My first experience with a Browning Citori 725 was on a pheasant hunt in South Dakota. The weather was brutal. The ground was cloaked in white, and the mercury never stopped dropping. I didn’t care. The upland action was remarkable. Every ditch row I ventured down produced hard-flushing roosters, and regardless of the conditions, my Citori 725 went boom every time I pulled the trigger. Plus, it didn’t hurt that the shotgun fit me like a glove, swung with elegant grace and flat-killed those birds.
Naturally, my feelings weren’t hurt when my FFL called to tell me Browning’s new Citori had arrived. This new gun, the Browning Citori 825 Field, is an out-of-the-box stunner with a classic Citori look of an oil-finished walnut stock and dual-sided engraved receiver.
Though the Citori 825 sports a few of the same winning features as the 725 (mainly the low-profile receiver and the strong and sturdy full-width hinge and tapered locking lug that “wears in, not out”), changes, though subtle, were evident at first glance. The receiver has been modernized, the traditional hard-edge, H-shape receiver-to-fore-end connection has been replaced with a curved, more fluid connection. This is purely aesthetic, but it gives the shotgun a modern shape, flow and look, and it pairs perfectly with the new barrel/receiver wing design. The barrel tapers smoothly as it contours into the receiver instead of stepping down into it with a near-square edge.
Though I was a fan of the top-mounted safety/selector on the 725, the 825 features an ergonomically enhanced redesign. Still tang mounted, the 825’s safety/selector’s pyramid shape provides more surface area and creates an easier-to-approach angle to engage, making it easier to use. Browning also modified and beefed up the forearm lever, which, in turn, makes assembly and disassembly easier.
The 825 wears the enhanced Fire Lite 2 mechanical trigger. This trigger sports a delay mechanism with a higher pivot point than the original Fire Lite, promising a crisper and lighter pull with less overtravel. Its mechanical reset connects in a quicker and cleaner way, too, for an improved second trigger pull. The advantage of a mechanical trigger is that if the first shot doesn’t go off (bad ammo, light strike primer, etc.), the second barrel will fire with a second pull whereas with an inertia trigger design the trigger resets utilizing the recoil of the first shot, meaning if there is no recoil on the first pull executing a second shot without reloading is impossible. Mechanical triggers are therefore more reliable. The 825 Field model I tested sports the standard Fire Lite 2 mechanical trigger, while the Sporting model—along with the other 825 “target” models—sports the adjustable Fire Lite 2 “Triple Trigger System,” which allows the shooter to fine-tune the trigger reach by setting one of the three included trigger shoes into one of three available positions.
As for how these changes affect performance, I had a week to play around with the 825 Field at home before taking it on a far-north ptarmigan adventure to find out.
The feeling of the 825 was nostalgic, to say the least. The fit was fantastic, and the first time I swung through a crossing clay and the gun thundered, a puff of orange and black dust was the result. I called for the second bird and the result was the same. The top lever was smooth, and when the barrels cracked open the spring-loaded ejectors functioned as intended, throwing the hulls high and far. Reloading was quick, and for grins I manipulated the safety/selector, swapping from firing the bottom barrel first to the top barrel and pulled off a double on the clays.
The Citori 825 sports chrome-lined barrels. Field models are available with lengths of 26 and 28 inches. The Sporting model extends that a bit with 30-inch and 32-inch options. My Field model with 26-inch barrels proved extremely maneuverable, and I couldn’t wait until the targets crossing ahead of the front-mounted ivory-bead had wings.
Browning crafted the 825 Field and Sporting models to work equally well on the range and in the field, and what better test to see if a firearm is field worthy than a ptarmigan hunt on the damp, coastal range of Cold Bay, Alaska?
I only saw the sun twice in seven days of hunting, but despite the weather I toted the Citori 825 miles across the spongy tundra. Together we toughed out intense rain, a salt-spraying boat ride across a section of the Bering Sea and a cringe-inducing fall it into a rocky creek bottom. It was a good test and a solid reminder that even though the 825 Field—with its oil-finished walnut stock and engraved silver nitride receiver (pheasants on one side and quail on the other)—is a work of art, it is a “field” model after all and was made to be used. Even after all that, the 825 kept on shooting.
The Citori 825 Field and Sporting models ship with three chokes: modified, improved cylinder and full. I always shoot my bottom barrel first, so I threaded the Invector DS improved cylinder into the bottom barrel and the modified into the top. Even with steel shot (required in Alaska), patterns proved excellent. Browning back-bores the Citori’s barrels, and with the inside bore diameters machined to maximum allowable specifications, friction between the shot cup and the barrel is reduced, allowing pellets to travel at higher velocities. They also feature Browning’s lengthened and gradually tapering “Vector Pro” forcing cone, which, as opposed to a sharp step down, further reduces friction on the shot column, resulting in less pellet deformity and therefore more pellets in the center of the pattern. As these guns are made to hunt, Browning went with a 50/50 point of impact for the Field and Sporting models—50 percent of the pattern above the target and 50 below—which resulted in full limits and beautiful memories in Alaska.
One aspect of the new 825 that I absolutely love is the slimmer and diamond-checkered fore-end and grip. The forearm is somewhat long, and extending your support hand toward the barrels for improved balance and a better swing feels natural. The 825 wears the Inflex II recoil pad, which essentially collapses under recoil while a series of directional ribs force the comb down and away from your face instead of up and under your cheekbone. Though you may not notice it during the heat of the hunt, it results in faster acquisition of follow-up targets, which means more doubles in the field.
Browning currently offers the Citori 825 in 10 different models, including more than a few for shooters serious about skeet and trap. I’ve been told the line will grow even more, with sub-gauge models potentially available later in 2025. As it is, I rank the Citori 825 as a top-end over/under that met and then exceeded my expectations.
Technical Specifications
- Type: over/under double-barrel shotgun
- Gauge/Chamber: 12/3"
- Capacity: 2
- Barrel: 26" (tested) or 28"; vent rib; interchangeable chokes
- Trigger: mechanical; Fire Lite 2
- Sights: front ivory bead
- Safety/Selector: tang mounted
- Stock: grade II/III walnut; gloss oil finish; 14¼" LOP; 15/8" drop at comb; 2½" drop at heel
- Metal Finish: silver nitrate receiver/trigger guard; polished blued barrel
- Overall Length: 43¾"
- Weight: 7 lbs., 4 ozs.
- Accessories: Invector-DS chokes (M, IC, F)
- MSRP: $3,149.99; browning.com
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