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Posted: 9/23/2007 10:40:53 PM EDT
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I have the opportunity to pick up a used Mossburg 500 with a very low round count at a pretty cheap price. The only thing I'm concerned with is the the barrel has been "altered". What is the legal, minium lenght for a shotgun barrel? Doc |
Yes, but if it is shorter I would have the person you are buying it from remove and dispose of the shorter than 18" barrel. By buying a gun with a less than 18" barrel you are illegally in possession of a short barreled shotgun(SBS) and subject to jail. |
The new barrels cost as much as I can buy new guns at a discount store for  Take a measuring tape and a 3/8"X36" wooden dowl with you when you to look at it. With empty chamber, close the action, put the dowl down the barrel till it touches the bolt face, now mark the dowl with a pen/pencil right at the edge of the muzzle, pull it out and measure from the end to the mark. That is how an ATF agent (who knows what he is doing ) would do it. It should be about 18.5, or 18.25", you DO NOT want to be right at 18 because there is zero room for eror!Personally, I wouldn't even want my prints on it if it is shorter. Altering a barrel within legal range is fine though, I've cut down 4 barrels myself, 1 yesterday  all work fine. (all well past 18")
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Thanks for the advice. The guy that has it said he thought he cut it to 16" but, I'm not sure where he was measuring from. I shoved a tape in the end and it comes up at 18" to the bolt face but, I'm not sure that maybe I didn't have the tape "seated." (This was just a quick "lets throw it together and see how much too short it is" measurement) He does have a full length barrel that I would also be getting if I buy this so either way, all is not lost. Does anybody make any kind of a muzzle device that could be added to the end? This gun has a very low round count but, it has been stored in a non-climate controlled gun safe in the basement and both barrels show a small amount of rust on the outside of the barrels from oily hand prints but, the bores looks clean. Can someone give me a ballpark value for this gun? I can buy a brand new, in the box Mossburg 500 for $299.00 from my local FFL dealer so, I really don't want to get taken on this deal...... if I go through with it. I could always seal the questionable barrel in a length of PVC pipe and bury it on some private, wooded property just for a Red Dawn occasion.  Doc |
Look harder. A new Mossberg 500A 18.5" riot barrel costs $60.
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