Preview – Mesa Tactical’s Benelli M4

Mesa Tactical has been the go-to manufacturer of high-quality shotgun accessories since 2004. Beginning with its successful line of all-aluminum telescoping stock adapters, Mesa Tactical quickly placed itself atop a very short list of manufacturers that were willing to sacrifice market share for quality. Until Mesa’s founding, most shotgun aftermarket parts were made “good enough” and priced accordingly. Mitch Barrie, founder of Mesa Tactical, decided to take  another approach. A longtime shooting competitor, Barrie recognized the value of well-made components that could stand up to the abuses of real-world shooting.

Barrie took a huge gamble. He believed that there was a void in the market and that people would pay premium prices for high-quality accessories that might cost nearly as much as the shotguns they were intended to augment. When Mesa Tactical was founded, most shotgun accessories were priced low and were easily affordable. But many of them were also flimsy, poorly designed and often made out of cheap plastic. The prices of Barrie’s accessories would have to be significantly higher than those of his competitors in order for him to offer the tank-like construction that he wanted to
build into them. He figured that there had to be shooters willing to spring for well-built accessories, and so he rolled the dice. His gamble quickly paid off.

We got a chance to take out Barrie’s personal Benelli M4 Tactical shotgun, fitted with Mesa Tactical’s Urbino Tactical stock, an optional Limbsaver butt pad, a coyote-colored forend, an eight-shell SureShell carrier and rail, a pocket hook loop for the Urbino Tactical stock, a hook loop for magazine extension, a magazine clamp for a Remington 870 and a Novatac weapon light.

Barrie’s setup is based around his theory that every part should be attached with a purpose. He believes in keeping the build simple—unencumbered by useless accessories. His goal was to equip his M4 for recreational shooting as well as for the higher demands of multipleday tactical classes. We brought along a completely stock Benelli M4 Tactical for side-by-side comparisons.

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