Benelli Nova 12 Gauge
Model: 20000
Benelli Nova 12 Gauge
Model: 20000
Full Specifications
About This Firearm
The Benelli Nova is a pump-action 12 gauge built for waterfowl hunting. It is no longer made, so it is a used buy, and Benelli now sells the Nova in 20 gauge and the Nova 3 as its 12-gauge pump. Its receiver and stock are molded as one polymer shell over a steel skeleton, so there is no stock bolt to work loose and no joint at the tang for water to wick into.
The chamber takes 2-3/4, 3 and 3-1/2 shells, and the magazine holds 4 rounds whatever length goes in it. The barrel is 28.0 inches with a red-bar front sight and a mid-bead, and improved cylinder, modified and full chokes came with a wrench. At 128.0 oz and 49.5 inches it handles like a field gun, and spares now come from the used market or from the 20-gauge and Supernova parts that still overlap.
If you are cross-shopping, the Mossberg 500 weighs 108.0 oz, 20.0 oz less, and is still in production, but it stops at 3 shells, so 3-1/2 goose loads will not chamber in it. The Stoeger M3500 takes the same 3-1/2 loads and cycles them for you at 122.4 oz with an MSRP of $849, and it is still in production.
Best For
Strengths & Limitations
- The polymer shell will not swell, split or rot the way a wood stock can after a season in a boat.
- The chamber accepts 3-1/2 shells, which the Mossberg 500 beside it cannot.
- A pump is worked by hand, so shell length and power make no difference to whether the action cycles.
- The buttstock is part of the receiver, so pad and length-of-pull changes need Nova parts, and Mossberg or Remington stocks will not fit at all.
- The weight is in the molded receiver and stock, so a lighter barrel does not change much.
- Benelli no longer lists a 12-gauge Nova, so furniture and spares come from the used market.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How is the Nova 3 different?
The Nova 3 has the shorter chamber, and Benelli credits that with a 14 percent shorter cycling stroke than the original Nova, along with an M4 bolt face and a forend cutoff button.
Can a shorter barrel be fitted for defense?
Benelli made short Nova barrels and they drop into the same receiver. Capacity does not change whatever barrel goes on.
What chokes came with it?
Improved cylinder, modified and full tubes with a wrench, which is the same set Benelli supplies with the current Nova models.
