Hey all, so I purchased a new Benelli M4 Tactical 7+1 recently, it came in original packaging, everything checks out as the 11715 model with all the bells and whistles (full tube, night sights, rail, adjustable stock, pistol grip). I made a minor modification with a custom mount to put on a RMR, and was finally ready to give it a run... only to run into a major issue. It won't fully load.
Among the shells I purchased for it were Winchester Super X 1 Buck shot, in 2 3/4 inch size. No matter what I do though i can not get it to load more than 6, and it's supposed to be rated for 7 at 3". It makes no sense to me at all, I get the 7th shell in about 95% or so and it just hits a wall. No movement past that, I've tried pushing as hard as I can with two thumbs and there's just no flex at all. I should note that loading this is super super tight from the first round, but I've read that some others have had the same issue and it gets better after a couple hundred shots or so.
Have any of you heard of this? I saw another forum post about an aftermarket solution that had the same issue, but this is 100% factory 7+1. To confirm, it is not the model with the stopper, it has the full tube, I can see the full length of the spring when I take the cap off.
Just super bummed about this because of the price of the firearm, and it being my first Benelli I was expecting top notch quality. This seems like a major defect, and if I have to ship it off to Benelli I have more downtime where I can't use it, and would probably have to strip off the RMR + mount as well to keep that safe.