The Charles Daly 301
Charles Daly has been manufacturing firearms for over a century, importing a variety of firearms to the United States market. The company recently began manufacturing some of its firearms domestically in the U.S., but the Charles Daly 301 shotgun is one of its meat-and-potatoes imports from Turkey.
The 301 uses a pump-action design to feed cartridges from the tubular magazine into its 3-inch chamber. The vented-rib barrel is 28 inches long and compatible with the Beretta/Benelli Mobil Choke system; three chokes (IC, M, F) are included. At the tip of the rib is a brass bead for aiming.
The shotgun is stocked with synthetic polymer furniture and features a rubber recoil pad at the back. Controls are all located in the trigger/sear assembly pinned into the receiver. There is an action-unlock button on the front of the trigger guard, and the safety is behind the trigger.
Locking the bolt closed is much like the 870 design. The bolt rides on top of a wedged carrier, and when the bolt meets the breech of the barrel, the wedge pushes a locking lug up through the 12 o’clock position. The locking lug engages a reciprocating cut in the barrel extension.
Shooting the 301
Our initial test of the shotgun was shooting clay targets thrown by hand in the mountains near our home. Anticipating a great deal of shooting, we brought a case of shells and of clays.
Initial impressions were that the 301 seemed a touch bulkier in the grip areas than other shotguns – not a big deal unless you have tiny hands. There was an ever-so-slight zipping sound when running the pump back and forth, which I attributed to tiny tooling marks on the sliding surfaces of the magazine tube and action. It is a very small issue, and as far as I can tell, does not affect function.
Swinging the Charles Daly 301 felt much like my old Remington 870. The textured rib stands out against the dull sky, and the brass bead gives a clear aim point. The controls are familiar and worked flawlessly. I guess it shouldn’t surprise me that a gun at this price point has many plastic parts, but I was surprised to see the trigger/sear pack was made of plastic.
As I disassembled the gun for cleaning after a range trip, I did notice how strikingly simple the design is. It was easy to take it down to component pieces for easy cleaning and lubricating.
Our Experience
My son and I went round after round shooting clays in the clear mountain breeze. For me, it was like a familiar memory of shooting my 30-year-old Remington, and for my son, it was his own beginning to a similar memory.
Both of us are around average height, and we found the length of pull forgiving. The reach required to operate the pump was also average. As usual, it took us a little bit to figure out the lead and feel for this gun, but it was a little easier when we swapped out the Modified choke for an Improved Cylinder.
Operation was flawless, as you might expect. I’ve found that pumps either work or they are visibly broken, with little room in between. The Model 301 had no problem shucking shells through the action, with excellent extraction and ejection throughout our shooting. We shot a variety of ammunition from Federal and Fiocchi, both 1 1/8 ounce as well as some 1-ounce loads. We even shot a box of Remington steel loads to see how this gun would do for waterfowl hunting next fall.
Pros & Cons
Charles Daly’s Model 301 does a fine job for our purposes. As I mentioned, I think it’s a crime for a young man not to have an inexpensive pump shotgun to follow him through life. This gun for sure will spend some time in this alpine wilderness pursuing grouse and other game.
The operation of the action seems reliable and solid. I am unsure if it is a direct copy of the 870 or just similar, but it does have many of the same functions and features. It even has a couple things I wish my 870 had. The barrel nut has a nice ball-detent, with a broad surface for turning by hand, and the set of three chokes is a nice addition that not every shotgun at this price point offers.
