Introduced in 1999, the Benelli M4 is considered by many people to be the finest tactical shotgun ever made, and finally — finally! — American consumers can buy a version with all the same features (and more) as those guns issued to our military and law enforcement SWAT teams: The Benelli M4 EXT. The Benelli M4 EXT is a new commercial variant of the M4 Tactical. It features an 18.5-inch barrel, telescoping five-position stock, 3-inch chamber and a full-length magazine tube offering 7+1 capacity (with 2 ¾” shells).
Under federal regulations known as 922(r) compliance, imported semiautomatic shotgun cannot be made with more than 10 foreign-produced parts. Benelli hasn’t been able to import versions of the M4 with a full-capacity magazine tubes. Now, with manufacturing capabilities in America, these M4s are 922r compliant while remaining true to the highly coveted original M4 design.
Benelli M4 History
A brief rundown on the history of this iconic gun before we dive into the details. The Benelli M4 was designed specifically to address a solicitation by the U.S. Army’s Armaments Research, Development, and Engineering Center (ARDEC) for a new semiauto 12-gauge combat shotgun for the U.S. military. The M4 won the testing. It has been in use by the United States Armed forces for more than 20 years (as the M1014) and has seen combat all over the world.
The M4 was Benelli’s first gas-operated shotgun and uses the auto regulating gas operated (ARGO) system developed specifically for this gun. Gas is bled off to cycle two short-stroke stainless steel pistons, which directly work the bolt body. There are only four parts in the gas system, making it simple and robust, but not so light. This gun is built to withstand military-grade abuse, but that little extra weight helps soak up recoil. Combined with the short-stroke gas piston system, this is one of if not the softest-shooting semiauto 12-gauge shotguns on the market.
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Atop the gun, you’ll find Benelli’s well-regarded ghost ring and rail sight setup. The front sight is a beefy post protected by steel wings. The rear sight is a protected ghost ring (a large aperture), fully adjustable for windage and elevation via screws that have robust click adjustments. Forward of the rear sight is a 5.25-inch section of Picatinny-style rail for mounting an optic.
The bolt head rotates as it goes into battery and is chrome plated, as is the barrel extension, for extended life. The safety is a cross-bolt design, behind the triggerguard, with a larger triangular button on the right side. The bolt release is a button on the right side of the receiver. The bolt handle is oversized, extending three-quarters of an inch past the receiver and is easy to work while wearing gloves.
The Benelli has what is known as a free carrier. If the hammer is cocked, you can work the bolt without rounds feeding from the magazine tube or the bolt locking back. This allows you to more quickly and easily swap out the shell in the chamber if, for instance, you wanted to throw a slug in. The pistol grip has a non-slip rubber coating, and there is a thick rubber buttpad at the back of the stock. There are sling mounts on either side of the buttstock and at the front of the forend, too.
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Benelli M4 EXT
Unlike the military models, the M4 EXT accepts interchangeable choke tubes, and comes with a modified choke installed. On the M4 EXT, you’ll also see the bolt release button has been enlarged. The original one was quite small and could be tough to work if you were wearing gloves. The EXT has also been equipped with Benelli’s five-position telescoping stock, which is a big deal.
The two long-standing complaints about the M4 in America were the reduced capacity (from commercial customers) and the “too long” length of pull on the fixed stock (from everyone). The original fixed pistol-grip stock had a long (14 inches) length of pull, that was often too long if you were small of stature or wearing body armor as soldiers or SWAT-team officers do. Benelli ultimately developed a robust collapsible stock, and that’s what’s found on the M4 EXT. Length is pull adjustable from 9¼ to 14 3/8 inches.
In recent years, Benelli has been offering this telescoping stock on commercial models, but this is the first time they’ve offered, from the factory, a full-capacity variant on the U.S. commercial market. Prior to this, you had to buy a reduced-capacity M4 and replace the non-functioning forward section of magazine tube with an aftermarket replacement (along with a longer magazine spring). Many companies including, Nordic Components, offered Benelli M4 extended magazine tubes, but a lot of consumers disliked having to buy a shotgun, then buy extra parts to get it back to where it should have been in the first place. Now they — and you — won’t have to.
With this new model, Benelli is offering the M4 EXT in various Cerakote finishes — MultiCam Black, FDE, and a silver-gray color they can’t decide whether to call H2O or Titanium (it’s called both on their website). These color options will make the EXT stand out from the crowd even more. At $2,599 MSRP, it is far from inexpensive, but Benelli’s M4 has been, almost since its introduction, considered by many to be the best tactical shotgun in existence. It is undoubtedly the most combat-proven semiauto shotgun in history, and with the EXT model you can now buy a true M4 from the factory.
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