StrangerDanger

No I don't see any difference. That was a concern of mine since I was matching up some AR15 lowers that had been done in NP3+ with regular NP3. I couldn't tell the difference and these batches were done several years apart.

Finally an easier solution for adding a Limbsaver to the Benelli M4 is available. This is significantly easier and requires fewer parts in the past assemblies of the 10111 model that required the Noveske adapter plate that is no longer sold. For this assembly we'll be using the Limbsaver 10403. This model has a raised lip on the inside of the buttpad that helps center the pad on the stock. First step is to remove the collapsible stock from your shotgun. You will then need to remove the factory buttpad by using a philips screw driver and inserting it in to the two small holes on the factory buttpad. Use a little oil or spit on the driver to help push it in. Push the driver in firmly as you unscrew the fasteners. Pull the buttpad away from the stock as you unscrew it. The screws will remain captive inside of the buttpad. Not the large hole roughly in the center of the stock. This is where the receiver extension passes thru the stock and in to the buttpad when the stock is in the fully collapsed position. The next step is to fit your buttpad to the stock. I had to purchase screws from the hardware store to make this buttpad work for this application. I used M4 machine screws, 0.7 thread pitch, 16mm in length. You will need two of them. The ones I bought use a 2.5mm allen head driver. Press the screws in to the Limbsaver buttpad through the two holes in the rubber. Use your driver to press since it will have to push past the rubber. They will snap in to place once seated. You'll see the threads sticking out of the bottom of the buttpad. Screw the buttpad on to the stock. Note the two holes top and bottom for accessing the screws. Now we need to make a hole in the plastic base of the buttpad for the receiver extension to pass in to. Now that you have the pad attached to the stock, you'll want to get a Sharpie marker with the cap off and drop it down the hole of the collapsible stock where the receiver extension goes. I use a silver one since it makes it easier to see the marks. I shake the stock around a little to get the marker to give me a witness mark as to where I am going to drill. Now remove the buttpad from the stock and check your witness marks. You should have something like this. You now know roughly where you need to drill your 7/8" hole. Rather than trying to bore that big of a hole in one pass, you'll have better luck starting small and moving up. I start with a 1/4" Forester bit and drill it out on a drill press. You do not want to drill all the way through the buttpad. You only want to drill through the plastic back which will open up to a void inside the buttpad. I suppose you could drill this out with a electric drill, but your quality of work is likely going to suffer. First hole is drilled. Take the pad and offer it back up to the stock. Look down the hole where the receiver extension goes down with a flash light and see how close to center your hole is to the hole you're looking down. I see that I'm a little off center to the right of the screen. No problem. Move to the next size up bit 3/8" and try to correct for the alignment. Continue through the 1/2, 5/8 and finally the 7/8 bit. Here is the end results. Clean out all the plastic debris from inside the buttpad and clean up the edges. I use a deburring tool but you don't have to get that fancy. Offer the buttpad up to the stock again and check to see if you can see the sides of the buttpad through the hole. You should be looking straight in to the hole drilled. If an edge is present, it will liely contact the receiver extension and prevent it from collapsing. You can hog out the hole slightly with no ill effects on performance. Finally offer up the stock with the buttpad screwed in place to the shotgun and see if the stock fully collapses. If it hangs up, you need to remove the offending area. If it fits, finalize the installation by applying some blue Loctite 243 to the screws then snug them up. No retard strength is needed. These threaded holes will strip easily if you muscle it. Use your fingers to hole the buttpad in alignment to the stock as you tighten it. There is a small amount of wiggle room in the pad that will allow you to even out the alignment. Make sure everything still fits after you've tightened the screws. The rubber of the Limbsaver will often times have a dried out look to it. You can rub some lubricant on the rubber with a rag and it will return it to a deep black finish. Limbsaver claims you'll see a 70% reduction in perceived recoil with these pads. That figure is a little optimistic. Realistically I'd say you'll see a 40% reduction.

The Benelli M4 H2O got assembled today. I haven't finalized the installation yet since I have to get the magazine tube and the weapon light head painted to match the NP3 finish. I used the 10403 Limbsaver with this build which eliminates the need for the Noveske adapter plate. I just had to buy some M4 machine screws that are 2.5mm allen heads. The thread pitch is 0.7 and the length was 16mm. A hole must still be drilled in the bottom of the buttpad to allow the receiver extension to pass into the buttpad when the stock is fully collapsed. Since the 10403 has raised edges that index inside the aluminum portion of the buttpad, it makes it easier to center your drill. I stepped up from 1/4, 3/8, 1/2, 5/8 to the final 7/8 inch Forester bits on the drill press checking for proper alignment with the stock at each interval. Moving forward, this will be the setup I use. It has fewer parts and is cheaper. Even the old pistol grip stock was fully disassembled and all the internals were plated. The OEM trigger pack was plated. It will act as a spare. How bright is the Surefire M600DF at 1500 lumens? Pretty damn bright! The new buttpad design. Note the raised edge on the inside of the buttpad that stabilizes the pad inside the pocket of the stock.

It would be mainly if you wanted the middle position real bad. The extra screw they added and the screws that hold the cheek riser in place should qualify for the tools required communist edict. Then if he went to a free state he could take the screw out and taste the freedom.

Glad you got it apart. Someone added that screw which is why it’s standard thread where as the Benelli is all metric. It’s weird that they added that screw to an M4 with a neutered receiver extension. X Unless you’re in law enforcement I don’t think there is a civilian exemption. Now, if I understand California rules, you could put the 3 position extension on and use that screw to lock the stock in to the position you want.

Third picture down shows a silver thing sticking up under the cheek riser, I can’t tell if it is a pin or screw or just a light artifact. Either way there should be nothing there.

Thanks for the pics. I’m driving home at the moment so my replies might be slow. That pin under the cheek piece is normal. I’d remove the cheek piece by the three top screws, then slightly press on the button while tapping the pin out that is under the cheek piece you mentioned. This will allow you to remove the button. I assume someone inserted something beneath the button to prevent it from being pressed. The only thing under the button should be a greasy spring.

The looks are meh to me too. I don’t like that sling point position for the QD socket. I talked to Todd again. He said it would not be a viable recoil tube for California compliance. I guess the regular M4 stock will slide up and down the tube, it just won’t lock into any of the positions.

That’s weird. It should depress about 3/5 of an inch. Take a picture of the assembly and of the existing receiver extension. There are ways to pin the stock button that aren’t obvious. Basically something is inserted beneath the button to prevent it from depressing.

https://www.benelliparts.net/store/p7/Benelli_61171_Supernova_Collapsible_Stock_%2F_MR1.html Here is the stock ‘in stock.’

Todd from FFT emailed me this afternoon about this discussion. He tried installing a regular collapsible stock from the M4 on to it. The stock will lock into position fully open, but it won’t collapse at all. From what I can tell, Benelli Italy had made a prototype M4 which has a different collapsible stock, a railed handguard and a few other small upgrades. You can see the listing here: http://www.benellidefence.it/products/m4-14-door-breacher The stock appears on their listed Supernova as well. Benelli sells these tubes to dealers marked as being for the M4. Midwest Gun Works has listed these tubes for awhile also. Now, if you need a California compliant tube, buying one of these five position tubes would give you that effect with your existing M4 collapsible stock. You’d have the look but not the function of the collapsible stock. https://www.midwestgunworks.com/page/mgwi/prod/61171 Here is the stock that would fit that recoil tube.

Are you asking how to remove the stock from the recoil tube? For that, press the unlock button, rotate the stock 45 degrees to the ejection port side. Slide the stock forward, the rotate the stock 90 degrees to the left side, then slide the stock off the end of the recoil tube.

If you used that super saver free shipping from them, it’ll be going via Pony Express. It took about that long for my Nightforce 7-35 x 56 scope to come from there.

Rex - Are you in California? The recoil tube is all that is needed to make your collapsible stock functional. The trouble is they’re a PITA to remove and replace. You need a Mapp torch to break down the factory threadlocker. I have a tutorial thread on here somewhere showing what’s involved to do the job.

Imagine you went to the trouble of removing the receiver extension and expected your OEM one to fit.

On a side note, I reassembled the primer feed system for my Dillon 650 last night. With all the NP3 plated parts, it operates like a Swiss watch. There are a lot of tight tolerance parts on this assembly. I had zero issues with reassembling it.

Just checked FFT. Yep, they’re selling them and they have a better picture of the tube. Those notches definitely won’t fit the M4 collapsible stock.

Interested to see some pictures.

Yep. No issues at all or performance changes that I’ve noted. Just one less part that can rust and bind up. I recommend getting one of those Briley choke wrenches. I’ve never had a choke loosen up on me since I began using that tool.

I think it’s designed to work with that collapsible Super Nova stock. Which is pretty ugly in my opinion. The notches on the 5 position look different than the standard M4’s.

I don’t send that nut because of that.

I found the top to be better. The shotgun rolled less.

I’d ask to see if they’ll do it. I’m not sure what their gunsmithing capabilities are. Then if you’re going to get that sling plate, send it to them to get in with the plating batch. The little details are what really sets it apart from the factory H2O. I took this guy’s gen2 Magpul UBR apart and had them plate all the internals and screws. I think it came out slick looking.

It could probably be done if your sling is long enough. Another option is to bore a hole in the stock and install a QD socket wherever you like. My only concern is wondering how much the stock could hold up to before breaking. I’ve used these before and they held up well in other applications. https://www.impactweaponscomponents.com/product/qd-micro-mount/ Is Wright Armory taking the stock apart for plating all those little parts inside it? I’ll swap the sling plate out for you if you want. It only takes about 15 minutes.