The Firearm Blog

The November issue of Shooting Illustrated published a letter from a reader who suggested Taurus make a carbine version of their Judge revolver and name it the "Supreme Court Judge". Gary from Oklahoma has had his wish come true. The new Taurus Circuit Judge is a revolver carbine that can chamber .410 shotshells (2.5" and 3") and .45 Long Colt.

The design is very similar to the Russian KBP MTs 225 revolver shotgun. The Circuit has a very attractive Monte Carlo stock (I guess a synthetic stock will be introduced at a later date). A cylinder guard on the left side of the gun prevents gas and flames from scorching your arm.

The Circut Judge will be avalible with either a rifled barrel or a smoothbore barrel. The smoothbore version will only be able to fire .410 rounds.

I really look forward to shooting the new Judge. It looks nice, feels nice and I am sure is a lot of fun to shoot.

[ Y-Man, our resident Nigerian shotgunner, continues his series of guest articles about his quest to build the perfect shotgun. Being one of the lucky few in Africa to legally own a gun, he has to fabricate many parts and ammunition himself because supplies of gun parts are so limited. For the first time, we have videos of Y-Man in person! ]

He listened to the advice and made the following modifications to his shotgun. You can read the previous article in The Saga of the Nigerian Shotgun series here. This is a guest post was written by Y-Man. ]

Guys, thanks for all your advice and encouragement, I went shooting again 20 DEC 2009, and I seem to have got my accuracy "mojo" back! It was obviously the sights or lack of causing this accuracy problem. I cannot discount also that different guns might respond to the same ammunition in different ways: especially smooth-bore 12-ga shotguns firing "smaller than bore-size home-made slugs. If you guys remember from previous posts: after my Turkish semi-auto shotgun "died" an unnatural death, I got me a sweet, solid Mossberg 500A, 18.5"Bbl, No choke, No vent rib, tactical heat-shield, 6+1, bead sight, PGO. It was almost new, had never been fired, but had been cleaned and oiled. As usual with me: I wasn’t satisfied with just the bead sight or the PGO, so I have been doing quite a lot of fabrication to get me some GOOD stuff done!

Sights

First, I did some shooting with the factory bead: POOR results even at 30 meters with my slugs. Then I removed the factory bead, and tested using an old Tri-Viz Turkey sight I had: accuracy was still POOR. Then I did something crazy (Temporary, but crazy!) I fastened a simple aluminum tube (From an old, discarded Flashlight) to the barrel: using two clips (The type used for rubber hoses.). I aligned it to the barrel by eye, and off to the range I went! I began getting hit after hit on 1' x 1' steel plate at 40 meters! A few NEAR misses, but if it had been a man-sized target: that would have been DRT!

Of course: the aluminum tube was just a field-expedient "poor man's scope": no reticules (Just center your target within the circle of the tube!) No magnification... But it gave me my confidence back! I also fired a few rounds from 100metres: of course: no hits! I just did it for the fun of it. The slugs going downrange had a lovely "wheeee!" sound to them...

I later improved further on my sights fabrication just today: I got a washer welded onto a hose-clip and welded a bit of steel bolt into the circle to create/ fabricate a "Y-Man Peep sight!" It’s getting better! I will test soon and let you guys know...

See photos of Y-Man peep sights: http://www.flickr.com/photos/44877118@N04/sets/72157623050200929/ A friend and colleague who just went back to Louisiana on Christmas vacation popped into the Bass Pro shop in Baton Rouge, and he has picked up a Bushnell Shotgun scope and a B-Square saddle mount for me...

I fixed the B-Square Shotgun rail mount/ saddle, and the Bushnell Banner Shotgun scope to my shotgun. Everything went on my Mossberg 500A Pump Action Shotgun fine.

But anyone with a sharp eye can see that the scope points UP, and is NOT aligned with the angle of the barrel. I thought nothing of it until I went testing.

I fired 20 slugs, some from as close as 20 feet: NOT A SINGLE HIT! All this on a 1 foot square target!

All the rounds were going below point of aim.

You can see the reason why here:

In addition to this: after a few shots: the B-Square mounting rings got loose. One of the clamps had thrown the thread before: and I had used a simple nut and bolt to hold it tight to the rail. That one held through all the firing. But the one that was factory: broke after 5 shots!

I went home disappointed!

I even gave up completely about the scope, and started doing my usual"out of the box" thinking to set up a "proper" ghost ring sight system for my shotgun.

Then I got some "crazy" ideas. (As usual!): I got rid of the mounting rings, drilled holes in the B-square mount, and used hose clips to hold the scope securely to the mount! I used a little bit of aluminum to raise the back part of the scope to align it properly by putting it between the scope and the rail before tightening.

The fitting is tight and strong. It looks and feels like it could take quite a pounding and not shift nor shake.

To be sure, before going to do any testing (Using up ammo) I did a "poor man’s bore-sighting" first... No laser available: so I used a strong flashlight that has a diameter of 18mm. I switched that on, slotted it into the muzzle: and sighted in with the scope. At different distances: the reticules of the scope centered perfectly on the projected circle of light!

I went testing and accuracy is GOOD! I got a wonderful cheek-weld, and was getting hit after hit on a target (about 11"x 8") placed about 70 yards distant: 70 YARDS! Video Number 3...

Stock

I have finally fabricated a good stock that works. Made originally out of Chrome-Vanadium quality steel rod, it is more of a skeleton stock: fastened at both the top of the pistol grip, and at the bottom of the grip. It works very well. I first padded the steel rod all along the length of it with thick felt, then covered it professionally with strong but soft goat-skin leather (A professional leather-worker did some tight, quality stitching of the leather all round. I also fixed a felt "recoil pad" and worked out a sling... It all works quite well...

Photos of Stock before and after padding

(See stock AFTER padding in the video above)

I have made some videos showing shooting tests that I did with these modifications for which I would appreciate your comments and opinions: both here and on Youtube. Also: there’s a video of my process of converting Birdshot into slugs, using basic tools. (The new key thing is that I have now created a mold out of a piece of barrel from an old shotgun. Since it is from a piece of shotgun barrel without chokes: it turns out a perfect 0.729" slug.)

Check photos here.

Cheers, and happy New Year; y’all!

By now you have probably heard about the news that the IRS is buying Remington 870 shotguns. Why? Who knows. I have never heard of a government tax collection agency arming themselves. Regardless of the social issues associated with arming tax collectors, you must give those accountants some credit: they know how to choose a decent gun. The IRS Shotgun (as it shall know be known on TFB) is pimped-out 14" short barreled Remington 870. It is similar to the Remington MCS Tactical Entry/CQB Shotgun (pictured below).

Remington 870 Modular Combat Shotgun in the Tactical Entry/CQB Weapon configuration (14" barrel)

When cutting down the barrel length of a shotgun, or tube magazine fed rifle, you lose magazine capacity as you shorten it. The 14" length is a good compromise length and in an 870 can accommodate 5+1 capacity.

The IRS Shotty specifications also calls for a Wilson Combat Ghost Ring rear sight, XS4 Contour Bead front sight, Knoxx Reduced Recoil Adjustable Stock and and Speedfeed ribbed black forend.

The Knoxx stock features a spring system which slows down recoil

[ Many thanks to all the readers who for emailed me the link. ]

The much hyped "World’s Lightest Shotgun" was unveiled at SHOT Show. It is a Benelli Legacy scaled down to the 28 gauge cartridge and named the Legacy 28. The low weight has been achieved mainly because of the scaled-down action but also by the use of a low capacity magazine (2+1 compared with the Legacy standard 4+1) and use of a carbon fiber rib.

Engraving

Chuck Hawks has the skinny on the 28 gauge ...

The 28 gauge is the little shell that could. It can dominate small bore skeet, it's effective on upland birds, and it makes a light yet low recoiling gun for beginner or expert alike. All it lacks is the public acceptance that would bring with it a larger assortment of guns and ammunition at reasonable prices, and that may be coming.

It is sold as part of a four gun match set. The set sells for $420,000! It is made by Italian firm Perazzi. I am pretty sure this was the most expensive production consumer gun at SHOT Show.

I guess this is for competition shooters.

Designed to work with all Model 870 shotguns, the Trigger Fix allows the user to have a clean, smooth, fully adjustable trigger pull. Every Timney 870 Trigger Fix is packaged with a sear, 3 pull weight springs and a hex head wrench. Simply choose a spring (light, medium, or heavy) and then fine tune the pull weight with the hex head wrench for a precise setting.

Price is $89.95.

*[ Many thanks to the reader who email me the info. ]

UPDATE:

Shooting Illustrated has reviewed the trigger upgrade ...

Similarly, the 870 platform is just as versatile for law enforcement, those interested in home defense and three-gun competitors. Whether you employ your 870 for one or all these tasks, and no matter how your 870 is configured, Timney’s new drop-in unit will fit and eliminate the weak link of an otherwise exceptional firearm.

Slow motion 12 gauge Browning shotgun.

[ Many thanks to Jeremiah for emailing me the link. ]

This article was published in the June 1934 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine (via. Modern Mechanix) ...

Weighing 150 pounds and resembling a cannon more than a firearm, a huge, brass-barreled, portable field piece has been recovered from the sea, where a pirate lost it, and added to a collection of ancient guns in Pasadena, Calif. The gun was one of those used by the pirate, Hippolyte de Bouchard, when he and 400 followers sacked Monterey in 1818. In returning to their ship, the men lost this gun when a small boat overturned. In later years it was recovered by fishermen who saw it on the ocean floor at low tide. Another firearm almost as remarkable is a gun with a very long barrel used by Spanish settlers in hunting. They believed that the longer the barrel, the further the ball would carry, and so used long-barreled guns to kill game at long range. The long gun has an over-all length of about ten feet.

That pirate gun is almost certainty a Punt Gun. While nifty, they are not uncommon.

What is more interesting, at least to me, is the very long Spanish "sniper" rifle. That barrel would probably have decreased velocity, not helped it, but the long length and weight would have it easier to hit a moving target, much like how shotgunners use longer barrels today.

[ Many thanks to Sven (Defense and Freedom) for emailing me the the info. ]

The above shotgun is currently being auctioned at Guns America.

This year, the Remington Arms Company stands honored to roll out the 10,000,000th Model 870 shotgun, and would like to thank the millions of shooters and hunters, and great men and women who serve our country in military and law enforcement for making this proud moment possible. For the past 51+ years, you and the industry we serve have helped make the Model 870 the most trusted shotgun ever produced.

You can register to win one of ten commemorative edition shotguns over at Remington's "10,000,000" website.

Guy Sagi has just blogged about an interesting shotgun. The TriStar Cobra Force incorporates a spring-loaded fore end to speed up cycling the action ...

Enter the TriStar Cobra Force shotgun with a spring-loaded fore-end that, quite literally, assists a shooter in bringing the shotgun back into battery. According to Garrett Bader, of TriStar sporting Arms, “You can fire this gun almost as fast as a semi-auto.”

The gun, which is manufactured in Turkey by Armsan, comes with a formidable looking flash hider that can be replaced with Beretta/Benelli-style choke tubes. The receiver has a Picatinny rail already mounted, the fore-end has another rail, and up front a fiber-optic sight provides quick target acquisition in low light and operates well as a post in virtually no light.

It gets exhaustive testing in the January issue of Shooting Illustrated magazine that's available on newsstands today, and there were some surprises uncovered, including its unusually crisp trigger with a consistent 5-pound let-off weight.

The idea makes sense to me. I look forward to reading the review in the magazine.

From the WHQ Forum ...

"Both the SOW (Special Operations Weapon) and its magazine-fed Remington 870 predecessor (bottom) were products of mechanical wizard Carroll Childers, an engineer at the Naval Special Weapons Center. The 870 mod kit provided SEAL shotgunners with a quick-change magazine holding 20 rounds. The SOW was full-auto."

http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/6861/sowg.jpg

Very interesting. It must have been a fun gun to shoot!

Thanks much to Sven for emailing me the info.

UPDATE: Daniel found the patent for the SOW. Worth reading if you are interesting how it worked.

This video, produced by the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, shows how different shotgun rounds impact ballistic gel. They show standard rounds as well as specialty flare and breaching rounds and the exotic bolo, flatteche and dragons breath shell.

Flare rounds look nasty. They do not look like they would kill, but they have enough energy to embed themselves in soft tissue and burn inside the body.

Hat Tip: Migs at MP.net

Benelli and Beretta seem to be competing with each other to produce the lightest shotgun autoloading shotgun. Earlier this year Benelli introduced the Vinci, which they claimed was one of the lighest autoloading shotguns available. Beretta recently responded with the Beretta Xplor, which is even lighter than the Vinci.

Benelli now claim they have designed the lightest autoloader in the world and will unveil it at SHOT Show.

This competition would make sense if they were separate companies but since 2000 Benelli has been owned by Beretta.

Next year Winchester Ammunition will introduce a line of self defense shotshell ammunition called Supreme Elite PDX1.

.410 Gauge Bonded PDX1

The PDX1 2.5" .410 gauge round is optimized for use with the Taurus Judge revolver. The reduced recoil round is loaded with three 000 Buckshot sized discs backed by 12 BB sized pellets.

A buckshot / slug combo is utilized in the 2.75" PDX1 12 gauge round. A 1 oz. Targeting Ranger Slug is pushed at 1200 fps and is backed by three 00 buckshot pellets. It too uses a reduced recoil load.

The .410 and 12 gauge rounds will be available in February and March respectively.

It is good to see more self defense specific shotgun ammunition being developed. I wonder if the ammunition being developed in response to more Americans choosing shotguns for defense, or is being developed in the hope that people will see the ammunition and buy a shotgun to use it ... a chicken and egg problem.