I just saw the picture of the South African Neostead shotgun on another thread and it got me thinking. I remember seeing the gun several years ago and wondering if we would ever get them. Apparently they now exist (I think at the time they were under development) but are not imported. Does anyone know why they are not imported or produced here? Is it an import thing or some law I'm not aware of? Or is it just something no one has bothered to bring in? I would buy one if they were available.

Photos?

I believe Southern Ohio Gun had them a while back, but I am not sure if they are currently in stock.

Southern Ohio Gun had those weird looking shotguns that looked like UZIs that took minishells.  The picture of the neostead was in that thread about the ATF gun vault.  I'm not sure why it's not imported, probably because they find it unsporting.

I beleive it is because they are a non sporting firearm. That is the same reason we can`t get new Galils, FNCs, G36s, Swiss made SIG 550ws, etc. Dumbass politics!

This is a picture  http://www.securityarms.com/20010315/galleryfiles/1600/1636.htm


I thought about the non-sporting part but it's a pump, I thought that applied to semis only.

I saw the UZI-style pump SOG (Techno MAG-7) had, those were cool too but used unusual ammo (60mm 12G).

I was on the email info. list for this gun and followed it for a good while.  I believe there was talk at some time of Mossberg or someone like that producing them, but I think that fell through and they are pretty much vaporware.  Here is the last email I got from them (five years ago).  The website below still works, BTW, but has the same info. from years ago:

NS NEWSLETTER  No. 5   -   October 2001

In January 2001 we took the decision to manufacture the NS shotgun ourselves.

Since then we have concentrated on getting the NS into full production in South Africa, setting a target of October 2001.

It proved to be tough on our small team of dedicated workers but the end result is that we will be assembling guns this November 2001.

During assembly of the first 100 guns we will commence with exhaustive testing again. Although we have proved that the NS can dispense and chamber a variety of  12  gauge ammunition, we plan to test the NS using the widest possible assortment of cartridge types i.e. : slugs (Penetrator), more familiar SSG, SG (Buck Shot) and Bird Shot as well as Bean Bag, Rubber Pellet and Gas type crowd control ammunition.

The NS comprises 145 items before welding the receiver, magazine and sear link assemblies together. After welding the NS comprises 113 parts.

In order for the NS to be financially viable at least 1000 each of most components have been purchased. As a result we are handling close to 80000 parts to manufacture our first 100 guns.

Plastic injection moulded parts, investment castings, metal stampings, laser cut parts, special pins, standard pins, springs and finally the all important machined parts have been and are still arriving in their thousands. The logistics of sorting thousands of parts into the various assemblies has been daunting and very satisfying.

We will launch the NS shotgun to the public at the AIM SHOOTERS SHOW held at Kyalami, outside Johannesburg,  1 - 3 March 2002. Here we will demonstrate the versatility of the NS using a wide range of projectiles and thereby the NS shotguns instant adaptability to handle any situation.

We do not yet have a BATF classification, therefore we cannot market into the USA at this point in time.

Of utmost importance is that any sales that we do conduct with people in other countries must follow the legal and correct procedures. Anyone outside South Africa wishing to purchase an NS shotgun must ascertain the correct procedure to follow for importation into his country and we will have the necessary documentation for export from South Africa. Do please bear in mind that we may not be allowed to sell arms into certain countries.

To download a copy of the NS operating and maintenance manual go to :
users.iafrica.com/n/nj/njj741t/

Best regards,
Ann Stead

I guess that brings up the point: Did the Neostead ever go into production or did it die? Maybe the pictures are just experimental models.

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Quoted: Southern Ohio Gun had those weird looking shotguns that looked like UZIs that took minishells.  The picture of the neostead was in that thread about the ATF gun vault.  I'm not sure why it's not imported, probably because they find it unsportingYou are right, Southern Ohio Gun had the Mag-7 for sale not the Neostead.  My mistake.

I`d buy a Neostead

There probably won't be any Neostead but Halo mfg is going to be coming out with a 20 round (uses magazine that looks like p90 magazine) bullpup pump shotgun.

The Neostead is an interesting shotgun from the import perspective. it's a manually-operated shotgun, not a semi-auto.  It's 26" OAL, so it exactly meets the Title I minimum.  It has a 20" barrel despite the extremely short OAL, 2 inches above Title I minimum for shotguns. The magazine capacity is the only technical sticky point and the magazine capacity could be modified for importation, but despite all these favorable traits, fatally it fails "sporting purpose" so it won't be coming in.  Company sales and marketing literature also plays a part in this determination and the Truvelo marketing team failed to take photos of a duck hunter using the Neostead.

While it certainly looks cool, the gun is woefully lacking. It's VERY heavy and VERY fragile.  The plastic stocks are extremely flimsy and will shatter completely if the gun is dropped or knocked sharply.  The sight radius is so short that it can't really be used for anything fartehr than 10 yards. Also, the gun can be easily short-cycled and jam up completely requiring a full disassmble to clear. All that weight made it a very smooth, low-recoiling shooter though.  Definitely a range gun, not something for serious use.