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Posted By: L. Brown Kimber Valier: Experiences? Opinions? - 05/21/16 11:42 AM
The thread about the Turks getting better caused me to ask about a high dollar Turkish gun that appeared on the scene some time ago: the Kimber Valier. I handled two or three, never shot one. At the time, they were priced higher than some Spanish sidelocks, and I don't think the Turkish gun industry had yet inspired the confidence of American buyers to the point that they were going to take the plunge. I know that the Ruffed Grouse Society bought a bunch of them, which they had trouble moving.

Looking for the views of those here who've owned and shot the guns. How have they held up? Were they worth the money? Based on your experience with a Valier, would you take the plunge for another high dollar Turkish gun?
I've heard too many complaints about their trigger pulls and gunsmiths not being able to correct the problem. I'll go with a Spanish gun restocked with a piece of Turkish walnut. No facts, just my opinion based on hearsay.
Posted By: Wild Skies Re: Kimber Valier: Experiences? Opinions? - 05/21/16 12:28 PM
Originally Posted By: treblig1958
I've heard too many complaints about their trigger pulls and gunsmiths not being able to correct the problem.

Where in the world would you have heard that from?
They are heavy for gauge.

Treblig is confusing the H&H cloned action with their trigger plate rendition.

I looked at a Prestige grade .410 at PSA a week ago.
It was a 3200.00 gun in a store full of 20K guns. The wood was gorgeous, the engraving had that rotund byzantine Turkish deep scroll to it, and wood/metal fit could have been better.
Turkish scroll (large scale) looks cartoonish to me.

I am thinking of purchasing a matched pair for driven partridge use in fixed choke 20 gauge. I forgot to ask about a spring opener.

The dealer says he's selling armloads of the small bores to the plantation crowd.

But, the original Marias and Valiar, were heavy for gauge.
Originally Posted By: ClapperZapper
They are heavy for gauge.

Treblig is confusing the H&H cloned action with their trigger plate rendition.



That's what it was the trigger plate action, OK, my mistake.
Posted By: L. Brown Re: Kimber Valier: Experiences? Opinions? - 05/21/16 04:26 PM
I agree that Treblig may have been confusing the Valier with something I wrote (both here and in an article) about the original Dickinsons Cabela's was selling. I had doublegun smith Mark Beasland take one apart. He gave it pretty high marks based on the internals. However, the gun did have heavy trigger pulls. Mark worked on it and said that he would not be comfortable in making them much lighter. Some gunsmiths might have a different opinion, but I'd certainly proceed with caution.

But again, the Valier was a different gun. If I ever stuck snap caps in one of those to check the triggers, I can't recall it. So I can't comment on Valier triggers in specific.
The Valier I handled had too much mass between the hands. The barrel walls were thickish. Consequently, it had a slow, heavy, swing dynamic.
Should you ever encounter one, you would find the barrel sets heavy.
What CZ said...I shot one for most of a season, OK gun, but never got romanced by it....
The newer Dickinsons suffer from no trigger problem, as far as I can determine. Mine has wonderful triggers, and is regulated perfectly. Those are the two "worries" I have with ANY double gun I buy, not just the Turkish ones. Doug (PA24) had two Dickinsons, too. Both of them came with good triggers, according to him, and he was a perfectionist.

SRH
Posted By: L. Brown Re: Kimber Valier: Experiences? Opinions? - 05/25/16 01:48 AM
Thanks for the Valier comments, guys. Anyone else??
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