Opinions on Benelli SBE 2

bowhunter34

bowhunter34

New member
I have heard mixed opinions on the SBE 2, some say its not reliable and jams, others say its great. For those of you who have shot it I would appreciate any opinion you might have. Any problems you have had or anything.

I am thinking of buying one for deer and birds with a barrel change.
 
As with any semi auto's you could have problems, depending on ammo. Its been my experiance that any 3 1/2 inch chamber shotgun may have problems with the lighter loads. My SBE II does not like 2 3/4 inch shells at all, but handles the 3 inch and 3 1/2 inch just fine.
If I had to do it all over again I would probably look at other brands, like the Beretta extrema. The Beretta is much nicer to shot being gas operated. When you shot alot of
3 1/2 inch shells that makes a big difference.

But the Benelli is a great shotgun, go with whatever feels best for you.
 
Well, I have 5 Benelli's in my safe and from Canada to about all the states in the mississippi flyway, turkeys in 5 states, and more upland than I can remember, they, to me, are the best. The important thing is that they fit you, ESPECIALLY if you are wingshooting. There are other great guns out there like Beretta and a few others but for complete reliability, fit and finish, and ergonomics, I think the SBE is it. I have 2 original SBE's and 1 SBE II. Other than cosmetics, there is NO DIFFERENCE. The "comfortech" stock IMO is no difference in felt recoil than the old stock and the internals are the same. The SBE II does have a bigger trigger guard but I don't shoot with heavy gloves and usuall no gloves so it does nothing for me either. I also have a Super 90 20ga. that is my quail gun that has the same rotating bolt, inertia operating system that has been flawless as well. The other gun is a Nova 3 1/2 that I use for cripples. Not mush to say other than it goes bang everytime and is a great backup gun. Like I said, if the gun FITS you well, you will be VERY hard pressed to find something any better. Most of the negatives are folks that can't afford one or guys that really don't shoot much. Good luck with your new gun!
 
I just had a good bunch of input on the 3 1/2" automatics. Lots of guys throwing 2 cents in. I like Beretta, liked the price of the Winchester, and like gas operation as I don't do too much waterfowling anymore. Fewer shots to foul, doesn't send as much energy into your shoulder, etc. But then I went to Sportsman's and got to handle the Xtrema, the SBE II, and the SX II side by side....

My SBE II should be here tomorrow or Tuesday!
 
I hated my SBE, it is a very light weight shotgun that kicked like a mule. Due to tight chamber tollerences it jammed after 7-8 boxes fired of Mexican Remiington Dove loads on doves due to residue in the chamber. 12ga chamber brush fixed the problem with a few strokes. While shooting doves, the SBE Turned my right shoulder green from recoil, Next day turned my left shoulder green from recoil. The 12ga version I would not recommend for light clothing. I know that the felt recoil on the SBE is worse than the Ithaca Auto mag 10 guage which I hunted with for years. I compare the recoil on the SBE to a single barrel shotgun or light pump due to it's weight.

After buying the SBE, I realized that the only recoil reduction on the SBE was a small spring loaded plunger on the back of the bolt. The function of the spring loaded plunger was to really keep form damaging the reciever during the recoil process and recoil reduction was not even in the equation.

If the only thing different in the SBE I and the SBE II is the stock, then I would not own another.

I own a Beretta 390 now, softer kicking (faster recovery for follow up shots) than the much heavier 1100 & 11/87, swings fast. This has to be the very best shotgun that I have ever owned and I have owned my share of pumps and over and unders, also. I shoot sporting clays with a guy that has not cleaned his Beretta 390 in 3 years with thousands of shots through it.

We were shooting Doves in S. Arizona and Doves and Blue Pigeons in Hermisillo Mexico at the time, which involved a lot of shooting. Any shotgun that you take down there gets put through the ringer in a big hurry. In one week, I could shoot as much as a normal duck hunter that is very active in over a 10 year period.

Bottom line for me, any 12ga. lightweight shotgun is going to kick considerably, especially if it is a SBE, Pump, Doubles are light, and they kick especially hard if it is not ported and have ported choke tubes. What is shocking is to see an auto that has practically no recoil absorbtion on it at all. That little spring an plunger on the back of the bolt reduces very little if any recoil compared to the gas operated auto's (Browning Gold) that eventually replaced the SBE.

When in Mexico, I paid a field hand to load my guns and retrieve my birds. He would load the SBE, I'd empty it on birds, then hand me the Browning Gold, I'd empty that one. This went on and on. Both guns fit me very well and I shot the SBE exceptionally well as the Browning.

The Browning Gold was like handling a 98 lb woman and the SBE was like handling a 300 lb woman.

People are very different when it comes to handling recoil. To a guy that shoots coyotes, then he shoots so little that it really does not matter. Most duck hunters shoot very little also, in fact, 10 boxes of shells a year will probably be a fantastic year for any duck hunter, so recoil is not much of a problem for them either. 10 boxes of shells fired a year is not test of any shotgun, either.

Recoil does have an effect on me, and for that reason, the SBE is in the same class as the 12ga Old Frenchi shotguns.
Recoil has a serious effect on my ability to pick up doubles and tripples, which is why I hate recoil.
 
I agree with a lot of what's been said already, but not on the comfort tech recoil system. I liked it very much. I've owned the Berreta 390, Super XII, Browning Gold and the SBE II, I liked the way all of them shot, and I never had a problem with jamming on any of them,except the Winchester. I think I really liked the way the Berreta felt when shouldering the gun, but it was close. After owning all the above guns, I would buy any of them again except the Winchester. You couldn't give me another Super X II.

The one advantage that is way better on the Benelli is cleaning. Without a doubt it is easier to clean than any of the gas operated shotgun out there.
 
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I agree with a lot of what's been said already, but not on the comfort tech recoil system. I liked it very much. I've owned the Berreta 390, Super XII, Browning Gold and the SBE II, I liked the way all of them shot, and I never had a problem with jamming on any of them,except the Winchester. I think I really liked the way the Berreta felt when shouldering the gun, but it was close. After owning all the above guns, I would buy any of them again except the Winchester. You couldn't give me another Super X II.

The one advantage that is way better on the Benelli is cleaning. Without a doubt it is easier to clean than any of the gas operated shotgun out there.




And I thought I was the only one that thought the SBE kicked more than my 10 gauge. My mag 10 is not bad at all, and I use it the most.
 
I sold my Extrema to buy a SBE2 about 3 years ago never had a jam and [beeep] near never clean it and it keeps on ticking
 
Picked up an SBE 2 last fall and absolutely love it! I don't think I have 500 rounds through it yet, but it has funtioned flawlessly with everything from 2 3/4 - 3 1/2. Haven't cleaned it yet. Fits me great which translates into more dead birds. Kicks much less than my 870 that I used for years.
oxnam
 
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it is somewhat of a Ford Chevy argument.



+1
I think they are good guns but it all depends on what you want to pay and what brand. Good luck
 
They are good guns, a bit light for my preference, and you will likely experience greater felt recoil from the recoil operated system than from a gas operated system, like the Beretta Xtrema II.
 
I have a SBE and have found it to be very reliable and not any more of a kicker than a browning gold that I used for 12 years. The browning is widely considered to have light recoil. Another guy and I even use our SBEs in our sporting clays league on a regular basis and it will cycle light reloads without any problem. An important component of comfortable shooting is how well the gun fits you. If it doesn't fit. . .you will not be able to hit well and the gun is going to smack you. If the SBE fits. . .buy it!
 
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You can't go wrong with a Benelli. I've got 4 of them.

They do kick but you also have to compare them to other shotguns in that they are lighter in weight.
 
I have had an SBE II for 3 or 4 years, used it for everything from crows and doves, 3 and 3 1/2 inch loads for ducks and geese, and 3 1/2 inch 2 ounce loads for turkey. Best gun I have ever owned or shot. I have never, ever, had a misfire, jam or otherwise. I've even mixed up loads to try to get it to jam, no dice. I don't think felt recoil is much of an issue, as I said, I shoot doves and september geese in a t-shirt. No bruises to speak of, even when shooting heavy steel loads. I have had the others, and that is why I shoot an SBEII now. I may own other shotguns in the future, but they will likely all say Benelli on them.

Pete
 
One thing that one commonly hears about, when using the SBE, and I assume the same is true of the SBEII, is that you should let the bolt slam shut on the loaded shell, rather than easing it foreward. Sometimes, particularly if the gun is dirty or not well broken in, if you ease the bolt forward to chamber a round, the bolt will not rotate completely to lock the gun properly. If this happens, when the hammer falls, the firing pin will not strike the primer when the trigger is pulled. You get to hear the famous, or rather, infamous, "Benelli click." You get a misfire, due to the pin not hitting the primer, and you must retract the bolt to reset the hammer again.

You may be able to slowly close the bolt on a shell and have it rotate completely in your gun, but don't count on it. It's a relatively well known phenomenon in waterfowling circles with the SBE.
 
I do not own a Benelli, but I do own a Stoeger M2000 which is also inertia driven. I have shot about 300 3in shells through the gun and do not find the recoil to be bad at all. I'm sure it kicks more than a gas operated shotgun, but I'm 15 125 pounds and do not mind the recoil at all.

good luck with your choice,

Vaquero38
 
Quote:
One thing that one commonly hears about, when using the SBE, and I assume the same is true of the SBEII, is that you should let the bolt slam shut on the loaded shell, rather than easing it foreward. Sometimes, particularly if the gun is dirty or not well broken in, if you ease the bolt forward to chamber a round, the bolt will not rotate completely to lock the gun properly. If this happens, when the hammer falls, the firing pin will not strike the primer when the trigger is pulled. You get to hear the famous, or rather, infamous, "Benelli click." You get a misfire, due to the pin not hitting the primer, and you must retract the bolt to reset the hammer again.

You may be able to slowly close the bolt on a shell and have it rotate completely in your gun, but don't count on it. It's a relatively well known phenomenon in waterfowling circles with the SBE.



CDR is 100% correct on this. You cannot blame the gun, but it can happen. It happened to me.
 


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