The Bolt Action Shotgun: An American Classic That’s Almost Dead

Double-barrel. Pump. Autoloader. Reading those words likely conjures specific images in your mind, all shotguns. Maybe you see the Remington 870 your dad bought you for your 12th birthday. Or your grandpa’s A5 leaning in a mudroom corner after a cold morning duck hunt. I see the over/under that kicked the hell out of me the first time I shot clays as a little boy. The popularity of these guns overshadows a once common piece of shotgunning history — the bolt action shotgun.

While other shotgun actions outperformed it in popularity and in sheer numbers manufactured and sold, the bolt action shotgun was a staple of mid-20th century America, the country where it was born. They were for sale just about everywhere, but its niche popularity has not carried over into the 21st century.

They gifted freedom to young hunters — with one barrel, they were lighter in the field than double-barrel break guns, and aiming was more precise for taking deer and turkeys, regardless of age. And they served as a medium-range rifle substitutes for hunters who lived under local laws that wouldn’t let them use the real thing in the field. And bolt shotties brought home plenty of meat for the freezer.

Bolt action shotguns first appeared in the 1930s, and a few are still made today. The questions are: What were they used for, and with all the affordable and reliable pumps and autoloaders, is there room or need for them in today’s gun market?

Bolt Action Shotguns: Uniquely American

When I say “Mossberg” you say…? Likely, “500.” O.F. Mossberg and Sons rose to widespread fame in the early 1960s when the gunmaker released the Mossberg Model 500 pump action shotgun, which became one of the most popular shotguns in the world that spawned several other popular platforms like the Model 590, 835 Ulti-Mag, and the Maverick 88 shotgun line. But 30 years before it debuted the Model 500, Mossberg made its first shotgun, which was also the first bolt action shotgun — the Mossberg G4 — in 1932.

The G4 was a single-shot .410 bore with a 2 1/2-inch chamber. Mossberg only produced the G4 in 1932, upgrading it to the Model 70 in 1933. The company went on making bolt action shotguns into the early 2000s — the 183 series likely being the most popular. Mossberg concluded production of bolt action shotguns with the Model 695, which it produced during the 1990s and discontinued in 2003.

Other popular manufacturers joined the party and made bolt action smoothbores for every application for which a shotgun is used. Stevens nearly trod in Mossberg’s boot prints, releasing the Model 58 in 1933. Stevens, and therefore Savage, marketed the Model 58/258 until 1981, chambering it in .410 bore, 16-, 20-, and 12-gauge.

Marlin produced the Model 55 starting in the 1950s. Throughout the years, Marlin manufactured Model 55 variants in 10-, 12-, 16-, and 20-gauge. The most famous Model 55 variant is the Goose Gun — a 12-gauge with a 36-inch, fully choked barrel and two-round detachable box magazine. Marlin went on to manufacture the Model 25MG in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The 25MG was designed to be a garden gun, to shoot .22 WMR snake shot for dispatching pests at close range.

Browning converted its A-bolt rifle action for use on shotguns. During the 1990s, Browning manufactured the A-bolt shotgun specifically designed for use with slug and sabot rounds for medium and large game hunting. Browning designed all A-bolt models with a 1:28 twist, a rifled barrel, and a three-inch chamber, plus a detachable box magazine. Browning discontinued the A-bolt shotty in 1998 but brought it back in 2011 and has since discontinued it again.

Throughout the decades, other major arms manufacturers in placed beyond the U.S., such as Lee-Enfield, produced bolt action shotguns. The question is, why did they all get into the game?

Why Go For a Bolt Action Shotgun?

“My first shotgun was a bolt action Mossberg.”

Don’t be surprised to hear that if you talk shotguns with an old-timer who grew up during the mid-20th century. Back then, pump guns and autoloaders were expensive. Bolt action shotguns, especially single-shot models, offered modest folks the chance to buy their boy a shotgun and still make their bills.

They were even more affordable than budget break guns. And department stores like Sears and Montgomery Ward carried them — under their own brand names like Sears’ Ted Williams Model 200, which was a rebranded Mossberg. That meant anyone in the country could buy one at their local department store or order one from a catalog and have it delivered right to their door, even in the remotest locations — at least until 1968 when mail-ordering firearms was banned.

Apart from availability and affordability, bolt action shotguns offered reliability and safety in a repeating shotgun, single-shots aside. The bolt typically functioned well and made chambering a round a simple and deliberate process that would carry over to rifle shooting.

Many models also featured a naturally ambidextrous tang safety, like Mossberg’s shotguns do today. Some would argue that it’s a desirable safety feature compared to a button safety placed in the trigger guard because it decreases the chances of grubby little fingers accidentally slipping the safety catch — but lefties appreciate it, or hunters who have to take an weak-side shot.

There’s also lore that bolt action shotguns were, at first, better suited to handle higher pressures from modern shotgun rounds than pump gun and autoloader models that were designed during the black powder era. The logic makes sense. Bolt action rifles evolved to shoot magnum rounds too powerful for lever actions or falling block rifles, and to this day are still regarded as the strongest rifle action. So it’s easy to understand why a fella would buy himself a Model 55 Goose Gun.

Slug Guns

Many bolt action shotgun models, especially the later ones like the Marlin 512 Slugmaster, were designed with deer hunting in mind.

Hunting rifles are traditionally off-limits to folks residing in high-population-density areas. A number of states banned centerfire rifles for hunting for the perceived danger, real or otherwise, of bullets that miss their target, travel too far and hit an unintended target. Hunters in these places had to rely on shotguns as venison getters for ranges beyond that of buckshot or smoothbores firing slugs, and so, the “slug gun” was born, mostly out of this necessity.

Deer hunters sought slugs and sabot rounds to feed their smoothbores that would give them additional range and penetration over buckshot, and ammo companies responed with purpose-built shotshells.

Bolt action shotguns with rifled barrels hit the scene along with ammo optimized for them. Putting all that together with a bolt action got about as much range and power as a hunter could out of 12-gauge and 20-gauge slugs and sabots.

A slug gun with a dialed scope could be accurate to 150 or even 200 yards — we’re not talking 1 MOA here, but accurate eough enough to take a buck over a cut cornfield. Many found 20-gauge slugs to be the right combination of power and accuracy in an overall lighter gun.

But in recent years, many states with such rifle restrictions have allowed the use of straight-wall cartridges and rifles, making the dedicated slug gun all but obsolete for most hunters.

Modern Bolt Action Shotguns

In 2023, many firearms manufacturers are out of the bolt action shotgun game; they started getting out 20 or 30 years ago. Pump actions and autoloaders have been affordable, reliable, and popular for decades. They’re easily modified and customized for various hunts — waterfowl, upland, turkey, and deer, and with modern actions and ammo, the difference in lockup strength versus a bolt gun is negilgable.

And as mentioned, straight-walled rifle cartridges have largely replaced slug guns for deer hunting. It was the perfect storm that pushed bolt action shotguns even further to the fringes of the firearms world. They weren’t selling, so makers like Browning and Mossberg couldn’t justify manufacturing them any longer. However, one iconic company has held on — Savage Arms.

Savage still manufactures its respected 212 (12-gauge) and 220 (20-gauge) bolt action shotguns, which both have stellar reputations for accuracy. Savage designed these guns for slug hunting and turkey hunting from the ground up. The two models, and the two purposes, combine to offer a hunter 16 total configurations. Besides the chambering and the barrel, these guns are set up like Savage rifles.

savage 212 — The Savage 212 bolt action shotgun setup as a turkey gun with a red dot optic.

The AccuTrigger system is standard on all models, so is an oversized bolt for an easy throw. Each barreled action is set in a synthetic rifle stock, and Savage fastens an accessory rail to every receiver. If you’re into getting a slug gun, or if your deer hunting options necessitate it, the Savage 212 and 220 are modern bolt action shotguns worth looking at.

Maybe you’re not into buying a brand-new bolt action shotgun. If you commit to searching, you’ll find Browning A-bolt shotguns, Marlin 512 Slugmasters, and other quality bolt action shotguns manufactured in the 1990s and 2000s. You’ll also come across some neat pieces of Americana that’ll cost you less than dinner and drinks — and in some cases, less than lunch.

But why? With all of the shotgun technology advancement and affordability, why would someone spend the dough on a bolt action shotgun?

Obsolete, But Still Cool

Bolt action shotguns started as an affordable and reliable alternative for folks who couldn’t buy a pump gun, an autoloader, or a fancy break action. They evolved to be serious deer killers for those in areas where rifle hunting was banned. Now, they’re obsolete for practical use. But they’re nostalgic pieces that keep Americana alive.

The truth is, there aren’t many practical reasons to buy a bolt action shotgun these days. Yes, the Savage bolt actions look good, function well, and are set up to deer hunt. But you can slap a slug barrel on your autoloader or pump turkey gun and shoot it accurately enough for most hunting scenarios. And mounting an optic on most turkey guns made in the past 20 years is no big deal.

Yeah a bolt acton is easier to operate in a blind, but not much easier than a pump, and an affordable semi-auto is easier than both.

If you live in an area that allows straight-wall cartridges, it’s hard to justify spending cash on a slug gun when you could get a .350 Legend rifle. It has better ballistics and won’t knock the hell out of your shoulder.

In 2023, a bolt action shotgun is simply not a practical purchase. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy one.

savage 220 — A Savage 220 bolt action shotgun with a rifled slug barrel and a scope set up as a whitetail killer. *NRA Pubs*

Imagine as a little boy the hypothetical old man who told you his first shotgun was a bolt action. Maybe it was a J.C. Higgins Sears Model 583. It’s Christmas, or his birthday, or the week before bird season, and his dad asks him to go grab a box out of the truck and bring it inside.

When he opens it, there sits a blued, walnut-stock symbol of freedom and adventure. From then on, he spends every Saturday stalking fields and woodlots with his best bud, a beagle named Benny. The boy misses a lot. But his heart soars when his mother’s face lights up at the squirrels and quail he’s brought home for the pot.

His pride swells even more when his dad walks into the kitchen and says, “Good job, son!” It’s like Norman Rockwell painted it on your mind’s eye.

“Freedom From Want” is Norman Rockwell’s most famous painting. You know it. It’s the one with grandma setting the turkey on the table while grandpa looks over her shoulder. The rest of the family smiles and chats.

turkey fan — Bolt action shotguns were favored gobbler getters among turkey hunters because of the extra velocity and accuracy they could wring from turkey loads before TSS came around. *Todd Bumgardner/Free Range American*

That print is for sale from the Norman Rockwell Museum for $55. Add a frame, and you’re up to $195. Many old Marlin and Mossberg bolt action shotguns are on the market for less than that. But you’d buy the shotgun and the print for the same reason: to own a piece of Americana.

I’d argue that it’s cooler to buy the gun. First, it’s a gun. Second, there’s a chance that a boy, now aged or gone from the world, shot his first bunny with it and stood there amazed with himself before running home to show his folks. You’d get to tell yourself that story every time you looked at the gun.

If I buy an old bolt action shotgun, and I plan to, I’ll lean it in the corner of the sitting room. And I’ll tell myself all kinds of stories about it. I’ll share them with anyone that looks over and asks, “What’s that funny old gun?”