Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol and 1301 Tactical Mod 2

Not much love in the shotgun forum lately.

I carried an old-school 870 Police Magnum (my own) in my patrol car for many years. Mostly because that was the only long gun option. But I was never really a shotgun fan. When I had the option to carry an AR instead I gladly replaced the old 870 and never looked back. For decades I've said I wasn't a shotgun fan, even though I owned a few. They were mostly just part of a collection I'd acquired over the years. I did have a Beretta 1201FP that I was pretty fond of in the mid-2000s.

A little over a year ago, for some reason, I decided I wanted a really nice, 'tactical' style shotgun. Everyone said the Benelli M4 was the go-to gun. But I'd shot one quite a bit and never really thought it was what I wanted. Then I started hearing about the Beretta 1301 Tactical Mod 2 and decided that's what I wanted. So I bought one. From the moment I opened it up I knew it was a good choice. It's about 2 lbs lighter than the Benelli and came with all the stuff you have to spend extra money on to get with the Benelli. And then I shot it and it was amazing and I loved it. Then my wife shot it and she thought it was amazing and she loved it and she immediately claimed it as her own.

I practically had to sell my soul to afford the first one, now I needed a second one to call my own. I'd been hearing about the A300 Ultima Patrol at about 1/2 the price so I got one. And I like it just as much...maybe better. I installed the 'Pro Lifter' in it and that, along with the cut-away loading area, makes it easier to load than the 1301.

Since then I picked up a used Maverick 88 for next to nothing. Then I got a Shockwave in .410. Then I got a Coach Gun in .410...because I really like .410 shotguns. I still have my first ever gun...a Sears .410 single shot my mom bought for me back in the late 60s. Then, when I saw the new Mossberg 990 Aftershock I traded for one of those. Now, for a guy who doesn't really like shotguns, I've got a safe full of them.