Description
The Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon I Vittoria in 12 gauge, part number J686F1228V, is the same over and under as the standard Silver Pigeon I with one deliberate change: the stock is cut to a 13.38 inch length of pull instead of 14.38. That single inch is the difference between a gun that fits and a gun a smaller framed shooter has to reach into. Everything else carries over.
Barrels are 28 inches, blued with a vent rib, chambers are 3 inches, and the steel receiver wears the floral scroll engraving the line is known for. The stock is Grade 2 walnut with an Extralight recoil pad, and five flush Optima-Choke HP tubes ship with the gun, which is what the CT5 in the distributor listing means. Weight runs between 6.3 and 7 pounds depending on the density of the wood.
What a shorter length of pull actually fixes
A stock that is too long makes the shooter crawl the comb and pull the gun into the shoulder pocket late, which is why so many shorter shooters shoot behind crossing birds. Taking an inch out of the pull puts the trigger where the finger already is.
It also changes where recoil lands. With the correct pull the pad sits in the shoulder pocket rather than on the joint, and a 12 gauge field gun stops being something you flinch at by the third box.
The Vittoria stock is not simply cut down. Beretta shapes the comb and the grip to match the shorter pull, so cheek weld and hand position stay correct rather than merely closer.
If you already shoot a 14.38 inch stock comfortably, buy the standard build instead. This one is a fitting decision, not an upgrade.
The Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon I Vittoria as a field gun
The low profile boxlock puts the barrels close to the hand, which is the main reason this line points the way it does and why it has survived four decades of competitors.
The receiver is steel rather than alloy. It costs a few ounces and it is why these guns are still in the field long after their first owner.
Conical locking lugs and replaceable shoulders mean a loose action is a gunsmith job rather than the end of the gun.
Five flush Optima-Choke HP tubes cover a flushing quail at ten yards and a decoying duck at forty, and the Optima bore keeps the transition into the constriction gradual.
Specifications
- Model: Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon I Vittoria, part number J686F1228V
- Gauge: 12
- Chamber: 3 inches
- Barrel length: 28 inches, blued with vent rib
- Action: over and under boxlock
- Receiver: steel, floral engraving
- Top rib: 6 by 6 millimetre taper
- Chokes: five flush Optima-Choke HP tubes
- Stock: Grade 2 walnut, 13.38 inch length of pull
- Recoil pad: Extralight
- Trigger: single selective with automatic safety
- Overall length: approximately 47 inches
- Weight unloaded: 6.3 to 7 pounds
- Left handed: no
Shotshell dimensions and pressures are standardized by SAAMI, and the 3 inch chambers take 2 3/4 and 3 inch shells, though a field gun this light is far more pleasant with the shorter shells. For upland work we stock Browning BXD Upland in 5 shot, and 2 3/4 inch 1 1/8 ounce target loads are the inexpensive way to learn the gun on clays. Break it open before setting it down, and do not dry fire it without snap caps.
Shooters who need the standard length stock should look at the 14.38 inch 12 gauge build, smaller gauges are covered by the 28 gauge and 410 combo and the 410 bore build, and anyone who would rather carry a gas gun should compare the A400 Upland.
Why it is worth considering
- A 13.38 inch length of pull, shaped rather than simply shortened.
- A steel receiver and a low profile action, which is why these guns outlast their owners.
- Five flush chokes in the case, so the gun arrives ready for more than one kind of bird.
- Twenty eight inch barrels, the length most upland hunters settle on anyway.
- Conical locking lugs a gunsmith can tighten, rather than a worn action you tolerate.
Who it suits
This suits a smaller framed upland hunter, or anyone who has spent years shooting a stock that was always an inch too long. It is the wrong gun for a tall shooter, who should buy the standard build, and clays shooters wanting length and weight should look at the Sporting versions. Every long gun we sell ships to a licensed FFL for transfer.
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