Sporting O/U Recommendations

sniffer...just a thought....if you're driving to Van...check and see if any of the local trap/skeet clubs are open enroute during your travel times. IF SO, perhaps a call or a pop in may give you the opportunity to look at, feel / try / shoulder a few.
 
Buy a Browning or Beretta and never have to worry about warranty support. Many will say that if a Browning fits you, a Beretta won't and vise versa. My thoughts are that if you are new to over and under shotguns you will adapt to whatever you buy over time
I shoot at TITSC, seen first hand

Beretta 694 - forend cracking
Beretta 694 - tight chamber, shells wont pop out
Beretta DT11 - trigger group issue, trigger group had to be replaced, fairly new gun
Beretta DT11 - forend cracking
Beretta SL2 - 30K gun, trigger issue

Have fun dealing with Stoeger

If going Beretta, better to look at the 686, 687, 688 series if on a budget
 
sniffer...just a thought....if you're driving to Van...check and see if any of the local trap/skeet clubs are open enroute during your travel times. IF SO, perhaps a call or a pop in may give you the opportunity to look at, feel / try / shoulder a few.

There is a decent club locally where I might try that.

They have a rule that the shortest barrel is 28" or I would join up and use what I have to get going then figure out the best tool for the job from there.
 
I shoot at TITSC, seen first hand

Beretta 694 - forend cracking
Beretta 694 - tight chamber, shells wont pop out
Beretta DT11 - trigger group issue, trigger group had to be replaced, fairly new gun
Beretta DT11 - forend cracking
Beretta SL2 - 30K gun, trigger issue

Have fun dealing with Stoeger

If going Beretta, better to look at the 686, 687, 688 series if on a budget

I like the look of the 688 but it is very hard to find info on it.

Kinda seems like it's a bit of an unpopular outcast (too expensive for those wanting "cheap" but not high end enough for those with deeper pockets).
 
I like the look of the 688 but it is very hard to find info on it.

Kinda seems like it's a bit of an unpopular outcast (too expensive for those wanting "cheap" but not high end enough for those with deeper pockets).

I don't think the 688 is an unpopular outcast, it's new enough on the market that there doesn't seem to be that many in circulation yet. There's also lots of competition from other manufacturers in that 4500 to 5000 dollar price range.

I've had lots of Beretta over and under guns in the past and have always had a bit of a soft spot for them so I'll be interested to see just how the 688 pans out over time. I see no reason why it won't be a good gun although the ascetics may not be to everyone's liking. The grey colored laminate Birch stock has a different look that may not be appealing to traditionalists but it should be very stable and durable all the same. The orange logo's on the sides and bottom of the receiver will turn some people off but appeal to others. By all means it "should" be a great gun given the many years of evolution of the 686/680 series guns, on that merit alone I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if I was in the market.
 
New member at our pub just bought a 688. He let me fondle it and it shouldered like most Berettas but seemed a bit heavier and the actions definitely beefier than the 680 series of guns. It swung nice and had 30” ported barrels. Aesthetic wise, not a huge fan of the orange but that’s just me. The laminate stock is different for sure but I think would grow on you after a while. Time will tell and he was prouder than a peacock,of course we all complimented him until he was gone. Consensus was about 60/40 and that’s not POI but dislike/like.
 
I don't think the 688 is an unpopular outcast, it's new enough on the market that there doesn't seem to be that many in circulation yet. There's also lots of competition from other manufacturers in that 4500 to 5000 dollar price range.

I've had lots of Beretta over and under guns in the past and have always had a bit of a soft spot for them so I'll be interested to see just how the 688 pans out over time. I see no reason why it won't be a good gun although the ascetics may not be to everyone's liking. The grey colored laminate Birch stock has a different look that may not be appealing to traditionalists but it should be very stable and durable all the same. The orange logo's on the sides and bottom of the receiver will turn some people off but appeal to others. By all means it "should" be a great gun given the many years of evolution of the 686/680 series guns, on that merit alone I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if I was in the market.

By contrast it is the aesthetics that attract me to it.
 
New member at our pub just bought a 688. He let me fondle it and it shouldered like most Berettas but seemed a bit heavier and the actions definitely beefier than the 680 series of guns. It swung nice and had 30” ported barrels. Aesthetic wise, not a huge fan of the orange but that’s just me. The laminate stock is different for sure but I think would grow on you after a while. Time will tell and he was prouder than a peacock,of course we all complimented him until he was gone. Consensus was about 60/40 and that’s not POI but dislike/like.

Beretta had a wide receiver on the S680 but then narrowed it down for some reason on the subsequent 680 through 682's only to widened it again starting on the 692 and have carried it through to the 688.
 
I shot Browning clays guns up until about 6 years ago, when I purchased a lightly used K-20 three barrel set. It is still my go to skeet gun, but I bought a Blaser F-3 Vantage about a year later, that is by far my favorite sporting clays gun. Despite having 32" barrels, the F-3 feels quicker than anything else that I have tried, and the triggers are excellent.
 
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