Firearms Stack Exchange Archive

Can you put a stock-less pistol grip on a semi-automatic shotgun?

In an auto-loading shotgun, the recoil spring goes into the stock. Because of this, is it at all possible to put a stock-less pistol grip on a semi-auto shotgun. I’ve seen this done in movies, but those are movies. Thoughts?

Answer 874

Not all semi-auto shotguns are recoil operated, some have gas-operated actions. Although some may have buffer tubes in the stock, at least a few do not. The Saiga-12, Benelli M4, and SPAS-12 all have examples with folding stocks so it's at least possible with them.

UPDATE (about the Rem 1100/11-87 and Mossberg 930 or any other specific gun): I don't have any specific knowledge about these guns. I did do some research on the Internet combined with some intuition. It's much more common to see folding stocks than pistol-grip only stocks and I reasoned that if a folding stock worked so would a pistol-grip only stock. As your question indicated, the problem is usually whether or not there is a buffer tube or spring tube in the OEM stock that would prevent you from putting something like a pistol-grip only stock on. To figure this out, you can search for "folding stock Remington 11-87". Or, the owner's manuals often have an exploded parts diagram that will clearly show a spring tube if it exists and those owner's manuals are often available online from the manufacturer.

Some examples: For the Rem 11-87/1100. http://www.remington.com/pages/news-and-resources/downloads/owners-manuals.aspx had this image in the manual. The part labeled 7 is an Action Spring Tube

Rem 1100 parts diagram

For the Mossberg 930, http://www.mossberg.com/content.asp?ID=520&section=service has a manual with a similar image also showing a spring tube extending into the OEM stock that probably prevents using a pistol-grip only stock.

Answer 1117

Technical issues aside, you’ll want to check the laws in your area on this as well. For example, in Minnesota, a semi-automatic shotgun magically becomes a “military-style assault weapon” if it has at least two of the following:

This doesn’t make them totally illegal, but can require some extra paperwork.

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