Leopard gun

[USAF_Vet]

so I was watching an episode of Sons of Guns where they took a 20gauge SxS and chopped it down to a hand held. The barrels were way under 18", looked more like 6" or 7" at best. The stock had been cut down to PGO. Obviously, this would fall under an NFA item, but which one? Is it a SBS, DD, or AOW? I kinda want one, so I want to know what kind of tax stamp I'm looking at.

Also, in order to pull this off, I'll need a 20ga SxS. So what would be a relatively inexpensive gun to use for this little project. And would it be legal to use with CCW?

This might have been better posted in NFA section. Mods, please move it if that is the case.

 

[Carl N. Brown]

They started with a shoulder gun, so its Short Barrel Shotgun, SBS.

An AOW Any Other Weapon would require a receiver that had never had a shoulder stock.

 

[ldhulk]

I wouldn't go much below 12 inches in shortening the barrels, if you want the gun to be good for anything besides making noise. Ithaca used to make such a weapon, called an Auto & Burglar; you can find data on them on the web. Decent sxs 20 gauges are not cheap, an old Stevens is probably the cheapest you'll find other than old clunkers that are rusty and loose. Some no-name imports by Kassners or Charles Daly are pretty decent. I would be very sure of where I stood on registering it before I started cutting the barrels off, some jurisdictions would probably confiscate it and jail you for possession.

 

[41]

I'm not sure exactly what price range you consider to be relatively inexpensive, but you can get a new stoeger coach gun for under $350.

 

[osterr1999]

I have looked into this as well. First step is buy the gun, I was thinking of going with a Baikal. Second step is fill out a ATF Form 1, get fingerprinted and send in a check for $200. Then expect to wait for 3 months. Once you receive you approved form 1 you can modify the gun to your liking, but it is important to note that the work must be done by you.

 

[MasterSergeantA]

The "leopard gun" is also known as a Howdah pistol. They were used in the baskets (howdahs) on top of elephants when hunting was still done that way...primarily in the British Empire. They were normally kept in a holster on the inside of the howdah so they could be used against a leopard (or tiger or other predator) that might jump to the elephant's back and try to reach the howdah. Cabela's sells a modern blackpowder copy in 20 gauge or .50 caliber.

Making one from a stocked shotgun requires a Form 1 and $200 tax stamp. It will be classified as a "short-barreled shotgun" (SBS). If you make one from a shotgun that came from the factory with NO STOCK, it would be considered an "Any Other Weapon" (AOW) and would still cost $200 to 'make'...but only $5 to transfer to a buyer somewhere down the line. So from a resale outlook, making the AOW would be smarter in the long run. Easier to sell. But the SBS can be used with or without a stock, so for my purposes it makes more sense. Peter Fonda carried a 12" barreled SxS in "3:10 to Yuma".

I bought a beat up Laurona (Spanish) SxS 12 gauge some years back for $100 and used it as the basis for my SBS. Chopped the barrels to 10" It's like a 'Road Warrior' prop now.