impressed with the patterns achieved with the chokes, if bemused by the choice. I shot a round of sporting using primarily Improved Cylinder and Light Modified and felt little need to change. The kills suggested the high centre densities that seem to typify so many modern chokes and this does allow you to open up a little for routine targets.

The trigger pulls are really rather good. Both barrels showed up at under 4lbs on my gauge and there is a little initial slack to take up but hardly any drag. In this area where so many of the 'wannabes' fall down against the market leaders, Fabarm can be pleased with their performance.

I remember testing an earlier model Fabarm some years ago and commenting that there was a decent gun in there trying to get out. This latest development is much nearer the mark and it would take very little to get me to upgrade my rating of the gun even further. It is only some annoying cosmetic detailing and that grip that really prevent me being more fulsome with my praise.

There is no denying the value it offers at under £900. It goes head to head with the new Winchester and beats it hands down for handling and specification, if not for looks and good looks never broke a single clay.

More information: Kennedy Gunmakers 01783 486500