Beretta 1301 Comp with 21" barrel

[gunsbam45]

www.gunbroker.com/item/929224248

I know this can be had even cheaper than the price on GB...

[bigbrowndog]

If anyone is looking for a great shotgun for a youngster or small statures person this would be a good gun for them. Being a gas gun recoil is slight, it will shoot very light loads, the LOP can be made short easily and added as the shooter grows if needed. Mine is probably the most accurate slug gun I’ve fired that wasn’t a bolt gun. I loaned mine to my 12YO nephew last year for a weekend of dove hunting, making him shot it singly, he loved it and didn’t even notice it was a 12ga. I even dropped some geese with mine using the imp. Mod. Choke and the 21” barrel…………Someone should buy this, you’ll never need another SG.

Trapr

[cas]

Trapr... what's loading them like? I've asked this several times in several places, but have never got an answer. By that I mean trying to load them at speeds? (say compared to a Benelli)

My only real experience with Beretta semi auto shotguns was an older Xtrema that I owned ever so briefly, never even fired it.

I bought it to give to my nephew as a turkey gun, a gun that would be hand carried a lot, shot very little. But even with my large hands I found it too fat (tall) to do that comfortably. The irony being I had an unused SuperNova I was going to give him, but after a few days of hunting with it, before I told him I was giving it to him, he said he didn't really like it because the receiver was too fat and made for poor carry. I couldn't disagree. Anywho...

I found the Xtrema to be the oddest tube fed shotgun to load I'd ever used. The tube seemed set deep down into the receiver. As well it seemed like I had to push the shells deep into the mag to get them to catch. And it took a fair bit of effort. My thought was this is a pain now, sitting here in a chair, I can't see doing this with cold wet fingers in the field, and I sure can't picture it working at all on the clock in a match.

The Xtrema I bought was one of the earlier versions, I assume they've changed some through later versions. But it has that same tall in the front receiver shape that all the Beretta's do. So it makes me wonder how they are. I've been tempted several times and nearly bought one of the short 1301s, but always bailed out due to my memories of that Xtrema. I'm knee deep in Benelli's now so it probably won't happen, but I like to buy stuff to learn and try new things. The only 1301's I've come in contact with were at matches, so it wasn't really the best time to say "hey can I load your gun for you?" So just looking for opinions in the loading department.

[bigbrowndog]

Cas, I can load mine just as easily as my Benellis, they can be smoothed up a little more in the front of the loading port than a Benelli. When I went to IPSC World shotgun championships it was touch and go as to which SG I would take, my 1301 or my Benelli Super Black Eagle, in the end I decided on the Benelli based on all my teammates using Benellis and each of us having spare parts if needed. The Beretta shot slugs way better, patterns were fairly even although the 1301 was able to match the SBE patterns using a less tight choke. The 1301 seems to be able to run a wider variety of shells with regard to dram equivalent, my Benellis would only run 3 dram or higher loads reliably, and I only used 3.25 or 3.5 dram equivalent loads in competition. The 1301 would run stuff as light as 2.5 dram reliably, and I would routinely run 2.75-3.0 dram in competition. I’m not familiar with the Extrema so cannot speak to its similarities or differences. I wish I had not sold off my spare 1301, I won’t be selling my Benellis off, but neither will I sell my 1301.

Trapr

[cas]

Okay... out of curiosity, why an SBE? The larger loading port or some other reason? ((or no reason at all)

[bigbrowndog]

Yes, larger loading port. I shot what IPSC calls standard manual for many years, essentially it’s a pump gun. My pump guns were all Benelli Novas, also a 3.5 gun like the SBE, so I shot a SBE for a few years. Advantage to loading is not really noticeable except mentally, I would switch between my autos and pump guns depending on my match schedule and what I was shooting for 3 gun, just before or after my International matches. Also depending on what team I would be shooting on, Standard/Auto or Standard Manual/pump.

Trapr

[cas]

I shot a grand total of one club match with an SBE just to get some trigger time with it. I had the pure genius idea to buy an SBE, shorten it and then I'd have a backup turkey gun and a backup match gun. Which I did... briefly.

Then I bought an SBE2. And then a couple more M2s and suddenly it was kind of pointless. lol

[bigbrowndog]

I never cared for the later iterations of the SBE, the first one was good enough.

Sorry about the Hijack,……somebody buy that 1301!!!!

Trapr

[gunsbam45]

No worries on the hijack. I've never used an auto loading shotgun in my life, so any knowledge you guys pass on is great as far as I'm concerned. I've been rolling around the idea of something like this for a coyote backup, but I've already got so much stuff to haul on my back it's annoying. The rifle always goes, as does a small caliber revolver of some sort. There are times it'd be handy, but, if they're close enough for the shotgun, they're close enough for the revolver. The shotgun would be nice for those times when 2 or 3 just blow in out of nowhere in tight cover.

[cas]

Jun 4, 2022 21:35:16 GMT -5 bigbrowndog said:

I never cared for the later iterations of the SBE, the first one was good enough.

Sorry about the Hijack,……somebody buy that 1301!!!!

Trapr

Yesterday when I clicked on the link the listing didn't come up, I assumed it was long gone. Today it works fine, must have been a temporary issue.


Coyotes and buckshot was the reason/excuse for buying the SBE2. 3 1/2" 00 buckshot seems to always be in stock because nobody wants to shoot it! lol

The cut down SBE with slim line chokes shot well enough for mid range turkey, but not no good long range or larger shot and buck.