Mark Penman on the Beretta 1201FP

Not only that, some of it is pretty darned amusing. Some of it, of course, is crass, insensitive, intolerant, small-minded and utterly without any redeeming value. But, this being a public forum, I won't say which is which! <g>
 
Justin, I have to say -- reading the article on the Beretta did not make me want to go out and liberate the one at the local dealer that I'd looked at a couple of times before. The loading sequence, in particular, seems highly idiosyncratic. I keep staying happy with the pump choice...
 
John,

The loading sequence is really not that bad. If you load per Suarez's "The Tactical Shotgun" (i.e., roll the first shell into the open ejection port) the shell release button never comes into play. After you hit the bolt release, you load normally -- once you pull the trigger, there is no need for the shell release as there is already a round in the chamber.

The idiosyncratic loading method is an advantage of the Beretta/Benelli line over conventional semi-autos and pumps like the Remington and Mossbergs, when it comes to switching to slugs. Cycling the bolt does not feed the next shell onto the lifter, so you simply pull back the bolt handle to get rid of the chambered round, hold the handle back with your dominant hand and roll the slug into the chamber a la the speed reload.

However, the same feature makes training for malfunctions a bit harder -- in such a case, you cannot just cycle the bolt, you gotta cycle and then hit the shell release.

It sure does take a while to acclimate to the new loading method if you don't use the Suarez method. During the 1999 three gun match at Ontelaunee this year, there were two of my group with Benellis (myself and one other friend). We videotaped the entire match (great for training purposes, you see how you crowded cover, etc.) and the other guy had a few "click-thumps" as Penman describes.

Justin
 
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