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Work order — Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon

Taking the firearm apart for a job such as refinishing, and putting it back together to specification. Generated from the Pew-Takedown entry last updated 2026-10-29. Confidence: medium.

Shop difficulty: Tier 2 of 3

Boxlock over/under: field strip is trivial, but a bare-receiver coat means pulling the stock through the butt, the trigger plate with coil mainsprings on guides, hammers, sears, top lever and locking bolt, and dealing with sprung ejectors in the fore-end iron. Strong but conventional springs; no timing. Rated low confidence for lack of a sourced strip guide. 96 parts (Beretta's spare-parts list for the S686 Silver Pigeon / S687 Silver Pigeon II / Onyx family, as reproduced on berettaweb.com from the Beretta estore: 96 distinct exploded-view position keys (POS 002-1). Pew-Takedown's rating, not the manufacturer's.

Bench time: strip ~60 min, rebuild ~90 min (estimate). Actual: strip ______ rebuild ______

Special tools:

• Long stock-bolt socket — Through-bolt from the butt
• Barrel dowels and padded vise — Protecting barrels while working on ejectors
• Mainspring compressor or guides — Coil mainsprings

Watch for:

• Beretta tells owners not to repair or adjust the over/under themselves; any intervention must be done by the manufacturer or a qualified person. (both; Beretta USA / Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A.)

1. Clear and make safe

1. Point the muzzle in a safe direction and keep your finger off the trigger.
2. Push the top lever to the side and open the action, supporting the barrels.
3. Remove any shells from both chambers, or let the ejectors throw them clear.
4. Look through both barrels from the breech and confirm both chambers are empty and both bores are clear.
   Warning: Both chambers, both bores. A bore obstruction will destroy the barrel.
5. Leave the action open and remove all live ammunition from the work area.

2. Disassemble

Field Strip

1. Complete the Clear and Make Safe procedure, leaving the action open.
2. Release the forend latch and lift the forend off the barrels.
3. Pivot the barrels open further and lift them off the action hinge.
   Warning: Support the barrels — they will fall if released.
4. Clean both bores from the breech, the chambers, the breech face, and the hinge and locking lug surfaces.
5. If the gun has screw-in choke tubes, remove them with the supplied wrench, clean the threads, and apply choke tube grease before reinstalling.
   Warning: Never fire the gun with a choke tube partially threaded. Check choke tightness periodically.
6. Stop here. The lockwork inside the action is gunsmith territory.

3. Refinish

The components the procedures above separate. Coating, masking and cure are outside this database; follow your coating system's instructions. A part the manufacturer marks "factory fit" should not be swapped or reworked.

No manufacturer statement of materials or finish is recorded. Identify each part's material before choosing prep and cure.

4. Reassemble

Reassembly

1. Reinstall any choke tubes, greased and fully seated.
2. Engage the barrels on the action hinge and pivot them closed.
3. Fit the forend onto the barrels and engage its latch.
   Warning: Confirm the forend is latched.
4. Close the action fully until the top lever returns toward centre.
   Warning: Confirm the action locks shut.
5. Perform the function check.

5. Torque

No manufacturer torque values are recorded for this firearm.

Notes: The manufacturer's documents give no torque value. They say: "Manually tighten the choke tubes, clockwise, and tighten using the wrench supplied, until they have bottomed out in their housing inside the barrels (fig. 37)." (Over-and-Unders User Manual, PDF p. 26) "fit the new butt plate and tighten the two fastening screws." (Over-and-Unders User Manual, PDF p. 28)

Fit or check on rebuild

• Ejector timing (both barrels) — Ejector trips must fire each ejector only for its fired barrel; a mis-set trip throws both or none.
• Lock-up and hinge lubrication — Beretta stresses the hinge area carries very high loads and must be oiled.
• Function check: safety, trigger/sear release, disconnector and feeding with dummy rounds — Standard after any detail strip; a mis-assembled sear or disconnector can double or fail to fire.

6. Function check

• Verify both chambers are empty before each check.
• Close the action and confirm it locks shut.
• Engage the safety and press the trigger. The hammer must not fall.
• Disengage the safety and press the trigger. It should release.
• Operate the barrel selector and confirm the trigger fires the selected barrel first, then switches after the first release.
• Open the action and confirm the ejectors throw snap caps clear as expected.
• Confirm choke tubes are fully seated and tight.

If any check fails, the firearm is not safe to fire. Stop and see a licensed gunsmith.

Sources

1. Beretta 680 Series Over-Under Shotgun Use and Maintenance Manual — Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta primary
2. Over-and-Unders User Manual — Beretta USA / Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A. primary
   https://dam.beretta.com/content/dam/beretta-usa/user-manuals/Over-and-Under_Manual.pdf
3. P. Beretta S686 Silver Pigeon, S687 Silver Pigeon II, Onyx - exploded view and spare parts list (Product code / Name / POS) — berettaweb.com (Ugo Muffolini; unofficial site reproducing Beretta estore part codes) primary
   https://www.berettaweb.com/sezionati/sez%20686%20687%20II.htm

Educational guide only. Some information comes from non-authoritative sources. Always consult your manufacturer's manual and a licensed gunsmith. Verify your firearm is unloaded before every procedure. Full disclaimer: https://github.com/Fundamental-build-LLC/Pew-Takedown

Legal notice: this material is third-party information compiled from sources of varying reliability and is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It is not gunsmithing, technical, safety or legal advice, it is not verified or endorsed by any manufacturer, and it must not be taken as fact. Any work on a firearm beyond the routine field stripping described in its own owner's manual should be performed only by a licensed and insured gunsmith. You use this material entirely at your own risk. Fundamental Build LLC and the project's contributors make no warranty of any kind and accept no liability for death, injury, damage or loss arising from its use. Full terms: LEGAL.md.