Interesting attempt, but Beretta dropped the ball on letting this out of the factory as is.
Pluses: I love the wood surrounding the receiver. Beautiful and difficult to do. Bar in wood guns and island locks have long been considered some of the most attractive attributes on a SxS. I like the barrels, but it's not a new thing. I had a Beretta 470, one of the original run, that had mono bloc barrels with no perceivable joint. They stopped making them that way because it was too expensive. The receiver shape is gorgeous and sexy. And those aren't snakes - they're dragons. I like dragons, but saying they are a tribute to pheasants because they are Asian is just stupid. With that logic they could have put a teapot on the gun because it's Asian. I like the swamped rib. When I shoot I try to not look at the gun, so ribs don't mean much to me.
Minuses: I believe the top lever is minimalist and not supposed to detract from the rest of the gun. It is simply awful. I thought Italians knew how to make things pretty. The trigger guard is so out of place it immediately draws your eye, but certainly not in a good way. The traditional ways of attaching guards work well and many of them are attractive. The leaf springs are traditional, but not required for great trigger pulls. I'll bet they are a pain to replace in this gun. I still have not seen any laser engraving that I like at all.
So, I do applaude Beretta for trying to push the design and aesthetics of the SxS, but this failed. Fixing the shape of the trigger guard and top lever will transform the look of this gun. I looked at some of the stuff that Marc Newsom is famous for designing. I have a fairly well rounded and sophisticated sense of style, but he doesn't do much for me.
What Beretta was trying to do has already been done by another Italian company. Here's the real deal.
http://jamesdjulia.com/item/lot-2187-exc...ith-case-47078/The Bertuzzi Orione is the most svelte, sexiest game gun ever made, IMHO.
Regards,
Jeff
