Pardini vs. Benelli

There is quite a sizeable cost difference between the .22lr Pardini Bullseye model at Pardini USA in Tampa FL and the Benelli MP90S at Larry's Guns in Maine. 

Having shot neither one I am unable to make a decision. Tampa is 4 hours West of me and they have an indoor range where I could maybe shoot a demo. Shooting the Benelli appears not to be within my reach anytime soon.

The Pardini is available with a factory mounted Matchdot II while the Benelli requires an aftermarket rail. 

The intended use is semi-frequent local practice and regional Bullseye tournaments. Knowing myself I fear that if I buy the Benelli I may blame bad scores on the gun itself as long as a Pardini, or a whole gang of them, is beating up on me. If I am however shooting a Pardini I'll have no other option but to look inward.

I am seriously in need of advice.

Thanks.

Benelli trigger is primitive in comparison to the Pardini. Minimal adjustability and mediocre feel. The pistols both shoot well but TRIGGER is everything. Buy what you can afford and shoot 10's ;l)
Jon

I have both. They are equally accurate but as Jon said there is no comparison in their triggers. I actually like the balance of my Benelli better but it does not make up for the trigger.

Bill

Thank you both.

Two questions about those triggers.

1. Are they two-stage triggers or can they be adjusted to be?

2. Once the trigger of either one is adjusted/tuned/modified to your liking, is there any reason to keep adjusting it beyond that setting?

Much appreciated.

Larry's guns in Maine sells a Benelli scope mount that (I believe) he has custom made for the MP90S (but think it will also fit the MP95).  The MP90s has a modular trigger that can be removed.  I've never compared the Pardini to the Benelli triggers, so I can't comment.  But the Benelli MP90S has a mechanical two stage trigger that is fully adjustable.  I think both the MP90S and Pardini SP and HP pistols are very durable pistols (made of metal with wood grips) designed for competition.
 
Both don't lock back on the last round (by design).  The Pardini trigger may (or may not) be easier to adjust than the Benelli.  Benelli is owned by Beretta.  I'm not sure who owns Pardini, but the customer service from Pardini USA is frequently described as excellent.  A nice feature of the Pardini (depending on one's opinion) is the ability to shoot centerfire (32 S&W long or 32 acp) and .22 lr by changing the upper with the same trigger and grip lower.  It seems Pardini has made a conscious and deliberate effort to be part of USA shooting and they make an excellent product.


p.s. Larry's guns in Maine is the importer/distributor for Benelli pistols for the USA and he is a gunsmith who can answer any specific questions about the trigger group.  He and his wife run their store and sometimes seem to be a bit overwhelmed by inquiries, so some patience is needed.

messenger wrote:I have both. They are equally accurate but as Jon said there is no comparison in their triggers. I actually like the balance of my Benelli better but it does not make up for the trigger.

Bill

Can you describe how the balance is different?  I'm "in search of" my next 22. 

Bullseye_Stan wrote:Larry's guns in Maine sells a Benelli scope mount that (I believe) he has custom made for the MP90S (but think it will also fit the MP95).  The MP90s has a modular trigger that can be removed.  I've never compared the Pardini to the Benelli triggers, so I can't comment.  But the Benelli MP90S has a mechanical two stage trigger that is fully adjustable.  I think both the MP90S and Pardini SP and HP pistols are very durable pistols (made of metal with wood grips) designed for competition.
 
Both don't lock back on the last round (by design).  The Pardini trigger may (or may not) be easier to adjust than the Benelli.  Benelli is owned by Beretta.  I'm not sure who owns Pardini, but the customer service from Pardini USA is frequently described as excellent.  A nice feature of the Pardini (depending on one's opinion) is the ability to shoot centerfire (32 S&W long or 32 acp) and .22 lr by changing the upper with the same trigger and grip lower.  It seems Pardini has made a conscious and deliberate effort to be part of USA shooting and they make an excellent product.


p.s. Larry's guns in Maine is the importer/distributor for Benelli pistols for the USA and he is a gunsmith who can answer any specific questions about the trigger group.  He and his wife run their store and sometimes seem to be a bit overwhelmed by inquiries, so some patience is needed.

The one thing that keeps driving me back to the Pardini in my decision process is Olympic shooters. I watched the rapid fire shootoff in the last Olympics with 3 or 4 countries represented and I'm pretty sure every one of them was shooting a pardini.

Ive seen several Benelli’s that didn’t run out of the box and Larry didn’t resolve it.  The owners gave up and went to the Bullseye Gunsmiths to work it out.  Based on seeing Team members and the Benelli factory/Larry customer service I won’t buy one.

The issue may have resolved itself. 
Larry himself works in the background and it is his wife who answers the phone. She passes the questions, not always correctly, to Larry and then communicates Larry's answer to you. 

On the subject of the trigger Larry said (?) that he can make the Benelli trigger as good as any Pardini trigger, free of charge. 

I hear you Jayhawk and I think I'm driving to Tampa.

I owned a Pardini ..... twice.... i think its all hype. I love my Conversion and 208s ( a lot of hype here) much more...

I have the Pardini Bullseye which is a fine pistol in many ways. I recently bought a Nelson Conversion and have it on a dedicated lower. This set up is very accurate and extremely reliable. I don't seem to score as well with it, however I think it is mostly due to having more trigger time on the Pardini. Although the Nelson has a bit more felt recoil, it is more enjoyable to shoot. IMHO there is no comparison then gripping a 1911 with slabs. Beats constantly working on orthopedic grips trying to make them fit. For the money I think the conversion is the better choice. Also I have not personally had problems with Pardin USA service, a friend has had a lot of trouble getting an older SP repaired.

I also have both, both in 22 and 32. I agree Jon and most of the above comments re: the trigger. Plus, IF you ever have issues I would much rather deal with Pardini USA then Larry's.  MUCH RATHER. 

Both the Pardini and Benelli factory grips have a rather extreme angle, particularly compared to 1911, 208 or GSPs. Rink makes a steeper (more upright) grip for the Pardini which I love. Can't overstate the importance of handling both guns before you buy.

I have a Nelson conversion on a custom 1911 lower than Jon made for me, it is wonderful to shoot and as accurate as anything I have.  But, for me, a 1911 trigger will never be the same as a good s stage.

30harry wrote:

messenger wrote:I have both. They are equally accurate but as Jon said there is no comparison in their triggers. I actually like the balance of my Benelli better but it does not make up for the trigger.

Bill

Can you describe how the balance is different?  I'm "in search of" my next 22. 

I like a nose heavy gun, With the Larry's Guns scope mount the Benelli gives me the effect of less wobble. Once I got used to the weight I started to shoot the Pardini better. I think it's mostly the trigger. I like a medium roll trigger. The Benelli is a two stage with a break. Not very adjustable. The Pardini can be adjusted to a roll. I have a Nelson with the weight extension also. 

Bill

Larry, the one at Nelson's, is a very nice guy but the delivery time on his kit is somewhat uncertain.
I have a very nice 1911, worked on by Clark, that would be an ideal conversion candidate and reading all these posts ^^ I'm beginning to think that a Nelson kit with weights may balance and shoot quite well.
I'll call him again.

I purchased a Benelli MP90s several years ago. It was VERY unreliable from the start. I eventually got it working, but moved on to other pistols. About three years ago I purchased a Pardini SP BE, and it has been very reliable with quite a variety of ammunition. Peoples experiences certainly vary, but the Pardini is my favorite .22 by a long shot.

From time to time Ft will host an Olympic shooting event. They have the electronic target system and the money to pay to have the system calibrated that is required prior to the event and the technicians must remain during the event just in case. Adam told me that 99% of the shooters are using Pardini in the events requiring firing a string. Not sure what guns were most used in Free Pistol. Also talking to Keith Sanderson at Perry (he shoots Pardini) said all the countries shooting use the Pardini except France, they was shooting the MatchGun even Russia switched to Pardini.

I may be the lone voice here... but don't rule out the AW93. I love mine. I don't see how the trigger could be any better. Long, smooth roll. I have heard from others it is not able to have a good crisp trigger, but this does not bother me at all. Trigger is adjustable in every way. It is not easy to mount a dot on either, but again this does not bother me. The irons are impeccable. And mine has been boringly reliable. I don't recall any jams. The moving weight/hydraulic buffer thing on it makes timed and rapid very, very easy, minimal muzzle climb.

So if you like a crisp trigger and dot, maybe not the best choice. But it is a really well made pistol. That being said, I mostly shoot my marvel conversion for grip and trigger continuity with the .45.

SmokinNJokin wrote:... I mostly shoot my marvel conversion for grip and trigger continuity with the .45.

Thanks. Which Marvel of all the ones available and on  what lower?

I shoot the unit 1, which is nearly identical to a Nelson as best as I can tell. It has the RRA steel rib on it for a dot. Other options are the iron sight rib (which I have also used) and the combo rib from Marvel.

The lower is a caspian built by Jon. There are quite a few gunsmiths who will build you a dedicated lower for your conversion. I did the swap uppers thing for a year or so and quickly grew tired of it. That being said, my Marvel and my .45 are as close to identical as I can get them. 20 lpi checkering, arched MSH's, same trigger shoe, same grips, same trigger, etc.

There are, however many, many excellent competitors who have no issue switching between different platforms for .22 / CF / .45. When I complete my goals for service pistol, I may very well start using the AW93 more regularly or even shop for a Pardini or Hammerli. Its all about having fun, and more guns in the collection = more fun.

Thanks Andrew. In my case I don't even know if I can hit the barn door with the 1911 grip angle given that I've grown up with the 55° of my European past.

Doing a 1911 .22lr conversion kit might be the way to find out.

If you are shooting a dot the Benelli is not the best choice. 

I shoot conversions after trying everything and I am averaging 278 NMC. 

For the money nothing better than a good conversion on a dedicated and tuned just right lower. 

Outside of the Pardini , AW93 and the Hammerli 208 are master level. The Xesse is very good but I had a lemon and a terrible experience getting it resolved.

I shot both of these with my Marvel Conversion. Was using my conversion on my 45 frame and switching to the 45 upper for CF & 45. This conversion will shoot .60" groups with most high end ammo from a Ransom Rest.
Jon

Here is a pic of a Benelli MP90s with a dot sight mounted.  The front sight needs to be removed before using the scope mount.  The mount is from Larry's.