Description
The Citori has been the gun a great many hunters grew up shooting, and the 825 is the first ground up rework of that receiver in a long time. The Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in is the version aimed squarely at the uplands and the duck blind rather than the clays course, and it keeps the proportions and the walnut that made the original a fixture.
A Low Profile Receiver That Points Naturally
Browning cut the height out of the 825 receiver, and the effect on handling is the whole point. A lower receiver brings the barrels closer to the hands and closer to the line of the shoulder, which makes the gun quicker to point at a flushing bird and reduces the leverage recoil has to rotate the muzzle upward.
Twenty eight inches is the length most hunters settle on. It carries enough weight to keep a swing smooth on crossing birds without the muzzle heaviness that makes a longer barrel tiring to carry through a day of walking, and at 7 pounds 6 ounces the gun sits in the range most people can handle all day.
A ventilated top rib with a solid side rib and a simple ivory bead is exactly the sighting arrangement a field gun should have. There is no fiber optic to distract the eye and no mid bead to fuss over, just a clean reference at the muzzle regulated for a 50 50 point of impact.
Built To Handle Steel Shot And Long Days
Chrome plated chambers and Vector Pro forcing cones do real work on a hunting gun. The lengthened cone eases the shot column out of the chamber, which cuts deformation and together with the Inflex II recoil pad takes a real edge off felt recoil, and the chrome resists the corrosion that comes from damp mornings and delayed cleaning.
Back bored barrels widen the bore slightly above nominal, which reduces friction and pressure as the wad travels. Combined with the chrome chambers this is what allows the gun to handle steel shot, and steel is not optional where waterfowl regulations require non toxic loads.
Three Invector-DS flush chokes ship with the gun, covering Full, Modified and Improved Cylinder. Flush tubes sit inside the muzzle rather than protruding, which is the right choice on a field gun where an extended tube would only catch on brush and cover.
The specification sheet for the Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in reads like a working hunting gun rather than a competition piece, and that is exactly the intent.
Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in Specifications
- Browning item number 0183463004
- Gauge 12 with a 3 inch chamber
- Barrel length 28 inches, gloss blued and back bored
- Overall length 45 and three quarter inches
- Weight 7 pounds 6 ounces
- Forcing cones Vector Pro lengthened
- Rib ventilated top rib, one quarter inch, with a solid side rib
- Sights ivory bead front
- Point of impact 50 50
- Trigger Fire Lite 2 mechanical, gold plated
- Chokes three Invector-DS flush tubes, Full, Modified and Improved Cylinder
- Stock Grade II and III black walnut with a gloss oil finish
- Grip pistol grip with a palm swell
- Inflex II recoil pad, large size
- Length of pull 14 and one quarter inches
- Drop at comb 1 and 5 eighths inches
- Drop at heel 2 and 1 half inches
- Receiver steel, silver nitride with game scene engraving
- Chambers chrome plated, rated for steel shot
- Action over under, break open
The stock dimensions are worth reading before you buy, because they differ from the clays guns in the same family. Drop at comb is 1 and 5 eighths inches with 2 and 1 half at the heel and a 14 and one quarter inch length of pull, which is a more conventional field geometry than the higher combs fitted to the sporting and trap models. That lower comb suits a gun that will be mounted quickly on a bird rather than pre mounted on a station, but a shooter coming off a trap gun should expect the gun to shoot flatter than they are used to.
Fit and finish on the Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in reflect a gun built to be used rather than admired, with tight wood to metal fit, a clean silver nitride receiver and barrels that lock up without play straight out of the box.
Why Buyers Choose The Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in
Hunters choose the Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in because it is a working gun with real walnut and a service record behind the action. Citori lockup has spent decades staying tight under hard use, and the 825 refines that with a full width hinge pin rather than replacing what worked.
The weight is right for carrying. At 7 pounds 6 ounces the gun is substantial enough to swing smoothly and soak up 12 gauge recoil, but light enough to walk with for a full day, which is a balance a heavier clays gun simply cannot offer.
Steel shot capability matters more every season as non toxic requirements spread beyond waterfowl. Chrome chambers, back bored barrels and Invector-DS chokes mean this gun is legal and safe to shoot wherever those rules apply.
Game scene engraving on a silver nitride receiver and gloss oil walnut put this well above a plain working gun in appearance, and an over under with genuine walnut holds value far better than a synthetic stocked repeater.
Upkeep on the Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in is routine, with a hinged action that strips without tools, flush choke tubes that back out with the supplied wrench, and a walnut stock that responds well to an occasional oil wipe.
Who Should Buy The Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in
This shotgun suits the upland or waterfowl hunter who wants a traditional over under with walnut and engraving rather than a synthetic stocked repeater. The 28 inch barrels and the field stock geometry favour a gun that gets mounted on a flushing bird, and the weight is sensible for walking. It is also perfectly capable on a casual clays round. It is not a competition gun, since the comb is lower and there is no adjustability, so a shooter whose main interest is registered trap or sporting should look at the Trap or Sporting versions of the same platform instead.
Full manufacturer specifications for the Browning Citori 825 Field 12ga 28in are published by Browning on the official product page. Browse more shotguns and clays gear in our shotguns category.
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