Setting up a Beretta 1301 for 3-Gun

[fabb600]

Since I know some people are are buying this gun, I'll post what I've done and maybe it will help someone else that's doing some of the same things.

Matchsaverz:
The Matchsaverz is a bit of a pain since there is some stock modification needed. This is my second time installing this on a Beretta and it's worked well.

First decide where you want to mount your Matchsaverz. Then mark and drill the required hole for the nut.


Then you need to take a Dremel tool or some other cutting or grinding tool to cut a notch out of the stock just behind the mounting hole where head of the nut will rest. This is required because the Beretta stock should fit snug against the barrel without the Matchsaverz nut contacting the barrel.


You also need to grind one side of the nut cap off as shown below so the notch doesn't have to be any larger. If you cut a notch large enough for the entire nut cap in stock form you may interfere with the slide mechanism of the action so I highly suggest cutting the nut down and cutting a shallow notch.


This is how it should fit - note how the notch and nut come short of slide journal beneath them.


The notch should also be deep enough so the nut is flush with the inner stock - as seen from this angle.


Cut and attach a strip of supplied velcro where your Matchsaverz will sit. Then drill a hole through the velcro for the mounting bolt.


With a small amount of medium strength Locktite, attach the Matchsaverz by tightening the bolt through the flush mounted nut as pictured below.





Nordic Tube:
Installing the Nordic tube is easy. Just remove your stock tube, spring and follower. And replace with the Nordic tube, spring and follower. The only thing I can help with here is give you a good starting point of 12" of spring past the tube cap as a starting point. I have a couple extra springs so I'm starting with 9.25" which is a pretty soft setting. This makes the loading a little easier, but also increases chances of mis-feeds so in the end it's up to you what length you want to try. Since these springs are cheap it's always nice to have an extra spring around just in case you cut away more than you wanted to.


Port work:
I'm not a professional by any means so be aware that I'm just showing what I have done with my tools. I've done this on both my Berettas with good results, but if you don't take your time and pay attention you could potentially damage your receiver. My approach is pretty much 4 or more steps - depending on how much material you take off each step.

Steps 1-x
Iterations of the following: I use a Dremel tool to slowly remove and shape the port area - then clean everything, assemble and test with dummy shells.

Once I am happy with the way the shell loads into the mag tube then I turn to SUPER FINE sandpapers/sanding cloth/sanding sponge to smooth and polish and the areas of the port. ** Do not sand or grind the inside if the mag tube that is attached to the receiver.


Here is the stock opening - you can see how the upper corners especially, but other areas as well are not shaped well at all. Shells get hung up on these edges pretty bad.


Dremel tool and gun held at angle to make work easier.


Starting to remove material.


After one or two iterations.



Notice that I am not taking a lot of material off the very bottom of the receiver. In my finished pictures further below you will see I just smooth out the edges and polish of that area. This is because the manufacturer has a hole drilled into this section of the receiver and if you take away too much material in this area you could weaken the receiver and cause it to fail or you could run into the hole and get into a situation where you actually end up with a much rougher/sharper surface there. So I'm electing to just stay away from that area. Here is the factory drilled hole in the lower receiver I'm talking about:


An example of the Super Fine sanding sponge I used to put a final finish. They are nice for conforming to all the shapes:


The finished port:




The only other thing I've done is trim/smooth some material off the leading edge of the fore stalk for a little easier pass as your hand sweeps by during loading:

[shooter115]

One note on the mag spring length. Having only 9" beyond the tube is running it really short. Nordic Components recommends a minimum of I believe 10" past the tube and even that will probably cause you grief in the long run. That long coil spring will compress fairly quickly. I cut mine to at least 12" past after learning the hard way. The extra spring pressure to load won't slow you down enough to make it worth risking a malfunction or worse a DQ because your spring was too weak to push your last shell out of the mag tube. Ask me how I know. I would say 75% of the malfunctions I see in semi auto shotguns comes from a weak mag springs.

Also worth mentioning that you should bend the ends of the spring in so it is pushing flat on the bottom of your follower.

[fabb600]

One note on the mag spring length. Having only 9" beyond the tube is running it really short. Nordic Components recommends a minimum of I believe 10" past the tube and even that will probably cause you grief in the long run. That long coil spring will compress fairly quickly. I cut mine to at least 12" past after learning the hard way. The extra spring pressure to load won't slow you down enough to make it worth risking a malfunction or worse a DQ because your spring was too weak to push your last shell out of the mag tube. Ask me how I know. I would say 75% of the malfunctions I see in semi auto shotguns comes from a weak mag springs.

Also worth mentioning that you should bend the ends of the spring in so it is pushing flat on the bottom of your follower.

Just curious - what about a mis-feed can cause a DQ? Is it because you aren't allowed to swap a spring during a match if needed?

I've been running my xtrema with 6" for two matches now without issues, but I can tell it's right at that edge where any more taken off and it would probably fail to feed the last round or two. I'm guessing some guns are more touchy than others in this area - including my new Beretta.

To your point, I've updated the spring length tidbit of mine above with more of a disclaimer about choosing spring length. Thanks for the feedback and let me know about the DQ thing - I don't want to learn that one the hard way.

Does flattening the spring ends against the bottom of the follower give a more equal pressure on the follower to help it slide easier through the tube ..or? Would you mind posting a image of your spring end as an example? Thanks!

[MNGunGuy]

I think there's a lot of "it depends" on spring length. I've run all year (about 1500ish rounds) with a spring in the 9-10 inch range with no shell feeding issues. If you are practicing a lot and keep an eye on how the last shell comes out of the magazine you should have a good idea when it's starting to get weak and needing to be replaced. Like Andy, I always keep a spare in my bag when going to matches, along with other wear parts.

As far as the DQ goes, no idea how a weak spring gets you that. Swapping a broken or worn out spring may cost you the stage for points but its not a DQ.

[shooter115]

My stage DQ came from a weak spring that failed to kick the last round fully on to the lifter. Bolt locked back with the last shell half in the tube and half on the lifter. Thought the gun was dry because the bolt locked and dumped it. This was before you could abandon a loaded gun at the MN matches and got a stage DQ. That spring was cut to about 9" new and over the course of about 6 months had compressed to under 7". I also had some malfunctions at my first major match that was the result of a weak spring. The risk just isn't worth the reward.

And yes the reason for bending the end of your spring flat at the end is so it pushes squarely on the bottom of the follower. I'll try to get a pic up later.

[MNGunGuy]

Like I mentioned in my previous post, keeping on top of it is key. Too much spring pressure definitely costs you time when loading and I see benefit to tuning that to be light enough to work but strong enough to not malfunction. I'm sure each gun has its own balance point and finding it takes time and practice. If you don't want to bother with it all or you aren't going for blazing fast reloads then the recommended 12" or so past the tube will work fine for all I'm sure. It's all give and take.