Benelli 828U Field Silver - Natural Talent

You have to hand it to Benelli as they always manage to surprise you with the most amazing designs and unusual features. The 828U over-and-under is one such gun.
Although this revolutionary 12-bore weighs the same as a 20-bore, it doesn’t produce excessive recoil, a common disadvantage of using a lighter gun. It therefore is amazingly fast and manageable, and dare I say comfortable to shoot. This is largely due to the beautiful and typical Benelli styling of the action, which is made from premium-grade milled aluminium. It possesses an internal steel locking mechanism to ensure action integrity and strength, with a nickel finish on this Field model. You also have Benelli technology such as the Progressive Comfort Recoil Reduction System and Perfect Fitting, allowing the gun to be customised to your individual requirements.
Available immediately with Power Bore Crio (steel ready) barrels in 26, 28 and 30”, this model retails for £3150.00.

Action and barrels
The test gun came with 28” barrels, which are the most practical, although I know many that favour the longer barrels, but that’s a personal thing. They are chambered for 3” shells and are proofed for steel loads, indicated by the fleur de lys proof mark.
There is no mistaking an 828U, as it has a very long and low-profiled action, giving it a racy, almost speedy look from the off. It is made from aluminium and finished on this model with a nickel, semi-satin finish that almost looks like stainless steel. The plain action faces are adorned at the top with recessed panels of engraved inter-weaved floral patterns, with the same to the base. The rear/bottom section features a very unusual scalloped fish scale adornment. It all works very well and looks like a Benelli should - fascinating.
Look to the top of the action and there is a protracted tang section that provides a very shallow and flat action top, allowing fuss-free operation of the top lever. It sits very far left and has a long distance to travel before it disengages the lugs, but it is very positive in its execution.
Behind this lever is the safety catch and barrel selector. Although automatic, there is a manual option, and a short push forward readies the Benelli to fire. The barrel selector is an inset catch within the safety. When positioned to the right, it shows a red dot at the bottom, indicating that the bottom barrel will fire first. Positioned to the left, there is a red dot in the top barrel. It’s clear and unmistakable, but the actual button could be a little more prominent for a more positive grip.
For extra strength in the areas that wear, the aluminium action features steel inserts up front for the barrel hinge mechanism and a sprung barrel locking block/plate that’s also made of steel. This allows a lighter aluminium frame and gives a rock-solid grip to this monobloc barrel system that has a fantastic finish, both inside and out.
There is a tilting rear locking plate like a single-shot centrefire rifle. It tilts forward as the action is opened and locks securely rearward when closed, making sure the barrels are perfectly flat to the action. The barrels actually lock by means of a pair of extending bolts that protrude from the action and locate into the extension arms at the top of the barrels for a very positive and reassuring lock-up.
The ejector system is another radical design, as a single hole cut into the chamber wall is linked to the ejection system, and not being an inertia-type ejector, the cases are ejected by pressure from these holes. This is called a pulse system, meaning the bleed hole in each chamber increases air pressure when fired, activating a cam and thus the ejector. Another neat feature is the locks can be removed or completely dropped out of the action with the trigger group.
The bluing is absolutely superb, with an even and rich blue/black along the entire length of the barrels, and the midsection between the two barrels is only joined at the muzzle and action end. This not only saves weight and aids cooling, but I also like the way it looks.
Up top is the new 7mm carbon-fibre rib. It is low and it shows a smooth top face and a single red bead at the front. There are four sequentially smaller vents between the barrel contact points. Like all carbon-fibre ribs, it is not soldered to the barrels and as such moves slightly.
Five Crio multi-chokes are supplied (cylinder to full) in an ABS case, along with a key.

The furniture
The quality of the walnut is again very good, with the well-matched fore-end and butt stock having both good colour and fine figuring throughout, with a nice hand-rubbed oil finish, as it should be on a field model. I like the scalloped and rounded shape of the fore-end. It shows two full-length panels of fish scale-type chequering to match the action, and the reversed, tilted tip holds the small release button that disengages the fore-end from the retaining barrel lugs. It’s a bit fiddly, as the lock-up is very strong, but it is by no means difficult after a few uses.
The stock attaches to the rear of the action and has provision for additional spacers that alter the cast and drop, allowing the user to customise the 828U to their frame. The length of pull came in at 14.5”.
I like the semi-palm-swelled pistol grip area as it accommodates the hand well. The fish scale laser-cut chequering adds good grip to its quite long rake. For me, it provides a comfortable and relaxed grip, without hand strain.
The comb slightly drops towards the rear, so away from the face on recoil. It has a soft rubber-cushioned insert on the comb that extends to both sides for added comfort. Recoil is minimal due to Benelli’s Progressive Comfort System, which reduces recoil based on the level of shot charge fired. This system has a sprung design housed in the inner stock and a rubber recoil pad.

Out into the field
Benelli not only knows how to make a shotgun stand out but also imparts a certain degree of familiarity in an otherwise unusual design that just lends itself to a great-handling shotgun. The point of balance sits just forward of the barrel action union, so it’s lovely to hold without fatigue, and the recoil, as suspected, was very mild. I used the 1/2 choke and set up pattern boards at 30 yards.
First up was Hull’s Special Pigeon load (32g / No.6 / fibre wad). We had a total of 223 pellet strikes on the 30” pattern board and these were distributed with 81 inner hits and 142 in the outer sectors. The pattern was well distributed, if not slightly high, but very good overall coverage. Mild recoil, too.
The Eley Zeniths (32g / No.5 / fibre wad) contain copper game shot and are heavy hitters down range. We counted a very healthy 213 hits, with 152 outers and 61 inners. Again, a well-distributed shot pattern.
Hull’s Pro Piston loading (28g / No.9) features a spreader plastic wad for close-range work. I really like this cartridge as it always patterns well, and here it managed 330 pellet strikes! There were 179 outers and 159 inners. These cartridges are so mild to shoot and give superb patterns, and I use them for vermin around the farm.
Eley’s Superb competition load (28g / No.7.5 / fibre wad) is legendary and ideal for all sorts of clay-busting uses. I counted 334 pellet strikes at 30 yards, which is excellent! There were 105 inner strikes and 229 outer hits, and these peppered the pattern board. However, we had a few hang-ups when it came to ejection.
Finally, another very popular clay load from Gamebore in the form of their Velocity loading (30g / No.6). A total of 230 pellets hit at 30 yards, with a distribution of 101 inners and 129 outers. This cartridge achieves very consistent patterns at a good speed, so great for fast, awkward clays.

Conclusion
I really like the Benelli 828U’s unique appearance, and even more so, its outstanding handling characteristics. It has natural pointability, is very light to handle, and has minimal recoil. The cost is justified by the excellent performance seen on the pattern boards.