The CBC Pump 12 Military/LE shotgun (a.k.a. Taurus ST-12)

The name of Brazil’s CBC (Companhia Brasileira de Cartuchos) is almost immediately associated with ammunition manufacture, since this has been the company’s main area of activities since it was founded by two Italian immigrants in São Paulo back in 1926. In the 1960s, however, industrial activities were expanded with the production of single-barrel, break-action shotguns, first exports to the United States being recorded in 1966 and eventually reaching over 1.5 million units in the years that followed. The year 1990 marked the actual internationalization of the company with the creation of the Magtech brand and wide distribution in foreign countries, consolidated in 2003 with the addition of a sales branch in Hamburg, Germany. In 2007, CBC acquired all the assets of the German military and LE ammunition manufacturer MEN, followed two years later by the acquisition of the renowned Czech Sellier & Bellot ammo maker. Little known, but of foremost importance, was the 2015 stock control acquisition of Forjas Taurus by CBC.

Following that no-frills shotgun, the Brazilian company introduced a 12-ga (7+1, 3-in chamber) pump-action model that found good acceptance in the local and export markets, this including the military and LE sectors. This was mainly available for the civil market with a 24-in (610mm) barrel, while those intended for, say, police use could be supplied with shorter barrels. The weapon was later modified with the addition of a pistol grip and a fixed or foldable polymer stock, a choice f several Brazilian military and public security forces, having received the commercial designation CBC Pump Tactical.

The latest evolution of the CBC shotgun was displayed under the designation of Pump 12 Military 3.0 (a.k.a. the Taurus ST-12) in the recent LAAD 2017 Defence & Security show in Rio de Janeiro. The weapon is available with three different barrel lengths (14-in/355mm, 19-in/482mm, and 24-in/610mm), and is fitted with a six-position, length-adjustable polymer stock whose internal shock-absorption system is said to reduce felt recoil by around 50 per cent. Picatinny rails are provided on top of the aluminum receiver and may also be fitted to three sides of the magazine tube, except for the shorter (14-in) barrel version. Rear sight is an adjustable ghost ring, while the front sight is a prominent blade with side protections.