It's basically a Benelli M1 super 90 with a Beretta logo on it. That inertia system is the same one that makes the Benellis so well respected. Many Benelli aftermarket parts including stocks will fit.
Also, you should be able to carry an extra round by ghost loading a round on top of the lifter. That gives you 6 in the mag, one on the lifter, and another in the magazine, for a total of 8.

 

Interesting timing....my first post as well.

I'm more of a handgunner at heart and although I own several more basic shotguns, I have not purchased a new shotgun in 20 years.

But, I recently bought two used Beretta 1201FP police trade-ins.
I like to think of them as trickle-down stimulus shotguns......
this may be the only taxpayer benefit?

These have a reputation of kicking hard, but it's mostly the straight stock. First of all the recoil pad is about 1/4" thick where it separates the stock from your shoulder. On both of mine (and on a 3rd one that a friend bought after seeing mine), the installed drop spacers (stock wedge and washer) were the maximum....60 DX.

There are 3 wedges listed, 50 (for small to average height/weight), 55 (average to tall height/weight), and 60 (for Dolph Lundgren/Vin Diesel size height/weight).

It appears the 1201's were set up for some very large size troopers, which mean if you're average size or smaller and mount/fire these as delivered, without adjusting the drop or cushioning the hard butt pad, the stock is preconfigured to knock your shoulder out of joint....
you just can't mount it properly. I tried.

After shooting a few rounds (Owww!), I did some online research and after a few days, I installed a Benelli M1 stock on one and a Choate stock on the second one. Both have recoil pads 6-8 times thicker than the Beretta straight stock. The Choate stock had 2 removable 1/2" spacers and I shaved another 1/2" off the front to trim it to a pull length that was more controllable by shorter or lighter shooters, like my wife.

These two shotguns were from the same year, but about 5000 units apart in serial numbers. One interesting difference....the earlier one had a 3/4" (20mm) stock bolt. The later one had a 1 1/4" (30mm) stock bolt.

The longer bolt fit either stock perfectly.....the shorter bolt fit the Choate with thread to spare, but on the Benelli M1 PG stock, it would reach the stock bushing, but would not reach the sling plate.
It could be mounted but you lose the sling plate. This can be corrected by shaving the stock at the receiver or perhaps by replacing the recoil spring tube cap bolt (their name for the stock bolt!)

On the Choate stock, I reduced the drop even more to lower the action in relation to the stock and get a more straight line barrel to shoulder thrust for recoil. While I was shaving the stock, I also fitted a GG&G M1 single point sling mount. Even my wife can shoot warm loads through it now. The Choate stock is definitely easier to manage recoil, but the Benelli stock does look meaner. The Choate has 1.5" less pull length and the pistol grip has 1/2" less grip to trigger length.

The only exotic mod so far is a large bolt handle on my wife's gun....
this works good and I intend to install one on mine.

This is a standard Benelli M1 aftermarket part.

We've fired about 70 rounds through each gun without a stumble....these are amazing shotguns. Even extremely light target loads cycled fine, with the shell on the lifter apparently helping to kick the spent case out, since these light target loads would not lock the slide back when empty. From light 2 3/4 target loads to 3" slug, everything worked.

I think that's just one of the advantages of getting one of these as a police department trade-in.....
they've already completed the break-in process for you and now it's ready for action!

I'll post some pics of the stock install process after I resize some pictures.

 

Never heard of the 1200FP, but I have and really enjoy the 1201FP. They are awesome shotguns! Mine has the 18.5" barrel with ghost ring sights. I've added the enlarged bolt handle and hope to add an M1 pistol grip stock in the future.

 

Most of the Benelli parts interchange in the 1201s. You can order the firing pin retaining pin to make bolt disassembly easier. http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/sid=1533 ... AINING_PIN

IIRC, the GG&G oversize bolt release assembly will drop in these as well.

 

I'm curious about the difference in my 1200FP and the 1201s... I was told it is a " pre-ban" gun... but I don't know what that means, or even what ban he was talking about.

 

The 1201 was the direct decendent of the 1200.....differences must be minor since they share about 80-90% (maybe more) common parts.
The 1200 are listed as .25 pounds heavier.

I've heard it said that the 1200/1201s are similar to the HK Benelli M 121, but they seem more closely related to the Benelli M1 Super 90...both came out at about the same time.
Both use a rotating bolt unlike the M121.

There's several variants of the 1200/1201, including an F model (wood stocked field gun), the FP model (police model) and FP3 (police model w/PG)...
some sources say there was a plain old 1200 as well.

The hunting versions had reduced capacity magazines of different numbers and the barrels won't interchange without swapping mag tubes as well.
Some F and FP barrels have only 2 3/4 chambers....most FPs have 18.5" or 20" barrels. F models have internal and external choked barrels from 22" to 32".

All early FPs have 6+1+1 capacity by floating a shell on the lifter.

Post ban 1201s (the 1200 was already out of production by then) have 4+1 capacity.....
the magazine capacity was reduced by crimping dents in the magazine tube that blocked the follower and the ability to "float" a round on the carrier was blocked by a change in the bolt carrier......
many of these are still selling NIB for $850-1000.

 

Ive got the 1200 recently and just found a surefire 606 forend light for it... Can any of you make a recomendation on what type of PS buttstock i should get..?

Im looking at the speedfeed
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?p ... ber=314016

or the urbino mesa tactical
http://www.mesatactical.com/

the benelli one is awful pricey too....

Thank you...

 

I would get the SpeedFeed or the Choate, my preference being Choate for the adjustable LOP.

SpeedFeed may be had short or long, Choate you can shim-to fit. Choate was also the OEM for the 1201 PG stock.

 

I agree.

The Choate may not look as sexy as the Benelli SteadyGrip stock, but it is infinitely more adjustable for the shooter.
It comes with two spacers allowing 13"-14" length of pull and additional spacers are available.

You won't find these listed online but if you contact Choate Machine and Tool by phone and specify the Beretta 1200/1201FP, they still have stocks for ~$75. I've seen Choate Machine and Tool listed as member of this forum while browsing around here.

It's fortunate that Shotgun World has so many vendors as board members.

The Surefire forend is actually a Benelli M1 forend with two spacers (front and rear) to fit the 1200/1201. I suspect the reason some people claim the Surefire forends affect reliability is the fact the forend uses two set screws that push against the base of the barrel to secure them and make them rigid in use.

Since the barrels just slide into the receiver and are secured by the magazine tube, excessive side pressure on the barrel right in front of the receiver could add some drag on the rotating bolt during lockup.

I ordered a spare magazine tube shroud to see how hard it would be to mount some short picatinny rails on the bottom and sides....since all the weight will be on the fixed (threaded) magazine tube and not the barrel, it should have less effect on the gun's action.

At 6.4 pounds, these are light weight guns and I suspect that torsion/twist of the barrel from assymetrical loading of accessories or distortion of the aluminum receivers, as opposed to added weight or mass, are the root of all reliability issues.

 

I have an 18.5" model 1200FP I bought in 1999. Never owned any other semi-auto shotgun because I never had a reason to buy one. My 1200 has operated flawlessly the entire time I have owned it. It chews through any type of ammunition I have ever used. For the most part when target shooting I have used Winchester 00 and PDX1 ammo. I am a firm believer in training with what you are going to shoot with. I typically load the gun 00-PDX-00-PDX and so on. I have never had a problem with my 1200FP in my opinion you made the best choice in a semi-auto shotgun. Have fun shooting it!

 

The 1200/1201FPs are great shotguns and at ~$400 each a good bargain, but the aftermarket for these guns is virtually non-existant.
That might scare some off, but if you like to tinker, these guns make a good platform for do-it-yourselfers.

One of the first things I wanted was to figure out a way to mount a light on one. The first place that came to mind was the magazine tube shroud....it's made of aluminum, the barrel nut locks it into place fairly tight and a replacement costs about $15-20. I order one and several picatinny rail sections in the 3" to 5" range, 2 aluminum and 2 composite rails by Magpul. These are made of the same stuff as Glock frames and the Beretta 1201's stock and forend.

Seeing the short Magpul rail sections suddenly gave me another idea and I decided to try it first on one of the 1201s. After getting the two guns, I sort of cannabalized them, using all the nicest trim part and furniture to make one very nice gun and one with all the scratched parts.

One forend was slightly scarred and it became the victim of my first mod!

The Magpul rails were flat bottomed and needed a slight radius for my idea. A few passes over a round profile ******* file took care of that. The screws have a small backing plate with a raised stud on one side and I drilled the holes in the forend oversized for the bump on the back plates.

As insurance against it ever loosening up, I also used PVC cement. This stuff isn't just glue, it dissolves plastic then rehardens after the volatiles cook off.

First I fitted everything together to make sure it fit the way I wanted, then I sanded a spot on the forend where the rail would be mounted.
I cleaned everything with alcohol then used a Q-tip to apply PVC cement to the base, then quickly tightened everything up.

After it had dried for an hour, I used a dremel to grind down the screws where they stuck through the backing plates.

and here it is.....my $9.00 accessory rail for the 1201FP!

I still intend to build a tri rail around the magazine shroud but this one was so quick, easy and solid that it may turn out to be more practical.
It doesn't look as slick as a Surefire 606, but then it didn't cost $300 either. It also doesn't need set screws pushing against the barrel to secure it in place.

The 3" rail is long enough for the light of your choice. Stay away from the last 2" of the forend, since that part starts to taper and is not parallel to the barrel and the inner sleeve to secure the forend to the mag tube is located right at the front.

It's good enough for the ugly gun!

 

I suspect the reason some people claim the Surefire forends affect reliability is the fact the forend uses two set screws that push against the base of the barrel to secure them and make them rigid in use.

At 6.4 pounds, these are light weight guns and I suspect that torsion/twist of the barrel from assymetrical loading of accessories or distortion of the aluminum receivers, as opposed to added weight or mass, are the root of all reliability issues.

Close. You can add +/- 1.12 pounds to the Beretta/Benelli pattern guns before you start to have feeding issues. Basically, the recoil of the weapon has to throw the entire thing backward slightly while the bolt is "stationary" (the inertia operation) to unlock, from which point operation is strictly blowback. Adding mass to the weapon decreases the recoil, retarding the unlocking process, which in turn will cause short-stroking of the action. The only way to overcome this is to minimize accessories, or the weight of necessary add-ons, and/or have the bolt milled to relieve weight there.

I did exactly the same mod (same Magpul rail section) {hs# on my Stoeger Defense, but went with a right lateral mount using an M6X.

Edit: hadn't thought about this, but if you wanted to do a more compact mount arrangement on a 1201, you could drill and tap the mag tube shroud for a 10-32 Helicoil, and screw rail directly onto that as well.

 

An interesting story on the Beretta 1201 and weight......
yesterday two friends and I were testing different slugs for accuracy in several different guns. At 50 yards, with Fiocchi Extrema Aero 1 ounce slugs, the 1201 ugly gun was shooting ~3" 5 shot groups.

I had recently installed a 3GunGear 8 round shell carrier. This is the velcro type with an adhesive backer that sticks to the left side of the receiver. The left side of the "ugly gun" was pretty scratched up from storage when I got it and the velcro style carrier seemed like a good idea for it. They made a version just for the 1201FP (although on their site it's listed as a Benelli 1201FP)

Anyway, I decided to see how much added weight affected the ugly gun, so I loaded the carrier with 8 1 ounce slugs and fired 5 rounds without any issues.
One of my shooting buddies John, said "Hold on....I've got just the thing!" He comes back with two boxes of 3" magnum turkey loads with 2 ounces of #4s. I swap out the 8 - 1 ounce slugs for 8 - 2 ounce shells in the sidesaddle and again, the 1201 defiantly fires another 5 slugs without a hitch.

Now determined to make this sucker malfunction, John takes his shell carrier off his gun and brings it over. It connects to the sling and sling mount base and holds 6 rounds. We connect it to the ugly gun's butt stock and sling and load it up with 6 more 2 ounce loads. Now we have 14 - 2 ounce loads.
Again, the 1201 chunks through 5 more slugs.

But now we begin to notice that the heavier we make the gun, the smaller the 50 yard groups are getting! This may be due to nothing more than reduced flinch, since the gun was kicking noticeably less and getting more comfortable to shoot.

In an act of final desperation, Dave removed his forend shell carrier from his shotgun and brings it over....it holds 4 rounds on the right side directly in front of the ejection port. We mount it on the Beretta and loaded 4 more 2 ounce shells into it.

The gun looked ridiculous at this point and is now carrying 18 - 3" magnums with 2 ounce loads hanging on the outside, along with a light and laser on the forend and 5 - 1 ounce slugs in the tube and it not only does it work perfectly, but it fires the tightest group I had managed all day...5 rounds in just under 2" at 50 yards.

At that point, we finally gave up. We had run out of stuff to strap onto the 1201.

I snapped a couple of pics of the comically over loaded ugly gun.

In effect, we could not add enough weight to the Beretta to make it malfunction....we didn't weigh anything, but I suspect we were over 3 pounds of added weight hanging on the outside of the gun.

All off this was loose weight, with all three elastic fabric and velcro type carriers, not the rigid bolt-on types, and I'm sure some free recoil was absorbed by the flexible shell carrier bindings. The Fiocchi Aero slugs I was using were 1 ounce at 1500fps.
The 1201 likes them a lot!

The guys let me borrow their shell carriers for a few days and I plan to repeat this test with some lighter loads at around 1200fps and see how they work.

I love this shotgun!

 

I'm going to offer up a word of warning- if you haven't had the bolt lightened, and you're running with +/-3.5# of extra weight, your action spring is too light. That's cool and all, but shooting full-power rounds will eventually pop the rat-tail out of the receiver, since it is bottoming out.

 

Well, dang it....
so, the fact that it didn't malfunction with added weight is a malfunction in and of itself??

Which one is the action spring?

I don't know the Benelli terminology for the various parts yet (I'm still learning the Beretta terminology!), but when I bought the two 1201s last month, the first thing I did was order a new spare for every major spring on the guns from Brownells....breech bolt spring, recoil spring, hammer spring, firing pin spring and magazine spring.

The only two springs that are directly a part of the action is what Brownell's lists on their Beretta 1201 parts fiche as the "breech bolt spring" (tough little tight coiled hunk of steel that sits between the carrier and the bolt) and the "recoil spring" (a long loose coiled spring that shoves the carrier forward and lives in the tube behind the receiver that the stock mounts to).
These are Beretta's names for these parts.

Both 1201s are identical and police stock, as far as I know, so probably no bolt or carrier lightening going on with them, but when I first cycled the action on these guns, my first impressions was that they used the lightest recoil spring I'd ever seen on a 12G autoloader......the bolt opened and cycled effortlessly in one slick glide.

It seemed too easy and thinking the recoil spring might be too compressed from long heavy use or sitting for long term with the bolt locked back, I replaced the one in the ugly gun with a brand new one.

The new spring didn't make any difference at all.... the bolt still retracted with about 1/3 the effort required to cycle the action on the HS Model 10B. But I have to say, while comparing them Saturday, it felt about the same as John's M1S90...very smooth and effortless bolt movement, as long as the hammer is already cocked. Benellis are slick!

Anway, I'm fairly sure both 1201s are stock as issued, except for the new Beretta recoil spring I needlessly installed in the ugly gun right after getting it.

But I DO have a brand new breech bolt spring and it actually measures .003s longer than the one that's in it.
I bet if I set my mind to it, I can swap in enough new parts to make this thing jam!

or maybe I should quit while I'm ahead?
Yes! That one.

 

I'll put it this way- you have a lot of "stuff" on the gun. You're also shooting "Magnum" loads. Inertial actions are always a trade-off. If you shoot light loads, you need to lose weight; if you add weight, you need to shoot heavier loads.

It makes sense that your groups tightened, with added weight, for the reason you noted: less recoil transmitted to the shooter. However, because you're basically locking the gun down and increasing the power of the load to maintain cycling, by definition, that means that you are working the recoil spring and receiver harder.

If you are running new springs, you're operating the weapon in-spec & that is all that can be expected.

Do be aware, though, (this quote has been repeated by almost every high-end gunsmith to visit HK-Benelli and Beretta): "You Americans shoot your guns too much...!" They don't engineer for 60K round guns (though quite a few have been used to that count, in 3gun) and they definitely don't account for high counts of mags.

If you're shooting 3" magnums and slugs regularly (say 500 rounds/year), be sure to check the rear of the receiver, where the recoil spring tube is screwed in, for cracking, and change the spring at least every two years(about 1000 rounds)- I don't know that the factory has a spec for spring life & duty-power loads that has been published. Relationally, Rohrbaugh recommends a spring change every 500 rounds in their micro-9mm, and, unofficially, Taurus and Beretta have the same advice if you shoot a high volume of high velocity ammo in the PT-22/21a guns.

 

Thanks for the info, Rob.

I should say up front that I don't intend to carry all those loaded rounds pictured. The overloading part was just a spur of the moment field test gone to extremes. Also, I try to buy ammunition that works in both the 1201 and my older High Standard Model 10B, so that means 2 3/4" shells only. The 10B likes hot loads or heavy loads in that size and that's what I buy.

Yesterday, I tried it again in the overloaded configuration with lighter loads and when I got down to 7/8 ounce light #8 loads, it did fail to extract 2 out of 20 rounds. When I removed the forend carrier with it's 4 rounds, the gun fired the next 8 rounds without a hitch.

One thing is sure.....I will probably never fire any of those 3" magnum 2 ounce turkey loads that I was using for "ballast" in the pictures above. I watched John fire several of those in one of his pump shotguns and it looked like he was firing an elephant gun...
very punishing recoil.

The main thing is I now know that using the light and laser on the forend and the flex 3GG sidesaddle on the receiver do not affect the operation of Beretta with mid-range to hot 2 3/4" shells.
It's nice the Beretta will shoot 3" shells, but 95% of the time it will get a steady diet of 2 3/4" shells.
Anything that works well in the 10B seems to satisfy the 1201.

An interesting fact.....the Fiocchi Extrema Aero slugs said 2 3/4" on the box, but they were actually about half way between 2 3/4" and 3".....maybe 2 7/8"? The mag tubes would only hold 5 rounds instead of 6 in both the High Standard and Beretta. Both guns fed and fired them accurately. With the Beretta, when we were through shooting, all of the 40 Fiocchi spent shells were ejected within a two foot circle on the ground, in a neat pile. The 10B hurled the spent cases considerably further away with a more or less random scattering.

 

..., but they were actually about half way between 2 3/4" and 3".....maybe 2 7/8"?

The 2 3/4" or 3" designation is the length of the empty hull with the crimped part opened up. There is a difference in the loaded length of shells based on how the manufacturer does their thing.

 

is there anything exists ?
P.Beretta 1200fp
20"Barrel
Autoloader
6+1 capacity with 2-3/4" ammo
Exactly Markings are
P.Beretta
Model 1200fp 12GA
Made Italy

 

As far as stocks and forends, anything that works on the 1201FP will work with 1200FP.
That includes the Benelli M1 and Choate PG stocks and Surefire forend.

Aftermarket extended safeties and bolt handles for the Benelli S90M1 will work on both 1200FP and 1201FP models.

Brownell's is the US distributor for Beretta 1200/1201 parts.....
the differences in the 1200 and 1201 are mostly in the trigger mechanism and the slide/shell release mechanisms.
On the 1200 model, the shell release gate at the mag tube is actually an extension of the slide release button...one part.
On the 1201, these are two separate pieces.

 

I own a 1200 FP (20" barrel 2 3/4" chamber)

I recently saw a 1201FP barrel (18" barrel, 3" chamber.) for sale.

Would the 1201FP barrel fit and function on my 1200 FP?

 

Is it just me, or is you light going to illuminate the back of your sling?

 

The short answer is.....yes.
but only when it's dangling!

That particular shotgun now has a single point sling.....
I removed the muzzle sling swivel.

Beretta recently sold a bunch of NOS 1200FP barrels at $79 each.....
when I called and asked if these would fit the 1201FP, whoever I talked to said "No.....they only fit the exact model number specified."

I'm not so sure of that but not having solid information to the contrary, I would go with that.

Since the magazine tube endcap is welded to the barrel and there were several magazine capacities offered for the 1200, 1200F and 1200FP, the barrel configuration you use has to match the magazine tube length. According to Brownells, there are three magazine tube lengths for the 1200 series......I believe all 1200 FPs were 6+1+1, the longest magazine tube offered and all 1200Fs (hunter version) were 4 round tubes.

On late model 1201FPs produced after '95 or so, the 6 rd magazine tubes were crimped to reduce the capacity to 5 and the bolt carrier was modified to prevent floating a shell on the lifter, so they are 5+1.

Since the 1200/1201 design is the red-headed stepchild of the Benelli/Beretta union, there's not a lot of solid information out there about these unique and mysterious shotguns.

Neither Benelli nor Beretta include them in their firearms history other than a brief footnote that they were developed in the late 80s and sold through the 90s and that the 1200 series led to the M1S90, which eventually supplanted it. Dedicated Benelli fans and dedicated Beretta fans both see the 1200/1201 as an outcast or renegade, not really belonging to either brand.

All of which only adds to the FP's mystique.......

 

Beretta recently sold a bunch of NOS 1200FP barrels at $79 each.....
when I called and asked if these would fit the 1201FP, whoever I talked to said "No.....they only fit the exact model number specified."

I'm not so sure of that but not having solid information to the contrary, I would go with that.

.......

I called and spoke with a gunsmith tech at Brownells. He said the 1201FP and 1200FP barrels will interchange.

 

Good information for all 1200/1201 owners.....
I suspected as much, but it's good to have a professional's confirmation.

Thanks for posting that.