tonyp

I am finally updating here - spurred to do so by a DM from another member with the exact issue on the same model. As @Vertigofirearms insightfully wrote above, it was the carrier. What I ended up doing is getting a new carrier (https://www.midwestgunworks.com/benelli-m3/carrier.html. I probably would have taken up Vertigo's generous offer (above), but I found one the next day locally, and that solved everything - once installed it was visibly straighter and I had no further issues. In retrospect, I could pushed Benelli for the part or repair, and probably should have, but I enjoyed solving it myself, and on my timeline.

Thanks, Vertigo, I will do that and update here. If I can't reach them in a timely fashion, I may take you up on your kind offer.

Thanks a lot for the very helpful response. Yes, it it is a plastic trigger guard - not sure what to think of that. I will take off carrier - I found a carrier (#61136) for the M1/M2 that I am going to try. Waiting on a pair of retaining ring pliers from McMaster-Carr. As for the rail - I'm checking on the GG&G M2 rail, but my spreads seem to be unusual? rear spread: 0.83 inch = 2.1082 cm front spread: 1.03 inch = 2.6162 cm center spread: 2.59 inch = 6.5786 cm

I finally got my M3 - been a long time waiting - and lo and behold, I *believe* it came with a problem. (NIB with a manufacture date seeming to be 2015.) See pic, but the carrier seems to be bent? Or for some other reason off center. I have trouble loading it - I have to manually the push carrier to the side a bit and down for the last centimeter or so, so that it clears magazine entry point and a shell can be pushed into magazine. I disassembled it and cleaned and lubed it (didn't take trigger assembly apart), and it fired fine, mostly. I have a few mis-feeds initially, where a shell got jammed behind carrier. But after a second time apart, cleaning, and relubing, no more of those mis-feeds, and in semiauto mode, it handled the 1300 ft/sec 1 1/8 loads mostly fine. (One or two partial feeds out of 50 rounds, which could well have been due to "pulling my shoulder", it was getting sore.) A few questions: I'm pretty sure now it is NOT supposed to be off center in this way. (Call me a bone-head, but this is my first semi-auto.) Right? I am hesitant to send it in to Benelli - I've written to them about a separate issue (finding a picatinny rail for the *factory* drilled/tapped receiver), and haven't heard a word, after more than a month. I've heard they are good folk, but way over-worked and under-staffed - espcially now. Can I just replace the carrier or will there be more that needs doing? It seems carriers are very inter-changeable - will an M1 or M2 or M3 carrier work? E.g., TTI seems to offer the same carrier for M1, M2, M3, and M1014. Should I go to a gunsmith locally? Thanks for any thoughts.