Italian vs Indian muskets.

[3 stinky dogs]

I got my two BP rifles now and at some point I would like to try a musket for birds and stuff.While looking at Muskets I notice that the Italian guns run about $800.00 to $1,000 + and the Indain guns run about $375 to $500 +.What is the deal here ? neither is made in the US ,neither look specal or fancy,Both are manufactured in country's who have poor(Italy) and relly bad (India) wages and working conditions Heck the stocks are rose wood and not even anything to write home about so whats the deal here?I have herd gripes that indian guns were clunky and Italian guns needed work to be pc.As far as shooting either go's I havent herd any complants other then both needed some easey work to get them just right.I have no clue wich one is best but would like to get an idea for safty sake as my Kiddos will be shooting them as well.I will pay big dollars for a safe gun but I dont want to pay for the name(Pedrosoli).Oh yeah and are there any Bess's that are made here in the US other then kit guns I would have to build in my shop?

 

[arcticap]

I recall reading a previous reference of yours about your perception of Italian guns being "crappy". :crackup: While some just might be, by and large they are good quality mass production guns, made from high quality steel to tight specifications. That's probably why they cost so much more, plus the value of the Euro. Italy isn't considered a poor nation as much any more since it has a robust industrialized economy. Some of the guns they produce include Olympic quality Pardini, Beretta (including U.S. Military)), Perazzi, Benelli etc.... I couldn't guess how much of the world's gold jewlery is made in Italy, but it's significant and soon the next Presidential helicopter will have Italian parts too! :cry: Maybe you can find something like a used "safe queen", fired very little or in like new condition from someone no longer interested in owning it & available at an older, lower price. You might have to do a considerable amount of hunting to locate something, but you have nothing to lose & everything to gain by trying.

 

[3 stinky dogs]

Pleas dont get me wrong.I know that my past and current comments about Italian guns seem verry bigeted and well they are but not the way you think.My brother in law lived and worked in italy for 10 years.His family ran away from Iraq when he was 18 during Gulf war 1.He sed working wages were manure.Now I have looked at alot of ML's from the old country and to me they have a spegetti western feel.And I know that they WOULD NOT send dangerus guns here so they could be sued.I havent had an oppertunity to check out Indeain stuff yet .And I know the indian muskets are most likly put together in worse conditions then italy But it still seems like your paying for a name and not quality.So please dont get me wrong and be offende by my comments.It just seems like there is verry little differnce in quality between thees guns.Now the gold shops and beretta are 90% family run and I hate the fact that our military is stuck with the 92.Just trying to figure out how thees are sold.Sorey to come off the way I did I am just VERRY biased.I plus for the italian guys is ytou can goto there web site and poke around.CXant say thay for the indian guys.

 

[arcticap]

No, I really don't think your opinion is too negative or bad, I think some Italian guns are somewhat overpriced, especially compared to the Spanish guns. As a matter of fact, I just recently read about how the Investarms (Lyman & Cabela's) guns can't be capped from the half-cock position due to a "defective" notch placement (in Zonie's opinion) and those guns aren't cheap either. Traditions guns don't have that problem and they are often less expensive.
Pedersoli offers so many different models while American sales volume appears rather low, maybe the prices end up compensating for that.
I once sent a letter to Pedersoli asking if they could supply me one replacement barrel for a gun that had been out of production for several years. They responded months later that they could only supply 1000 of them for XXX dollars if I desired to have a batch of them produced! :crackup:

 

[3 stinky dogs]

Well you should have got it man then you would have been ok for a hundred years or so! My biggest concern is I dont want to buy any thing that was put together by slave laber.My BP reenacting mentor let me play with his musket.He baught it at a function and he sed it go's klach BANG!!for evry time he pulls the trigger.I just dont understand the business side of the hobby.

 

[pondoro]

Wages in India are 1/2 or less than wages in low-cost European countries such as Poland and the Czech Republic. Italy is a high-cost European country. The birth rate in Italy, Germany, France has plumeted and they have two classes - old middle class Europeans and young middle easterners who moved to Europe to take the low-paid positions. The old Europeans do not want these newcomers but the low birth rate has left no europeans to take the low paying positions. "Eurabia" is the term population specialists use to refer to the Europe of tomorrow.

So your brother in law might have indeed experienced crappy wages in Italy, but the general cost structure is expensive. Engineers, managers, skilled machinists are all still Italian, and they do not come cheap. Their wages in real terms might be less than in the US but the cost of employing them in a more socialist economy is much higher than in the US. Vacation is also longer, earlier, in Europe (20-30 days per year within five years of employment), this also raises labor costs.

My experience with other consumer products suggests that Italian BP firearms would be better than Indian, but also suggests that the situation will change, as the Asian nations have rapidly increased their quality lately.

I "buy American" when I can (Have never owned an Asian car, I did own an MG once). But I just bought a Pietta Colt clone because I cannot afford the real thing.

 

[arcticap]

Correction: Their response may have actually been 100 barrels. Maybe it was their way of letting me know they were originally made in batches under contract.

 

Well 3 stinky dogs
This Dawg has had two Brown Bess' one a Pedersoli, One Indian... I still own the Pedersoli... Must I say more...
:m2c: