How is this Mossberg Shockwave legal?

sigp220.45 · Jan 20, 2017

590 Shockwave - 6 Shot | O.F. Mossberg & Sons

American Rifleman | SHOT Show 2017: Mossberg 590 Shockwave

It is over 26" in length, but has a 14" barrel. Apparently it is not considered an SBS or an NFA or an AOW or any other other alphabet thing making it illegal/difficult to own.

I have read some of the explanations. I guess the fact that it was never fitted with or intended to be fitted with a buttstock makes all the difference.

So - I can just walk into a store and buy one, the same as buying an H&R Topper?

Please - I know these shorty shotguns inspire strong reactions, mostly of the "its not good for anything" variety. I just want to know how it avoids the usual governmental encumbrances a 14" barreled shotgun usually brings.

bigggbbruce · Jan 20, 2017

It was manufactured as delivered. 26"+ oal. Trim some off the stock and you will have a problem.

sigp220.45 · Jan 20, 2017

bigggbbruce said:
It was manufactured as delivered. 26"+ oal. Trim some off the stock and you will have a problem.

But I always thought it was a two-part test: 26" OAL and a barrel at least 18" long.

bigggbbruce · Jan 20, 2017

I am not completely fresh on the laws so I urge you to search this information.

But to modify an existing long barrel it must not be shorter than 18". The gun you've referenced was manufactured with a barrel shorter than 18" and must remain 26"+ and keep the birdshead grip.

Tom K · Jan 20, 2017

They must have caught someone asleep at the BATFE, or someone who doesn't know how to read their own regulations. I suspect this will not stand and it will be reclassified as an AOW.

Tom K · Jan 20, 2017

bigggbbruce said:
I am completely fresh on the laws so I urge you to search this information.

But to modify an existing long barrel it must not be shorter than 18". The gun you've referenced was manufactured with a barrel shorter than 18" and must remain 26"+ and keep the birdshead grip.

I find this hard to believe, or we would have already seen lots of shotguns manufactured with a buttstock and a shorty barrel. I agree with sigp220.45 - 26" OAL and 18" barrel minimums.

29aholic · Jan 20, 2017

If it has a rifled barrel it is legal. Makes it a pistol just like an AR pistol.

bigggbbruce · Jan 20, 2017

My understanding is similar to say a Thompson Contender with a 14" barrel shooting rifle calibers. It's a pistol. Or an AR15 with a 7" barrel.. designed as a pistol. Why not a shotgun designed as a pistol. Just sayin' that's how I've heard it.

Tom K · Jan 20, 2017

29aholic said:
If it has a rifled barrel it is legal. Makes it a pistol just like an AR pistol.

A handgun over .50 caliber is considered a "destructive device" with all the attendant restrictions and a $200 tax.

sigp220.45 · Jan 20, 2017

29aholic said:
If it has a rifled barrel it is legal. Makes it a pistol just like an AR pistol.

Its not rifled. Regular smoothbore shotgun barrel.

Arik · Jan 20, 2017

Do you have any contacts at the ATF?

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk

rwsmith · Jan 20, 2017

TC

TC makes shotgun barrels, but I think that they are all rifled.

Here's SC laws

(b) "Sawed-off shotgun" means a shotgun having a barrel or barrels of less than eighteen inches in length or a weapon made from a shotgun which as modified has an overall length of less than twenty-six inches or a barrel or barrels of less than eighteen inches in length.

(c) "Shotgun" means a weapon designed or redesigned, made or remade, and intended to be fired from the shoulder and designed or redesigned and made or remade to use the energy of the explosive in a fixed shotgun shell to fire through a smooth bore either a number of ball shot or a single projectile for each pull of the trigger. The term includes any such weapon which may be readily restored to fire a fixed shotgun shell but does not include an antique firearm as defined in this section.

(d) "Sawed-off rifle" means a rifle having a barrel or barrels of less than sixteen inches in length or a weapon made from a rifle which as modified has an overall length of less than twenty-six inches or a barrel or barrels of less than sixteen inches in length.
------

Since it was not modified and it has the 26" overall length, I'll bet its' ok. For now.

You can check the net for laws in your own state.

sigp220.45 · Jan 20, 2017

Arik said:
Do you have any contacts at the ATF?

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk

Not anymore.

I'm sure Mossberg has some assurances from ATF that it is legal to sell without a tax stamp.

I may buy one before they change their mind.

In doing some further reading it seems that this is not a shotgun, since it was never manufactured with a shoulder stock. It is an "other" on the 4473. If you make one from an existing shotgun you need to jump through the SBS hoops. But as is, this is good to go as long as it is 26" OAL.

State law may disagree.

Jingles · Jan 20, 2017

From Shockwave:

I get a lot of questions from customers about the “new” ATF ruling regarding pistol-grip-only (PGO) firearms with 14″ barrels that aren’t considered NFA items.

Well, first off, let me say, it’s not a new ruling. It’s the same position that ATF has always taken regarding PGO firearms that fire a fixed shotgun shell that have NEVER had a buttstock attached to them—they’re NOT shotguns! They’re simply firearms. As such, they don’t necessarily need to have 18″+ barrels on them to remain out of the purview of the NFA.

You see, the very definition of a “shotgun” requires that it be “designed or redesigned, made or remade, and intended to be fired from the shoulder…” Without a buttstock ever having been fitted to the PGO firearms in question, they can’t be fired from the shoulder and are therefore not shotguns. Hence, with a 14″ barrel, they can’t be considered short-barreled shotguns, as they aren’t shotguns to begin with. Read the full definition of a shotgun here.

Tom K · Jan 20, 2017

Well, learn something new every day. Had no idea that there was an "other" category. So it's rifle, shotgun, handgun, and "other"?

Comrad · Jan 20, 2017

Appears to be out of stock everywhere and also no sales in CA or NY, good news for the rest of us.

Brasky · Jan 20, 2017

Tom K said:
I find this hard to believe, or we would have already seen lots of shotguns manufactured with a buttstock and a shorty barrel. I agree with sigp220.45 - 26" OAL and 18" barrel minimums.

There is a company that sells mossbergs and Remingtons in this configuration for $500-600 and has been for years. Perfectly legal if it started out as a pistol and not a full length shotgun

The 18" barrel length only applies to shotguns that did not start out as a "handgun"

surfgun · Jan 20, 2017

This a long gun! Period.
This configuration just can not begin as a fully stocked shotgun.

clang444 · Jan 20, 2017

Whatever it is, I'm sure Gator McClusky wants one.
: )

deadin · Jan 20, 2017

So it's rifle, shotgun, handgun, and "other"?

Kind of like Male, Female and "Other"............

How is this Mossberg Shockwave legal?

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