Description
The Beretta A400 Xplor Action in 20 gauge with the Kick-Off stock, part number J40AY26, is the gentlest shooting gun in the Xplor line. A small bore, a gas action, and hydraulic dampers in the buttstock add up to a shotgun that a recoil-sensitive shooter can run all afternoon.
This is the 26 inch build: chamber is 3 inches, capacity is four plus one, the barrel is blued with a ventilated rib, and the walnut Kick-Off stock sits behind a bronze anodized aluminum receiver.
Three recoil reducers working together
Start with the bore. A 20 gauge simply throws less mass than a 12, so there is less to push back against. Add the gas action, which bleeds pressure to cycle the bolt and in doing so spreads the impulse out rather than transmitting it all at once. Then add Kick-Off, which puts hydraulic dampers between the action and your shoulder.
The result is a gun that does not feel like it should be legal. Shooters who have developed a flinch with a 12 gauge very often lose it on one of these, because there is nothing left to flinch from. That matters for younger shooters, for smaller-framed shooters, and for anyone shooting through a shoulder that has seen better days.
Blink gas system and the fittings
Blink is the same gas system Beretta puts in its competition guns. It cycles fast, the piston is self-cleaning, and pressure venting means light 2 3/4 inch loads and 3 inch shells both run without adjustment. On a light gun the gas action matters more than on a heavy one, because there is less mass to absorb the impulse on its own.
Twenty-six inches of barrel keeps the gun quick in cover and easy to carry. Bronze anodizing over an aluminum alloy receiver keeps the weight down and makes it recognizable. A walnut stock and checkered forend, a chrome-plated trigger, a two-position crossbolt safety, Optima HP chokes, and a fiber optic front sight complete the build.
Specifications
- Model: Beretta A400 Xplor Action, part number J40AY26
- Gauge: 20
- Chamber: 3 inches
- Capacity: 4+1 rounds
- Barrel length: 26 inches, ventilated rib, blued
- Chokes: Optima HP
- Action: semi-automatic, Blink gas system with a self-cleaning piston
- Receiver: bronze anodized aluminum alloy
- Stock: walnut with Kick-Off recoil reduction
- Trigger: chrome plated
- Safety: two-position crossbolt
- Sights: fiber optic front
Why it is worth considering
- Small bore, gas action, and hydraulic dampers stacked together, which is about as soft as a shotgun gets.
- Light enough to carry all day on an aluminum alloy receiver.
- Twenty-six inches of barrel for quick handling in cover.
- A genuinely good choice for a younger or smaller-framed shooter who needs to avoid a flinch.
- A fiber optic front sight for the low light at either end of the day.
Who it suits
This is the gun to hand a new shooter who you want to keep shooting, and the gun to buy for yourself if recoil has started to be a consideration. It handles grouse, woodcock, quail, and early doves in cover, and it is comfortable enough that a long practice session is pleasant rather than something to endure. It is not a long-range gun; a 20 gauge with a 26 inch barrel is at its best inside forty yards.
Hunters in open country should compare the 28 inch build, and anyone who needs more payload should look at the 12 gauge.
Shells, chokes, and transfer notes
Shotshell dimensions and pressures are standardized by SAAMI, and the 3 inch chamber takes both 2 3/4 and 3 inch 20 gauge shells. We stock 1 ounce number 5 pheasant loads for hunting and 7/8 ounce 7.5 shot for practice and skeet. Steel shot is fine through improved cylinder and modified Optima HP tubes, never through a full choke.
Hunters working open fields should compare the 28 inch Kick-Off build, and anyone who does not need the hydraulic stock can look at the standard 26 inch 20 gauge. Every long gun we sell ships to a licensed FFL for transfer and background check, and Pennsylvania buyers should plan on the state point of contact check at pickup.
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