Beretta S by S identification help

T

taper

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I am just a new member who is just breaking into the sport. I was talking to an older friends today who is not the internet type and he has acquired a Beretta side by side 12 gauge that we cannot put a value on. It is a dual hammer dual trigger gun.
On the gun it has
Gardone VT, Italy
Armi
Picture of man standing engraved in barrel
star engraved in one barrel and two engraved in other barrel
PSF FFGT8
RM
It has a picture of an eagle or other bird with GB in the center
Under the barrel there is a crown engraved
LLITRO XXI
Any help would be greatly appreciated, I was looking through the blue book of gun values but not having any luck.
 
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Taper, what you have there is a really cool gun, and a fairly rare one at that (at least around here). It looks like a Model 405, but I am not sure about that. Beretta made similar hammer guns in a series, starting with the model 401 through to the model 405. The gun in your pictures has the fences of the 401 with the hammers of the 405. A clear picture of the water table (action flats) and the barrel flats, so that we could see the proof marks, would be greatly appreciated.

According to Wilson's Beretta book the hammer guns last appeared as stock items in the 1949 catalogue, although they were made for a few years after that. Beretta will still make you a hammer gun today, by custom order.

I have no idea what the gun is worth. Perhaps someone else on this board knows about these guns. The boys at the doublegunshop bbs should know.

The art deco style of engraving on the lock plate is intriguing, but the game scene is rather simple. I have never seen similar engraving on any Beretta. Not a high grade Beretta (Beretta has made some very high grade guns), but a very nice shotgun. Pics of the proof marks, please, and I'll see what else I can find out.

Sharptail
 
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I took some pictures last night but they didn't turn out. Not sure why, I am using a quality camera and this is the first time I have ever had trouble with blurry pictures, it is also the first time I have ever tried to take such a close up of detail such as engraving. I will try again but if that doesn't work can you walk me through what you need and maybe I can explain the markings to you.
 
I just did a little more looking in the blue book of gun values and on the flats of the action where the barrells rest when in the closed position there are several markings one of which is a star inside jagged circle with the word FINITO beneath it. The book states that this is CIRCa since 1951, Gardone and Brescia and that it is a finish proof for firearms ready for sale.
 
Here is a little better picture( not much better)
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This picture shows the markings of a man holding what looks like a walking staff on each side and also closer to the firing pins on the right side is the serial # and the proof mark from the post above as well as what looks like two more proof marks. Both are CIRCA since 1951 one is Gardone provisional proof for all guns, the other Gardone & Brescia definitive proof for guns with smokeless powder. On the Left side is an oval with what looks like a building inside itwith a flag hanging from each side of the buildingthe word ARMI below the building and the words D.FAUSTI & LUIGI above.
 
OK, that explains a lot. The gun is not a Beretta, it is a D. Fausti & Luigi. It was made in Gardone Val Trompia, the same town in Brescia province, Lombardy that Beretta occupies. Many other gumakers such as Poli and Famars reside there. The town is a big (and ancient) gun manufacturing centre. Many firms have sprung up and folded, or been absorbed by others over the years. Virtually everyone there is involved in gunmaking in one way or another.

I do not know the company that made your gun, but Fausti is an old Italian gunmaking name. Today the firm of Fausti Stefano resides in the city of Brescia, just a few miles south of Gardone Val Trompia. Perhaps D. Fausti is related.

I am sure that the XXI stamping indicates a 1955 date of manufacture, and this is in keeping with the proof marks you describe. The pattern of the gun is almost identical to the Beretta 40X series, but as I stated earlier, with a combination of features from various models in the series. The central location of the lock plate attachment screw is different from the Beretta guns.

I still have no idea of the value of the gun, but it will be considerably less than the equivalent Beretta. I would search the internet auction sites to find sale prices on a Beretta 401 field gun (it might take some searching) and subtract 40 to 50 percent for the unknown name.

That said, it really is a cool shotgun (I love hammer guns, so I am biased) and should make an excellent hunting gun and raise a few eyebrows at the range. It is an interesting gun. Details such as the gun weight, balance point, length of pull and barrel length would be a nice addition to the communal knowledge base here.

p.s. Your camera seems to be focusing on the background, rather than the gun itself. If possible, try manual focus (the Sony DSC-H5 will do that).

Sharptail
 
Thanks again for all the help. It's funny how much you can learn on line these days, I ask a question about a friends gun and learnt something about my camera.
 
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