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Benelli M4 - Building a H2O


StrangerDanger

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The forum has been really slow lately, so I figured I'd try to add some content again.

 

Recently I was contacted by a client to put together the ultimate Benelli M4 with a focus on reliability, and reduced perceived recoil. Cost is not a concern. The main goal was to have a shotgun built for home defense. So, with that said, here is the roughed out plan.

The M4 is a 11707 model. It's an older version that has an aluminum trigger frame. The shotgun itself is brand new and never appears to have been fired. This is an 18.5" barreled model.

Receiver Upgrades

- Loading Port Modifications

- GG&G Oversized Bolt Release

- TTI Stainless Bolt Handle

- FFT Reproduction Handguards Stippled by Tango Arms

Stock Upgrades

- Benelli M4 OEM Collapsible Stock

- IWC MOE QD Sling Mount

- Limbsaver 11011 Custom Fit with Noveski Adapter Plate

Magazine Tube Assembly

- Carriercomp Titanium Full Length Magazine Tube, internals polished

- Carriercomp Magazine Follower (Old style with the red plastic indicator)

- Carriercomp/Wolff Magazine Spring

Trigger Pack

- A&S Engineering Trigger Frame

- FFT Trigger/Hammer/Disconnector Kit

- FFT Shell Elevator

- DMW Oversized Safety

- Wolff Trigger Pack Spring Kit

Sights and Optics

- Scalarworks Sync Rail

- Trijicon RMR Type 2, RM09 - 1moa dot size

- Meprolight Night Sights

Weapon Light Package

- Surefire M600DF 1500 lumen output.

- Impact Weapon Components Benelli M4 Light/Sling Mount

- Surefire tailcap modified to remove the shroud

Sling

- BlueForceGear Padded QD Sling

Refinish

All parts are to be refinished in NP3 by Robar. Plastics will remain black. Items such as the lamp head on the weapon light will be painted to match the NP3 finish. The Trijicon RMR will be left alone.

 

I received the shotgun on August 6, 2019. By August 7, 2019, the shotgun had been fully disassembled down to the smallest parts. Threaded parts were cleaned up chemically and with a wire wheel to remove any thread locker compound. Cleaning the parts up eats up a lot of time when done right. Even the bolt head is disassembled which is nearly an impossible task without some specialized tools. Getting that roll pin that holds the extractor claw out is almost an impossible task. You need a tiny curved punch in order to tap it out successfully. I disassembled his pistol grip stock so that the sling hardware and the installation screw inside the stock will all be plated in NP3 as well. As expected, the two screws that hold the rear sight in place are destroyed upon removal (the tip of the screw almost always breaks off.) I believe LPA stakes the top of the screw and creates that cupped shape. The nut that holds the front sight in place is a one time use item and will be replaced upon reassembly. This nut cannot be NP3 plated since it has a nylock insert. Small springs are bagged and tagged for reassembly. Some of them are confusing to know the difference by just looking at them. Springs like the one that holds the bolt handle detent and the extractor claw spring can be easily confused with ones from the trigger pack.

 

I'll begin the loading port modifications once the A&S trigger frame arrives. I plan to go high, on the port, but not as high as Briley. I also plan to open the mouth more than Briley typically does. The entire loading port will be dehorned and there will not be a single sharp edge inside the mouth. Mine are all done by hand, so it is a little tedious.

The owner supplied the carriercomp components, and the shipment from FFT arrived already. The handguards from FFT were mailed out to Tango Arms this morning.

Will update with more as we move forward.

OcJtxgQ.jpg

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The front sight and rear sight from Meprolights will remain black since you can't plate the sights with their tritium lamps installed. There is a work around for this, but it is costly. You'd have to NP3 plate the OEM sights, then send those out to Tooltech to have Trijicon lamps installed. I think they charge a ridiculous amount, like 250 dollars. The hood of the front sight and the rear sight housing are going to be plated on this one.

 

It will end up looking like this one I did a while back, but the Trijicon RMR's that are nickel boron plated aren't readily available anymore.

WnnPALD.jpg?1

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4 hours ago, RPC said:

This is awesome SD, thanks for sharing (and for the jumpstart to the forum).

Question: Why continue to mess with the Noveski Adapter Plate when the Limbsaver 10403 doesn’t require it? 

 

The main issue is I haven’t drilled into a 10403 yet to determine if there is any obstruction inside the pad vs. the known functional 11011. Without the hole drilled, the fully collapsed position is a no go. I have one on the shelf, so I may give it a try to eliminate some parts. 

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2 hours ago, Evolution said:

Another question for ya..is it necessary to trim the tailcap shroud off the 600DF with the IWC mount?

The light itself will fit without trimming on the IWC mount. The trouble is if you’re using the shotgun and using the momentary button, and you fire a12 gauge round, you’re going to jam your thumb against the shroud. Removing the shroud just leaves the rubber jug of the button exposed which makes it a lot safer to use. 

ZNBGJIR.jpg

I did this tailcap on the lathe and dehorned all the sharp edges. The picture was taken prior to having the light head painted to match.

I almost never use the constant on feature of these lights. You should be moving, briefly illuminating the area, then back to off. Move and repeat. 

I personally prefer the M600 Intellibeam, but they require some lathe work to make fit the M4. You top out at 600 lumens too. These DF models are 1500 lumens with a lot of flood. It might be too bright indoors. 

Edited by StrangerDanger
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4 hours ago, StrangerDanger said:

ZNBGJIR.jpg

 

I almost never use the constant on feature of these lights. You should be moving, briefly illuminating the area, then back to off. Move and repeat. 

 

Good point. Safer to use the momentary function when in area clearing mode, I suppose. Do you know if all the models of the SF tape switches have the momentary function, or just some of them?. It's not clear on their website.

Edited by Evolution
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Most Surefire tape switches are momentary only on the ST series. If you buy the rail mounted model that has that big round button on top, the SR07 model. That’ll lock on, then it has a strip along the switch that is momentary only.

There are aftermarket tape switches such as the TAPS from Unity Tactical. I didn’t have good luck with it since they don’t like the high output weapon lights and I had no real use for the second lead for laser devices. You could program the switch for momentary and constant on buttons. There was a few millisecond delay when pressing the pressure switch that I did not like.

 

 

 

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Sorry, if I missed this In your prior posts.  How do you get the CC mag tube to match the NP3?  Robar mentions Titanium can’t be NP3’d.

Is finished titanium a pretty close match?  Or, do you go with a cerakote?

 

Edited by Milspec
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After plating the magazine tubes inside and out, I run a jig I made through the inside of the tube. It’ll attach to a drill or to a lathe chuck. It’s sized to spin a bunch of fine steel wool to polish the inside of the magazine tube. 

 

Even the spring sounds different when inserting shells.

 

Bunch of parts came in yesterday. Got the Brownells order with the bolt release from GG&G, the IWC light mount and rear sling mount. The collapsible stock showed up from Benelliparts. The Trijicon RMR arrived too. 

Brownells only had 1 of the 2 rear sight screws in stock. Removal damaged both of the original ones. No ETA on the others arrival. I want to send two to Robar so they’re plated.

I have enough of the parts to begin the loading port modifications probably tomorrow.  I’ll see about taking some pictures in stages. I do all of mine by hand, so it takes 4-5 hours. 

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Loading port pics, please!  ?  I've been printing out a couple of your previous ones.  My local smith will do the port modification for me.

He said we could draw up a sketch so he could see what I'm looking for.  I figured I'd print some pics and do one better.

I know he is going to start breaking the edges with a ball ended end mill.  Hopefully, he finishes it up by hand.  They always do pretty good work.

 

Quick question on the forearm stippling.  I have thought of getting this done through TTI or something.

I like the look of the Tango stippling.  I'm confused about the selections on their website.

If you purchase from them (forearm) they offer two stippling options, classic and full.  However, when you supply your own parts it seems you get the default stippling (whatever that may be).  Also, it shows forearm and complete forearm.  Is "forearm" one side and "complete" both sides?

 

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1 hour ago, StrangerDanger said:

After plating the magazine tubes inside and out, I run a jig I made through the inside of the tube. It’ll attach to a drill or to a lathe chuck. It’s sized to spin a bunch of fine steel wool to polish the inside of the magazine tube. 

SD-

You’ve designed and built a professional tool for professional use, but do you- or anyone reading this- have a novice-grade recommendation for polishing the internal surface of a CC Ti tube? 

 

Thanks in advance. 

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For a polishing jig, I use a large shotgun cleaning rod that is pretty thick in diameter. I’d guess at least half inch. I then wrap the steel wool around a brush head. I smear grinding compound over the steel wool. Usually the 1000 grit stuff. Same stuff I use for trying up AR upper receivers. 

 

Doing this  is in the lathe is best since the knob handle on my rod doesn’t come off. So I just stick it through the oversized port of the lathe and only stick about 24” out of the chuck. I hold the mag tube by hand and work it back and forth thru the interior. Then wipe it all out. It’ll look like a polished mirror in short order. 

 

You could do it with hand drill, you might need to cut off the knob handle if it doesn’t come off. 

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On the stippling, the difference is the classic leaves the thumb shelf area and inside the gills of the handguard unmolested. The complete does everything. I prefer the classic style myself. Tango Arms does a great job and you don’t have any of the plastic coming off in your hand like sand paper. I did note that the stippling is rather sharp when you first get it back, but it seems to soften or the edges get knocked off quickly. I’d send your own set in since their pricing is pretty high to buy a set from them. Kiss the FFT ones for the 922 compliance part. They’re not the best fit compared to the OEM, but I can make it work. I haven’t seen a complete stippling job done on one. The pictures are of the classic. 

 

Having a ball mill will speed things up! The limit is the shell stop. It almost looks like Briley trims the pin when they go really deep with this porting. I use a dremel with a pen attachment system so it’s like holding a pencil. Dremel makes an abrasive polishing wheel bit that is excellent for removing aluminum and breaking corners. It’s slow so you don’t loose control. 

 

I’ll try to take some progression shots as I go. 

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On 8/11/2019 at 5:22 PM, StrangerDanger said:

For a polishing jig, I use a large shotgun cleaning rod that is pretty thick in diameter. I’d guess at least half inch. I then wrap the steel wool around a brush head. I smear grinding compound over the steel wool. Usually the 1000 grit stuff. Same stuff I use for trying up AR upper receivers. 

 

Doing this  is in the lathe is best since the knob handle on my rod doesn’t come off. So I just stick it through the oversized port of the lathe and only stick about 24” out of the chuck. I hold the mag tube by hand and work it back and forth thru the interior. Then wipe it all out. It’ll look like a polished mirror in short order. 

 

You could do it with hand drill, you might need to cut off the knob handle if it doesn’t come off. 

Thank you sir. 

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