Dr.Hook

Well the R1 is stripped and boxed and ready to go back to the factory for yet another warranty issue. I am shooting a .300 wsm and have tried both winchester accubond (180 gr) and then tried Federal Premium Vital-Shok (180gr) neither of these brands shoot out of my gun reliably. I don't think I have shot a total of 50 rounds through this gun and it has failed me for 3 consecutive elk hunting seasons. Had to finish the season all 3 times with my trusty Ruger bolt action. I really love the way the R1 shoots and handles but am getting really discouraged in the reliability of it. Maybe I just got a hold of a lemon? I clean this gun after every use and it doesn't really appear to be that dirty either so I am really at a loss. I am not giving up yet though. Thanks for all the input I have learned alot reading these posts. Dr. Hook

So what brand of ammunition are you fellas that don't have the fouling problem useing? I really like the way this gun shoots and feels and am not ready to give up on it just yet. I am in the process of assembling my gun again after an extensive cleaning and want to try a different brand of ammo this time just for a test. Thanks guys..

I have a question for every one out there that has not had problems with this gun. What type of ammunition are you guys useing? I had a gun dealer tell me to try a different brand as some maufacturers use slower/faster burning powders. My gun is a .300 WSM and so far I have shot 50 rnds through it in 2 years and it has failed me 3 times. I am useing Winchester accubond amunition. Thanks for any help.

once again the r1 failed me in the middle of an elk hunt. I had striped it and cleaned it very good before going out and it shot great 6 times then locked up again. It would shoot, eject, then the slide wouldn't go all the way back in. If I pulled the lever back and let it go it worked, but in the heat of hunting you are ejecting 1 live round per clip. I took the gun apart when I came home and it wasn't very dirty either so now I am really scratching my head. I e-mailed Benelli customer service 2 weeks ago and haven't heard a word from them.

Thanks Tucker for the info. By the way, the 1 you had? Did you have the same troubles and got rid of the gun?

I bought my R1 in .300wsm 2 years ago. It failed on me at the worse possible time. (in the middle of a herd of elk) I contacted the factory and sent it in after the season. They said they couldn't see what was causing it and replaced the barrel. I got the rifle back and re-mounted the scope and went to site it in this season. It worked fine for the 8 shots I needed to site it in. I went out yesterday to fine tune it (hunting season starts in 4 days) It jammed after 2 rounds. The shell would eject, but the bolt would hang up when the new round was trying to chamber. I came home and stripped it and found the piston all carboned up. My question is-what is the best way to clean this crap off the piston and bore? I see pits in the bore as many of you have stated. How many rounds can you actually shoot before you need to worry about this? I have to tell you , i am very dissapointed in this gun, it shoots nice (when it works) and looks good but if I have to wonder if it will work when I need it then it really isn't much good to me. I have shot a total of 40 rounds through this gun so far. Does the type of ammo matter, is some of it better then others for an auto loader> I am shooting Winchester Accubond ammo. I have heard nothing but good things about Benelli guns over the past 30 years so decided to buy 1, not sure I made a good choice here. Could have bought 2 brownings for the price.