Jump to content

SBEII Bolt Malfunction - Misfire


csvt99

Recommended Posts

A week ago I shot at a very nice and large long beard at about 8 yards, only to hear a "click". I threw another one in but by that time he was already out of site. I was upset about it so I settled for a jake on the last morning (still fortunate for that opportunity though).

 

I determined it was due to the bolt on my SBEII and not the bullet. If I pull the bolt back about half an inch and let it go, it doesn't close completely, it still needs about an 1/8 of a turn. The only way to get it to go is to pull it back further and slam it. On the way in the woods in the morning somehow I must have pulled the bolt back a bit and it didn't seat properly, causing my gun not too fire. There was a dent in the unspent cartridge, but not as deep as the ones that went off. The bolt does this consistently every time I try it.

 

Can someone tell me if this is a common problem or the way the gun was designed? It was very frustrating. If I would have had my 20+ year old NWTF winchester 1300 this bird would have been dead. Heck if I would have had a rock the bird might have been dead!

 

Thanks in advance!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unfortunately, it's not that uncommon for the bolt to not be fully seated and cause the "Benelli Click". The best solution I've ran across for it is to purchase a Wolff 25% stronger recoil spring. They're about $15 or so, aren't so strong that they create problems with the intertia action, and will go a LONG ways towards solving issues with the bolt not going fully back into battery. They only list the M1 on their site, but have verified that the springs are the same and will work in the SBE II.

 

Good luck and post back if you upgrade.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can someone tell me if this is a common problem or the way the gun was designed?

 

Well it was certainly not designed to not shoot :p

 

But in all seriousness it can be a very frustrating problem, the thing I would say is to make sure that the grooves in the "barrel extension" that the bolt rotates into are very clean and you lube the bolt and rails well. I have gotten into the habit of checking if the bolt was fully rotated if I don't release from a full stroke, and just tap on the bolt handle if it isn't all the way in.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is unfortunate. I will order the spring and see what happens. I'm really surprised Benelli would produce something with a flaw like this. I love the feel of the gun, and just as I've finally molded to it (after a couple of seasons) now I have this issue. Hopefully the spring fixes the problem; if not I will be paranoid about checking that stupid bolt. I'm going to check my friends' berettas and brownings to see if they have similar issues. This is not good for a gun that cost $$$

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On a related note; I noticed that fitment of the bolt assembly on a SBE II or M2 vs a Beretta 1201F (also inertia bolt) is quite different. The Benelli bolt head drops when pulled out of battery and the Beretta stays steady with a smooth rotation and no drop.

 

As a byproduct (I presume), the Beretta can be eased into lock much easier than the Benelli. I don't recall ever having the Beretta click on me, but it could have faded with time as the Beretta was purchased in 1990.

 

There certainly appears to be a manufacturing tolerance difference between the guns. At the end of the day, they all go boom and the Wolff spring virtually eliminated the click problem.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well it was certainly not designed to not shoot :p

 

But in all seriousness it can be a very frustrating problem, the thing I would say is to make sure that the grooves in the "barrel extension" that the bolt rotates into are very clean and you lube the bolt and rails well. I have gotten into the habit of checking if the bolt was fully rotated if I don't release from a full stroke, and just tap on the bolt handle if it isn't all the way in.

 

Great reply!

 

My last 'click' was maybe 20 years ago, and it stopped when I learned how to clean the gun properly. Clean and lube the lock up area, and there should be no problem.

 

Funny how someone says their 1201F's were great, I had two, neither would cycle despite numerous trips back to Beretta. The 1201F probably worked fine with short powerful loads, but we couldn't get either one to work with standard waterfowl loads. Sold both for scrap value, and I was fine with that...

 

If all the Benellis didn't work, I think they would have gone out of business many years ago....

 

mudhen

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The "click" is fairly normal. Usually when bolt is jarred or shell is quitely loaded. Once I learned of the behavior it never happened again.

 

Some guys we hunt with will pull your gun out of battery when you step out of the blind to relieve yourself. You learn to push the bolt all the way forward when you come back.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I replaced the spring and it helped but did not solve the problem. When I pull the bolt back 1/2" and let go it still doesn't shut the whole way. It seems to be the extractor that is the hang up. Does the brass ring (or whatever it is) in the picture belong? I had to pull back on the bolt a bit for the pic.

 

Also the new spring is squeaky. I oiled it and that helped but it still makes noise. Will this go away over time?

 

 

5813691684

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If I pull the bolt back about 1/2" and release it on my SBE II with the Wolff spring, it closes well, but I wouldn't count on it closing every time with a short pull like that. There's just too much slop in the bolt/head fitment and how it mates to the barrel. The rails and contact area of the bolt are oiled and the gun is kept clean, so that helps. With oil and use, the spring should quieten down.

 

Not sure how the extractor could be hanging you up. Look for some polished spots in the breech area and see if the bolt face is making contact.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't think there's anything under the extractor other than a spring. The color you're seeing is likely oil. If you haven't already, it's worthing spending time to thoroughly clean the breech area and disassemble, clean, and oil the bolt assembly.

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]633[/ATTACH]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I cleaned the bolt with the exception of the extractor. Based on your diagram it is the spring the red arrow is pointing to in my photo, so that should be normal. I will try cleaning the extractor which should help.

 

If I pull back, let go, and the bolt doesn't shut the whole way, it is the extractor that is catching. I can push all I want on the bolt and it goes nowhere, but if I take my finger and slide the extractor from bottom to top, then it slides into place.

 

Any tips on removing the extractor arm for cleaning? Do I just need a small punch to remove piece 035A per your diagram?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I haven't taken the extractor out of the bolt assembly on mine, so I'm not sure how it comes apart. 035A is labeled as an extractor pin and looks like a rolled pin, so I would presume it can be pressed or driven out with a small punch. Hopefully, someone who has replaced the extractor will chime in.

 

I'm still a little skeptical of the extractor being the part that is hanging the bolt. I know when you push it up, the locking head rotates into battery, but there it's also rotating the locking head pin into the grooves in the bolt. Look at the grooves in the bolt where the pin guides the rotation and see if there are any unusual wear patterns or burrs.

Edited by Randy S
typo
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...