Mossberg Shockwave and Remington Tac-14: highlighting gun law absurdity

[MAKster]

I am curious why it took Remington and Mossberg so long to market these Pistol-Grip-Only firearms?

My guess is that the traditional pump action shotgun market has "matured" and there really hasn't been anything new in a long time so sales are declining. The manufacturers have been pushing tactical models to compete with the interest in tactical guns like the AR. These non-NFA short barrel firearms are different so Mossberg and Remington are hoping to revive interest.

 

[Solomonson]

My guess is that the traditional pump action shotgun market has "matured" and there really hasn't been anything new in a long time so sales are declining. The manufacturers have been pushing tactical models to compete with the interest in tactical guns like the AR. These non-NFA short barrel firearms are different so Mossberg and Remington are hoping to revive interest.

Still, I would have expected them years ago. The development costs are minimal.

 

[Theohazard]

I don't fully understand the loophole that allows a PGO shotgun with a 14" barrel

It's actually pretty simple if you think about the laws involved. The definition of "shotgun" in federal law involves a firearm that has a stock or was made from a firearm that had a stock. But a new PGO shotgun doesn't have a stock and never had a stock, so it can't be a shotgun under federal law.

So the 18" barrel requirements don't apply to a new PGO shotgun since -- legally -- it's not actually a shotgun.

So, since a PGO shotgun isn't legally a shotgun since it doesn't have a stock, what is it? It's not a rifle since a rifle also has to have (or have had) a stock. It's not a pistol since it has a smooth bore and is designed to fire a shotgun shell. And it's only an NFA-regulated AOW if it has an overall length less than 26"; the ATF decided a while back that 26" is the overall length limit that allows you to conceal certain types of firearms. So, below 26" OAL a PGO shotgun turns into an NFA-regulated Any Other Weapon (AOW); above 26" OAL a PGO shotgun is simply a "firearm".

Yes, in the grand scheme of things this doesn't make much sense. But, within the framework of the 1934 National Firearms Act and the gun laws and regulations that have been enacted since then, it makes perfect sense that these firearms aren't shotguns.