shotgun purchase laws in ca?

[hyphen]

is there a permit similar to the handgun permit required in the state of california to purchase and own a shotgun or rifle? ive been doing some research and found nothing on the california law site for the DOJ. my friend also told me that there's no permit requirement and such. reason being that i was going to purchase a handgun (and still will) but since changed my mind to purchasing a shotgun first for clay/birds but more importantly, home defense.

the two main shotguns ive been looking into are the remington 870 and the mossberg 500 or 590. i see a lot of positive reviews on the 870 as an all-around firearm, but what about the moss 500 series?

 

[GrayBear]

CA Shotgun Laws - -

No permit needed to buy or to own standard-type or sporting-type rifles or shotguns. Again specifying sporting-type guns, there is no registration required. Shotgun barrels must be 18" long. Thumb-hole stocks, folding stocks and pistol grips are a no-no.

GrayBear

 

[crazed_ss]

You CAN have pistol grips and folding stocks on shotguns in CA.

Things like Bennilli M4's, Remington 1187s, pump guns w/ Pistol-grip, etc are all legal.

Here is the law for shotguns that are considered Assault Weapons and are banned:

(6) A semiautomatic shotgun that has both of the following:
(A) A folding or telescoping stock.
(B) A pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon, thumbhole stock, or vertical handgrip.

(7) A semiautomatic shotgun that has the ability to accept a detachable magazine.
(8) Any shotgun with a revolving cylinder.

 

[Gordon]

And - as I sadly just found out: you can't have a Saiga style shotgun. Seems shotguns are 'assault' RIFLES

 

[GrayBear]

CA Gun Laws.......

Thanks, Crazed SS. I'm just back from http://www.ag.ca.gov/firearms/ and it looks like you're right. I clicked the California Firearms Laws Summary Booklet over in the left hand column. You get an Adobe Acrobat version that I can almost understand. I need to print that out to show to a couple of guys. My old steam-powered computer has trouble navigating Adobe documents.

The post gave me a lesson, though. Never depend on either a gunsmith or a retired LEO to know the gun laws! Both gave me bad advice.

Thanks again!



GrayBear

 

[Spiggy]

And - as I sadly just found out: you can't have a Saiga style shotgun. Seems shotguns are 'assault' RIFLES

Remove the gas system and render it pump, they just might let you have it

 

[Condition Plaid]

There is no 'permit' to buy handguns in California. There is a Handgun Safety Certificate that you can get at the gun dealer after taking a 30 question test that most monkeys could pass.

 

[crazed_ss]

The post gave me a lesson, though. Never depend on either a gunsmith or a retired LEO to know the gun laws! Both gave me bad advice.

Hehe.. no prob. You'd be suprised at how many people think pistol grip shotguns are banned here. I showed my Remington 870 Tactical to a buddy and he was like, "OMG, dude where'd you get that?! That's like an Assault Weapon!!!"

hahaha

 

[B yond]

There's a great book for explaining the over-complicated California gun laws. It's called How to Own a Gun and Stay Out of Jail. They release an updated version every year.