In the event you shut your eyes and picture your self following a well-trained chicken canine by way of an autumn discipline, there’s a superb likelihood the shotgun you’re carrying on this daydream is a fine-looking over/underneath. However you’ll additionally discover O/Us on clays ranges in all places from the native membership to the Olympics. The over/underneath is a confirmed platform that’s used to provide high-end competitors weapons and beautiful discipline weapons alike.
Sadly, magnificence comes at a value. Although a majority of recent O/Us are made by CNC machines, they’re usually dearer than pumps or auto-loaders. The excellent news is there are all kinds of O/Us at a number of value factors. The perfect over/underneath shotguns are expensive, however there are additionally cheap choices that may get the job accomplished all the identical, simply with a bit much less fashion. For this story I’m focusing, together with my fellow Out of doors Life editors, on extra attainable O/Us — although we’ve additionally included just a few high-end choices as nicely.
Finest Over/Beneath Shotguns
Finest General: Browning Citori 825
Execs
- Candy shooter
- Wonderful handing
- High-quality workmanship
Cons
- A bit expensive for an on a regular basis looking gun
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12 to .410 -
Weight: 7 kilos, 4 ounces -
General size: 45.75 inches (28-inch barrel) -
Barrel size: 26 and 28 inches -
Inventory: Gloss oil end Grade II/III walnut -
Chokes: F, M, IC -
Worth: $3,000
The 825 is our favourite iteration of the Citori but. It’s provided in a wide range of entice, sporting clays, and discipline configurations and in 2026 it is going to be provided in sub-gauges as nicely. We examined the usual discipline model in our 2025 Shotgun Test and it wowed the check workforce, taking residence our Editor’s Selection award.
“In comparison with the Citori 725, one other gun we like, it has a modernized look and extra elegant and refined elements, particularly the highest lever and security/barrel choose. The 825’s inventory has a softer, extra rounded profile, the place the 725 strains are extra angular and outlined. Which seems higher is solely a matter of private style,” OL capturing editor John B. Snow wrote in regards to the gun in our 2025 shotgun check. “We additionally appreciated the 825’s easy adornment, with a grouse on one aspect and pheasant on the opposite.”
I later hunted with the shotgun and located that it carried and swung simply as fantastically because it regarded. When it comes to value, efficiency, and aesthetics, it is going to be powerful to discover a fashionable over/underneath that’s higher than the Citori 825.
Finest Sporting: Beretta DT11
Execs
- Wonderful patterns
- Championship pedigree
- Very good efficiency on the vary
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12 -
Weight: 8 kilos, 9 ounces -
General size: 49.5 inches (32-inch barrel) -
Barrel size: 30 and 32 inches -
Inventory: Left-hand choices accessible -
Chokes: F, IM, M, IC, C -
Worth: $11,420
American skeet shooter Vincent Hancock has gained a report 4 gold medals with Beretta shotguns, together with the DT11 Black. And because it’s the shotgun of selection for the most effective skeet shooter of all time, it will get the nod as the most effective over/underneath gun for clays. A carbon-fiber rib permits shooters so as to add size to the barrels with out including weight. Hancock used to shoot 28-inch barrels, however bumped as much as 30s within the DT11. An extended barrel set will help maintain your swing on monitor, and in the event you like extra weight within the entrance of your over/underneath, you should use the included rib weights to seek out the right stability. Beretta’s Steelium Professional barrels, used within the Italian gunmakers’ high-end double weapons, come normal as do 5 Optima chokes.
DT stands for “removable set off.” You may drop the set off out by opening the motion, aligning the lever with the protection, pushing the protection ahead to show a black dot, and shifting the lever to the fitting. Removable triggers have crisper set off pulls—the DT11 breaks at 3½ kilos—and it’s simpler to scrub and regulate set off weight. The cross-bolt motion of the DT11 is 3mm wider than its predecessor, the DT10, giving it a stronger lock up so it could maintain up even after tens of hundreds of shotshell ignitions. Beretta presents a wide range of completely different shares for the DT11 in order that shooters can expertise a extra customized match. —Joe Genzel
Finest Mid-Priced Sporting: Fabarm Elos N2
Execs
- Nice worth
- Wonderful barrels and chokes
- Adjustable comb
Cons
- Some could not like enamel ornament
-
Gauges: 12 -
Weight: 8 kilos, 4 ounces -
General size: 49.5 inches (32-inch barrel) -
Barrel size: 30 and 32 inches -
Inventory: Oil-finished walnut with an adjustable comb -
Chokes: IM, M, IC, SK -
Worth: $3,680
If the DT11 is a little bit too wealthy to your blood, think about the Fabarm Elos N2. Longtime gun author Phil Bourjaily picked this shotgun as his high O/U for sporting clays. “The gun has TriBore barrels and Fabarm’s house-made Exis choke tubes with a novel curved internal geometry rather than the standard conical/parallel choke design,” Bourjaily wrote. “From a very anecdotal standpoint, I can say that this gun hits targets onerous, and that Fabarm has lengthy been identified for its barrels and chokes. The N2 RS is an offshoot of the N2, with weight added by way of denser wooden, a stable mid-rib and a bulkier forend. It’s made for shooters preferring extra heft to their sporting gun, the place the usual N2 is for many who favor their gun to be extra nimble.”
Finest for Upland Birds: Ruger Red Label III
Execs
- Made in America
- Very gentle and nimble
- Handles splendidly
Cons
- No engravings on receiver
Key Specs
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Gauge: 20 -
Barrel Size: 28 and 30 inches (examined) -
General Size: 47.5 inches -
Weight: 6.59 kilos (measured) -
Inventory: Walnut -
5 screw in Tru-Choke fashion chokes included (SK, IC, M, IM and F) -
Worth: $2,720
In 2026 Ruger is resurrecting its fashionable Pink Label line with the III. This slender O/U is being made for Ruger by Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing Firm and, in my view, it’s the most effective Pink Label but. This model of the Pink Label has easy but considerate options. The darkish inventory (black American walnut and Turkish walnut) is engaging, however not so fancy that you just’ll really feel unhealthy about placing scratches in it. The wooden sits proudly above the receiver, because it ought to. The inventory has a impartial solid and a splendidly slender Prince of Wales fashion grip.
I’ve hunted geese and pheasants with the gun and I’ve discovered that it’s completely balanced for carrying on lengthy hunts within the uplands. The longer 30-inch barrels make it easier to swing by way of targets. And true to the Pink Label historical past, it’s chambered in 20 gauge and made in America. Learn my full evaluate of the Red Label III right here.
Most Versatile: Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon
Execs
- Comparatively inexpensive
- Wonderful do-it-all shotgun
Cons
- Security requires adjustment
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12, 20 -
Weight: 7 kilos, 2 ounces (12 ga) -
General size: 46 to 48 inches -
Barrel size: 26, 28, 30 inches -
Inventory: B Quick, European Walnut -
Chokes: F, IM, M, IC, C -
Worth: $2,449
The Silver Pigeon is taken into account to be Beretta’s working man’s over/underneath. It’s a stable competitor to the Browning Citori and whether or not you favor one or the opposite actually comes down to private tastes. The fashionable model of the gun comes with a silver (in fact) receiver that has good laser engraved floral patterns. It’s a reasonably, fashionable O/U with options like Beretta’s Steelium barrels and B-FAst inventory system in-built.
Government editor Natalie Krebs carried the 686 Silver Pigeon throughout sage flats and up rugged plateaus out West this season with good outcomes. “Previously, I’ve opted for lighter weapons which are simpler to hold at altitude, however whose whippiness proved expensive when it got here time to shoot,” she says. “I a lot favor the simple swinging and fast dealing with of the Silver Pigeon, which got here by way of for me on more durable photographs, together with a tough left-to-right crossing hun and one other that pulled a U-turn, forcing me to spin and shoot on a steep slope.
My solely critique is that the tang security is just too stiff out of the field and its ergonomics — a bulge relatively than a groove — don’t assist issues, gloves or no. It was fantastic if I had superior discover of impending capturing over some extent, nevertheless it value me a chukar when my Lab flushed a shock single that flew right away — a uncommon chip shot. Too unhealthy I used to be preventing the protection and by no means bought the shot off. Happily, it’s one thing a fast journey to the gunsmith ought to resolve, which I’ve accomplished previously for one more Beretta with the identical situation.”
Finest Mid-Priced: Franchi Instinct Sideplate
Execs
- Enticing but sturdy over/underneath fitted to onerous use within the discipline
- Cheaper than the Citori and Silver Pigeon
Cons
- Ejectors didn’t at all times work as anticipated on our check pattern
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12, 20 -
Weight: 7 kilos, 7 ounces (12 ga) -
General size: 46 to 48 inches -
Barrel size: 28 inches -
Inventory: AA grade satin walnut -
Chokes: IC, M, F -
Worth: $2,149
That is a pretty Italian over/underneath that represents a stable worth. Its wooden is darkish and wealthy, the colour case-hardening on the motion is nicely executed, interesting gold-inlay looking scenes on both aspect are augmented with engraved scrollwork and borders, and the highest lever is sculpted with fantastic cuts.
It shoots nicely, too. The Sideplate has an computerized security that additionally features as a barrel selector that operates easily with no slop or uncertainty. It comes with prolonged choke tubes to tune the diploma of constriction to the shooter’s preferences, and our pattern (chambered in 12 gauge with 3-inch chambers and 28-inch barrels) did a superb job breaking clays.
The one actual situation we had with the shotgun was inconsistent ejection. At occasions it wouldn’t pop empties free from their chambers, which is a little bit of a nuisance if not a deadly flaw. Even so, for a shotgun at this value, that value it factors within the reliability class.
Finest for Duck Searching: Mossberg Silver Reserve Eventide
Execs
- Dependable duck gun
- Swings properly
- Handles recoil surprisingly nicely
Cons
- Has extractors not ejectors
Key Specs
-
Gauges: 12 -
Weight: 7 kilos, 5 ounces (12 ga) -
General size: 45.5 inches -
Barrel size: 28 inches -
Inventory: Artificial, camo -
Chokes: C, IC, M, IM, F -
Worth: $846
I shot the Mossberg Eventide on a duck hunt in Maine and located that it shines brightest underneath the very worst circumstances.
On these frigid, salty mornings the semi-autos that different hunters had been utilizing began to jam up, however my over/underneath simply stored working. This Turkish-made shotgun’s hefty weight and good stability helped me swing on passing sea geese, dropping chicken after chicken. This shotgun was at residence among the many rocks and saltwater, however I wouldn’t thoughts utilizing it as a late-season goose gun or a delegated boat gun (which are supposed to be beat to hell). It dealt with the recoil of heavy duckloads surprisingly nicely. The sling studs on the barrel and inventory are a pleasant function for duck hunters.
Throughout vary testing we did have one glitch with the gun that affected its reliability rating. When opening the gun, it’s doable to unlock the lugs with out pushing the highest lever over absolutely. When this occurs, the highest lever is not going to click on into its open locked place, which means the locking bars within the receiver will stop the motion from closing.
My solely different situation with the shotgun is that it has extractors as a substitute of ejectors. This makes reloading slower, which is a flaw in a duck gun once you’ve bought a downed diver swimming off into the waves. On the upside, it makes it simpler to gather your spent hulls after the hunt.
Execs
- Nice worth
- Good dealing with for a finances gun
Cons
- Made in Turkey
- Finicky security
Key Specs
-
Gauges: 12, 20 gauge -
Weight: 7 kilos (12 ga) -
General size: 45.75 inches -
Barrel size: 26 and 28 inches -
Inventory: Turkish walnut -
Chokes: F, M, IC -
Worth: $989
OL’s information editor Dac Collins has been looking upland birds virtually completely with the Weatherby Orion for the previous couple seasons. This Turkish-made O/U is an all-around stable worth and a confirmed discipline gun.
“The Orion I’ve been capturing is a 20-gauge with 28-inch barrels, and it’s killed quite a lot of pheasants in Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming,” Collins says. “I’ve additionally carried it within the mountains fairly a bit to hunt blue grouse. These walks are usually lengthy, steep, and brutal, so that they actually name for a lighter gun which you can mount and swing rapidly within the timber.
“My solely knock on the Orion is the protection, which isn’t simple to function with thicker gloves. Though hardly ever, I’ve had it get caught within the center place, which retains the protection engaged and is irritating when a chicken is already within the air. I additionally just like the plain end and fundamental inventory. This gun has taken a beating in opposition to timber and rocks, so there’s no have to child it now.”
Last Ideas on the Finest Over/Beneath Shotguns
What’s nice about immediately’s over/underneath shotguns is which you can spend $12,000 or $900 and nonetheless go residence with a purposeful firearm. The over/underneath market is so aggressive these days that it has compelled gun makers to construct extra dependable shotguns with higher options. So resolve how a lot you might be prepared to spend, which options matter most to you, after which decide a gun (or perhaps two) from our listing.
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