My DT has the lowest felt recoil of any o/u I’ve ever shot. It’s pretty heavy and I’m average size so the stock fits well.
When others have shot the gun their comments are always about the weight and never about recoil.
Cheers

+1

I’m very happy with my 694. Personally im with you, I wouldn’t spend the extra money on a dt11. They are beautiful but I’m not convinced they are 2.5 times the price nicer ;-)

So you buy a slightly used one like I did and save a bunch of money.

Better yet, but a used ASE 90 and have a custom hand built gun that will shoot for 3 lifetimes that can be rebuilt numerous times if it has to be...or if you really want to be cautious with your coin by a used 682 which are built to be shot to pieces and rebuilt....1cas

Just bought a 694 Left-Hand 30" B-Fast from Joel E. Stepped up from the Lanber 2097 Lux I've been shooting for about 15 years. Really great to have something specific to me and further adjustable. Seem to get more positive breaks vs chippers. For me this is probably the most gun I'll own and looking at its quality probably the last. Moving from USPSA and 3-Gun to this sport more often.

I was able to shoulder the Browning 725 and Benelli 828U also but like the Beretta the best.

Buy what you want, but fit is most important. Just got my DT-11 from Cole's, custom fitted stock, was no additional charge over the price of the gun, and it is sweet. Shot a very nice K-80 for years that didn't fit, added LOP, used adjustable comb, just couldn't get it right. but I will not have to buy another gun the rest of my life. Once you find one that fits, you don't need another.

The great thing about the DT10/11, ASE platform is the removable trigger plate.

It's super easy to clean the ignition parts of the gun, super easy to change firing pins, sear springs, and hammer springs, and most importantly, in a tournament you have redundancy of your fire control parts by simply carrying a spare group.

You can be back in action as fast as you can change a choke tube if you break a hammer spring or sear spring, or start having issues like sear problems.

For me, I much prefer serious target guns that have quick detach triggers like these Berettas or the Perazzi MX-8 and its variants.

While Physics cannot be changed we can use Science to manipulate the Recoil Impulse. Spread that impulse energy over a longer period of time and you have a reduced energy peak and a distinct perception of less produced recoil. One aspect of the DT11 that differs from earlier designs is the extended "Forcing Cone" featured on the DT11. Per Beretta's claims that "forcing cone" extends about 2/3 down the length of the barrel. If, as the current theory goes, this results in a lower rate of acceleration for the charge transiting the barrel. The end result is the same muzzle velocity but it's achieved by using more of the barrel length to get the charge up to speed.

Personally, I think that much of this is simply hype to sell a "new design" but sometimes hype is actually true. What is certain is that the DT11 is a fantastic shotgun and if I ever hit the lottery I will have one in my safe. Since my budget is limited I'll keep on eyeballing the 694 but to be truthful I'm not a very good shot. So I'll just keep plugging away with my 682 stocked 686 Sporting.

The notion that a removable/replaceable trigger group is a selling point to someone deliberating over a choice in shotguns neglects to consider that a backup trigger group is a considerable expense added to an already expensive gun.

Unless the used one you buy also came with one, like mine did........

True, but if you're contemplating multiple thousands of dollars already, a $500 trigger group isn't that much of a big deal.

Hell, that's the amount you pay at one single decent tournament (or more). The first time it saves your weekend because you have a swappable trigger group it will pay for itself.

The gun and other equipment are by far the cheapest part of this sport!

except those trigger groups are close to $1K, not $500

They cost $825 on Beretta's website and can be routinely had for 25% off which = $618.75. Currently can be purchased for 20% off = $660 with discount code #CSPRO156.

List price I saw was over $1100 so street price would be about $900

I got mine for 500.

Either way, it’s worth 25 years of service.