Benelli 121 M1 Problems

[scubasky]

I just picked up a nice used Old Style (Wood Stock) HK/Benelli 121M1 and the thing won't cycle rounds. The Shells in the magazine will not slide into the chamber, they get caught up on the button/slide release.

 

The shop I bought it from are of no help at all, am I just confused or is something wrong?

[M1014]

hey skubasky,,start with the simple stuff first,,,maybe an area that needs a little lube,,check for a wore out spring or lifter hangup during cycling,,,,,M1014

[roland]

You have to put the first round into the chamber by hand through the ejection port. When you fire the gun, the next round is released by recoil. you can´t cycle the gun by hand. If it doesn´t work like this something is broken.

P.S. : Shoot from the hip, nothing is faster than a benelli

[bloodhound]

why in the world did they design the gun to function in this fashion?

[Sukhoi_fan]

11 minutes ago, bloodhound said:

why in the world did they design the gun to function in this fashion?

I'm unable to answer why Benelli would design a shotgun to function like this however I kept a 121 M1 in my vehicle for many years and I considered this unusual operation to be a safety feature. Why? Because if some varmint got his hands on my loaded Benelli 121 M1 he's highly unlikely to figure out how to make it go BANG before I ruin his whole day. Ammo was in the mag and on the stock, however it's not obvious how to make it run. There was an aftermarket button extension that turned the BC release into what was called a "Benelli button." A flick of the Benelli button would release a round out of the magazine onto the elevator, not slow at all yet a deterrent for anyone unfamiliar the operation of the 121 M1. No longer a concern for most folks since Benelli quit making the 121 M1 over 35 years ago and no longer supports the 121 M1. I loved my 121 M1 shotguns but I now consider the 121 M1 a relic and no longer own any.

[bloodhound]

thanks for reply    that's all i could come up with also.  but allot of effort was necessary to design that so i figured there was something super German  clever. 

[bambihunter]

Except that it's Italian bloodhound. 😉