I thought you were a big fan of the Prevail? Like Browning never had problems? Remember salt wood and firing pin issues? And the peeling CG color case?

My Prevail never went wrong while I had it and it handled very well apart from the heavy triggers, but the 'O' rings were just about finished when I traded it in. Every other one I knew about at the time did have ejector issues and every one was traded on.

They didn't fall apart though, as the trigger group hooked in to the frame with spigot, unlike the 692 etc which had a simple slot. The SV10 was simply overdesigned, but by the time of the 692 the bean counters were in charge and their misguided decisions comprehensively opened the door to the B725 and CG families.

It's a long road back for Beretta in that segment with Blaser now joining in with the F16. I do see 1 or 2 694s around on the reg sporting courses but all are with people who've upgraded from another Beretta.

I see a ton of CG's in my area, local dealer does a decent job selling them, and I see a ton of brownings out and about at my local clubs, also coming from the same dealer. A few of my buddies have had 725's a few stuck with them, but once they all broke the firing pins, they ordered the repair kit and a few sent them down the road while others kept them.

We will see if the 694 is "plagued" by anything, honestly the key board warriors destroyed the name and the reputation of the 692 in a matter of 18 months. I've got over 5,000 rounds through mine, and it's been flawless, other then the uber sharp ejector took a few bites out of my fore finger, but that's to be expected on any new gun.

I do think overall as stated though the 694 is a stunning gun, the blue is sharp and the milling and simplistic logo and model is clean and well done on the reciever.

I looked at a new Blaser F16 this weekend at the north central regional and for having "grade 2" wood it would have been a hard pass, $3800 for the equivalent of a legitimate fence post was a little off putting in my eyes. However it's a sporting gun, and it's going to get beat so I get that argument, I just thought that for that price point, it should come with something a little more nicer, something nicer then say a current product Remington 870 express

I just received my 694 with 32 inch barrels. Initial impressions are mixed. I discovered that my adjustable trigger won't move regardless how loose I make the set screw. Unfortunately the only warranty center is across Canada so I hope this is just a 'break in' issue. Out of the box, my gun balances forward of the hinge. Despite adding all the provided weights to the stock, the gun still had a forward bias. A 30 inch barrel may be more neutrally balanced, however I prefer 32 inch barrels for all my sporting guns. My gun came with 5 chokes (C, 2 IC, M, IM), a small screw driver and wrenches for the chokes and stock. I plan to contact the dealer tomorrow regarding the chokes as I'm also missing the extra recoil pad. The new stock dimensions are not dissimilar to older berettas. I was afraid that the comb would be too high, but honestly I didn't see much a change. However, the pistol grip and forearm are very nice and would suit an instinctive style of shooting. The gun feels fast to move, but in a controlled manner. Once the weather warms up, I'll take her out on the trap, skeet, and sporting clays range. After a few thousand rounds, I should know if I like this gun or not.

To me my 694 32” seems to balanced neutral. I use the thick pad I’m 6’1”
Strange on your missing chokes and extra pad ? I have not messed with trigger yet .
Maybe this winter with gloves . Like you said it’s a fast swing which I like .
Recoil seems fine . Wood is soft like my old 725 sportier and dents easy .
I did buy 2 beretta LM chokes ( black addition Optima HP) about I’ll I use now
For SC

The missing items are strange but it could be a honest mistake. I purchased the gun sight unseen and over the phone from the dealer so there was no way for me to check the item before it arriving. The 694's are unfortunately far and few in Canada, so choice really isn't an option.

Glad to hear you're having a great experience with your gun. My LOP requires the 18mm pad, so that's probably why your gun balances more neutrally. Out of curiosity, how much weight, if any, did you have to add to your stock and what do your barrels weight? I was just comparing my 694 to my DT11 black (which has lighter barrels @ 1.50 kg), and in my opinion the 694 move faster. I think it's because of the newly designed forearm, but I won't know until I take out to the range.

As for the adjustable trigger, I figured out my problem. In the manual it states not to remove the trigger screw and to only loosen it as there is a trigger bearing that can come out. I took a chance and removed the screw completely. The trigger was now able to move, but it was still a struggle. I'm not sure what is the trigger bearing is because I couldn't see it. The gun fits like a glove now. I only have to add more weight to the stock or swap out the chokes to lighter ones to get the balance where I want it.

I don’t use weights the 694 don’t come with them you most order them . For the barrel that is . The stock ? What ever came with the gun pre installed .

This is my 2nd 694 the first one had a chip I the stock . Beretta said no replacement stocks to US
For 10 months so dealer gave me a new one . They both swing the same identical in every way.
Except the new has lot nicer wood .

(Check to make sure stock does not loosen up when new )

Interesting,I have the '11 Black myself and mine are also 1.50 kg.

I have a 32" B-fast 694 that balances dead on the hinge pin from the factory. It has a listed weight of 3848 grams (8.48 lbs) which is on the heavier side from the guns I have seen. Maybe that's why it is more balanced.

May I ask when you were told there would be no stocks in the US for 10 months? My stock also needs to be replaced under warranty.

Pacific Sporting Arms East
Thats who sold me a new 694 and they replaced it with a new one .
Saying no stocks to US for 10 months.
Now that was back May 2020

Ok cool, thank you for the reply.

Thank you for the advice. I checked the stock last night and it needed to be tightened about a quarter turn.

Hi everybody,

I am new to the forum, and new to the O&U world. I have some trap/skeet shooting done with my SBEII, but i am not an expert at all... so...

I always wanted to get a nice OU, and my eyes were set to the 692 for a few years now, i had it compared to a few other options from beretta and browning, and, from the shouldering perspective, 692 is the best - my SBEII drop is adjusted to the absolutely flat rib view, and 692 gives me that right out of the box... So, as soon as I decided to get one, beretta came up with 694 that offers a few upgrades that sounds like a winner. I went to the store to look at it, and, to my great disappointment, the drop on 694 is less then on 692! It just does not fit, i see too much of a rib. I did some research, and, as I understand, this setup is suitable for the trap shooters when the clay goes up/away and gun would shoot higher to compensate that.

Heve 2 questions please:

1. Is it true that i can order 694 with lower drop? What are the numbers for 692?
2. Are they going to drop 692 model, or it is just in parallel? - I came across of a nice "old stock" (3-5 y/o) brand new 692 for a good price - did 692 went through any mods over the years that i would need to pay attention to?

Thank you very much!!

Up here in Ontario Canada they are very hard to find ($6800 CAD after our 13% tax). I did have a chance to buy one with adjustable comb from a friend who bought it and had waited for 3 months to get it. He ended up buying another gun in the meantime so when it came in, he decided he didn't want it and sold it to me for a great price...so far very pleased with the fit, finish and look.
I admit I never liked Berettas as I was very happy with my 725 but this one felt really good so figured life's too short not to try different things.
Will get a chance to shoot it in the next week or so.

Where are you located? Are you looking at the (international) trap version or the typical sporting 694?

If you need the stock to be lower, wood can be removed and the stock can be refinished. I understand not wanting to do this on a new gun.

The 694 has replaced the 692. Any remaining new 692s are probably on sale and the price of used ones should be falling. If buying a 692 you need to talk with someone in the know like Cole's about the ejector and tang screw issues and any modifications or retrofits.

I always liked the polished/silver accents on the 692. Better than the 694 and DT11 blue.

How good are the 694 triggers out of the box? 3.5lb and crisp/no creep or do you have to send to Coles right off the bat to get them tuned up? Thx.

The prices on these guns has started to tick up very quick. Once you get into the over 4.5k area other options come into play.

So in the $4-5.5k range what 'options' would you suggest for an established name brand new 32" sporter? I can only find the Blaser F16 and CG Summit. Please don't suggest a used DT10. You can no longer even get close to that price in the used market, they start at $6.5k. In my opinion you're either in the sub $3.5k range or $6k+, not much in between. Thanks.