TC11

Well gang, I got my M1 back this past Wednesday (10/27). Service went as follows: gun shipped from my gunsmith - 9/10/04 received for repair by Benelli - 9/15/04 barrel hanger re-attached - 9/20/04 barrel re-blued - 10/21/04 shipped by Benelli - 10/22/04 All in all it went ok. The blueing on the barrel is quite poor but I figure after all of my phone calls to customer service they ran it through for me. The blueing almost looks like they parkerized it. It is very flat and rough. I don't mind it since it's a black synthetic anyways. I figured it would take a long time to get the gun repaired and the blueing would be quick but it was the other way around. They went completely through the gun as described by the gunsmith's checklist (thanks Chester from Benelli). I would like to commend Benelli customer service with putting up with my weekly phone calls. They were always nice even through I was getting pretty frustrated. I had my gunsmith put a new HI-VIS sight on it before I picked it up and had a great day pheasant hunting on friday. My local Gander Mountain has the new M2 in. $999.95 (ouch). I think I'll keep the M1 for a while. Hey, Quackhead. Did you get yours back yet?

I think you really need to look at what areas you will be hunting. Is it wide open scrub where a 28" barrel can swing easily or is it thick, tight brush where a 28" barrel can be difficult to handle. I hunt thick areas for pheasant and open areas for dove, so I compromised and went with a 26" barrel. One thing to note is that with the inertia recoil system, the Benelli is quite long in the receiver. My M1 with a 26" barrel is as long as my friends 870 with a 28" barrel. Fit, comfort and confidence go hand in hand. TC

Quackhead I just wanted to give you a heads up. I spoke with Benelli customer service this morning and they said the blueing department is running 5 to 6 weeks to get a barrel done after repair. That would put my M1 at Benelli for over 50 days. It looks like I won't have it back until the first or second week in November. I sure hope you get yours back faster than that. I never thought I would need a back up shotgun, but apparantly I do. TC

Slush No problem. I have to give the Brownells credit to Mudhen. He mentioned them for Benelli parts in another thread. My hunting buddies and I dream about South Dakota every year for pheasants. Maybe someday. Our stock birds in PA are just plain retarded. Good luck with the hunt and let me know how ya did. TC

Chief I hunt mostly in Warren County where I live, but we do a lot of duck and goose hunting in Erie County. It's amazing to find out where people are from when you bump into them in the woods, especially in deer season. TC

Slush Check out Brownells.com. I just did a quick search and they have short walnut stocks for the Montefeltro. I do not know if these are just standard walnut stocks that aren't exactly nice to look at, but it may get the job done. Under search on Brownells website, I typed in Benelli stocks. I think the stocks were on the last two pages. You might want to call Brownells directly and talk to a customer service rep on exact fit. It's worth a shot. TC

My M1 does kick pretty good with 3 inch loads but it seems fine with light loads and we do a bunch of pigeon hunting with 1 oz and 1 1/8 oz loads. I did replace my recoil pad with an SVL pad and it is quite comfortable to shoot with all loads now. TC

Chief Give customer service a call. It will take you a few minutes to get a sevice rep but they are very helpful. You can reach them at 301/283-6981. By the way, it's cool to see another PA poster. TC

I'm sure once I get my M1 back and everything is fine, the idea of buying the M2 will subside. I just need to stay out of my local gun shop which happens to be a Benelli dealer. My friend Mark which just traded in his X-trema for an SBE 2 is experiencing a mis-feed with 3" loads he uses for duck so he is sending back his gun to Benelli only after having it 2 months. I guess the grass isn't always greener on the other side. I talked to Benelli customer service late yesterday and all they could tell me is it is being blued and will be returned as soon as possible. I asked when that might be since the guy I talked to last week said by the 16th and she said I don't know. 34 days and counting. Tim

Thanks for the response Mudhen. I am going to call Benelli now since they were closed yesterday. Have you looked at the SBE II yet? Tim

Mudhen Now that you mention it, I have to tighten my mag cap every once in a while when on a hunt. We hunt a lot of large farms around the Lander, PA region for pigeons and you can burn up several boxes of shells in a hurry. I check it often and it does seem to come loose just a very little, maybe one click. I don't have near the rounds through my M1 as you have through your SBE but I am going to look into replacing the mag cap if Benelli doesn't do it for me. A couple of questions. When Benelli returned your gun, did they include a list of parts replaced/work performed? Also, does the Brownell catalog list it as a Benelli part or is it a reproduction cap? Thanks for the ideas. Tim

Well guys, I just made my standard Monday morning call to customer services to see when I might get my M1 back (supposed to be the 16th). They are closed today for a system upgrade, whatever that is. Drundel I figured when I bought my M1 and paid close to $900 for it, I wouldn't need a back up. But I realize that things can and do break. This past Saturday was the first day of duck in PA. It was an awesome day with many guys limiting out. I shot two woody's and 2 drake mallards with my trusty used Mossberg model 500 which I bought when I was 16 years old. It sure doesn't look pretty and I get razzed real bad by my friends but it was effective. Maybe I need a new M2 and use my M1 for a back up? Does some one want to call my wife and explain the new purchase to her? hehehe Tim

Quackhead My M1 was sent in to Benelli on September 10th. I called this past Monday and they indicated that I should have the gun back by the 16th of October. The barrel lug was repaired 4 days after Benelli received the gun but they do not have a blueing department at their shop. All blueing is performed at Beretta's shop which is located up the street from Benelli. This is where the long delay is occuring as Beretta's bluing department is backed up. I sent you a private message with more detail. Sorry to hear about your gun. It's a frustrating wait this time of year. Tim

Let me first say that I am a die-hard, bang on my soap box, Benelli all the way owner. However, on PA's first day of goose season (Sept. 1) by M1 broke after the second shot. The bronze solder (I think) joint which holds the ring in which the end cap screws tight to came un-soldered from the barrel. The break is as clean and smooth as if the surfaces were never mated. I have a black synthetic model and the only reason I didn't touch off the third shot was that the silver nitrided portion of the barrel which slips into the receiver was sticking out about a half an inch and it caught my eye. I thought that the end cap wasn't screwed on tight. I checked it and it was tight. I unloaded the gun and grabbed the barrel and it pulled right out of the reciever. I'm glad that I didn't get hurt but there were two other guys in the blind with me and they could have been injured as well. Has anybody ever experienced this before? I have owned the gun for 4 years and take very good care of it. I don't shoot a lot but I do hunt as much as I can. I had my gunsmith (Smith's Custom Guns in Warren, PA) look at it and Tim said that he has never seen that before on a Benelli. Now we are half way through goose and dove season in PA and my M1 is sitting at Benelli for repairs. Sorry for the long post, but I'm just a little frustrated right now. Tim