Benelli R1

[SteveB]

All this talk about Comfortech stocks and my own positive experience with the M2 got me wondering about the Benelli R1 rifle; anyone have any experience with these?

http://www.benelliusa.com/r1-big-game-rifle

[David S.]

Cool. 4 or 10 rd mags listed on Midway for under $100.

Cut down to 18" for a modern scout?

[StraitR]

I've never even seen it. Pretty cool. Agree with SteveB on cutting down to 18. Unfortunately, the barrel looks a little too thin to get threads and a suppressor, even when cut back. Sad, because the ARGO system seems perfect for a suppressor host.

[GJM]

Hoping he updates this evening, as SteveB got his R1 and had a promising initial range session with it.

[SteveB]

Took an R1 in .308 to the range today. This rifle feels and handles very much like an M2, maybe slightly heavier. Barrels are interchangeable, and the upper receiver and barrel are a unit, so an optic can stay with a particular barrel. The rifle comes with a 5” pic rail; I used lightweight Talleys to mount up a 2-8.

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Shooting the R1 is interesting; recoil is mild for the caliber. Seems like the Comfortech stock works as well here as it does on the shotguns. I like shorter LOP’s and this feels about an inch too long but it works with this rifle. The trigger feels like a Benelli shotgun trigger; not going to confuse it with a Model 70 trigger. So, shooting groups with the R1 takes some concentration, but it shoots fast pretty well.

I fired 30 rounds of mixed .308, ball, softpoints, Barnes, all functioned fine. Federal 150 TSX and Remington 150 Core-Lokt softpoints both shot into about an inch at 100 yards. I only had a 4-round magazine as I’m waiting for a 10-rounder to arrive. Inserting and ejecting the mag was a little stiff, but I expect this will improve over time.

20451

The R1 has a 22” barrel, light profile, and would be handier if I lopped 4” off of it. With an Aimpoint or a 1-4X, I’ll give it a try as a semi-auto practical rifle. I’d consider a compact stock, but, eyeballing it, doesn’t look like the shotgun and rifle use the same stock. Anyway, looks like a project I’ll mess with a while.

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[StraitR]

SteveB Fantastic, thanks for sharing. I'm looking forward to seeing this project progress. It certainly looks like it would make an excellent semi-auto practical rifle, especially if taking those 4" off. Any chance of there being enough girth on the barrel post cutting to allow threading for suppressor use?

[GJM]

This project also has me following closely. Ten rounds of semi-auto .06 with a T2 on top, would make a great walking around long gun.

[SteveB]

SteveB Fantastic, thanks for sharing. I'm looking forward to seeing this project progress. It certainly looks like it would make an excellent semi-auto practical rifle, especially if taking those 4" off. Any chance of there being enough girth on the barrel post cutting to allow threading for suppressor use?

Short answer is I don't know, but I did see a post on the Benelli forum where a guy had a muzzle brake installed on his 300WM R1 by these guys:

http://www.muzzlebrakes.com/

[StraitR]

Short answer is I don't know, but I did see a post on the Benelli forum where a guy had a muzzle brake installed on his 300WM R1 by these guys:

http://www.muzzlebrakes.com/

So there's hope. haha.

I don't see a .308win offering on the Benelli website. Can you share the part number?

[Dagga Boy]

This project also has me following closely. Ten rounds of semi-auto .06 with a T2 on top, would make a great walking around long gun.

I am thinking the same thing with either a T2 or my Z6i. T2 on a 16" barrel and the Z6i on a 20 or 22. One receiver, two barrels with optics matched it the need. Hmmmm.

[GJM]

What I will be closely following is the reliability of the ten round magazines, whether optics hold zero with barrel changes, and can the trigger be improved.

[SteveB]

So there's hope. haha.

I don't see a .308win offering on the Benelli website. Can you share the part number?

Benelli doesn’t currently offer a .308 R1. .308 barrels are out there; I bought a .30-06 rifle and found a .308 barrel on eBay. Part number is 81149.

[SteveB]

I've been shooting this rifle with the shortened 18" barrel and 10-round mags. While it's not as accurate as a bolt rifle, it is good enough, right around an inch at 100 with hunting ammo. The coolest thing about this rifle is how significant the recoil reduction is because of the action and stock. It cycles fast and doesn't move much. Next, a hog hunt with maybe an Aimpoint or 1-4 LPV.

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[GJM]

An R1 .30-06 with a ten round magazine and a LPV would be a good Kodiak deer hunting rifle.

[OlongJohnson]

Midwest Gun Works shows the 10-round .308 mags in stock. Could make this a limited-capacity-jurisdiction-friendly AR-ternative.

https://www.midwestgunworks.com/page/mgwi/prod/81124

Wait till more guns get out into distribution. You should see $1100-ish prices, I reckon.

[feudist]

Midwest Gun Works shows the 10-round .308 mags in stock. Could make this a limited-capacity-jurisdiction-friendly AR-ternative.

https://www.midwestgunworks.com/page/mgwi/prod/81124

Wait till more guns get out into distribution. You should see $1100-ish prices, I reckon.

What's with the, ah...styling?

[OlongJohnson]

1. Italians and other Europeans in the early 2000s. Look at Browning's line of hunting rifles... (https://www.chuckhawks.com/column7_euro-trash_guns.htm)

2. You could probably easily grab a fistful of it with a slippery mitten on your support hand and pull it out.

3. The "foot" might make a decent rest that wouldn't risk affecting POA/POI. Would require testing.

[Bigghoss]

Could make this a limited-capacity-jurisdiction-friendly AR-ternative.

Could be. I just found out they're all drilled and tapped for open sights also. Might have to save up for one.

Is the MR1 still availible in the states? I know they had a version without a PG.

[SteveB]

After some time banging around in the field with this rifle, I lost interest in the project and sold it. Admittedly, part of the reason it no longer made sense to me was that I moved from Connecticut to Florida, where a stealth rifle is not required and AR-pattern rifles are available. The R1 required too many compromises over a quality AR-pattern rifle; magazine changes were cumbersome, the trigger was OK for a shotgun, the modularity of the AR is highly desirable, the R1’s accuracy was adequate but seriously ammo-dependent.