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Benelli M4 6 position Recoil Tube


RxArms

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I tracked down a PVD (physical vapour deposition) coating service in Canada.  However, the catch is there is no interior coating can be applied due to the technology (it will adhere only to the exterior).

this type of tech is used on industrial tool punches and machining cutters, so a very hard, lubricated, thin and corrosion resistant coating.

im willing to go down this path, but the inside will not be able to get any coating.  They estimate 1.5” or so on each end ID of the tube will receive the coating.  The rest will be raw steel.

my thoughts on it, even if I went black oxide, the finish on the ID would most certainly be removed in short order due to the spring and plunger rubbing against the inside diameter.  I would imagine it would only take 50-100 rounds to completely rub off any black oxide coating leaving bare steel exposed.  
 

so I am considering the premium PVD coating which is very low in thickness (about 3-5 micron) and can provide probably a lifetime of corrosion and wear resistance on the exterior.  It is a dark grey/black colour they refer to as Anthracite. 
 

Would like input, if any, from you all on your preference. (Black oxide OD and ID vs PVD exterior raw interior).

Edited by RxArms
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Speaking of Benelli QC, down at the machine shop finalizing details on this 6 position tube, and we have 2 collapsible buttstock a here.

2020 is left, 2021 is right.  There is an obvious difference with QC on these, 2020 production tube opening has a chamfer, 2021 doesn’t.

2020 fits and locks better on the OEM tube and the 6 position, 2021 doesn’t lock in as good with OEM and with mine.  2021 is also WAY tighter on the tube (for both)

Benelli seems to have switched manufacturers in 2021.  And it isn’t better..

2E049487-2CEA-4534-8D27-38A745712F7E.jpeg

Edited by RxArms
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On 6/14/2022 at 10:01 AM, RxArms said:

Would like input, if any, from you all on your preference. (Black oxide OD and ID vs PVD exterior raw interior).

You don't necessarily need a coating on the inside since after high round count use the plunger would wear most of the inside. It should be lubricated no matter, even if you have nickel boron, NP3 or whatever coating. Nice to have it coated, but no impact to function.

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On 6/18/2022 at 10:42 AM, Doge said:

You don't necessarily need a coating on the inside since after high round count use the plunger would wear most of the inside. It should be lubricated no matter, even if you have nickel boron, NP3 or whatever coating. Nice to have it coated, but no impact to function.

I've sent off a sample for PVD using a Titanium Aluminum Nitride (TiAlN) coating. Looks like a really nice tech to me, costs a bit more per piece, but I believe M4 owners would appreciate the premium finish it provides.  It will be the same colour as this example here. 

TiAlN is a coating used on cutting inserts, end mills, and drill bits, intended to resist high heat (not applicable here), give extreme hardness, provide lubricity and corrosion protection.  Should pretty much last a lifetime...

 

Screenshot 2022-06-14 170909.png

Edited by RxArms
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On 6/17/2022 at 4:23 PM, RxArms said:

Speaking of Benelli QC, down at the machine shop finalizing details on this 6 position tube, and we have 2 collapsible buttstock a here.

2020 is left, 2021 is right.  There is an obvious difference with QC on these, 2020 production tube opening has a chamfer, 2021 doesn’t.

2020 fits and locks better on the OEM tube and the 6 position, 2021 doesn’t lock in as good with OEM and with mine.  2021 is also WAY tighter on the tube (for both)

Benelli seems to have switched manufacturers in 2021.  And it isn’t better..

2E049487-2CEA-4534-8D27-38A745712F7E.jpeg

Mine is in between the two. It is a 2017-2018 Entry model. It is not bevelled inside like the one on the left, not is it "crisp". The inside looks like the outside, one the one on the left, nearest the camera. Gentle roll-over. I think there is some variability for sure.

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15 hours ago, RxArms said:

I've sent off a sample for PVD using a Titanium Aluminum Nitride (TiAlN) coating. Looks like a really nice tech to me, costs a bit more per piece, but I believe M4 owners would appreciate the premium finish it provides.  It will be the same colour as this example here. 

TiAlN is a coating used on cutting inserts, end mills, and drill bits, intended to resist high heat (not applicable here), give extreme hardness, provide lubricity and corrosion protection.  Should pretty much last a lifetime...

 

Screenshot 2022-06-14 170909.png

As much of a PITA as changing that tube is, you make it without cost in mind, imo!

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3 hours ago, ClackClackBAM said:

I'm looking forward to an update on this! Definitely interested in buying one!

They are being produced this week at the shop, the machine shop is busy so it took awhile.  Need to laser engrave the stock positions still, heat treat, then send off for PVD which I’m fairly certain I’ll be going with at this time.  Looks like maybe end of July is still an accurate timeframe.  
 

I’ve done a few tweaks after lots of R&D:

-Added a very very minor taper to the end of the notch that holds the retractable pin, this helps to stop the buttstock from rotating out.  This mod took the longest to sort out….


-I added a notch to be able to remove the spring if ever needed, the notch also doubles as a visual placement aid, to know where the top position of the tube is in the reciever, final adjustment should be done with buttstock.

-added a chamfer to the recoil pin notches.  This was a late change I made recently, after extreme abuse testing quite a few prototypes, i noticed the metal was susceptible to deformation and expanding higher (I was literally banging buttstock on the gun against cement floor).  Further investigating led me to looking at OEM example again and also extremely abused the OEM (which also deformed), this is when I noticed a chamfer, which has an important end use. If the metal deforms even the slightest, the chamfer stops the deformation from rolling up and changing the outside dimensions of the tube. It also increases strength of that particular spot, an angled contact point is always stronger.

it’s the little things I like to make sure are not overlooked!

61666036-23BB-4666-ABCD-C7503CCE3A3E.jpeg

753A50FB-818B-4F73-981B-500872E41EE6.jpeg

0242009F-3F02-4E4D-A0EC-16F2D1ACCB4A.jpeg

Edited by RxArms
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24 minutes ago, Nocturnalnature said:

So these won't count towards 922R since they aren't made in the USA?

There are only certain items that count towards 922r, the recoil tube is not one of them.  Even if it was made in USA it wouldn’t make a difference.

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  • 2 weeks later...

PVD aluminum titanium nitride came back, looks pretty killer… It is the only finish that exists out there that checks off all my high quality control boxes; primarily retaining the heat treat on the notches, extremely high corrosion protection, no tolerance interference, high wear resistance.  Shout-out to the guy that put me on this path further back in the thread here.

I have been told by the finisher that salt corrosion is essentially non existent with this finish… but no formal military testing has been done since it is used primarily for hard use tooling.

experienced some minor delays at the machine shop, but this week is full production.  Coming soon…  (sample pic below that I abused a bit to test the finish… and my canine Apollo)

1AF24C41-FD5D-47DC-8A02-9E513D4C54F3.jpeg

Edited by RxArms
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I can't wait to snag one of these tubes. I find for me with the stock fully extended, it's just a bit too long of a lop. It's definitely doable but I much prefer the middle position when shooting. So, because of that I had to buy the 10mm riser from Reptilia and that has helped tremendously when firing on the middle position but the sweet spot for me would be a notch on the tube that is in between the middle and fully extended positions on the oem tube. Looking forward to this...

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On 7/14/2022 at 10:14 AM, RxArms said:

PVD aluminum titanium nitride came back, looks pretty killer… It is the only finish that exists out there that checks off all my high quality control boxes; primarily retaining the heat treat on the notches, extremely high corrosion protection, no tolerance interference, high wear resistance.  Shout-out to the guy that put me on this path further back in the thread here.

I have been told by the finisher that salt corrosion is essentially non existent with this finish… but no formal military testing has been done since it is used primarily for hard use tooling.

experienced some minor delays at the machine shop, but this week is full production.  Coming soon…  (sample pic below that I abused a bit to test the finish… and my canine Apollo)

1AF24C41-FD5D-47DC-8A02-9E513D4C54F3.jpeg

Your dog is pretty cute too!?

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How does it compare to the tube Briley just released?

Have you (or anybody else in here) had a look at it? Looks like they are using a different finish on theirs, but there might be some other minor differences too?

Would be nice to see a comparison of the two.

Edited by AlphaPug
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6 hours ago, AlphaPug said:

How does it compare to the tube Briley just released?

Have you (or anybody else in here) had a look at it? Looks like they are using a different finish on theirs, but there might be some other minor differences too?

Would be nice to see a comparison of the two.

I don’t know too much about Their finish, but in my personal opinion, PVD is superior.

as for the other aspects of it,  not sure.  All I know is that I have put extreme attention to detail in mine.. can’t speak for the others.  They can’t touch my price point either, $138 USD.

Got back from the machine shop today, finalizing the engraved stock positions.. 

4CC9509D-60A3-44C2-98C6-958BC003CC33.jpeg

Edited by RxArms
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