Oh No!! SBE II Problem???

[Packer Backer]

I used my SBE II last weekend grouse hunting for the first time. I like the way they "go up", it just feels right. However, I must admit that after reading all of the Comfortech hype, I expected it to feel like a marshmellow being thrown at my shoulder. I'm not complaining, but the comfortech did not seem to be what it was cracked up to be.....just my opinion.

Anyway, I noticed an issue with the silver "rotating bolt head" with the SBE II. I have noticed that if I gently close the bolt, it will not fully turn into its proper position, but if I let it slam shut, it will fully seat. It will also fully seat when shooting shells in succession. My buddy was hunting with a Nova which has the same rotating bolt head, and it seemed that his could potentially have the same problem. A few times my gun miss-fired because the bolt was not seated. I also noticed that when you let the butt of the gun hit the ground (with the barrel pointing up in the air) the bolt will briefly pull away from the "seated position" and there is also potential for the bolt to not fully seat when it returns, or closes. When the trigger is pulled when the bolt is in this position, it will release the firing pin, but it won't make contact with the primer. Anyone else have this problem? I'm hoping that my gun is defective and I can take it back and get a new one. I just think that something like this should not be an issue after spending $1,300 on a new shotgun.

Thanks in advance!

[fabsroman]

That is the way the gun is made. It works the same way for me if I "gently" close the bolt, but I have to be pretty gentle with it. If I pull the bolt back about an inch and let it go, the bolt face usually turns into the chamber and there is no problem. I really haven't experienced this problem at all while shooting, but noticed it while sitting in a blind or on a dove chair with nothing to do but play with the gun. In 8 years, I haven't found it to be a real issue when firing the gun.

I thought about upgrading from my SBE to an SBE II for the comfortech, but then decided it was just another gimmick to get me to buy a new gun, so I spent $40 on a mercury recoil reducer instead, which I know works.

[Packer Backer]

Thanks Fabs. I guess I can accept this issue with the gun, I was just worried that it was a defect on MY gun only. If you use the gun the way they suggest, it shouldn't be a problem anyway. I've heard nothing but good things about the SBE's anyway, so I suspect this will not be an issue.
Thank you again.

[kt]

not big on all the rubber in gun stocks lately beretta, benelli , (browning cynergy 1200 bucks for a gun that has rubber in the stock of an o/u) its like having sirloin for thanksgiving dinner! just not right darn it. its been a long day so i am not even gonna start the benelli hate i have. maybe i will , they even brought that bolt to the new berettas, i am just saying 15 minus wind chill w/snow.. my crap 390 is shooting still while the SBE's around are single shots, why screw with a gun that works. on the other hand i will say that is how some guns are to be treated. my browning blr in 308 needs to be jacked, not slowly worked, same for my 870 rem. (one of the famed waterfowl guns) i will never hate on glock but some semi handguns need the slide released not eased forward to get reliable feeds, i shoot a nova for gobblers, and if you try to be quiet in those early morning spring woods it doesnt shut all the way, some times you just have to shuck it the way a pump was meant to be shucked!
i repeat .....long day
kt

[fabsroman]

kt,

I can't say I have ever hunted in wind chill temps of -15, but I have hunted in some terrible stuff and haven't had a problem with my SBE. Now, the colder it gets, the more velocity is lost because powder burns slower, so there is less recoil to operate a SBE. If I am not mistaken, the 390 is a gas operated gun, and the amount of gas is the same no matter the temperature; however, has pressure might not be. Don;t know the exact answer.

My SBE will not fire light 1 1/8 oz loads when it is in the 40's out. However, it will fire 1 1/8 oz loads at 1,200 fps rather reliably regardless of the temp.

[kt]

-15 wind chill you should see the pics from that day, well the two before the camera quit, we look like eskimos on a musk ox hunt.
any how the two systems are different i believe where the beretta is like straight blow back the benelli is an inertia driven system, looking at the pieces to it i cant get over how symplistic it is. it is pretty common place as for those i shoot around that cant shoot the light trap stuff, another benelli in there is a crazy chromed out montefeltro shot by a guy that couldnt hit a barn.
as for shells in the cold a buddy of mine puts all his shells in his inside pockets so they are in his body warmth on cold days.

say how does the mercury recoil device work? is it one attached where the screw off cap is under the barrel?
kt

[Jack]

FWIW, a lot of semi auto actions (rifle, shotgun, or handgun) will often not quite close if you close them gently enough.
They are designed to work at full cycle, full force, or whatever the right term is.
In other words, pull the bolt/slide all the way back and let it go

[fabsroman]

kt,

I have two mercury recoil reducers for my SBE. One goes in the buttstock and replaces the buttstock bolt. You just take the recoil pad off, unscrew the buttstock bolt, screw the recoil reducer on with a huge screwdriver, and then replace the recoil pad. It really helps with the 3 1/2" shells and makes recoil on a 2 3/4" shell almost non-existant.

The other recoil reducer I have for the SBE goes on the magazine cap and I only use it while I am deer hunting and using slugs. The SBE with both recoil reducers on it is rather heavy and tough to carry all day, but it is great for sitting in a stand or in a blind. Without the magazine recoil reducer in it, I can still carry it all day long.

What made me get the recoil reducers was my purchase of a 391 Teknys that came stock with a recoil reducer in the buttstock. Not that I shot the SBE terrible beforehand, but I was shooting the 391 so well (i.e., 48 out of 50 in sporting clays and easily breaking 25 straight in skeet) that I started to wonder why. I came to the conclusion that recoil is my biggest enemy when shooting a bunch of shells.

[davevigne]

I had the same thing happen to me - almost cost me a turkey. I was sneaking up on a Tom and I guess the bolt caught on the grass and when I went to fire there was just a click! I cycled another round and still got the bird.

Later I noticed that if I just pull it back an inch or two and let it go it seats all the way. Also I now know what it looks like when its properly seated.

I used the gun on a goose hunt later and our guide there said that if geese could fire back there'd be alot of dead Benelli owners!

I still really, really love that shotgun though!

[tjwatty]

I'm sorry but I've been reading these posts and now I just can't take it any more.
I shot my M1 90 for about 5 years, now I'm going into my second year on the SBE II. I have NEVER had a problem with this in the blind or field. On the trap range where I didn't let the bolt go closed, yes, but not in a hunting situation. If that guide would like to send those geese over me I bet my Bennelli won't let them shhot back.
My M1 malfunctioned once and that was because I used pivot pin grease on the rails, got cold and slowed down. MY MISTAKE, took it apart (in the blind) used butter on the rail and it shot just fine after that. Even had a nice buttery smell to it.
The SBE II that I have has shot 1 oz. loads form the day I brought it home, to 3.5 turkey loads, cycled all with no problems, rain snow sleet mud etc.etc. I am not the best at maintaining my firearms and this gun fits into my lazy ways just perfect.
I am a sucker for a pretty gun, I have 2 very pretty guns, now I have a gun made of plastic coverd in camo and it doesn't seem to give a poop if it's clean or not it just keeps shooting. Just read an article of doves in Argentina, 1450 shells a day no booboos.

Performance hard to beat. Only complaint is the cama coat is not as durable as it could be, but if the ducks can see the scratches it had better be too late.

[fabsroman]

TJ,

I will agree that my Benelli gets a ton of abuse. I have some pretty good scratches on it and if it was a wood stock the wear would really show. However, it is holding up just fine and I can see me hunting with it for another 20 years. Unless that gun gets rained on, I rarely ever clean it. Just took the entire bolt/firing pin apart for the first time in 8 years and cleaned them out really well. The simplicity of the system is incredible, and it is a lot better than the Beretta 391's to clean. I would buy a Benelli Sport II for clays if I wasn't shooting my 391 so well right now.