Shotgun

The Tristar folding shotgun is ready for your wilderness adventures

The need for a lightweight, easily portable, but powerful weapon is one outdoors folk regularly have. Be it camping, hunting, or just a bit of adventuring anytime you step outside of civilization you should want a weapon that can bring you back. This Tristar folding shotgun fits the bill for me, and I was pleasantly surprised at how well made and how handy the weapon was. I purchased the weapon second hand after seeing it on a local ad. I could only find scant information on the shotgun, but the seller told me it was a prize to be won at the National Wild Turkey Federation Banquet and that is where he acquired it.

The shotgun is a single shot, folding weapon that is light, handy, and chambered in the powerful 12 gauge. The shotgun can chamber 3-inch shells and has a fixed choke. This shotgun is extremely lightweight, I don’t have an exact scale, but on a basic bathroom scale, the shotgun weighed right under 4 and a half pounds. That’s lighter than my 80 percent lower build AR pistol.

The shotgun has very few markings, and it’s branded Tri Star. The weapon says made by Artemis and a google search for Artemis shotguns gives me Khan shotguns, a Turkish firearm manufacturer. A bit of browsing at Khan’s single shots and I found some very similar models. These shotguns are known as the K100 and are made with sportsmen in mind. The shotguns feature ribbed barrels and wooden furniture, but they remain the same basic design, with the folding mechanism. The weight listed for these shotguns are right around 5 pounds, so under 4 and a half is pretty accurate for this bare bones model.

The shotgun is light but built like a tank. The barrel is quite thick, and the receiver is way thicker than necessary. The overall design is very simple, with an internal hammer and a 20-inch barrel. The safety is a simple push-button near the trigger guard. The finish is actually parkerized, which is impressive, and a desirable feature on a beat around shotgun. The sights consist of a small gold bead and a small little indent at the top of the receiver. The furniture is a very simple polymer material. The stock is actually hollow and can be used as a compartment for survival supplies, or it can hold 10 2 ¾ 12 gauge rounds. This also makes the shotgun capable of floating.

The shotgun, when folded, fits in my small Alice pack, a common companion on my outdoor excursions.

You pay for that lightweight when you start shooting the weapon. You get the full force of a twelve gauge round into your shoulder, and it is far from pleasant. Even with heavy steel loads you are going to feel some pain. Buckshot is pretty rough, and I fired slugs in two round strings, but that was enough to judge the slugs were quite accurate. A slip on recoil pad would be a welcome addition to the weapon. The basic gold bead works fine and the shotgun patterns well. The trigger is somewhat stiff but very short.

The folding shotgun patterns and accuracy

I’d talk about reliability, but it’s a single barrel shotgun, it’d be more impressive if it wasn’t reliable. The weapon has an extractor that pushes the shell out positively and makes it easy to grip and rip from the chamber. It reliably shot and extracted birdshot by Federal, 00 Buckshot by Federal, Remington, and Fiocchi, No 1 Buckshot by Remington, and slugs by Remington and Winchester.

Top 5 combat shotguns

Shotguns. While the ol’ scattergun doesn’t see such widespread use in the tactical fields as it used to, there is no doubt that a shotgun still makes an almighty mess of things at close range. This is why shotguns (and their wielders) were such a despised enemy on the fields of WW1 and WW2. American troops carrying Model 97 trench guns jacked up the Germans so bad, the Krauts declared the use of such guns as illegal, due to them causing unnecessary suffering.

Too bad for the Germans, Americans continued to not give a shit what they thought. This hallowed American tradition continues to this day, as US troops still carry scatterguns into urban battlefields in faraway deserts.

In the below video, YouTuber Iraqveteran8888 covers what he believes are the top 5 combat shotguns of our day. Do you agree or disagree with his choices? Hit the comments below.

Rex Nanorum

@Rexnanorum

My 5.11 Shotgun Loadout

It’s not a big surprise that I love shotguns right? Well, 5.11 has helped me out with an awesome Shotgun Loadout for my All Missions Plate Carrier. It’s one of the two loadouts I run on my AMP and I have been training hard over the last week with it. Learning how to use both the carrier as well as a couple 5.11 Shotgun attachments. Mixing these attachments with the AMP has provided me with an awesome overall loadout for shotguns. The Hex grid layout allows me to run attachments that would be vertical as horizontal and even slightly diagonal. This makes it easy to run a mix of two very different pouches.

How I designed My Shotgun Loadout

The idea was simple. Shotgun ammo is a real pain in the ass to carry around, but the shotgun itself is not a high volume weapon. It’s made for quick, close, and violent encounters. I designed the loadout to work with both quick reloads, and for lulls in the fight. This struck a balance between the amount of ammo I can carry and the availability of said ammo.

My Shotgun Loadout Pouches

What drew me to 5.11 Shotgun gear is the fact it is tested by Viking Tactics, a company I respect immensely. If you don’t know Kyle Lamb and VTAC you need to do some research and learn what’s what. They are an outstanding, cutting edge company in both the gear and training realm. I trust them.

The first two attachments are the 5.11 VTAC Shotgun bandoliers. These 5 round bandoliers are made to run vertically, but I like running them horizontally at the top portion of my vest. This makes it easy to reach them and keeps me from over occupying my plate carrier vest. On my Shotgun loadout, these are the bandoliers I use for quick reloads. This includes emergency reloads and reloads under fire. This gives me ten rounds on tap for those “Oh Shit,” situations.

These mini bandoliers use elastic loops to hold the rounds secure and running them horizontally. With the brass up they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

On top of that, I keep a VTAC Shotgun Ammo pouch on board. This holds 25 rounds of shotgun ammo in the standard cardboard box a 25 round packs come in. The box stays in the pouch and the zippered lid of the pouch has an overlapping open elastic flap that prevents the rounds from bouncing out of the pouch, but this allows you to reach in and remove rounds.

The entire setup gives me 35 rounds total. In a flash I can switch to an AR loadout and rock my ugly 80 percent lower receiver AR, aka the Ghost Gat.

Running the Shotgun Loadout

The two bandoliers of the shotgun loadout make it very easy to access ten rounds on the fly. For emergency reloads, and for a quick top off these two bad boys are perfect and easy to reach. These attachments make it easy to grab ten rounds of ammo on the fly. I practiced speed or emergency reloads quite a bit. These being the reloads through the ejection port when you run the gun completely dry.

The same goes for grabbing rounds and shoving them into the tube. It’s quick, easy, and very intuitive.

The VTAC ammo pouch allows me to fish for extra rounds when the stakes aren’t so high. It is a little slower than the bandoliers, but it also holds 5 times as much ammo. I use this pouch for reloading when things are a little quieter. This could be a lull in the fight, or for when the enemy at least appears defeated but we need to ensure everyone who needs killin’ is killed.

Additionally, besides reloading the shotgun I would use this pouch to reload my side saddle and my 5.11 bandoliers. This allows my shotgun loadout to be used together and this increases my overall versatility.

The Setup

My Shotgun Loadout is working out very well for me. The gear is very intuitive, very easy to use, and it’s made very well. When paired with the All Missions Plate carrier I find it to be supremely customizable. Building this loadout hasn’t been easy. The industry largely ignores the shotgun and I’m glad 5.11 has stepped up the shotgun game.

The shotgun is far from a popular weapon, but it is still an amazing close range fight stopper. Having a way to carry extra ammo is an absolute necessity. This gear from 5.11 is an outstanding choice if you are a fan of the mighty shotgun.

The Remington TAC 14 Hardwood: Old School Cool

I love shotguns, and more importantly, I love shotguns with wood furniture. Also, let’s make them really short and use an odd definition to ensure they are not NFA regulated items. Thanks. That incredibly picky request has now been made a reality with the TAC 14 Hardwood model from Remington. The TAC 14 is Remington’s not a shotgun firearm with a 14-inch barrel and Shockwave Raptor Pistol grip. This 12 gauge pump-action firearm is one of many that have hit the market in the last few years and Remington has released several different variants. The TAC 14 Hardwood model has by far become my overall favorite.

Why?

I mean besides looking freakin’ sweet? Let’s be real clear I bought this gun because I like shorties, and the wood furniture looks fantastic. It immediately reminds of the original Witness Protection guns utilized by the US Marshals and produces by Jim Wilson of Wilson Combat. If you look deeper than just the wood pistol grip and pump the gun has a few other features from the Witsec guns. Namely, look at the Shield/Sling keeper on the front of the gun. These were present on Witsec guns as was the dual sling attachments.

I saw the TAC 14 Hardwood at SHOT last year and loved them and as soon as one hit my local store I swooped in and grabbed it up. I own a standard TAC 14, and more than a couple of Shockwaves, but this gun is by far my favorite.

Inside the TAC 14 Hardwood.

The TAC 14 Hardwood is sadly an 870 Express with the Matte finish. I really wish they would’ve gone with the Wingmaster and given the gun a dark blue finish. I’m sure in a year or two they will and I’ll go broke buying it. The TAC 14 Hardwood does differ from the standard TAC 14. Of course, it has wood furniture, but the sling keeper and handguard combo is nice. More than that the gun accepts 5 rounds of 2 3/4 buckshot versus the TAC 14’s four rounds.

The TAC 14 Hardwood adds a +1 extension and doesn’t dimple the tube I wasn’t the only person annoyed by Remingtons dimple four round tube when I received my original TAC 14. With the extension, the magazine tube is now flush with the barrel that gives the gun a much better and symmetrical look.

The TAC 14 Hardwood also comes with a sling, a cheap one, but it is appreciated. On top of that, the Box has some awesome custom cut phone. I give them a 10 for presentation. The gun looks absolutely fantastic.

More than a Pretty Face

These guns can be hard to handle if you aren’t familiar with shotguns. It takes a lot of time and ammo to really get comfortable with one. Blasting away at the hip is fun, but that is far from using one in an effective manner. With the right technique its not hard to handle these aims or even aim them.

Admittedly their effective and accurate range is limited, but they can still deliver a sledgehammers worth of payload into a target when used effectively. This does require getting a good solid grip on the gun. The rear grip is smooth, but the geometry of it ensures a pretty good grip. The front pump uses an old school but effective texture to help you maintain it’s grip as well.

The gun’s action is incredibly smooth and the pump slides rearward very easily with minimal twisting, grit, or roughness. It’s incredibly satisfying and it delivers that classic shuck sound with style. Handling wise the placement of the safety is awkward without a traditional stock, but with some practice, you can learn it to take it off with ease. However, putting the safety back on is another issue entirely. It’s not so easy, but when in doubt just move the firing hand and get it done safely.

The trigger isn’t bad, and as a shotgun, it’s not exactly that important. Reloading this gun is also far from easy and I’d imagine it’s a little simpler to just transition to a pistol than attempt a speed reload. The gun is a hefty 5.6 pounds so trying to reload it with the firing hand in place isn’t easy, or even really effective.

It’s a lot easier to hold the gun by the pump and reload via the firing hand. Alternatively, you can bring the gun in the box like a handgun and reload it.

Shot’s Fired

Recoil is admittedly rough with these guns, but with practice, it can be controlled. I fire standard 2 3/4s buckshot and I find it manageable. It’s not as effective as a properly stocked shotgun of course, but its a lot easier than I imagined. There is no pain due to the rear grips ergonomic design. The recoil does shoot straight back into the wrist. It more or less forces the gun upwards instead of rearwards.

Controlling the gun and firing it somewhat rapidly is doable, but again a lot of birdshot practice should be conducted prior to shooting. The TAC 14 Hardwood is a very fun gun to shoot. It’s not an easy one, but that is part of the fun of the gun. It’s difficult to control and to shoot well. This challenge is where I find the most fun.

The gun is a pump shotgun and it runs reliably. As a pump action weapon its plenty reliable. The gun extracts and ejects and loads the next shell with absolute authority. This includes high and low brass shells. The gun runs everything as it should without much effort.

The TAC 14 Hardwood runs as good as it looks. It’s an 870 so you can accessorize it to a good degree but you shouldn’t. The beautiful wood furniture needs to stay put. If you want to experiment get the Logic Industries 80 percent lower shotgun. If you are looking for a fun, reliable, and challenging tool with old school cool appeal the TAC 14 Hardwood is for you.

Quick Look: TriStar Compact bullpup shotgun

It seems like every couple of years, a new bullpup rifle or shotgun hits the market and threatens once again, to make bullpups hit the mainstream vein of the US market. While the likes of the IWI Tavor, the UTAS-15 and the legendary Steyr Aug have picked up a number of fans, these designs have never broken the mold entirely. TriStar Arms is looking to make their own impact on the market, courtesy of the Compact Tactical shotgun. The typical knock on almost every bullpup is the trigger, but that should be less of an issue with shotguns right?

The Compact Tactical is chambered for up to 3″ 12 gauge rounds. It possesses a 20″ barrel, despite only having a 30″ overall length. It is based on the AK-47 receiver, thus making it a gas-operated semi-auto. It arrived with 2x five round mags, a carrying handle, a Magpul AFG and Magpul MBUS sights. I’ll get this out to the range, broken in and tested soon. Meanwhile, here’s my unboxing of “big ugly”.

–Rex Nanorum

@Rexnanorum

The Magpul SGA Stock and Pump – Long Term Review

My Remington 870 Wingmaster has seen a lot of abuse. It’s an older shotgun with a lot of character if you will. I never felt updating this little gun from the standard Remington polymer stock and the pump was necessary, but I was curious about Magpul made shotgun gear and the Magpul SGA series of furniture was affordable enough to give it a go. I’ve been using this particular setup for over a year now and it’s been abused, as well as painted. That’s not a stock getup, but a paint job from myself using AT Armor’s Rhodie paint kit.

Is the SGA Kit Worth the Hype?

It’s not a secret that Magpul makes everything for the AR 15 platform. From stocks to handguard and even small parts like trigger guards it’s not hard to Magpul out a rifle. They are also able to do this at a very affordable cost and provide a very high-quality product. The SGA furniture is no different.

The Magpul SGA Stock is a bit of a cross between your standard straight shotgun stock and a 90-degree pistol grip stock. The idea was to combine the merits of both into one design. The Magpul stock has a quick downward turn in the pistol grip that allows you to grip the gun almost like a pistol grip shotgun. This increases control and allows both the rear and forward arm to support the weight of the weight. A standard stock puts most of the weight on the off hand.

The Magpul SGA Stock also allows me to hold the weapon with one hand comfortably while using my other to accomplish secondary tasks. I can hold the weapon ready to fire as I open a door, reach for a tool, or were to answer a radio call.

The LOP of the stock can also be adjusted via spacers to go from 12.3 to 14.3 inches. 12.3 is quite short and formal average sized folks is perfect when running a tactical vest or plate carrier. There is also plenty of space for adding sling keepers. The stock has a built-in rear keeper for running a sling through.

What About the Pump?

The pump is textured for a good grip, has a small built-in handguard, and is outfitted with M-LOK slots to attach accessories to. The slots are at the 6, 3, and 9 o’clock positions. The utilization of this system allows you to attach lights, foregrips, handguards, and more in a very seamless way. It offers a full grip that allows you to really ratchet down on the pump and work it like you mean it.

Overall the Magpul SGA furniture is well made and plenty modern. It’s built to last and is rock solid in terms of dependability and strength.

Where Lead Hits Steel

Modern design doesn’t mean much if the gear just doesn’t work. Luckily, Magpul has come through with making the furniture work as good as it looks. The stock is massive and 1.5 inches wide across the rear. This size makes it easy to mount the shotgun correctly as well as disperse recoil through the shoulder. The stock is equipped with a thick recoil pad that makes it pretty solid when it comes to round after round of 12 gauge.

The stock is quick and easy to mount and jamming it into your shoulder and bringing it to your cheek is intuitive and easy to do. You can add a cheek riser if you choose, but I don’t find it necessary.

My preference for fighting recoil is to push forward with the pump and pull rearward with the stock. The SGA stock and pump make it easy to exercise this technique. The stock’s unique pistol grip allows you to get a solid grip on the gun and pull it rearward easily, and the textured pump makes it easy to push forward.

Boomstick Time

All my time with a shotgun has made me quite recoil resistant, and proper technique and of course a good stocks makes a big difference. I couldn’t possibly count just how many rounds me and this gun have been through together. For this review, I took out 25 rounds of full powered buckshot and a hundred rounds of Wally World birdshot and let it rip.

After the shooting, my shoulder never felt abused and used. The SGA furniture distributes recoil and allows for good technique. The crossover pistol grip the SGA stock utilizes is very nice for running reloads. It allows me to confidently keep the gun up and ready. The stock even aids in engaging with one hand. Should the lull in combat end in the middle of my reload I can fire a shot one handed with decent accuracy and good control. The gun isn’t going to get off target or create a risk of harming me or another.

The pump allows for easy accessorizing, and excellent control over the gun. The pump is slightly longer than a standard pump. This creates a shorter length of pump. Ultimately it means people with shorter arms will have an easier time manipulating the weapon. It’s longer but isn’t long enough to block the use of a side saddle.

All together the Magpul SGA Furniture is well built and well thought out. They are a great addition to any combat shotgun, but unfortunately, you’ll only get this furniture from Remington 870s and Mossberg 500s. This will not fit on the Logic Industries 80 lower shotgun even though it does take most Mossberg accessories.