Beretta 682 Gold E

The 682 Gold E must be one of the most successful clay busters on the market at the moment. The standard sporter has an RRP of £2,750, the adjustable stocked version, £3,035, and the fixed choke trap gun, £2,530. They are all built on the bullet-proof 600 series action famous for its stud pin hinging and conical bolting mechanism, it offers Opti-bored barrels. I think these offer a significant ballistic advantage and include a modest back-bore, gently angled forcing cones, and long, thin-wall, extended chokes. I have found that the combination really seems to work well and throws patterns which appear more efficient on their fringes. You seem to end up banking targets that might otherwise have slipped away because of slight error in reading them. The 682E is lively in the barrels – there is plenty of life there – and very pointable too. Beretta quality is a given, moreover, you simply won’t find a gun that is more durable or which holds its value better. My only quibble concerns the grip, which isn’t bad, but which I still think could be modified to improve purchase. This is an excellent product whatever way you look at it and one which I would unhesitatingly recommend to anyone who is getting serious about their clay shooting. If you don’t want to spend quite as much on a new gun and still want a Beretta, the 686E offers solid quality at a good price (RRP £1,865, £1,995 for the adjustable stock model). The gun is not back-bored, however, and does not have the improved handling qualities of the lighter barrelled 682E. It is a durable workhorse, though, and carries the famous logo proudly.