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The new 825 Gran Field takes everything good about the Citori 825 and wraps it up in a classy high-grade package. For a little more context, the Gran Field is part of the Citori 825 line extension, which is replacing the 725. The first 825s were 12-gauge base-grade hunting and sporting guns. This year we’re seeing several new models, including small gauges and higher grades, like this Gran Field.
Honestly, Browning didn’t change the 725 much when they made it into the 825. The gun has an improved trigger, a restyled receiver and forend, and a tweaked checkering pattern. That’s about it. The 725 itself, however, represented a major fork in the Citori family tree when it debuted in 2012. The original Citori debuted in 1973 as a lower-priced, Japanese-made alternative to the increasingly pricey Superposed. The Citori had all the original Superposed’s advantages, plus a couple of its disadvantages, primarily weight and a tall, ungainly receiver.
Almost 15 years ago, Browning left the standard Citori in the lineup. With its slimmer, lower-profile receiver and lighter barrels, the lively Citori 725 weighed about ¾ of a pound less than a regular Citori. It also featured the “Firelight” mechanical trigger in place of the original Browning inertia-set trigger.
When it came time to replace the 725, Browning engineers realized there wasn’t a lot to fix. The Firelight trigger is now the improved Firelite 2. The receiver’s top lines are a little sleeker, and the 725 forend, which had an unfortunate (to my eye, anyway) semi-Schnable profile, has been replaced by a classic round-tipped forend. Likewise, the checkering panels on the grip and forend of the new 825 are more traditionally styled, with a sharper, geometric design than those on the 725. Here is a closer look at the new Citori 825 Gran Field.
Quick Overview
Browning Citori 825 Gran Field Shotgun
Pros
- Great wood, good looks
- New forend design and checkering patterns improve on the 725
- Excellent trigger
Cons
- Extended chokes look wrong on this gun
Specs
- Length: 45.75″ with 28-inch barrels
- Weight: 7 pounds, 4 ounces with 28-inch barrels in 12-gauge
- Barrel: 26-, 28–inch blued barrels with vent rib, front and middle white beads, three extended Invector DS II choke tubes
- Action: Break-action O/U
- Trigger: 4 pounds
- Capacity: 2
- Finish: Satin wood/blued steel, engraved, gold-inlaid receiver
- Stock: Grade III walnut
- Chambering: 3-inch 12-gauge
- Price: $4,139.99
My test gun had 28-inch barrels with Modified and Full Invector DS II chokes installed, and no sign of the promised IC tube (you’ll sometimes see that with review guns). The walnut was Grade III, gorgeous, and enhanced by a matte oil finish. The checkering, as I have noted with approval, is of a traditional pattern. The gun has a thankfully palm-swell-free pistol grip to complement the rounded forend. Browning’s soft Inflex II recoil pad finishes the buttstock. The soft pad features a smooth top insert for snag-free mounting.
The deeply blued receiver has full scroll engraving that frames game scenes of a gold pheasant on one side and a gold mallard on the other. Both sides look good to me. The top of the 725 receiver already had a non-traditional, streamlined appearance. The 825 takes those lines and makes them a little sleeker. I can’t decide if it looks better than the 725 or just different, but it doesn’t look any worse, so I’m okay with it.
Test Results
At the pattern plate, I found the gun shot a totally acceptable 60/40 above and below POA. The patterns were dead-centered left and right, and both barrels shot to the same point of aim at 16 yards. I shot patterns at 40 yards with Remington Nitro Pheasant Magnums, 1300 fps, 1 13/8- ounce loads of copper-plated lead 5s. Through the Full choke, the shells patterned over 80 percent, making this a gun, load, and choke combination that would spell big trouble to a wild-flushing rooster. The 825 Gran Field weighs 7 ¼-pounds. I’d prefer seven pounds even, or an ounce or two under for a 12-gauge upland gun. Nevertheless, the gun handles and points well, with a balance point just ahead of the hinge pin.
I shot the Citori 825 Gran Field at low-gun Skeet, and while it fit me, it’s a field gun, not a target gun. I’ll blame my scores on that fact, and on the tight-shooting Modified and Full chokes that came with the gun. Of course, it could have just been me shooting badly. That also happens. I would absolutely take this gun hunting, though.
Final Thoughts
Often, I get guns in the $4000-$5000 range in for review, and I find minor flaws in the gun’s fit and finish that would really bug me if I had spent that much money on it. In this case, there’s nothing to complain about and a lot to like. The wood-to-metal fit is very good; the wood is beautiful and well finished. The engraving is better than a lot of the shallow, laser-cut stuff you see these days. The gun is a tad heavier than I’d like, but I could manage. My only quibble is that extended tubes look out of place on a classy field gun. That’s a problem easily enough solved with a couple of flush-mount aftermarket tubes. This gun costs about $750 more than the field gun, and the aesthetic improvements are worth the price. Browning lists this gun as a “SHOT Show Special,” meaning you will have to find a dealer who ordered one, but I’d say it’s worth the effort.
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