A few magazine shotguns have been made for the civilian market. To my knowledge they were all bolt action, except for a self-dense semi-auto called a "street sweeper" which used a drum and was heavy as a boat anchor. They were very slow and awkward to use.
Mossberg started with a bolt action in 1933 and Savage has one now made for deer and turkey hunting(2 plus one in the chamber). Another problem on the Mossberg was feeding from the magazine. They soon went to a pump/tube design which was cheaper to make and more efficient. Also if the shotshell didn't rise up just right, it would jam. (I had one for one season) Think about that in rain and snow on the shells and you are loading with a friction type magazine. Now, we have 2.5, 2.75, 3.0, and 3.5 shotshells. How are we going to accommodate all those in one magazine.
Mossberg started with a bolt action in 1933 and Savage has one now made for deer and turkey hunting(2 plus one in the chamber). Another problem on the Mossberg was feeding from the magazine. They soon went to a pump/tube design which was cheaper to make and more efficient. Also if the shotshell didn't rise up just right, it would jam. (I had one for one season) Think about that in rain and snow on the shells and you are loading with a friction type magazine. Now, we have 2.5, 2.75, 3.0, and 3.5 shotshells. How are we going to accommodate all those in one magazine.