12 Gauge Pump Shotgun

This is a page for all of the 'mystery' pump shotguns in films (usually obscure models from foreign makers). As more information is gathered, these guns will be identified.

Also there is a guide to recognizing pump shotguns by noting the specific details which make them unique.

12 Gauge Pump Shotgun Recognition Guide

There are many 12 gauge shotguns that are very unique looking and easy to identify. This page is dedicated to the most common pump shotguns that people tend to confuse with each other.

Just like the Big Three Auto makers in the U.S. (GM, Chrysler & Ford), there are the (current) Big Three Pump Shotgun makers in the U.S. - Remington, Winchester and Mossberg. The three most common pump shotguns now are the Remington 870, the Mossberg 500/590, and the Winchester Model 1200/1300. (UPDATE: And currently like the former Big Three, there are now the Big Two. Chrysler has gone under, and on the firearms side, Winchester has stopped making it's last remaining pump action shotgun, the Model 1300. As a result of this cessation by Winchester in 2006, other brands of shotguns will start to take up the market share abandoned by Winchester).

Prior to the 1960s, the three most common pump shotguns were the Remington 870, the Ithaca Model 37 and the Winchester Model 12. Mossberg aggressively went after Ithaca's market share and got it.

Most pump shotguns that currently appear in films are one of these manufacturers, no offense to fine makers like Savage, Stevens, Browning, etc. There are far more Side by Side and O/U Shotgun makers represented in the U.S. and the world (especially the high priced European makers), but most of the Pump shotguns used by police/military/civilians are from one of these companies.

This recognition guide will grow with additions of other major manufacturers.

(To be added: Ithaca, High Standard, Savage, Stevens, J.C. Higgins, Benelli)

Remington 870 vs Mossberg 500 vs Winchester 1300

Remington 870 Riot shotgun with wooden stock

Mossberg 500 with black synthetic stock

Winchester 1300 Defender extended tube length with wooden stock

The Difference between the back receivers, pin placement, safety location and trigger guard/assemblies

From top to bottom: Remington 870 new model, Winchester Model 1300, Mossberg 500. Note: the Remington 870s have changed their trigger groups, but haven't changed the name. Please note the difference between the 870s of the 1970s-1990s and now.

From top to bottom: Remington 870 new model, Winchester Model 1300, Mossberg 500. Note the difference between the tube nut just ahead of the foregrip, and the design of the support post between the tube and barrel. Also the three models have different muzzle nuts at the end of the shotshell tube.

What is the difference between the Mossberg 500 and the Mossberg 590?

Well, one can always check online as to the internal and structural differences between the two models. But sometimes Model 500s are sold with heat shields, so that makes them harder to distinguish in a movie whether they are 500s or 590s.

Side profile comparison between the Mossberg 500 and the 590

Front ends of the Mossberg 500 and the 590. Please note that the end cap for the magazine tubes are different as are the mounting bars between the barrel and the extended magazine tube. The 590 tube magazine endcap is the most distinctive feature of the 590. Some of them have added swivel attachment points at the end which make them resemble the Winchester 1300 end caps, but the shape is distinctive to the Mossberg 590

Actually the end cap and attachment points on the Mossberg 590 are for the mounting of a bayonet. Just about any bayonet designed for use on the M16 style rifles will also mount on the Mossberg 590.

=Browning BPS Shotgun

A budget synthetic pump defense shotgun, the Browning has no side ejector, so it functions like the Ithaca 37, one of the few pump shotguns where loading and ejecting happen out of the same port on the bottom of the gun.

Browning BPS Shotgun - 12 gauge

.......More to follow......... MPM2008