“I’m looking for an elegant second-hand boxlock – please help”
Our expert Mike George advises a reader
Beretta 687 EELL
Option 2 Beretta 687 EELL
This is the really posh version of the familiar Beretta Silver Pigeon. The price of a new gun is £6,450, while a new Silver Pigeon 1 game gun costs £1,976. These are the importer’s recommended prices, which are undercut by most dealers, but the 687 EELL is still an expensive gun.
Beretta Silver Pigeon Classic
The latest of Beretta’s Silver Pigeon shotguns is billed as top of the line up and presents good value for…
Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon 1 Game Scene: one of many Silver Pigeons to withstand the test of time
Over the years Beretta has produced a great many models under the Silver Pigeon moniker. The Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon…
So what makes it better than a standard Silver Pigeon? Well, the woodwork for a start. It’s a dark, well-figured sample of beautifully-figured walnut, carved with well-proportioned, flowing lines. Then, there’s the fact that it’s a side-plated gun, which gives it plenty of space for the engraver to show off their art.
On the second-hand racks you may find game scene or scroll patterns, which are spread all over the action and side-plates, and onto the trigger guard and top lever. Also on the racks you may find fixed choke and multichoke versions. The fixed-choke is said to have slightly sharper handling than the multi. Internally, the “works” of the action are nicely presented, and work in exactly the way as any other “600” series Beretta.
New guns are supplied in an ABS case, which should contain choke tubes when appropriate, and a hexagon key for stock removal. But therein lies a warning – if you remove the stock yourself, do take great care because the side plates are a precision fit.
