Shot gun questions

[ucfireman]

1. if shooting buck shot or slug, do you use a choke or just barrel with no choke?
2. if you shoot without a choke screwed in will it damage the threads?
3. how short can you "cut" a barrel down to? 18 inches? and where do you measure from? (for a back seat gun) and does it make a difference if you cut the stock off? if you do cut it do you just hack saw it or is some special technique needed?
4. my gun came with 3 chokes. 1. says IC for lead and mod for steel, 2. says mod for lead and full for steel. 3 says turkey and don't shoot steel. So can you shoot steel in the "extended" choke tubes that you see for turkey and ducks? I would assume you have to be able too for ducks.

 

[Gator89]

1) Always use a choke.

2) yes, you could damage the threads.

3) measure from the back edge of the chamber.

4) steel shot is not compatible with extra full chokes, only shoot steel in chokes that specify steel is ok.

 

[kmckinnie]

They have slug barrels.

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

Federal law says the barrel must be greater than 18 inches for a shotgun with a total length of greater than 26 inches. Rifle barrels have to be 16 inches or longer With total length greater than 26 inches........unless the law has changed recently.

 

[Mr Bya Lungshot]

1. If it has a screw in choke then use it.
Slugs not recommended for full chokes.
2. Maybe but not recommended.
3. Measure with the chamber closed and go well past 18”.
3.5 you can cut an inch or so off the stock for bantem lengths but absolutely not pistol grip cut it must be reasonable shouldered length. Not even a short paddle. Overall length matter too.
If your cutting both ends leave the barrel extra long for extra insurance.
4. Definitely don’t believe a word of what I said above without doing your homework and know what your doing is within the law.

I personally ain’t cuttin nothin off.
I’m a factory as is hunter.

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

1. if shooting buck shot or slug, do you use a choke or just barrel with no choke?
2. if you shoot without a choke screwed in will it damage the threads?
3. how short can you "cut" a barrel down to? 18 inches? and where do you measure from? (for a back seat gun) and does it make a difference if you cut the stock off? if you do cut it do you just hack saw it or is some special technique needed?
4. my gun came with 3 chokes. 1. says IC for lead and mod for steel, 2. says mod for lead and full for steel. 3 says turkey and don't shoot steel. So can you shoot steel in the "extended" choke tubes that you see for turkey and ducks? I would assume you have to be able too for ducks.

You might want to check out mossbergs ”Shockwave” if you want a shotgun for the back seat. They found a legal way to bypass some of the restrictions. It’s an option.

 

[ucfireman]

I was thinking it would be cheaper and easier to do it myself, pawn sop gun.
I think it may be easier just to buy a short barrel gun. Seen some not too high.
Thanks everyone.

 

[bighonkinjeep]

Dont shoot it without a choke to protect the threads.
Steel is going to have a tighter pattern than lead, that's why your chokes are labeled that way. A modified acts as a full choke and patterns like one when shooting steel at ducks.
Depending on your shotgun, many have both factory and aftermarket purpose specific barrels available inexpensively that can be swapped out in minutes at home. This makes cutting barrels nearly an obsolete practice for many models.

 

[rosewood]

Chokes are designed to restrict the load. If the choke is a smaller diameter than a slug, you can have a problem. Since buckshot is larger pellets, it can crowd up going through a too small of a choke also, think about several folks trying to go through a door at the same time. Smaller shot doesn't have this issue.

I cut down a single shot for fun. Cut the barrel at 18.5" in case I goofed and had to clean it up. The barrel length is measured from the breech/bolt face to the end of the barrel. You can drop a dowel rod down the barrel to the bolt/breech, mark it at end of barrel then measure to get actual BATF measured length. I then cut the stock as a pistol grip with an extra 1/2" so the OAL was 27" when 26" is the minimum. Gave me a little wiggle run. Had to leave a little tail on the grip so it was long enough. Fun little gun to shoot. Been wanting to do a SxS that way, but haven't found one cheap enough that I was willing to cut down. If you cut shorter than that, you get into the "manufacturing of firearms" category and will need to apply to BATF and pay fees for approval before cutting shorter.

Rosewood

 

[rosewood]

3.5 you can cut an inch or so off the stock for bantem lengths but absolutely not pistol grip cut it must be reasonable shouldered length. Not even a short paddle. Overall length matter too.

You can purchase pistol grips for shotguns. You can cut yours to pistol grip as long as you stay OAL of 26" and barrel of 18". Perfectly legal.

Rosewood

 

[rosewood]

Federal law says the barrel must be greater than 18 inches for a shotgun with a total length of greater than 26 inches. Rifle barrels have to be 16 inches or longer...

This I didn't know, or hadn't considered. Just assumed that since it was on a "shotgun" it had to still be 18", but I guess since it is now a rifled barrel, it can be 16". Makes sense.

I think it still has to be 26" OAL right?

Rosewood

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

Yes it must be 26 overall. I have a ATF buddy I will try to reach to make sure it hasn't changed.