CH A300 is developed following the CH 1301.
The factory A300 charging handle shares the same ribbed, slightly triangular shape with that of the 1301 and A400, CH A300 uses the same slightly abbreviated spindle shaped charging handle design as our CH 1301.
The 5 degrees angle never felt right to us and we quickly found the reason: off axis loading. When the user pulls back on the tapered charging handle, it wants to be pulled back off axis at 5 degrees to the bore since the polymer handle isn't perpendicular to the bore but at a 5 degree cant. The bolt cand carrier is parallel to the bore and can only travel along the bore (not at an angle) which effectively corrects the charging handle's tendency to pull to the right, but not before the energy is already wasted on the charging handle trying to travel rearward at a 5 degree cant.
We made CH A300 slightly shorter. CH A300's length measures 1.90", vs. the factory A300's charging handle's 2.14". The bell/spindle shape is effective enough, the new shorter length works offers a slimmer profile.
The factory A300 charging handle can be pulled back in line to the bore with some conscious effort, the user needs to grasp it close to the bore, not towards the flared end, this motion unfortunately makes manipulating the charging handle rather difficult and unintuitive.
Ideally, we want the charging handle to be pulled in a linear manner and parallel to the bore, it's the path of least resistance and the most efficient one.
CH A300 is machined from a single piece of 17-4 stainless steel and nitride treated, it incorporates the classic short, spindle shaped handle that's been use on numerous firearms successfully in the last few decades, Sten Gun and metric pattern FAL are two of such examples. The hour glass shape is a simple and very effective design that retains and auto centers the user's fingers, to the point serrations on the handle are not needed, thus CH A300 doesn't have any.
We also found the factory A300 charging handle unnecessarily long, we made CH A300 a bit shorter as (factory: 2.14", CH A300: 1.90"). Being machined from a solid piece of 17-4 does make it heavier (factory: 0.41oz, CH 1301: 0.56oz), the tradeoff is the solid, one piece CH A300 is far stronger than the steel + polymer factory charging handle, it's more than an acceptable tradeoff for a heavy duty charging handle.
There are small details that have been incorporated into the CH A300 design: the spindle, or hour glass shaped handle has two flaring, the outside flaring is larger than the inside. Together, the shape automatically centers the user's fingers and keep them from slipping, the outer flaring is larger since it's the area that inhibit off axis movement if the user's fingers do slip. All of the corners have been beveled, our hands will find any crease or angles quickly as they create discomfort. CH A300 's handle feels silky smooth, but the spindle / hourglass shape works so well, it needs no serrations to create traction.
Material: machined 17-4 stainless steel, heat treated to H900, black nitride treated
Length: 1.90"
Weight: 0.56 oz
Compatible with Beretta A300 shotguns.
Proudly designed and made in USA.
It is possible to install the A300 charging handle incorrectly. Make sure the notch on the A300 charging handle faces the muzzle, not the stock.