Plastic Armory: The Combat Shotgun

“The gun has played a critical role in history. An invention which has been praised and denounced, served hero and villain alike, and carries with it moral responsibility. To understand the gun is to better understand history.”

–Intro to History Channel’s “Tales of the Gun” TV Series

 

For this stop at the Plastic Armory, we’re going to take a look at one of the most simple, prolific, and utilitarian long guns in existence; they come in many different makes and models, but simply enough, if it goes to war, it is a combat shotgun.

Shotguns in general are one of the oldest “specialized” guns, dating back to European aristocracy’s “fowling” guns in the 17th century.  And that probably begins the long lists of paradoxes that accompanies the shotgun. While originating with nobility, the common folk quickly adapted the gun to their needs as well, making it a tool that transcends all classes: rulers, nobles, settlers, soldiers, citizens, subjects, and sailors all have carried them.

In the 19th century that the shotgun became a more formal combat arm.  Beginning with the arrival of the double barrel, this was the prime choice for frontiersman, and whether it was side-by-side or in an over-under configuration, the gun could deploy both shots in succession or together at once, making for the most powerful hand-held weapon for nearly a century.

While these coach guns certainly found their way into the hands of many marshals and cavalrymen, it was the advent of the self-loading shotgun that truly made its mark in warfare.  Famed designer John Browning came up with first a lever-action, then pump-action models in the late 1880s. And while the lever would prove to be a venerable design as well, it was the Winchester model 1893, and then the 1897, that would define the genre.

The 1897 is a deceptively elegant-looking arm that belies its truly destructive power.  It’s signature pump action — one of the few noises as intimidating in reality as it is in fiction — allows for rapid reloading and fires up to six shells.  The US Army first used them in the early 1900s against Filipino Moro tribesmen, ferocious combatants who, through makeshift armor and psychotropic drugs, could shrug off handgun shots, and when the US formally entered World War I in 1917, General Pershing requested that these went with.

That’s where the version above comes from, known as the “trench gun.”  It features a shorter barrel, a heat shield, and a bayonet lug.  This weapon was incredibly efficient at the short ranges and congested corners of trench warfare, so much so that the Germans made diplomatic appeals under the Hague Convention to bar their use. You know, the same Germans that pioneered chemical warfare in the same conflict.  It’s interesting to note that European distaste for shotguns stayed with them well into World War 2, where the US (and Britain) fielded this same weapon once again, and the Nazis never formally adopted a single combat model.

On my restored piece here, you can see the unique action-slide that protrudes from the receiver when racking the action.  It is very functional, though it can play hell on the top of your hand if you don’t watch their placement.  The shells ride in the magazine tube under the barrel, and since this model precedes safety disconnects, it is possible to empty this tube via “slam-firing” — holding the trigger down while working the action.  Other than those features, though, the difference between it and a modern combat shotgun are impressively minimal.

While the 1897 would find itself in soldiers’ hands well into the 1970s, there have been many advances, including the rise of the semi-auto versions. The apex could be considered this magazine-fed Saiga 12, essentially an AK pattern shotgun.

But the pump-action has stayed extremely relevant, and none more so than the Remington 870 and the Mossberg 500 families.

This model is a Mossberg 500MILS, which is actually the first gun I bought for myself.  It’s been modernized a bit with newer Magpul furniture, but is still very much keeping to the specs of the military contract models.  It can hold seven shells in the tube, and an extra five on the side saddle. Like most shotguns, it can run a variety of projectiles, from buckshot to birdshot, to rifled slugs and even rubber and bean-bag rounds. The Mossberg family in particular exemplifies another paradox of shotguns — they can be had for a comparatively small price, despite a massive amount of versatility and effectiveness.

But what about the plastic versions?  Well, they’re not as common as the usual rifles and pistols, but there are some notable exceptions that definitely are needed in your collections.

Marvel Legends has offered up a few, first with the 870/500-style cruiser with pistol grip and a vertical foregrip.  A little on the small side, it’s still an easily attained version, packed with both of the ToyBiz Punisher/Jigsaw packs. More recently, Punisher and Scourge came with this curious similar short-barrel pump with a modular grip and adjustable stock, side saddle, vertical foregrip, and EOTech sight. This is probably also a 870, but the optional parts definitely dress it up. While very cool-looking, it is a bit unusual in terms of how practical it would actually be — a high end optic is one thing, but the short barrel really limits whatever gains in accuracy it could give.

NECA definitely racks up (bad pun) several more really nice versions, especially for their Resident Evil figures. And no one did better than Chris Redfield. The original game’s figure came with an excellent 870, which gets extra points for the stainless receiver. Resident Evil 5 Chris gets one that I think is an Ithaca 37, dressed up with a heat shield and rail pieces. It’s definitely one of the nicest modern shotguns you can get for your figures. Terminator figures got in the action, too, with the Winchester 1887 lever gun, an icon in its own right. Sarah Connor has another really well-done Remington 870, this time a police model with a top-folding stock.

Diamond Select did this very mean cruiser. Again, likely an old model Ithaca, based on the squared receiver. I think this was with Buffy’s Giles or Xander, but I honestly don’t remember.

 

And lastly, if you need something more old school, Mattel’s DC Classics offered up some nice coach guns with Jonah Hex and the Son of Batman figures.  DC Collectibles have done a few over the years as well, like this SPAS-12-style top-folder that came with Deathstroke.  New school?  I’ve always like the fictional models that came with the McFarlane Halo figures, and the new magazine-fed model that Mezco’s Judge Dredd came with is a fast favorite.

As for application?  Well, that’s the best part: Damn near anyone looks good with a scattergun.  Across just about any timeline, and in any subset, a good pump-action fits in naturally.  Hell, even the side-by-sides transcend well past their 19th century heyday.  Nobleman, soldier, superheroes, cops, civilians, bad guys, you name it.  The combat shotgun is a vital part in anyone’s armory, plastic or otherwise.