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Beretta
690

A Beretta over-and-under in Field, Sporting and Trap versions

690 Field I · Other

Drawing of a Beretta 690 from the right: two stacked barrels, a narrow top rib, a flying-pheasant engraving on the action, a stock and a rounded fore-end.
Drawing: 12-bore Field III, 27.95 in, right side

he 690 is a Beretta made in Field, Sporting and versions.1, 2, 3 The tested Field I had a silver-coloured plated and a rounded English-style .4, 5 The Black competition versions have a matt/polished receiver with orange details and an orange spacer.6

On the tested Field I, the barrels are built on the principle.7 The 28- Field I hinges on and locks with shoulders and tapered pins that take up play.8 Its single has its selector on the safety slide.8

The 690 offers a choice of automatic ejection or manual extraction.9 Removing the gives access to the selectors, which turn a quarter-turn between their stops.9 In the catalogue, the Field III takes Optima-Choke HP tubes, and a separate 12- configuration shows ****/*** in the column.1, 10

Specifications

12-bore · game

HingeField I 28-: 8, 11, 9
LockingField I 28-: shoulders and tapered pins that take up play8, 11, 9
TriggerField I: single ; selector in the safety8, 11, 9
Ejectors690 selectable system: automatic ejection or manual extraction8, 11, 9
Made inGardone Val Trompia, Italy12, 13
Introducedby 201414, 15, 16
Bore12-bore
Chambers76 mm (3 in)
Barrels25.98, 27.95, 29.92 in
ChokesOptima-Choke HP; removable; 5 tubes

1, 17, 18 Compare specifications

Specifications

ConfigurationBoreChambersBarrels, inRib, mmFore-endGradeChoke systemYearsMarketsStockFinish
Game
Game1, 17, 1812-bore76 mm (3 in)25.98, 27.95, 29.926roundedField IIIOptima-Choke HP; removable; 5 tubesOtherrounded fore-endrollmarked engraving; wood grade 2.5+
Game10, 17, 1812-bore76 mm (3 in)25.98, 27.95, 29.926roundedField IIIOtherrounded fore-endrollmarked engraving; wood grade 2.5+
Game20, 17, 1820-bore76 mm (3 in)25.98, 27.95, 29.926roundedField IIIOptima-Choke HP; removable; 5 tubesOtherrounded fore-endrollmarked engraving; wood grade 2.5+
Game8, 21, 2228-bore70 mm (2¾ in)25.98, 27.95, 29.926Field IOptima-Choke HP; removable; 5 tubesby 2019Otherpistol gripNistan action; floral laser engraving; wood grade 2.5
Sporting
Sporting2, 612-bore76 mm (3 in)27.95, 29.92, 31.89 or roundedSporting BlackOptima-Choke HP; removable; 5 tubesOther or rounded fore-endmatt/polished black action
Sporting23, 612-bore76 mm (3 in)27.95, 29.92, 31.89 or roundedSporting Black B-FastOptima-Choke HP; removable; 5 tubesOther or rounded fore-endmatt/polished black action
Sporting2412-bore76 mm (3 in)27.95, 29.92, 31.89Sporting IIIOptima-Choke HP; removable; 5 tubesOther fore-end
Trap
Trap3, 612-bore70 mm (2¾ in)29.92, 31.8910beavertail or roundedTrap BlackOtherbeavertail or rounded fore-endmatt/polished black action
Trap25, 612-bore70 mm (2¾ in)29.92, 31.8910beavertail or roundedTrap Black B-FastOtherbeavertail or rounded fore-endmatt/polished black action

Scroll for more columns.

Identify and date

The barrel side carries the and length.13 On the barrel illustrated in the 690 manual, the inscription reads BERETTA – GARDONE V.T. – MADE IN ITALY.12, 13 Optima-Choke HP barrels also carry OB HP beside the .26 The proof stamps sit on the rear underside of the barrels and on the .27

The Italian proof-year stamp dates the proof test.28 In the letter code, CM stands for 2014 and CU for 2019.29 From 1 June 2020, the replaced the letters with the year’s last two digits in a rectangle.30, 31

WhereMarkings
Barrel side and length; BERETTA – GARDONE V.T. – MADE IN ITALY on the barrel illustrated in the manual13
Rear underside of the barrels and the Proof stamps27
Barrel beside the OB HP on an Optima-Choke HP barrel26
Optima-Choke-HP on an HP tube32

Proof date

The stamp gives the year of proof. CZ applies up to 31 May 2020, and 20 from 1 June 2020. The later stamp encloses the year’s last two digits in a rectangle.28, 29, 31

Proof date codes

Before you buy

  1. Read the barrel and tube markings before ordering ; Beretta’s families have different threads and dimensions and do not interchange.33
  2. On a gun with the selectable system, check the ejector selectors; one left between its stops prevents the being refitted.9
  3. Confirm how a Field III’s barrels are configured; the catalogue lists Optima-Choke HP tubes and also a 12- configuration marked ****/***.1, 10
  4. On a Field I, check the and automatic safety; the red dots show which barrel fires first.11
  5. On a 28- Field I, check the marking and the internal tubes: the specification gives a 70 mm and five Optima-Choke HP tubes.21, 8

History

Beretta launched the 690 Field III in July 2014, with a preview of the 20- version.14, 15, 34, 35 Beretta’s international catalogue offers the Field III in 12 and 20 gauges.1, 20

By March 2017 Shooting Times had tested the Field I, describing it as a variant of the Field III and a relative of the earlier 692 competition gun.36, 37 By January 2019 Caccia Magazine had reported on a 28- Field I with 70 mm chambers.22, 8, 21

DateChangeObservable feature
by 2019The Field I appears in 28 22, 86×6 mm and internal Optima-Choke HP tubes

Sources

  1. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-1. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  2. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-2. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  3. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-6. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  4. Beretta 690 Field I test, 7 March 2017, trigger-and-rib. ShootingUK / Shooting Times, 2017-03-07. magazine · Archive
  5. Beretta 690 Field I test, 7 March 2017, stock-and-fore-end. ShootingUK / Shooting Times, 2017-03-07. magazine · Archive
  6. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, black-details. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  7. Beretta 690 Field I test, 7 March 2017, chamber. ShootingUK / Shooting Times, 2017-03-07. magazine · Archive
  8. Beretta 690 Field I 28-gauge test, technical-list. Caccia Magazine; Simone Bertini, 2019-01-15. magazine · Archive
  9. Beretta over-and-under manual MAN0022/001, 690-ejection-selectors. Beretta. manual · Archive
  10. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-3. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  11. Beretta 690 Field I test, 7 March 2017, selector. ShootingUK / Shooting Times, 2017-03-07. magazine · Archive
  12. Beretta over-and-under manual MAN0022/001, manual-scope. Beretta. manual · Archive
  13. Beretta over-and-under manual MAN0022/001, barrel-marks. Beretta. manual · Archive
  14. Beretta 690 Field III cal. 20 test, launch-date. Armi Magazine. magazine · Archive
  15. Beretta 690 Field III cal. 20 test, launch-year. Armi Magazine. magazine · Archive
  16. Beretta UK 690 competition-family page, 682-relationship. Beretta. maker website · Archive
  17. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, field-iii-wood. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  18. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, field-iii-engraving. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  19. Beretta 690 Field III 12-gauge test, right-side-engraving. Armi Magazine. magazine · Archive
  20. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-5. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  21. Beretta 690 Field I 28-gauge test, chamber. Caccia Magazine; Simone Bertini, 2019-01-15. magazine · Archive
  22. Beretta 690 Field I 28-gauge test, date. Caccia Magazine; Simone Bertini, 2019-01-15. magazine · Archive
  23. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-4. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  24. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-10. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  25. Beretta international catalogue hosted as Beretta-2015.pdf, variant-8. Beretta; PDF hosted by Caza Acuáticas. maker catalogue · Archive
  26. Beretta choke-tube guide — marks and compatibility, hp-barrel-mark. Beretta. maker website · Archive
  27. Conarmi: Italian proof marks and year codes, shotgun-stamp-positions. Consorzio Armaioli Italiani. magazine · Archive
  28. Beretta USA catalogue 2004: National Proof House Year Stamp Markings, proof-year. Beretta USA; PDF hosted by BerettaWeb, 2004. maker catalogue · Archive
  29. Conarmi: Italian proof marks and year codes, code-table. Consorzio Armaioli Italiani. magazine · Archive
  30. Cambio marchio anno di prova, change-date. Banco Nazionale di Prova, 2020. proof house · Archive
  31. Cambio marchio anno di prova, numeric-stamp. Banco Nazionale di Prova, 2020. proof house · Archive
  32. Beretta choke-tube guide — marks and compatibility, hp-tube-mark. Beretta. maker website · Archive
  33. Beretta choke-tube guide — marks and compatibility, families-cannot-interchange. Beretta. maker website · Archive
  34. Beretta 690 Field III cal. 20 test, preview. Armi Magazine. magazine · Archive
  35. Beretta 690 Field III cal. 20 test, model. Armi Magazine. magazine · Archive
  36. Beretta 690 Field I test, 7 March 2017, date. ShootingUK / Shooting Times, 2017-03-07. magazine · Archive
  37. Beretta 690 Field I test, 7 March 2017, relationships. ShootingUK / Shooting Times, 2017-03-07. magazine · Archive

Revised