Drennan Kenderdine reviews the Fabarm Elos N2 Sporting, and discovers a gun offering superb value for money for shooters who like a bit of everything!
credit: Archant
Back in August 2020, I wrote an article titled Secret Service for Clay Shooter. This covered the unbelievable service Caesar Guerini UK (CG UK) offer on all guns in their range. If you haven’t heard about it yet, it’s worth checking out here.
Since then, CG UK has been on my radar and my Scorpio mind can’t help but wonder if there are any other rabbits that can be pulled out of Caesar’s magic hat. Well, there’s only one way to find out! On my visit to the factory, I asked to see the magician, who just so happens to have the very non-magiciany name of Mike. Mike doesn’t look like a magician either. Now, Scorpios are known for their instincts and sarcasm, as well as loyalty and patience, which they possess in gargantuan amounts. So, after a bit of a chat, I asked Mike to keep me in the loop about anything special he had coming up. In my mind, their ‘secret service’ would be a hard act to follow, but Mike replied immediately: “Wait there.”
Off he went, and after a couple of minutes he materialised with a gun… but not just any gun. He informed me that CG has a sister company called Fabarm. Well, I thought, there’s nothing new there, we’ve all heard of Fabarm! However, the next sentence he uttered is one I will never forget: “Did you know that all Fabarm guns can take any high-performance steel shot, at any weight and pellet size, down a Full-choked barrel?”
I was genuinely stunned. In my best impression of Brick Top from the film Snatch, I replied: “You’re going to have to repeat that!”
I’m a keen bird shooter as well as an avid clay shot, so a gun that will shoot clays all day yet also safely take steel loads for the odd bit of duck shooting appealed greatly to me.
After a short discussion, Fabarm UK agreed to give me four guns to sample, one of which was the Elos N2 Sporting, which Magic Mike specifically told me not only to review but to test if it is possible to break it! I chuckled inside because he hadn’t got the foggiest inclination who he was talking to! Someone who is well known to friends and family as a destroyer.
On opening the box, the woodwork smacked of luxury. A heavily grained piece of wood that I guessed to be Grade 5 or above... but I wasn’t quite right. It’s walnut for sure, but Fabarm have used their magical TRIWOOD finish. This is a hi-tech process that improves the original grains of the existing wood while adding a perfect waterproof protection. The TRIWOOD process is not a film or wrap on the walnut, but a process that deposits ink onto the wood, giving a tough, scratch-resistant, semi-gloss acrylic varnish. So, first impressions were of an impressive, efficient and practical application that enhances the gun’s look and its versatility.
credit: Archant
Features
The Elos N2 Sporting has an adjustable stock, which Fabarm call Micro-Metric 3D. Hand on heart, it’s one of the easiest and best-designed applications of an adjustable comb I’ve encountered. Simple adjustments are made with an allen key, and it avoids the need for spacers – a blessing! The adjustable part of the comb is satin black, and is surprisingly very comfortable to shoot with. The palm swell is one that actually relates to the hands of the human race! Seriously, there are many palm swells on guns out there that, quite frankly, would only suit people with hands the size of a shire horse’s hoof!
The fore-end and stock chequering is grippy but not sharp – I shot with and without gloves and it never slipped or dug into my flesh, which is a very positive experience. Lastly, it certainly assisted my grip as the day wore on and I became slightly fatigued, with sweaty palms.
The Elos N2 Sporting comes in 30” in the UK”. The barrels are produced by deep drilling solid bars of chrome molybdenum steel, making them extra resistant to adverse weather conditions. It is multi-choke and has a tapered rib, making the sight plane simple and clear.
Other features include double ventilated barrels to assist with cooling and an adjustable trigger, which for me, should be on every gun made. A simple adjustment to suit your length of pull is a delight and can turn a nightmare gun into something you can handle comfortably and confidently.
So, we’ve covered all the fab bits, but, keeping things real, here are my only gripes. The Elos N2 Sporting comes with a mid-bead in metal. To be honest, having made such fantastic barrels, to not put a mid-bead in plastic (as is the front) makes its aesthetics waiver – although it still does the job.
Next, the trigger travel is quite long. It is more like a field-style trigger, not a competition one, but with that said, when it does fire, it is crisp and strong. There’s an excellent strike from the trigger block to the primer of the cartridge. After putting hundreds of cartridges through this gun, it never missed a beat and the trigger never altered in the pressure it took to fire. So, despite this niggle, the trigger pressure upholding its integrity is a real positive as some trigger pressures change with the weather, never mind the shooting!
credit: Archant
Conclusion
For a competition-grade shotgun that is adjustable, multi-choked, has the fantastic barrel technology from the 25th century, and comes with an ABS case and three years’ manufacturer’s warranty, it is great value for money. It handled 21g, 24g, 28g and 32g cartridges in both plastic and fibre wad from cartridge manufacturers Clever, Fiocchi, Sellier & Bellot and Lyalvale Express. It also handled Express’s whopping High Precision Steel 3” 36g No.1 at 1320 bar through a Full choke (yes, Full!) without a glitch; so, if you also enjoy live bird shooting, as I know many of you do, you can take this out on the ducks and confidently shoot high-performance steel through it knowing you won’t blow your barrels! To read more about the barrels, click here.
It handles well, shoots smoothly and looks stunning with the TRIWOOD effect against the plain yet very nicely finished black action. It has more to offer than many guns that are thousands of pounds dearer. This is one hell of a gun that was impossible to break, despite my Demolition Man efforts.
All this for £1,600… I’m very impressed! Maybe Mike is a magician after all!
TECH SPECS
Make/model: Fabarm Elos N2 Sporting
Gauge: 12
Barrels: Tribore HP, 30”-32”, satin blued
Wood: Turkish walnut with Triwood finish
Chokes: Exis HP, 5 included
Receiver: Forged steel, black satin finish
Top rib: 10-8mm
Front sight: White rounded
Trigger: Racing, adjustable
Stock: Pistol with adjustable comb
Forend: Semi-beavertail
Weight: 3.5-3.6kg
Proof test: 1630 BAR
RRP: £1,425
Email: info@angloitalianarms.com
Web: caesargueriniuk.com