Building on the success of its Super Black Eagle evolution, Benelli USA is set to offer its SBE 3 platform to waterfowlers, target shooters and upland-game hunters, which is scaled and tuned for 3” 20-ga. shotshells. American Rifleman’s Mark Keefe met with Benelli USA to get hands on with new Super Black Eagle 3 shotgun, so check out our video above to see it in action.
The new Benelli SBE3 in 20 gauge is the trimmest and lightest of the guns in Benelli’s SBE 3 lineup. Like its 12-ga. cousin, the new 20-ga. SBE3 delivers all of the best features adapted from the ETHOS line and ones that you’d expect to find on a Benelli shotgun.
With the SBE 3 20 gauge, you’ll get the Comfort Tech 3 recoil-absorbing stock system, an inertia-driven action and a barrel that is cryogenically treated. Furthermore, Benelli includes oversized controls, an enhanced loading port and carrier system, and a soft new Combtech cheek pad to soften recoil.
At time of launch, users have the choice of 26” or 28” barrels, all topped with a ventilated sighting rib and a red fiber-optic bead front sight. Benelli supplies its CRIO choke tubes for this new 20-ga. SBE 3 shotgun. The new SBE 3 20 gauge will come in a variety of finish options, including matte black, Mossy Oak Bottomlands, Optifade Concealment Waterfowl Timber and Realtree Max-5 camouflage.
This feathery iteration of the SBE 3 drops the scale down to 5.8 lbs., empty, which is a significant weight savings when compared its 12-gauge counterparts. Depending on barrel length, users will expect to find the gun’s overall length to measure between 47.5” and 49.5”. Magazine tube capacity is set for three rounds, though users can chamber an additional round, making for a full capacity of four rounds held onboard.
Benelli USA’s new SBE 3 in 20 gauge just might be the next top contender in the waterfowl blind this coming fall. To see the gun in action, check out our New For 2021 video above. For more information on the Benelli USA SBE 3 shotgun in 20 gauge, visit the company website HERE.
New for 2021: Benelli Super Black Eagle 3 20-Ga.
More like this from around the NRA
Latest
A Deadly Testing Ground: Guns of the Spanish Civil War
Great powers have often used smaller conflicts as test beds for new weapon systems, and also as dumping grounds for obsolete machinery. The Spanish Civil War was one such conflict.
Sequel: The New Taurus Judge
Not content to merely mark the gun's 20th anniversary with a special engraved edition, Taurus also introduced the New Taurus Judge this year.
The Armed Citizen® Aug. 3, 2026
Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.
Questions & Answers: A Wreck of a Remington 40-X
An American Rifleman reader writes in about a project Remington 40-X .22 target rifle that needs some serious help.
New for 2026: KJI K950 Tripod and Titan Inverted Ball Head
KJI (formerly Kopfjäger) releases the carbon-fiber K950 tripod and Titan inverted-ball head.
Book Review | Guns, Shooting and Hunting: What I’ve Learned in 60 Years
Much of what one learns is truly inexpressible to others—so it’s a wonderful rarity when someone can put their knowledge into words.
Interests
SECTIONS
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
EXPLORE MORE NRA PUBLICATIONS
