Beretta silver pigeon 1 vs 686 e evo

[Squires99]

Hi all

been reading a lot about the two guns mentioned in the subject. Went to the shop to buy myself a silver pigeon 1 (first shotgun) and the guy in the shop confused me by showing me the 686 e evo which looked lovely. 

I have a couple questions... 

I will be doing mostly clay shooting for some fun. I am torn between a 30" and a 32" I am 6ft 2ft and around 14 stone if that makes a difference. 

Also what are people opinion on the e evo? I've read good things about the silver pigeon 1 but for the same money I can get a mint used evo so not sure which way to go with it. 

Any help and advice would really be appreciated. 

Cheers all 

 

[Bebo]

I've got a SP1 and my sister-in-law has an 686e evo.  The action is basically identical (apart from the patterns on the outside).  Think they've both got Optima chokes, the SP comes with flush ones, the evo with extended ones.  Don't think there is much else different between them.

Barrel length is down to personal preference more than anything else.  I'm just waiting to collect a new gun and I've personally gone for the 30" option because for me it felt slightly better balanced, but there was very little difference in actually trying the two one after the other.  My husband also shoots a gun with 30" barrels.  I'm 5'4 and he's 6'4 so it's not really a height thing, more what feels right.

If the evo is second hand, why not see if they'll let you take it out for a try?

 

[Squires99]

Hi thanks for the reply. 

I was set on a silver pigeon 1 until the other day and quite liked the look of the evo as the engraving etc looks a bit more modern instead of the more traditional look. I do like both though. 

The second hand one I saw was a private seller about 2 hours from me and is the 32" barrels but if I was going to go for a new one I was going for 30" the second hand evo is quite a big saving though and sounds like it's not done a lot of shooting. 

Difficult decision and want to make sure it's the right choice. 

The other thing is the silver pigeon is a very popular gun and maybe easier to trade if I decided to later on....

 

[Tom Tristram]

Very big difference between sounds and has not done a lot of shooting , what exactly does the advert say?

 

[Squires99]

Very big difference between sounds and has not done a lot of shooting , what exactly does the advert say?

Hi Tom

thw advert says it's mint condition and only had 500 cartridges through it. 

 

[Tom Tristram]

Hi Tom

thw advert says it's mint condition and only had 500 cartridges through it. 

Alright sounds good to me!

 

[Squires99]

It's a 32" though which is the only thing holding me back as ideally I would like to go for a 30 but maybe the 32 would be fine? 

 

[Bebo]

The other thing is the silver pigeon is a very popular gun and maybe easier to trade if I decided to later on....

I don't think there is much problem selling any of the 686 guns.  As for a 32" gun, all I can say is try it and see if the balance suits you.

 

[Squires99]

Ok will do thank you. 

 

[Nimbusgb]

At 6' plus I would have thought a 32 would be a better bet.

 

[Guest]

Hey Squires

I started shooting around 3 years ago and a 32" 686 e evo was my first gun. Like people have already said its down to personal preference so its got to be your decision on what feels right and how you shoot but as i shot the gun for 3 years ill give you my thoughts.

I really liked the gun and it got me up into A class in English sporting in 3 years so clearly a good gun but a few months ago i got stuck shooting in the 70's for a long time and couldn't seem to get consistently higher scores. I recently started shooting Olympic skeet and this is where i found that the balance of my gun with 32" barrels wasn't great. I had a 15 1/2" stock on the gun and even with the extension it was still very barrel heavy so getting the gun moving quickly was a real effort. I shoot maintained lead which requires getting the gun moving quite quickly in order to stay in front which i was struggling to do with the balance of this gun.

I'm 6 ft 5" and everyone said you're tall so go for 32" as youll be able to get them moving but i think I'm quite a relaxed shooter so that didn't really work for me. Couple of months back i decided to trade in my evo and buy a dt10 with 30" barrels. Took me a few shoots to get used to it but now I'm consistently shooting in the 80's and and put a few scores up in the 90's 1 clay of winning my first high gun at owls lodge a couple of weeks back. The biggest difference i noticed was that it was so much easier to get the gun moving which meant i could establish the lead much quicker and not rush the shot having shorter barrels

The first few outings with the gun i hated it and found it really whippy as i was used to such a front heavy 32" gun but as i continued to use it that settled down and it began to feel really smooth.

I got in touch with a lot of fellow shooters and did a lot of research when i was trying to choose between 30" and 32" barrels and i found there to be an even split in choice. At the end of one piece i read it said " Yes a 32" barrel will help you with longer targets but a well balanced gun will help you with every target" so find a gun that feels right and has a good balance. I really wanted a brand new gun for various reasons when i started out but looking back now i really should have bought a second hand 682 gold e for a similar price, yes 2nd hand but if its in good nick you really don't notice any difference. The dt10 i recently bought was 2nd hand about 8 years old and looks immaculate and a lot cheaper then a new one could have been.

Just want to add that yes i noticed the balance issue while shooting Olympic skeet but i primarily shoot English sporting and this is where i have noticed the improvements. If you're just shooting for fun then i would personally look for a 30" gun which feels right and that you like the look of etc. All the top shots shoot 32" barrelled guns but their higher end guns are a lot better balanced then a 32" standard gun out of the factory.

I'm relatively new to shooting so these are just my thoughts, its a case of going out and shooting regularly to find what works best for you. You can always trade in your gun if you wish to change and buy a different one like i did.

Hope this helps.

Ollie