Sigfla

I bought a set of these for my Beretta 1301. They are for Benelli but they also work on the Beretta. Don't have them yet but the reviews look good. https://www.blitzkriegcomponents.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=1826

Practice practice practice. Join GSSF, IDPA, USPSA, etc. and go shoot under stress. I love taking classes in any discipline but there is nothing like competitive induced stress. We can't replicate an actual life or death scenario but we can put you under a clock, in the dark, in a real life scenario in competition that is as good as you can get. I have taken many friends who are avid shooters (I call them tin can shooters) to a low light IDPA match and they left the stage shaking. Some chose to really learn the handgun and use it. Others decided to change their nightstand gun to a shotgun instead. Both require training and practice but the handgun is worthless as a HD weapon if you cant hit with it or use it in low light.

I picked mine up today. Its a Gen 1 and I thought I was buying a Gen 2. No big deal. The nicer $60 fix to the bolt latch is available on backorder and Beretta has a $10 shroud fix as well on their web store. I bought the Beretta shroud. To be honest I thought the malfunction would be super easy to replicate but you really have to smash the latch button hard to do it. The $10 dollar fix should be a legit solution. I do wish the gun had the Gen 2 screw in chokes though. Compared to the M4 it is lighter which is ok for certain purposes but that lightness makes it feel like an airsoft toy compared to the M4.

I hope to pick up a 1301 this weekend. I wouldn't worry there are plenty of vids out there attesting to the M4's function with low brass 8's. A lot of nice (tighter fit) guns need a little break in. I would suggest both guns are excellent. The M4 has a reputation for being light on recoil. The 1301 is considered very fast cycling. The 1301 has a decent loading port already cut (would still open it if I was a 3 gunner). The M4 might need port work if you are a 3 gunner and you want to quad load.

FFT

Ok so gunsmithing COVID 2020 project # 50 complete. I received my shell stop today. I chickened out on the cuts I suggested above. If I had more time I might have test fit it before I started cutting. I should have done it at night when the wife and kids aren't on my ass. I cut 2 small angle cuts into the shell stop at the notches where you see the white lines. They were very shallow and I took barely any metal off really. I then polished the face of the shell stop and put a little extra pressure on the area most guys scallop cut theirs. I figured I would test fit from there and cut more if needed. I really hate taking my gun down and messing with roll pins. Its a super pain in the butt unless I am alone and in a quiet area. Anyway once I reinstalled the new modded part viola!! My M4 now loads as easily as my 870 and 590A1. I don't know if the new part had less bend in it or if my mods helped that much. It did seem to stick out less from the receiver channel. I did a quick bang test on the floor with the stock and no shells broke free and my contact area seems more than sufficient on the case rim. Firing will tell the tale however. In any case I highly recommend the mod b/c the M4 shell stop being so stiff is one of the guns rare weak points. Benelli or the aftermarket really needs to address this somehow. Give us an easier to load gun and a better full stock option (just less LOP on the non collapsing models would work). I am a big guy with long arms and it was ok for me but I stiff prefer the LOP of the Mesa. If i was buying again I would get the collapsable model instead. Not Benelli related but the next project is freshening up some parts on my 590A1 PD trade in SBS, converting to a ESS card side saddle (had an ugly old Tacstar), new FP, new ejector, new sling, new extractors with new springs, and finally a new Magpul SGA. Only problem with a PD gun is it is either beat to hell or barely used. You can't tell which b/c they are all treated like crap on the outside. I have had it for a million years and only now had the interest to shoot it and get it setup. Going to take a defensive shotgun class in June.

I doubt they would work. Mostly for pump guns and usually with an adapter. I just got one for my Mossy for fun I'll let you know how it does.

Interesting how you routed the light switch on that pair of guns. Did you splice the wire or could you get a longer one from Surefire? Have any pics of the activation pad?

I have one but removed it. It got in the way of my Velcro shell cards. I think the op had hoped for a more intervals solution like a QD cup in the stock itself.

I had hoped the spring retainer screw was cupped to hold the spring in place. I wonder how tough it would be to reinstall with a small diameter long rod to use as a guide down the center. The FAL recoil spring tool is a sorta wrench with a hole in the middle for the guide rod to slide down while you screw in the nut.

LOL ask and you shall receive. Thanks. The search function here is not my friend.

Magpul MS1 padded. I asked the question further down the page. Padded feels much better

I kinda like the idea of locktighting the retaining plug instead. Have to use heat to remove it but that’s no biggie once in a blue moon. I wish someone has a pictorial on reinstallation of that spring and plug though so I could get an idea how tough it is. Sounds a bit like removing a FAL spring but there are tools and tricks for that.

Streamlight is amazing with pistol mounted lights. I have the ProTac HL on my PCC and its not great. The laser was a pitch to zero and it isn't really solid in how its mounted in the housing. I wasn't super impressed. Its on a 9mm AR platform so it served a purpose but I wouldn't go that route again. Plus the ProTac models are all a little bulky in my opinion.

Use the provided lock washer and check periodically

I ordered a G&G originally but cancelled after they emailed that it was gonna take a while. My OEM stop is gonna be left alone and I will experiment with the spare from FFT. In the end I hope to accomplish an easier to load shell catch but still retain full contact on the shell itself. If it doesn’t work I am out the cost of the spare and I’ll decide if the tried and true method is worth doing to my OEM latch. Ideally I want something less than stock and not as radical as the 3 gunners.

Wasn't considering moving the pin actually. It was more of a re-profile of the pivot point peak marked by the arrow. I wouldn't attempt it anyhow as messing with the geometry too much is out of my realm. I looked my gun over today and I think I am going to polish, then cut a single relief slit just above the contact point of the case rim on the latch. I noticed it was mostly one side of my latch that was contacting the case rim. I thought if I cut a slit between the contact point and the opposing edge (just above the scallop cut you referenced/my red circled area) it might allow the latch to bend more easily while still retaining full contact of the case. If I look at my shell stop from the carrier side it appears the portion circled in red is where the latch contacts the case rim. If I cut along the blue line I think that will provide relief for the latch to bend more only where it contacts the case rim. I dunno why Benelli doesn't attempt reprofile the shell stop somehow to make loading easier. It seems even if they just decreased the angle the shell pushes along somehow rather than that sharp ramp to get past the latch that everyone scallop cuts it would make for less resistance while pushing the shell in. I dunno I know I am thinking out loud a bit but there has to be a better solution that bending, cutting, or otherwise reducing the case rim contact.

Another idea I had was to polish and possibly take down the edges of the shell stop slightly so it had more room to pivot. Taking down the edge circled in yellow should give the stop more room to pivot into the receiver and clear the case rim. The area circled in red and the corresponding pivot point marked by the arrow is the most interesting area to me. It seems Benelli placed the roll pin forward of the pivot point for a reason. I wonder if moving the pivot point more back towards the blue line would maintain the depth of the latch on the case rim but reduce some tension. By shifting it back you would be pushing down on it further out and in theory have more leverage to move it out of the way. I know thats not what actually bends but the pin placement and pivot point must serve a purpose. I dunno though I am certainly no engineer and I know others have looked at this longer than I have.

Found this as well. Great video explaining the best way to grind and polish. I may end up doing 2 relief cuts on either side of the centerline of the case rim as it contacts the shell stop. Hopefully that retains the hold but allows the centerline a bit more bend or flex to allow the shell to load easier. I'll have to see how much room there is since the latch doesn't grip dead center of the shell (at least on the Versamax). I know Benelli wanted max reliability and life for that part. If it goes down your gun will likely double but it seems a more reasonable middle ground could have been designed. Shotguns eat and eat so loading easier should be an essential element of the design. Maybe the aftermarket will come up with a drop in solution that works.

Just saw FFT has the shell stop in stock. I ordered one. If anyone has any strong opinions on my theory let me know before I start cutting slits, lol!

Ok after having read through a lot of threads on how to make this gun easier to load it seems the safest consensus is to bend the latch and polish. I have no problem with the polish part but I am hesitant to bend without an extra shell stop lying around in case I screw it up too badly. PLUS I am not too enamored of the idea of reducing the purchase of the latch on the shell rim. It occurred to me another option might be to cut shallow slits into the shell latch face reducing the overall surface area grabbing the rim but not affecting the geometry any. The latch would thus look like the tines of a fork smushing the shell into the magazine tube for lack of a better description. It seems like 2-3 small slits or even one larger one in the middle might do the trick along with a bit of a polish. I also thought about polishing the contact area between the shell stop and the cartridge drop lever but without the gun in front of me I am not sure if that works with the mechanical action of the gun. I think the drop lever pushes against the shell stop causing it to grab the shell harder while loading. It releases while firing and the shell stop spring pushes it out of the way of the case rim. Giving those 2 surfaces a bit of a polish might take some tension off if only a tiny bit. Does anyone have any thoughts on trying this vs the bending or notch cutting suggestions? Once spares are in stock I might give it a try b/c mine is a real bitch to load. I have to shove rounds in with my thumb hard and they make an audible click when inserted. You simply cannot baby this gun in any way. It likes being treated rough, lol.

I would also agree that a decent gunsmith block is helpful. I bought mine from MCARBO and it works great for cheap.

So my new guard came in today. It took me around 30 mins to swap everything over. The hardest part was stripping the factory guard. I had some pins that were tight that were supposed to be loose, etc.. Assembling the new A&S guard was very easy. The safety spring portion took a bit of fiddling but it was not difficult. A good set of roll pin punches are highly recommended as well as a good pair of Snap Ring pliers. I have a good set but couldn't find the correct set of tips so I struggled a tiny bit. Anyway it all went together great and now my guard slides right in and out of the gun no problem.

I am using ESSTAC cards. There are many others out there as well as generics off amazon. Just get the appropriate side velcro from the hardware store and mount it up. As far as your finish goes I wouldn't even use the velcro. I would just buy a generic shotgun stock shell caddy and use it. They are generally made out of expandable fabric or neoprene and slip on over the stock. I like the Beartooth products ones.

You are prob better off with a stock mounted shell carrier. A side saddle on a hunting gun is just gonna feel hefty imho.