I am looking for some advice on which aftermarket choke to buy for a 12 gauge Beretta 694 Sporting. The primary use would be for the sporting clay course.

What is wrong with the factory chokes? Have you patterned them?

Beretta's factory HP chokes work very well so why do think you need another brand?

And "best" is subjective to each shooter so no way you'll get a consensus.

Sometimes, the flush chokes that you get with a new gun aren't really what the choke name indicates they are according to most standard choke tube designations.

For example, you may get a choke marked "Improved Cylinder" that is only about .006" constriction (in 12 gauge) when the standard for 12 gauge IC is generally considered to be .010" constriction. Likewise, the flush MOD choke may be only about .012" constriction whereas the standard MOD choke is generally considered to be about .020" constriction.

It pays to check your chokes. You know what they say about ASSuming something.

I think that the gun manufacturers think that if you're a serious shooter, you'll check the chokes and find out what the constriction is and probably discard the flush factory chokes in favor of more standard constricted extended chokes. So, no need for the manufacturer to spend a lot of money on chokes that won't be used.

OTOH, if the new gun purchaser is not a serious shooter, then he will probably never know the difference in choke anyway so the more open chokes will enable him to have bigger patterns and probably score more hits for someone of his skill level.

It's likely the same reason why car manufacturers don't put 350 horsepower engines in cars designed for little old ladies to drive to the grocery store. It would just be a waste of money and the old lady would never use that extra horsepower anyway.

So, if you're serious about shooting, check both the constriction and the POI of your chokes. After that, check how they pattern. With that info, you should be prepared to make an informed decision about whether to buy additional chokes.

I would say that my favorite aftermarket choke tube makers are Trulock and Carlson... in that order. Their stainless steel extended sporting clays chokes are excellent and reasonably priced. The chokes work well for skeet, trap, and FITASC also.

Comes with 5 extended chokes. (Sporting model)

Which should be more than adequate

Ah ha! So I did all that writing for nothing. Darn!

Oh well, maybe someone else reading the thread with some other gun that came with flush chokes might read it and learn something.

I said "to heck with it. I'll get all of them".
Filled a Browning choke case plus the two in the barrels. I figured needing two Skeet chokes plus IC, LM, M, IM and F. I'm having the parts made to build a grease plate for my range and intend to use it to become intimately familiar with the chokes at various distances and the patterns they throw with the particular standard load I reload for.
I have a tendency to go big or stay home.

tp

That "LM" tube in time will become a favorite tube for you. At least it has for me.

>>That "LM" tube in time will become a favorite tube for you. At least it has for me<<

Ditto that.......

It has nothing to do with flush or extended. Berreta, for example, cuts some of their chokes of both kinds with odd constrictions relative to the market standards especially the Optimas. The Optima HPs are a bit closer to standard, but not quite. Maybe they know what they are doing. I mean, they ARE the oldest gun producer in he world. Bottom line, the label on a choke is just an identifier to keep track of it. If you find the Mod choke works for your Sporting Clays game, what difference does it make how it is labeled?

I like the Beretta Optima HP chokes just fine The constrictions are listed on the Beretta website and there is a lot of choice. The chokes fit the bore very well. The ones I patterned made nice round patterns that look about right for their designation. (No, I do not count pellets). I think the only other chokes I would consider for the Optima HP is maybe the Briley titaniums to keep the weight down with extended chokes. Just for the record a pair of Beretta extended tubes weighs 1 oz more than a pair of Beretta flush tubes.

On their website Beretta does not make a distinction in constriction between the flush and the extended chokes.

There is ZERO empirical evidence that aftermarket chokes, given the same constriction, do anything better than factory chokes except look pretty.

There is empirical evidence that choke manufacturer claims are hokum.

Reference Neil Winston to see the light.

There's also no evidence that a $12K to $15K gun shoots any better than a $2,500 gun, but that doesn't stop lots of people from buying them!

I'm simply making the point that a person doesn't REALLY know how ANY choke will shoot until you shoot it. You can't just go by the name on the choke. This is especially true on SOME O/U's that come from the manufacturer with a set of flush chokes, but applies to ALL choke tubes.

I buy extended chokes so that I can tell at a glance what chokes I've got in the gun, not because I think they shoot better than flush chokes. But regardless what chokes I buy, I check them out thoroughly before using them.

Muller Chokes. For some reason they just seem to keep their pattern more uniform, and I know I am not the first to say that, and probably won't be the last. Very satisfied with my set, best money I ever spent besides the gun itself!

Until it splits while in your barrel................happened to a friend TWICE; he no longer uses them.

I've been using them for several years in 2 guns and never a problem,the only problem I recall reading about was the early Optima chokes which Jimmy addressed and haven't heard about any more trouble.

These weren't Optimas, they were in a Perazzi

Stainless or titanium, forget aluminum.
I have seen Muller chokes split, break off or have incorrect threads in 4 makes of guns.

CT

Titanium Briley’s are my choice .