Description
The Beretta A400 Xtreme Plus in Gore Optifade Timber, part number J42XN16, takes the waterfowl platform and wraps it in a pattern designed around how birds actually see. Optifade is built from research on ungulate and waterfowl vision rather than on what looks convincing to a human eye, and the Timber variant is meant for a hunter working from a treeline or standing timber.
This is the 26 inch build with a 3.5 inch chamber and two plus one capacity, on a Steelium Plus barrel with a 7×7 stepped rib, a steel mid-bead, and a fiber optic front sight.
Why the camouflage approach is different
Most hunting camouflage is designed by looking at photographs and deciding what disappears. Optifade started from the other end: what a duck’s visual system can actually resolve at the distances that matter. The result is a pattern of micro and macro elements intended to break up the shape of a gun and an arm rather than to imitate a specific background.
Whether that matters more than a good blind and a still hand is a fair argument. What is not arguable is that a bird circling a hole spends a long time looking down at the one thing in the scene that is shaped like a gun, and anything that softens the outline is working in your favor.
Recoil systems and cold weather controls
A 3.5 inch magnum is a lot of load, and this gun manages it three ways: the Blink gas system spreads the impulse as it cycles, the Kick-Off Mega stock uses hydraulic dampers, and a soft comb protects the cheekbone from the vertical slap heavy loads deliver through the stock. Together they turn a gun most people would flinch with into one you can shoot all morning.
The controls are built for gloves. The loading port is enlarged, the charging handle is extended, the bolt release is oversized, and the fore-end carries a rubberized grip. The safety is reversible, an adjustable shim system sets drop and cast, and five extended Optima HP Black choke tubes come in the box.
Specifications
- Model: Beretta A400 Xtreme Plus, Gore Optifade Timber, part number J42XN16
- Gauge: 12
- Chamber: 3.5 inches
- Capacity: 2+1 rounds
- Barrel length: 26 inches, Steelium Plus
- Rib: 7×7 stepped with a steel mid-bead
- Sights: fiber optic front
- Action: semi-automatic, Blink gas system with a cross-tube piston
- Chokes: five extended Optima HP Black tubes included
- Stock: Kick-Off Mega with a soft comb and an adjustable shim system
- Fore-end: rubberized grip panel
- Controls: enlarged loading port, extended charging handle, oversized bolt release, reversible safety
- Finish: Gore Optifade Timber
Why it is worth considering
- A camouflage pattern designed around waterfowl vision rather than human perception.
- Three recoil systems stacked on a gun chambered for 3.5 inch magnums.
- Oversized controls that work with cold, wet gloves on.
- Five extended choke tubes included, not three.
- An adjustable shim system for setting drop and cast to the individual shooter.
Who it suits
This is a duck gun for hunters working treelines, flooded timber, and the edges of open water, which is what the Timber pattern is built for. The 26 inch barrel is easy to handle in a blind or a boat, and the recoil management makes a morning of 3.5 inch loads bearable. It doubles as a turkey gun without complaint. It is not an upland gun and not a clays gun; the weight and the pattern are both wasted there. Hunters pass shooting over open marsh should compare the 28 inch build.
Shells, chokes, and transfer notes
Shotshell dimensions and pressures are standardized by SAAMI, and the 3.5 inch chamber takes 2 3/4, 3, and 3.5 inch shells with no adjustment. Federal law requires non-toxic shot for waterfowl, so this gun will see steel, bismuth, or tungsten alloy in the field. Steel is safe through the improved cylinder and modified extended tubes supplied with it, and not through a tighter tube that is not rated for it. For off-season practice, ordinary 2 3/4 inch lead target loads cycle fine at a fraction of the cost.
Hunters who prefer a pattern built for flooded timber and mud should compare the Mossy Oak Bottomland build, and anyone who does not need camouflage at all can save money on the black synthetic version. Every long gun we sell ships to a licensed FFL for transfer and background check, and Pennsylvania buyers should plan on the state point of contact check at pickup.
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