Shotgun Edition: Fausti's Class Upland SLX Custom

Jun 10
5 min read

There is a moment, somewhere between unboxing and first mount, when you realize a shotgun is not just well made but intentionally made. Made with a specific kind of shooting in mind. Made for a specific kind of day in the field. Made to place itself right on the sweet spot of your shoulder.

The Fausti Class Upland SLX Custom in 12 gauge is that kind of gun. It is an over/under built for upland bird hunting with the sort of hand-finished detail that elevates it from a field tool to something you find yourself looking at a little longer than necessary each time you break it open. And when a master engraver signs the game scenes on the sideplates, you know it was never meant to be just another shotgun in the rack.

The Fausti Story

Fausti Stefano Arms was founded in 1948 by Stefano Fausti in Brescia, Italy, the historic epicenter of Italian gunmaking. Today the company is run by his three daughters: Elena manages production, Barbara oversees European and British markets, and Giovanna handles the U.S. market through Fausti USA, headquartered in Fredericksburg, Virginia. The transition from father to daughters has not been a symbolic one. Under their leadership, Fausti has modernized, expanded, and carved out a distinct identity in a crowded Italian shotgun market that includes names like Beretta, Rizzini, and Fabbri. Their product line spans side-by-sides, over/unders, competition guns, and express rifles, split between their Core production line and their Boutique custom-grade models.

The Class Upland SLX Custom sits firmly in that Boutique tier. This is not an entry-level gun wearing upgraded wood. It is a different animal entirely.

Construction and Design

The receiver is machined from solid steel billet and wears a coin finish, a polished silver tone that serves as a luminous canvas for the hand-engraved game scenes. Long sideplates extend from the action body, providing both additional surface area for engraving and a visual elegance that boxlock actions without plates simply cannot match. The engraving on this gun is executed entirely by hand, not laser etched, not machine started and hand finished, but cut from bare metal by a master engraver who signs the work. The scenes depict pheasant, partridge, and quail in flight, rendered with the kind of anatomical accuracy and compositional depth that only comes from an engraver who has studied both the craft and the subject. Each bird is distinct. Each feather line is deliberate. This is the difference between decoration and art.

The barrels are 28 inches, chambered at 3 inches, with a gloss-black blued finish. Interchangeable flush choke tubes ship with the gun, offering versatility across the full range of upland scenarios, from tight brush work with open chokes to longer crossing shots over open fields. Automatic ejectors throw spent shells cleanly and with consistent timing, a detail that matters when you are reloading in a hurry after a covey rise.

The stock is select European walnut, oil finished, with a Prince of Wales grip. The Prince of Wales is a semi-pistol grip configuration that offers a subtle palm swell and a hint of wrist angle without the full commitment of a true pistol grip. It splits the difference between the snag-free speed of an English straight grip and the control of a pistol grip, and many upland hunters consider it the ideal compromise for field shooting. The splinter forend is slender and elegant, traditional in profile, and keeps the overall weight and handling characteristics light and responsive. A black rubber recoil pad sits at the heel.

The single selective trigger is a mechanical unit, meaning it does not rely on inertia from the first shot to reset for the second. This is a meaningful distinction. On an inertia trigger, a light first shot or a failure to fire can prevent the second barrel from functioning. A mechanical trigger resets independently, ensuring both barrels are always available regardless of what happens on the first pull. Barrel selection is managed through the selector, allowing the shooter to choose which barrel fires first depending on choke preference and the shooting situation.

In the Field

A 12-gauge upland gun with 28-inch barrels, a splinter forend, and a Prince of Wales grip is a classic configuration for a reason. The proportions produce a gun that is quick to mount, smooth through the swing, and forgiving on follow-through. The 3-inch chamber provides the option to run heavier loads for late-season pheasants while still cycling standard 2¾-inch upland loads for quail and woodcock. At approximately 6.5 to 7 pounds (typical for a Fausti 12-gauge Class), the gun carries well over a full day behind dogs without fatiguing the shooter, while offering enough mass to smooth out the swing and absorb recoil comfortably.

The Class Upland SLX is designed for the kind of shooting where the gun has to come up fast, find the bird, and fire before your conscious mind has finished processing what just flushed. The balance point sits near the hinge pin, which gives the gun a lively, responsive feel in the hands. It does not lumber. It does not hang. It goes where you tell it to go, and it does so with the kind of fluid obedience that well-balanced Italian upland guns are famous for.

What Makes It Special

There are plenty of competent over/unders on the market that will break clays and drop birds reliably. What the Class Upland SLX Custom offers beyond that is the hand of the maker. The signed engraving transforms this gun from a production piece into a one-of-a-kind object. No two will look exactly the same. The game scenes are composed and executed individually, not stamped from a pattern, and the engraver's signature is a mark of personal accountability that says: I made this. I stand behind it.

The coin finish enhances the engraving by providing a bright, neutral background that lets the cut lines and shading speak without competing with the color variation of a case-hardened receiver. It is a more restrained presentation, and for many collectors and upland purists, it is the more elegant one.

Final Thoughts

The Fausti Class Upland SLX Custom is a gun built for someone who loves upland hunting enough to want something beautiful in their hands while they do it. It shoots like a serious field gun. It looks like a gallery piece. And somewhere on the sideplates, an engraver left their name beside a pheasant in flight, because the work was good enough to claim. In Brescia, where gunmaking is not just an industry but a cultural inheritance, that signature means something. And in a South Georgia quail field or a New England grouse cover, with the dogs working and the birds holding tight, the gun in your hands will mean something too. Some shotguns are tools. This one is a tool that someone cared about, and you will care about it too.