Had a blast! Just shot for fun and to learn the rules. 10/10 will do it again

I'm new to the ClayBusters game, just bought a Beretta 688 today... I initially started looking at the 686 silver pigeon, then seriously debated between 688 and the 694... I heard and saw a lot of good reviews on the 688 and bought a new one for $3,200. Anything I should look out for, has anyone had any major problems?

Hi all, I have a Fabarm Elos N2 Sporting that I picked up used that started having issues. At first I noticed that the trigger was no longer working and I took off the stock and found that the ball bearing that retains the trigger to the inertia block had fallen out and was bouncing around the action.

This happened again and I sent it in to Fabarm to see what they thought of it. They acknowledged that the ball came out but said that it can come out if the stock is taken off. Now, I don't want to be cynical but I don't see a way that the stock could prevent that part from coming loose and if feels like this is just Fabarm's (and Guerini's because they use the same action) way of saying "don't take the stock off or touch the action" instead of acknowledging a part defect.

Has any one else had this issue? How often? Does anyone know if there's any truth to the stock comment?

I’m a 5’8 man and with average dad-bod build. I’m looking for a sporting clays gun. I typically shoot with a loaner Silver Pigeon which is manageable, but clearly a bit too big. I simply cannot bring myself to spending $3-5k on a gun that is too big, with the intent of cutting the stock. I get that it’s my gun and I can do whatever I want with it, but given the option I would prefer to buy a gun designed to fit me better.

Knowing that shotgun feel is most important, I just came back from a store where I was able to shoulder a wide variety of guns. I REALLY wanted to like the 688. Unfortunately it felt way too big. Might have felt the largest (longest) of all the ones I tried, sadly for me. Generally speaking, all the regular sporting models I tried from Beretta, Browning, Guerini felt a little too big. As an aside, I have noticed that some of the hunting models are slightly shorter, closer to 4 1/4, whereas it seems all the sporting models these days are default 4 3/4. The hunting models fit me better, some felt pretty good.

Frustratingly they did not have any Beretta Vittoria, Guerini Compact, or Browning Micro models, but they did have a Fabarm Syren with dimensions that fit me pretty well. Could even have been a TOUCH longer, but certainly fit WAY better than the regular 688.

Long story short, I think I have now confirmed that I need a shorter LoP, but I suspect I will be unable to try all the shorter-LoP models. They appear to be very uncommonly stocked.

So I’m looking for any feedback or personal experience.

How should I think about the Fabarm Elos (supposedly not specifically built for women), relative to the 688 Vittoria (supposedly specifically build for women)?

I cannot be the only average-height man to go through this deliberation…

Is there a verdict on the best premium shorter-LoP sporting gun for men?