wfjones99

When Omega75 said, "I have the .308 caliber R1 upgraded with the Comfortech stocks" it got my attention! This is exciting. I don't seem to be able to order the .308W R1 with Comfortech right now. Please help me understand exactly how you "upgraded" to put Comfortech stock on your .308W R1? How expensive was your upgrade compared to just the standard R1/Comfortech in some other caliber? Did you special order just the Comfortech stock and fore-end? How did you specify the correct size - or is there only one size stock so far? How long did you have to wait to get your "upgrade?" Any problems assembling? Thanks

Very glad to hear that indeed the slug barrels for the Supernova actually exist and can be purchased. My local supplier claims to have contacted Benelli directly with this question and they came back with a big NO WAY. Eager to hear back as you have a chance to shoot yours. So now my question is whether such a slug barrel can tolerate regular lead shot loads. Can anyone look in their user guide for either the Supernova or the Nova for me? When a rifled slug barrel is in use, are there any concerns expressed about shooting lead-shot loads? I do understand that lead shot in a rifled barrel with no opportunity for a choke selection is less than optimal. Still in the field you sometimes need to know what your options are. My question is: Will lead-shot loads damage a rifled barrel in some way? Or is there possibly some kind of severe fouling of the rifling that is a problem? If I shoot several lead-shot loads in a rifled barrel and then follow with a slug load, is there any kind of a problem with slug accuracy? Is cleaning a rifled barrel after shooting lead-shot loads any extra work? Thanks

And if I may... To add to my last post, I have no doubt that the Benelli innovations evident in the R1 (or some variation) may well become a very strong contender for the next-generation military rifle. Benelli certainly showed they could succeed with the M4 shotgun. Thanks, Bill

Thanks again for all the feedback and comments. To drcam, you say: "If you really need more than 3 follow up shots something else must be wrong. " Please don't get me wrong. I don't really plan to do much of anything other than go plinking on the range. Hunting is fine - just not my cup of tea. After a few months of IPSC with a revolver, it sounded like fun to try reactive target shooting with a 20-round semi-auto rifle. I enjoy the research perhaps as much as actually owning the rifle. In addition if I can only afford one rifle, I am more interested in the .308 caliber than the .223. I've now had a chance to run 35 rounds through a borrowed, Chinese-made M1A (semi-auto M-14?). Very nice. To tucker301, you say: "If you want a high volume repeater that you can hunt with, but also have some fun with, then look at an AR from DPMS, Armalite, Stag Arms, etc." Thanks for these comments. You have expanded my knowledge of what is available. Before this, I did not know of all of these companies. I am pleased to see several lighter weight (8.5 pounds) semi-auto high-capacity .308 rifles available for sale. I don't claim to be any kind of an expert. Also, I don't doubt that the AR-15/M-16 style design is well worth having. After all, it's been in use for some 40 years! The point for me is that I keep hearing about chronic problems with feeding failures with the M-16 whether in the jungles in the 1960s or in the deserts in 2006. The other passing comments I am hearing are that the older M1A/M-14 design (directly descended from the M-1 Garand designed in the 1930s) consistently shows its greater feeding reliability under extreme mud/sand conditions. I do understand that the M-16 is normally in the .223 caliber and the M-14 is the .308 (7.62 NATO) caliber. And I do understand your suggestions about .308 versions of the AR-15 (AR-10?). Anyway, I'd very much like to hear comment on this general point. Is the basic design of the AR-15/M-16 style rifle (and I am only concerned with semi-auto fire) sufficiently flawed to make the M1A/M-14 design something to consider? Or are the civilian .308 versions of the AR-15 (AR-10?) better made than the standard military issue of the M-16 - i.e. more reliable and more immune to mud/sand? Even on par with the Springfield Armory M1A Scout Squad at 9 pounds? I really appreciate this forum and the chance it provides folks like me to learn from people who have extended knowledge to pass along. Thanks, Bill

Thanks for all the helpful comments. This is a great place to learn. I appreciate your time. To tucker301, you say: "ANY rifle chambered for .308 Win. will fire 7.62 x 51 ammo without a problem. " Yet I see a fair about of alternate comments on that point. Especially I see: http://carnival.saysuncle.com/002453.html In that URL, I see this statement among others: "So the two cartridges [308 & 7.62 NATO] should not be automatically considered interchangeable even though the cartridges themselves are very close to each other. The headspace difference of the rifle's they are chambered for is what makes some combinations dangerous." Does anybody else care to wade in on this? And also to tucker301, thanks for the heads up about the lacquer problem with the South African ammo. I am still very eager to hear back from anyone who can look in the Benelli 308W/R1 manual itself and relate comments about use of 7.62 NATO ammo. Thanks for a great forum site. Bill

Hello, I am a very happy owner of a SBE2 with ComforTech. I am trying to learn more about the R1 in 308 caliber. 1. Does anyone know when Benelli plans to offer the R1 in 308 Win caliber with ComforTech? 2. Does anyone know if the current R1 in 308 Win with Wood Stock supports firing of 7.62x51mm Nato ammo? Does the R1 manual reference this point? What does it say? 3. Does anyone know if it makes sense to take an R1 barrel in 308 Win caliber to a gun smith to have it modified to instead only support 7.62x51mm Nato ammo? I do realize this will void the warranty. But is such a thing ever done and can it work? I see much less expensive ammo in Nato form than in 308W form - by nearly a factor of 3 for the South African variety of Nato ammo. 4. Does anyone have experience with the 10 round 308 magazine offered by: http://www.e-gunparts.com/DisplayAd.asp?chrProductSKU=957880&chrSuperSKU=&MC= Is this magazine made by Benelli? Does it work reliably? Is it easy to load with ammo? Will this magazine work with 7.62x51mm Nato ammo? Does anyone have a photo of this 10 round magazine installed on an R1? Eager for your thoughts and comments. Thanks, Bill

Any indication when Benelli migh offer the ComforTech recoil reduction stock with the Nova line of pump shotguns?

Hello all: Just joined this forum. I certainly like the look of the products that Benelli has to offer. Asking for a moment of your time to help me better understand the Nova accessories. I like the fact that the Nova Slug Gun receiver is already tapped to mount a scope rail - as stated by Benelli. Then I read that the use of a slug barrel requires a special Nova fore-end. As Benelli states: >>Slug barrels require a modified fore-end sold >>separately. So then, if I buy a Nova Slug gun - already with rifled barrel and correct fore-end - to start, I'll be able to mount a single scope directly on the pre-tapped receiver - independent of the barrel installed. Then I'd plan to buy just a regular Nova smoothbore barrel accessory to use sometimes on this one Nova receiver-with- scope. My thought is to install just the one EOTECH permanently on the receiver for both slug and shot. Here is the question... Will this all work with no hidden surprises? Will the one special-for-slug-barrel fore-end also support the smoothbore barrel? Or will I still need to purchase a second special-for-smoothbore fore-end to work with the extra smoothbore barrel? Hope this makes sense. I think I am better off to avoid the cantilevered barrel approach all together. What is my best path here? Can I make all this work out correctly with no need to modify standard Benelli factory parts? Thanks for your time. Bill