Benelli Beccaccia  - 12 July 05

Benelli Beccaccia. 17 February 2005


Benelli are a gunmaker that specialise only in semi auto and pump action guns. They continually innovate and try to improve their range.

Their latest gun is the Beccaccia or woodcock, which certainly easier to spell and say than the Italian name.

I don’t know to what degree the name woodcock inspires this gun. Though this gun is certainly very light, compact and fast handling, much like the bird. The barrel is about the same length as a woodcock’s beak. That is more of an observation than a criticism.

The woodcock utilises the inertia bolt system and rotating bolt head which are the hallmarks of any Benelli semi auto.

The whole working of the Benelli semi auto is around the bolt. Basically what happens is this;
When the trigger is pulled the hammer falls onto the back of the firing pin and so fires the cartridge at this point the hammer also releases the magazine stop allowing a cartridge to be released backwards and sit under the bolt. The bolt is, at this point, still in the forward position. As the cartridge is firing and causing a great deal of backwards force this causes the rotating locking head of the bolt which is engaged with the recess in the back of the barrel to lock up completely. In other words; when the gun as a whole is moving backwards under recoil, the bolt is moving forwards to counter it. In effect the bolt is staying still as the rest of the gun moves backwards around it.
This causes a large spring within the bolt to compress and store energy. As the force of the fired cartridge dissipates the energy within the bolt spring takes over and throws the bolt backwards, so releasing the rotating bolt head and ejecting the fired case. The second cartridge has been sitting under the bolt and is immediately brought up by the carrier and the bolt comes forward again to take it forwards into the chamber.

This may sound a little complicated, but it really is simple physics. The net effect is that we have a semi-auto shot gun with fewer moving parts, which overall is a good omen for long term reliability. And with no gas flying about under the forend it is not only slimmer in that area, but there is far less muck and powder residue to clog the mechanism so there is less need for cleaning.

The trigger group is the same as the other Benelli semis’. Though contained within a polymer trigger block, which again, gives an element of weight saving.


The woodcock is made only in 12 gauge. It is a very flexible gun; designed to work with a huge range of cartridges from 28gram up to 56 grams.
The chamber length is 76mm or 3” and the gun is proofed for magnum loads.
In the past Benelli autos have been largely just for 70mm or above length cartridges, but the woodcock should work with 65mm cases due, in part, to a spring loaded ejector mechanism.

The noticeable thing about this gun when you pick it up, is how light it is. On my scale it weighs in at around 6 1/4 lb. This is 20 gauge territory in terms of weight.

Consequently the gun is incredibly fast handling, but does point well.

The barrel length is 61 or a dead 24”. You might think too short, but in fact the length is not immediately apparent. So much so, I had to measure the gun, as at a glance I thought perhaps 26”. But auto’s can be deceptive in barrel length, mostly because the receiver length adds enormously to the overall length of the gun.

With the woodcock there is a further deception in that the magazine is made deliberately short to minimise weight. But this short magazine works with the shorter barrel to complement one another in how the gun looks, and so hides its shorter barrel length.

The top rib is made from carbon fibre and so as it cannot be permanently fixed to the barrel has an element of float.
The top of the rib is plain and without any form of chequer. Being carbon fibre it is inherently matt when cut along this plane and so doesn’t need to be matted.
There is a red front sight and a small silver mid sight.

The blacking to the barrel is a superb deep and lustrous black.
In general Benelli have few equals in the manufacture of autos when it comes to the finish of the black on barrels and actions, as well as the chrome plating to the breech end of the barrel and action block.


The woodwork on this gun is wood, but as is the fashion now, it has a veneer or synthetic skin that gives the gun the appearance of very high quality wood. Benelli call this their Elegance system finish.
As with other models it has adjustment for drop to the stock. There are 3 shims with the gun to attain this. From standard the middle setting is 36mm at comb and 55mm at the heel.

Overall length of pull is 360mm. this is on the short side, but for field use where you likely have more clothing on, it is probably an advantage.
The stock shape at hand is comfortable and there is a large chequer pattern to give plenty of grip.
The forend is also very comfortable. As I said earlier, the forend can be slimmer because there is no gas system under there to work the gun. This pays real dividends in the handling of the gun. Because along with the slimmer grip, which is nearer to an OU rather than a semi-auto, there is also that weight saving of less mechanical parts.

There are also sling swivel loops. This can be useful, if you find yourself with handfuls of pigeons.
The gun is supplied in a ABS carrying case, and comes with 3 choke tubes. Cylinder, quarter and half.
These are Benelli’s Crio chokes, which are a long tube at 70mm, but are flush fitting.
Retail price of this gun is £842.00

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